Greetings to you all greatly beloved of God and welcome to another episode of our daily study of the Scriptures. We bless the name of the Lord God for the gift of life and for His benefits on us each new day. Praise be to God!
In our today’s episode 587, we shall be examining Hosea Chapter 4 titled:
You Need To See How Hosea Blasts Israel Leaders For Their Wickedness
In this chapter, it’s obvious Hosea had decided not to speak figuratively or using symbols. He went straight to the real culprits and addressed them in plain language.
Who were they and what were their offences?
The beginning of chapter 4 enumerates various carnages being committed by the religious leaders of Israel at that time. To really describe how terrible and criminal in nature their sins were, the writer chose his word carefully by using a legal term which in Hebrew transliteration is called:
rîyb rib
Pronounced as /reeb/
And it means legal case in the court of law, strife, controversy, dispute, or accusation.
So, what were they doing that were not spiritually and legally acceptable?
Hosea 4:1-3 provides us with the list:
There is no faithfulness or love in the land.
They do not acknowledge God as their God, instead they were following other gods (emphasis on that from verse 11ff).
They failed to keep their promises to God.
They were lying, committing murder, stealing, and committing adultery back to back.
They have become spiritually dead.
These acts of wickedness were flowing down from the leaders to their followers with nobody to put them in check. Hence, the reason the religious leaders were held accountable as shown in verse 4.
Prophet Hosea says: “Let no one accuse the people or reprimand them—my complaint is against you priests.
Also read Isaiah 1:18; Jeremiah 22:16, 25:31; and Micah 6:2; 2 Kings 15:8–16, 25; Micah 7:2.
Consequent upon these evil acts, they ended up opening the door for the enemies to attack them unexpectedly. Read Jer. 6:4, 5; and Jer. 15:8).
Then Hosea said something that is worthy of note in verse 6:
My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me; Because you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.
Please note that old testament prophets are fond of putting forth their messages in the form of God speaking to the people. Many prophets of our dispensation are doing this too, probably to make people believe them more or to create fear in the heart of people lased with the “hush hush” mentality. As a result, no one dare challenged their messages.
However, looking at the statement in verse 6 critically, you will discover that it is a statement of fact, whether Hosea attached God’s name to it or not.
The truth is whoever stops seeking the right knowledge on any subject matter is liable to perish in the valley of ignorance. It’s one the universal principles that help people to find the true expression of their real self.
For believers, we seek the knowledge of God and his purpose for our lives on earth. We seek to know God the more and to know who we are in Christ. As a matter of facts, the Bible says we should seek, and we shall find…Matt 7:7
Normally, when the Israelites were still very much on the Lord’s side and sin has not taken deep root in the world as we have now, it was their custom to pass on the knowledge of God from one generation to the next and that’s why God was able to vouch for Abraham to the point that it was impossible for God to do anything without revealing it to him.
Why? Because God says He knew that Abraham would teach his children the knowledge of God. See what was said concerning him here:
Gen 18: 19 For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment; that the Lord may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him.
Hence, the reason Abraham became so great and his household became a mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth became blessed through him. Remember, through his lineage, the Messiah came forth into the world and the whole world, through Him, became spiritually blessed.
Now, God made his promises to Abraham and to his descendant. The scripture does not use the plural “descendants”, meaning many people, but the singular “descendant”, meaning one person only, namely, Christ. Read Gal 3:16
In order words, Abraham’s blessing that we sing as song was the spiritual blessing we received through Christ and this was made possible because Abraham never stopped teaching his descendants the knowledge of God.
But what about material blessings? Don’t we get blessed too materially through Abraham?
The truth is, if you want material blessings like Abraham had, go, and work or do business. Afterall, Abraham was a merchant of Gold and Silver and even cattle.
The Israelites, during the dispensation of Hosea ministry, refused to acknowledge God as their God. They refused to teach the people the truth of the Word of God and therefore failed woefully in accessing the blessings of God.
It’s obvious their level of ignorance was deliberate. The Word was readily available. The blessings attached to it were readily available as well. All they needed do was to access them, but they chose not to. Rather, they opted for hand-made images or idols. Some were even worshipping animals. Hence, the reason for the destruction they faced. Read the message of Apostle Paul in Romans 1:23 and also Phil 3:19
The destruction was alarming to the point that those leaders were deprived of occupying their priesthood position and their children too, who ordinarily should have taken over the mantle of leadership were set aside.
Majority of the evils happening in the world today came because of consequences of man’s evil actions in committing various wicked acts. Reading Romans 1:18-32 will give you a clue of what Prophet Hosea was talking about in the remaining verses of Chapter 4.
What is the way forward?
Let’s go back to the basics and start teaching our children the truth of God’s Word. Let’s bring them up in the knowledge of God as they are also exploring their chosen career in life. Knowing God personally will prevent them from falling victim of satanic traps set along the way, in their life journey.
Let’s close with this:
Learn what I teach you, my child, and never forget what I tell you to do. 2 Listen to what is wise and try to understand it. 3 Yes, beg for knowledge; plead for insight. 4 Look for it as hard as you would for silver or some hidden treasure. 5 If you do, you will know what it means to fear the LORD and you will succeed in learning about God. 6It is the LORD who gives wisdom; from him come knowledge and understanding. 7 He provides help and protection for those who are righteous and honest. 8 He protects those who treat others fairly, and guards those who are devoted to him. Proverbs 2:1-5
And this:
14 But as for you, continue in the truths that you were taught and firmly believe. You know who your teachers were, 15 and you remember that ever since you were a child, you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
To be continued…stay tuned and stay blessed.
Let’s pray:
I pray for all parents and parents-to-be that are reading this message, I declare your children will not be wayward. They shall be taught the way of the Lord and peace shall abound in their lives and in your home, in Jesus name.
I declare the Word of God will continue to grow deeper in your heart as you study it, in Jesus name.
I want to also pray with those looking up to God for the fruit of the womb or probably you are standing in the gap for someone, I declare by the authority in God’s Word that those wombs are opened right now for miraculous conception and after nine months, you will surely testify, in Jesus name.
Those looking up to God for their significant other, the Lord God is coordinating circumstances in your favour to meet that person now, in Jesus name.
Bible Readings For Today: Ezekiel Chapters 46, 47 & 48 with Psalm 135
I call you blessed now and always.
Monday November 09, 2020 (DDMI)
