Historical and Political Setting of Hosea
The dating of the prophecies of Hosea is fairly well defined by the introduction of the book (1:1), which refers to activities from Jeroboam II of Israel (Hosea seems to refer to the turbulence in the north which followed his death in 747 BC) until Hezekiah (probably a reference to his coregency with Ahaz, which began in about 727. Thus they span the period of decline in the north to shortly before its exile, which Hosea anticipates but does not mention.
Structure of Hosea
1-3 Israel, the unfaithful wife
4-14 The spiritual state of Israel
4-12 The present covenant breach
13-14 The prospects of Israel’s future
Theme of Hosea
- It is a recall to Israel’s beginnings and to covenant fidelity.
- The dominant motifs in Hosea are bound up with the land, its gifts, its productivity, and yet its misuse. What ought to have been the good life in the land is the essential theme of the book.
The Message of Hosea
A. The Unfaithful Wife (Hos 1-3)
B. Covenant Breach (4-12)
C. Covenant Renewal (13-14)
Covenant Breach (Hos 4-12)
- The Covenant RIB “lawsuit” (4:1-3). God finds no: “Faithfulness,” “Steadfast love,” “Knowledge of God”
- The defective priesthood (4:4-7:2).
- The defective monarchy and political system (7:3-12:14)
a. Israel’s own defective monarchy (7:3-10:15).
b. Reflection on the Exodus and Yahweh’s Faithfulness (11:1-11) (Therefore, the eschatological exodus in Hosea involves the people of Israel, embodied by the King, coming out of Egypt and both of these exoduses, the one of the people and the other of the King are anticipated in the book of Numbers (23 and 24). The eschatalogical exodus)
c. Reproach against Israel’s Foreign Alliances (11:12-12:14)
Hosea 11:1
Very important to the gospel of Matthew, which described Jesus’ flight to Egypt and subsequent return to the Land. Perceived problem for interpreters because
(1) Hosea 11:1 is direct reflection, while Matthew appeals to it as predictive prophecy. (2) What Hosea attributes to the nation, Matthew attributes to the individual. (3) Hos 11:1 is cited when Jesus and the Holy Family go into Egypt and not when they come out of Egypt.
But: (1) Hosea picked up previous narrative traditions and used them in a way to explain current and future events. Matthew is now using Hosea in the same way in his description of Jesus’ exodus out of Egypt. (2) The second objection is removed once we remember that the King embodies his people. Matthew portrays Jesus as the Davidic King who underwent the exodus out of Egypt for his people. (3) Matthew cites Hosea 11:1 when Jesus goes into Egypt not to show that Israel is a new Egypt, but to show that Jesus, as a New Israel, is undergoing the eschatological return to Egypt and subsequent new exodus.
Conclusion of Hosea
In light of God’s marvelous faithfulness and grace shown in Jesus Christ’s new covenant, how is our faithfulness, steadfast love, and knowledge of God?
If Hosea were going to engage in a covenant lawsuit against the church, what might he include?
