Hosea 11
About HoseaWritten by AI
Hosea is the first of the twelve shorter prophets, sometimes called the Minor Prophets because the books are short, not because they matter less. Hosea preached in the northern kingdom of Israel in the 700s BC, in its last decades before Assyria swept it away. Kings came and went quickly, and the people mixed the worship of the LORD with the worship of Baal.
The book's picture is a marriage. God tells Hosea to marry Gomer, who will be unfaithful, and Hosea's heartbreak becomes a living sermon about Israel turning from God. Readers have long asked whether this was a literal marriage or a story told to make the point; most take it as real, and either way the pain is real.
Watch how quickly the book swings between judgment and tenderness. God is wounded, not merely angry, and He keeps coming back. The last word is an invitation to return and a promise: “I will freely love them.”
Before you read Hosea 11Written by AI
One of the most tender chapters in the prophets. God remembers Israel as a child He loved, called out of Egypt, taught to walk, and held in His arms. Matthew applies 11:1 to Jesus. Then comes God's cry of heart: “How could I give you up, O Ephraim?”
Out of Egypt I Called My Son
When Israel was a child, I loved him,
and out of Egypt I called My son.
But the more I called Israel,
the farther they departed from Me.
They sacrificed to the Baals
and burned incense to carved images.
It was I who taught Ephraim to walk,
taking them by the arms,
but they never realized
that it was I who healed them.
I led them with cords of kindness,
with ropes of love;
I lifted the yoke from their necks
and bent down to feed them.
Will they not return to the land of Egypt
and be ruled by Assyria
because they refused to repent?
A sword will flash through their cities;
it will destroy the bars of their gates
and consume them in their own plans.
My people are bent on turning from Me.
Though they call to the Most High,
He will by no means exalt them.
God’s Love for Israel
How could I give you up, O Ephraim?
How could I surrender you, O Israel?
How could I make you like Admah?
How could I treat you like Zeboiim?
My heart is turned within Me;
My compassion is stirred!
I will not execute the full fury of My anger;
I will not destroy Ephraim again.
For I am God and not man—
the Holy One among you—
and I will not come in wrath.
They will walk after the LORD;
He will roar like a lion.
When He roars,
His children will come trembling from the west.
They will come trembling like birds from Egypt
and like doves from the land of Assyria.
Then I will settle them in their homes,
declares the LORD.
Ephraim surrounds Me with lies,
the house of Israel with deceit;
but Judah still walks with God
and is faithful to the Holy One.