Hosea
Origin of Title : Variant transcription of Hoshe'a (see HOSHEA). From the Hebrew name ‫( ַ ֵׁעשֹוה‬Hoshe'a) meaning
"salvation". In the Old Testament, Moses gave the spy Hoshea the new name Yehoshu'a (see JOSHUA), which has a
related origin. This name was also borne by an 8th-century BC king of Israel, who was the last ruler of that state
before it was conquered by Assyria.
Author: Hosea, the son of Beeri, Hosea 1:1 identifies the author of the book as the Prophet Hosea. It is Hosea’s
personal account of his prophetic messages to the children of God and to the world. Hosea is the only prophet of
Israel who left any written prophecies which were recorded during the later years of his life.
Audience: Hosea, like Amos, addressed the Northern Kingdom of Israel primarily. Their contemporaries, who
were Isaiah and Micah, ministered primarily to the Southern Kingdom of Judah. Some scholars believe that
Amos preceded Hosea slightly.10 But this seems impossible to prove conclusively since we have so little
information about exactly when these prophets wrote. Hosea's purpose was to announce that because the nation
had broken Yahweh's covenant (the Mosaic Covenant), judgment was coming (cf. Deut.28:15-68). His purpose
was, therefore, similar to Jeremiah's in that both prophets announced and witnessed the downfall of their
respective nations. One writer referred to Hosea as the Jeremiah of Israel. 11 The people needed to repent and
return to the Lord and His covenant. If they did, they might avoid His judgment. However, the prophet
announced that the nation as a whole would not repent, though individuals could, so judgment was coming.
Hosea also reaffirmed God's promise to bless His people Israel eventually, in the distant future (cf. Deut. 30:110). While Hosea's audience was primarily the people of the Northern Kingdom, he also uttered warnings to the
people of the Southern Kingdom (Judah). Judah was falling into the same sins as Israel, and Hosea did not
hesitate to warn the people of the Southern Kingdom of the consequences of their actions.
"Understanding the message of the book of Hosea depends upon understanding the Sinai covenant. The book
contains a series of blessings and curses announced for Israel by God through Hosea. Each blessing or curse is
based upon a corresponding type in the Mosaic law."12
Literary Genre: Prophetic Books (History) of the 12 Minor Prophets
Dates: prophesied for quite some time, from 785 to 725 B.C. The Book of Hosea was likely written between 755
and 725 B.C.
# of chapters: 14
Popular Scriptures: In my experience, apart from a few cookie cutter verses taken from Hosea, such
as “my people are destroyed for a lack of knowledge” (Hosea 4:6) or “I called my
son out of Egypt” (Hosea 11:1),
Major Divisions:
1) the adulterous wife and the faithful husband (1:1–3:5), and
2) adulterous Israel and the faithful Lord (4:1–14:9).
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
Hosea began ministering near the end of an era of great material prosperity and military
success for both Israel and Judah (cf. 2 Kings 14:25-28; 2 Chron. 26:2, 6-15). In the first
half of the eighth-century B.C., Assyrian influence in the west had declined temporarily,
allowing both Jeroboam II and Uzziah to flourish. However, under Tiglath-Pileser III
(745-727 B.C.), Assyria began to grow stronger and to expand westward again. In 734
B.C. the Northern Kingdom became a puppet nation within the Assyrian Empire (2 Kings
15:29). After Israel tried to revolt, Assyria defeated Samaria, the capital of the Northern
Kingdom, in 722 B.C., and deported the people of Israel into captivity (2 Kings 17:1-6;
18:10-12). Judah also became a vassal state in the Assyrian Empire during Hosea's
ministry (2 Kings 16:5-10).
Hosea's prophecy reflects conditions of economic prosperity, religious formalism and
apostasy, and political stability that marked Jeroboam
HOSEA/GOMER vs. GOD/US
Hosea
Origin of Title :
Author:
Audience:
Literary Genre:
Dates:
# of chapters:
Popular Scriptures:
Major Divisions:
Historical Background
The SCORECARD
Hosea/Gomer
GOD/US