HOSEA LESSON 5


     We will begin this lesson in Hosea 5:1 "Hear ye this, O priests;
and hearken, ye house of Israel; and give ye ear, O house of the king;
for judgment [is] toward you, because ye have been a snare on Mizpah,
and a net spread upon Tabor."

     This is speaking of this judgement being not just on the people,
but the king, as well. The sin in the land was so great, it had even
reached the priests. Places that had been a great advantage to them,
like Mizpah and Tabor, had now been converted into places to worship
false gods.

     Hosea 5:2 "And the revolters are profound to make slaughter,
though I [have been] a rebuker of them all."

     It appears, there was much opposition to going up to Jerusalem to
worship. There were people, who had revolted against God, lying in
wait to kill them, as they passed by Tabor and Mizpah.

     Hosea 5:3 "I know Ephraim, and Israel is not hid from me: for
now, O Ephraim, thou committest whoredom, [and] Israel is defiled."

     Ephraim was the most prominent of the tribes of Israel. Just as
many times, Judah was spoken of as both the tribe of Judah and
Benjamin, and other times was separated out, so is Ephraim. It
appears, Ephraim was even more idolatrous than the other tribes.  They
had received the right hand blessing, so perhaps, they were, also,
more responsible.

     Hosea 5:4 "They will not frame their doings to turn unto their
God: for the spirit of whoredoms [is] in the midst of them, and they
have not known the LORD."

     We see, in this verse, not only were they practicing idolatry,
but they had the spirit of idolatry, as well. They have turned their
will over to evil, instead of to God. Plain and simply, they have
fallen in love with false gods, and left the One True God.

     Hosea 5:5 "And the pride of Israel doth testify to his face:
therefore shall Israel and Ephraim fall in their iniquity; Judah also
shall fall with them."

     God had blessed Israel and Judah above other nations. Instead of
this humbling them, they had become very proud, and thought themselves
better than others. They had become so proud, they believed they could
do anything, and God would still bless them. They had brazenly
worshipped false gods. They thought they were above sin.

     Hosea 5:6 "They shall go with their flocks and with their herds
to seek the LORD; but they shall not find [him]; he hath withdrawn
himself from them."

     All of the sacrifices they would make now, would be totally
unacceptable to God. God warned them of the danger of worshipping
false gods, and they had not taken heed. Now, it is too late.

     Hosea 5:7 "They have dealt treacherously against the LORD: for
they have begotten strange children: now shall a month devour them
with their portions."

     God had forbidden His people to marry the heathen people around
them. This is, possibly, where they picked up their practice of
worshipping false gods. This could, also, be speaking of their
unfaithfulness to God, and then their children being unfaithful to
God. The fact that a month is mentioned, here, could be telling them
that it would be just a short time, until the enemy would come and
overcome them. Note, God has to allow this to happen. They could not
attack God's people without God's permission.

     Hosea 5:8 "Blow ye the cornet in Gibeah, [and] the trumpet in
Ramah: cry aloud [at] Beth-aven, after thee, O Benjamin."

     These places mentioned are the line of attack. It shows the
progression of the battle. The cornet was an instrument that could be
heard from great distance, and the silver trumpet was blown to call
the people to battle. Beth-haven was a place near, and the trumpet
could be heard by Benjamin.

     Hosea 5:9 "Ephraim shall be desolate in the day of rebuke: among
the tribes of Israel have I made known that which shall surely be."

     This just speaks of the surety of the coming battle and their
captivity. God has given them ample warning, and they have not taken
heed.

     Hosea 5:10 "The princes of Judah were like them that remove the
bound: [therefore] I will pour out my wrath upon them like water."

     This is speaking of a time when God's fury has come up in His
face, and He has poured His wrath on His unfaithful. It appears, they
had moved the landmarks, that God had strictly forbidden them move.
This automatically brings judgement from God.

     Hosea 5:11 "Ephraim [is] oppressed [and] broken in judgment,
because he willingly walked after the commandment."

     God allowed Ephraim to be oppressed and broken by his neighbors,
as judgement from God for his unfaithfulness to God.

     Hosea 5:12 "Therefore [will] I [be] unto Ephraim as a moth, and
to the house of Judah as rottenness."

     A garment riddled by a moth is ruined. The moth eats away at the
material, until it is of no use. "Rottenness" speaks of decay from
within. For a long time, Judah's rottenness will not show. This is
saying, their destruction will not come instantaneously, but will be
progressive, until they are destroyed. We certainly know this to be
true with Judah, because Babylon took many years to totally destroy
them.

     Hosea 5:13 "When Ephraim saw his sickness, and Judah [saw] his
wound, then went Ephraim to the Assyrian, and sent to king Jareb: yet
could he not heal you, nor cure you of your wound."

     It appears, from the verse above, that Ephraim and Judah became
aware they had a problem. The sad thing was that Ephraim did not go to
God with the problem, but went to the Assyrians. They, both, were not
willing to admit that their problem, was because of their worship of
false gods. The world has no answers to problems then, or now. The
worldly king Jareb was no help at all.

     Hosea 5:14 "For I [will be] unto Ephraim as a lion, and as a
young lion to the house of Judah: I, [even] I, will tear and go away;
I will take away, and none shall rescue [him]."

     The destruction of Ephraim is actually a little worse than the
destruction of Judah. Perhaps, that is why God speaks of Himself as
being as a lion to Ephraim, and a young lion to Judah. The young lion
would not do as much damage as the lion.  Notice, God tells them of
the many battles that will take place, when He says, He will "tear and
go away". This is a judgement of God, and no one will be able to stop
it.

     Hosea 5:15  "I will go [and] return to my place, till they
acknowledge their offence, and seek my face: in their affliction they
will seek me early."

     This speaks of the time being extended for their captivity. The
lion tears at its victim, and then carries it away. The lion then goes
to his den and rests. This is, also, what this is speaking of here.
God will allow all of these terrible things to happen to them. He will
not intervene and stop it, as He has in the past. It is such a shame
that they have to be in such destitute condition, before they reach
out to God. The captivity is to cause them to repent and turn back to
God.  God will not seek them. They must seek Him. Because of the great
affliction, they will seek God sooner than they would, had they not
suffered so greatly.













                          Hosea 5 Questions


1.  Who is verse 1 addressed to?
2.  Name two places, that they had turned into places to worship false
    gods.
3.  What were the revolters opposed to?
4.  Why is Ephraim spoken of separately from Israel?
5.  Why was it even worse for Ephraim to stray from God?
6.  What had they done, that was even worse than practicing idolatry?
7.  The ________ of Israel doth testify to his face.
8.  What effect should it have had on Ephraim and Judah, when God
    blessed them above others?
9.  They thought they were above ______.
10. What effect would their sacrifices have on their relationship to
    God?
11. Who had God forbidden them to marry?
12. What does the mention of a month, in verse 7, indicate?
13. Blow ye the _________ at Gibeah.
14. What instrument was blown to call them to war?
15. What does verse 9 speak of?
16. Why was God so angry with them in verse 10?
17. The oppression by Ephraim's neighbors was for what?
18. God will be to Ephraim as a ________.
19. He would be to the house of Judah as ___________.
20. Who did Ephraim seek help from, when he saw his sickness?
21. Was he any help?
22. What was the difference in the destruction of Ephraim and Judah?
23. What does the statement "tear and go away" mean?
24. Where does God go, when all of this is happening?
25. When will God help them?