Hosea 04 (Contemporary English Version)
- Israel, listen as the LORD accuses everyone in the land! No one is faithful or loyal or truly cares about God.
- Cursing, dishonesty, murder, robbery, unfaithfulness-- these happen all the time. Violence is everywhere.
- And so your land is a desert. Every living creature is dying-- people and wild animals, birds and fish.
- Don't accuse just anyone! Not everyone is at fault. My case is against you, the priests.
- You and the prophets will stumble day and night; I'll silence your mothers.
- You priests have rejected me, and my people are destroyed by refusing to obey. Now I'll reject you and forget your children, because you have forgotten my Law.
- By adding more of you priests, you multiply the number of people who sin. Now I'll change your pride into shame.
- You encourage others to sin, so you can stuff yourselves on their sin offerings.
- That's why I will punish the people for their deeds, just as I will punish you priests.
- Their food won't satisfy, and having sex at pagan shrines won't produce children. My people have rebelled
- and have been unfaithful to me, their LORD. My people, you are foolish because of too much pleasure and too much wine.
- You expect wooden idols and other objects of wood to give you advice. Lusting for sex at pagan shrines has made you unfaithful to me, your God.
- You offer sacrifices on mountaintops and hills, under oak trees, and wherever good shade is found. Your own daughters and daughters-in-law sell themselves for sex.
- But I won't punish them. You men are to blame, because you go to prostitutes and offer sacrifices with them at pagan shrines. Your own foolishness will lead to your ruin.
- Israel, you are unfaithful, but don't lead Judah to sin. Stop worshiping at Gilgal or at sinful Bethel. And quit making promises in my name-- the name of the living LORD.
- You are nothing more than a stubborn cow-- so stubborn that I, the LORD, cannot feed you like lambs in an open pasture.
- You people of Israel are charmed by idols. Leave them alone!
- You get drunk, then sleep with prostitutes; you would rather be vulgar than lead a decent life.
- And so you will be swept away in a whirlwind for sacrificing to idols.
The first three verses outline Israel's breach of covenant, first stating the cause of this breach: there is no truth, no faithful love, and no knowledge of God in the land. Since God defines truth, once one separates themselves from God they are also separating themselves from truth. Like falling dominoes, once our relationship with God topples everything else topples one by one. Verse 2 lists some of their breaches of the covenant as it is defined in what we know as the Ten Commandments. They were cursing, lying, murdering, stealing, and committing adultery. And one act of bloodshed followed another. Notice, then, in verse 3 the effects of their sins upon everything else. It says, "the land mourns, and everyone who lives in it languishes, along with the wild animals and the birds of the sky; even the fish of the sea disappear." In our environment conscious society of today, the leading environmentalists would never imagine that our relationship with God has an effect on the environment.
Though the people are not innocent before God, His main case is against the priests and prophets - those responsible for teaching the people and pointing them to God. Why was there no knowledge of God in the land? Because these leaders had rejected such knowledge, thus bringing about the destruction of the people. Since they had not fulfilled their responsibility and had rejected knowledge of God, God was going to reject them as priests and also reject their sons from inheriting their positions. Verse 7 says that the more the sons of the priests multiplied, the more they sinned. The priesthood was an inherited position assigned to the family of Aaron. Apparently, their effectiveness in teaching the people and pointing them to God was diluted more with each passing generation, leading to the current situation.
Two judgments against the priests mentioned in verse 10 are directly related to their sin. Verse 9 says they fed on the sins of the people. The more the people sinned the more the priests could encourage them to bring offerings of which they received a portion. It was profitable for the priests not to teach the people so they did not turn from sinning. But as a result of their sin, the priests would eat but not be satisfied. Drought would erode their source of food. They would also be promiscuous but not multiply. Promiscuity in this case refers to their going after other gods. Neither would this bring any satisfaction.
Beginning with verse 11 the people's guilt is addressed. Israel's pursuit of other gods had led the people to literal prostitution in the name of religion. Besides seeking guidance from wooden idols they engaged in sexual rites intended to ensure fertility both in their ability to have children and also in having productive crops and livestock. They had no discernment in these matters and verse 14 points out that, "People without discernment are doomed." The people had become obstinate in following these practices not wanting to hear anything that would turn them away from them. Therefore, "A wind with its wings will carry them off, and they will be ashamed of their sacrifices."
Often, the strongest judgment God can bring upon any of us is to simply leave us alone and let our sin do its destructive work. If left to our own devises, we will eventually self-destruct.
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