Hosea 3:1–5 (ESV) —
1 And the Lord said to me, “Go again, love a woman who is loved by
another man and is an adulteress, even as the Lord loves the children of
Israel, though they turn to other gods and love cakes of raisins.” 2 So I bought her for fifteen shekels of silver and a homer and a
lethech of barley. 3 And I said to her, “You must dwell as mine for many
days. You shall not play the whore, or belong to another man; so will I also be
to you.” 4 For the children of Israel shall dwell many days
without king or prince, without sacrifice or pillar, without ephod or household
gods. 5 Afterward the children of Israel shall return and
seek the Lord their God, and David their king, and they shall come in fear to
the Lord and to his goodness in the latter days.
NOTE: Apparently,
Gomer left Hosea and then sold herself into slavery. Hosea buys his wife back
and takes her into his house. The story is an ugly story. It is very painful to
consider. I will assume that Gomer was remorseful. I'm sure being a slave was not
a good experience. And it was hard for Hosea as well. He must have asked questions
like, "does she love me?" and "will she run away again?"
and "how can I forgive her?" These are the feelings of God toward a
people he had called special and yet did not treat him special. Even today, in
the church, with the Holy Spirit abiding in us, do we treat our relationship
with God as special? Is it special? Do we yearn to meet with God in the
morning? Do we yearn to hear his voice? Are we in love with our savior? Or do
we go through the motions and act in a religious manner without any heart for
our savior?
PRAYER: Father, I do
look forward to these mornings. I yearn to hear you speak. I am excited about
what you will say. But I also forget during the day and I get caught up in the
things that are not important. I forget to trust. I forget that you earnestly
love me and are working in my life. I see someone I love do stupid things and I
forget your love. Forgive me for my lack of trust. Forgive for not pursuing you
in prayer more.
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