According to the Associated Press, the little Syrian village of Maaloula is one of the only places on earth where people still speak Aramaic, the language of Jesus. Like languages, nations also go extinct, and the northern kingdom of Israel is one example. Hosea lived in the last decades of the kingdom. The specific realities that the people were experiencing — their government, their places of worship, their homes, and their ways of life — would soon cease to exist. In Hosea 4–5, the prophet gives us God’s perspective of what was happening and why.
The first reason that God was sending His judgment on the northern kingdom is because the people were spurning the Lord’s commandments. Their lives did not exhibit faithfulness, steadfast love, or knowledge of God. Hosea then describes behavior that broke five of the Ten Commandments: “swearing [taking God’s name in vain], lying, murder, stealing, and committing adultery” (Hosea 4:2, ESV).
The second reason the nation was about to become extinct was because the leaders failed — especially the priests. They refused to teach and follow God’s law (Hosea 4:4, 6), and, although no Old Testament priest exists today, this principle remains under the new covenant (James 3:1). God doesn’t hold His shepherds accountable for being innovative or popular; they are responsible for carrying out His Word.
Idolatry was a third major problem. The idolatry was the spiritual adultery that Hosea so poignantly described and experienced in the first three chapters of this book (4:12–19). One way in which Hosea subtly communicates this truth is in the way he calls the city of Bethel “Beth-Aven.” Jeroboam, the first king of Israel, had set up a golden calf that remained (Hosea 4:15, 5:8; 1 Kings 12:28–30). Bethel means “house of God”; Beth-Aven means “house of wickedness.”
Despite the disobedience, hypocritical leaders and idolatry, the northern Israelites still worshiped and offered sacrifices to God. They appeared to seek the Lord (Hosea 5:6), but their arrogance and their actions resulted in His departure (5:4–5). First, Judah would attack Israel from the south (Gibeah, Ramah, and Beth-Aven in 5:8), and then Assyria would dismantle them. The sad irony is that they had looked to Assyria to save them (5:13). Political strength is no cure for spiritual brokenness.
What does this situation mean for us? We can find two ways of encouragement but one warning. First, condemnation wasn’t the last word for Israel. Their situation did not need to remain permanent. They simply needed to admit their guilt before seeking God (Hosea 5:15). We may be fleeing God, but admitting our guilt and seeking Him through Christ can still be an option. Second, Hosea describes the people of God before the Spirit came at Pentecost. They were very much in a position similar to what Paul describes: “Wretched man that I am!” (Rom. 7:24). Yet we in Christ have the ability to be in a different situation if we live our lives by the Spirit (Rom. 8:4).