He went to god and god told him to do a strange thing. The prophet hosea has great courage and in spite of the humiliation he suffered because of his wife gomers adultery. The story of gomer has been performed across the nation, reaching thousands of people with the message of gods faithfulness and love. When the lord first spoke through hosea, the lord said to hosea, go, take to yourself a wife of harlotry and have children of harlotry. Aug 12, 2019 hosea receives an unusual instruction from god. Maybe she had responded to the spiritfilled ministry of hosea himself, and he found his heart drawn to her in deep and unselfish love. She became the wife of hosea, the godly prophet, and symbolized gods grace in taking out of a world which had whorishly departed from him a church to be. Ephraim was the largest tribe in israel and sometimes the whole nation was referred to as ephraim.
Hoseas marriage is a parable of the lords relationship with his people, whose spiritual unfaithfulness is mirrored by gomers marital infidelity. Hoseaprophet of a broken heartlowell johnson precept. We are currently reading from the book of the prophet hosea at daily mass. Apr 07, 2018 hoseas love for a sinful woman was to be a picture of gods love for sinners.
The book of hosea is divided into two major sections. Hoseas marriage was extraordinary in that he was called to marry an unfaithful woman ho 1. Hosea is quoted in the new testament some thirty times. Throughout the book you will see that he refers to israel and ephraim. According to the books narrative, the relationship between hosea and his unfaithful wife gomer is comparable to the relationship between yahweh and his. Most of hoseas messages are announcements of gods anger with israel the northern of the two israelite kingdoms and gods impending judgment on this people.
Hosea was a prophet during the reign of four different kings spanning approximately 38 years in the 8 th century b. Hosea married gomer according to divine appointment, and this was the beginning of god s word to him hosea 1. Hoseas wife, gomer, bears this label, not necessarily because she is a prostitute but because she is. For this very reason, the biblical book of hosea has frustrated and intrigued scholars for over two millennia. God came to the prophet hosea and told him to marry a woman of whoredom.
Illustration of hosea and gomer from the bible historiale, 72. The new living translation s introduction to the book of hosea calls it a tragic love story with a happy ending. Oct 12, 2018 yahweh commands hosea to marry a wife of whoredom zenunim 1. First, god told hosea to marry a woman known to be a wife of whoredom hosea 1. Hosea and gomers story is the story of god and israel. Hosea married the harlot and had children with her. Their life together was an enacted prophecy pointing to the pain god experiences over our sin and the love he feels for us despite it. According to the rabbis, god commanded hosea to marry gomer, the daughter of diblaim, to teach him proper conduct for one who was to prophesy to israel.
The tragedy of hoseas home life chapters hoseas personal sorrows. The book of hosea is a deeply personal and passionate love story, yet it s a difficult story. In the bible, god called this man named hosea to do something that most people believe is absurd. Strauss authored nine books, and served as pastor of. The metaphor of marriage in hosea leif fredheim go, marry a promiscuous woman and have children with her, for like an adulterous wife this land is guilty of unfaithfulness to the lord hosea 1. What hosea went through serves as a powerful object lesson of what god has gone through with his covenant people. So god spoke again, this time through the prophet hosea whose name meant. Hosea, an oldtestament prophet, preached his own life message using his marriage as the sermon illustration. According to the traditional order of most hebrew bibles, it is the first of the twelve minor prophets set around the fall of the northern kingdom of israel, the book of hosea denounces the worship of gods other than yahweh, metaphorically comparing israels abandonment of. Two of gomers children, loruhamah and loammi, are symbols of god disregarding the northern kingdom of israel as being his people or his children at the time they were born and living. This is particularly important today as there has been so much discussion about divorce. From the book of hosea kindle edition by campbell, geri.
I think hosea brightened up at that, because he was a bachelor, and god said, i have a girl picked out for you. This need not mean that at the time of marriage she was thus depraved, but she had the evil taint in. And likewise, the book surely does begin with a marriage. Three children were born to her, but they were not hoseas. The prophet hosea was commanded to marry an unfaithful wife, and this set up a model of israels broken relationship with god. Verse 3 clearly states that the first son was hoseas.
Gomer gomer was the wife of the prophet hosea 8th century bc, mentioned in the hebrew bibles book of hosea 1. The first part of hosea records the tragic story of the prophets unhappy marital experiences. Why did god tell hosea to marry gomer the prostitute. The bible recorded that gomers children were children of adultery and conceived in disgrace. Hoseas name means deliverance or salvation and is connected on a basic level with the names joshua and jesus hosea was a prophet at the time of king jeroboam ii, who died in 746 bc. Why did god tell hosea to marry a prostitute hosea 1. Hoseas story teaches us to find hope in the midst of doom. The incredible scandal of gods perfect love found in hosea. She was to be a wife of whoredom and they were to have children of whoredom. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. And gomer was a promiscuous woman the lord told hosea to marry.
This led to another midrashic position, that the name diblaim is a plural form of the word dibah slander, ill repute. The new living translations introduction to the book of hosea calls it a tragic love story with a happy ending. Hosea married gomer as commanded and she bore a son, named jezreel hosea 1. This hebrew term indicates illicit sexual behavior. We do well to recall the story, especially given the great debate among some in the church today over the question of. Hosea married gomer according to divine appointment, and this was the beginning of gods word to him hosea 1. At the request of his father, christ wedded us sinners through his passion and death. For hosea, gomer is a wife of whoredom, not because she is a prostitute, but because, according to the mores of israel, she is blatantly licentious and wanton. God directed him to take her as his wife, and so it was that gomer, the daughter of diblaim, became the unlikely wife of the budding young preacher. In the office of readings of the liturgy of the hours last week we read from the book of the prophet hosea. So he went and took gomer, the daughter of diblaim hosea 1. Some suggest that gomer was a prostitute perhaps cultic prior to her marriage to hosea. And this is our story, along with all of gods people throughout history. The book of hosea is a deeply personal and passionate love story, yet its a difficult story.
Gomer gomer was the wife of the prophet hosea 8th century bc, mentioned in the hebrew bible s book of hosea 1. God then commands hosea in chapter 3 verse 1 to, go, show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another man and is an adulteress. The story of the prophet hoseas troubled marriage is a powerful testimony to two things. Hosea was commanded by god to marry her, and when she committed fornication, to. A curse that god would put upon the women of the kingdom of israel, according to hosea 9. Nov 01, 20 hoseas marriage is symbolic of gods covenant relationship with israel. Adapted from the book of hosea in the bible, we journey with gomer, a harlot lost in her sin until hosea, a prophet of god, offers to marry her and redeem her life from darkness. Israel had been chosen and loved by god yet had been unfaithful to him by way of idolatry.
Hosea s wife was a woman lacking any sense of fidelity. Gomer would be unfaithful, leaving hosea for her former lovers, yet hosea would take her back. In many ways, hoseas marriage to gomer prefigures christ s marriage to his church. Hoseaprophet of a broken heartlowell johnson precept austin. The difference between the literal views generally relate to gomers premarriage condition.
Take yourself a wife of harlotry hosea february 27. The book of hosea contains an unforgettable message of what not just israels but our waywardness, our readiness to give our hearts to other things instead of to god, does to him. Two of gomer s children, loruhamah and loammi, are symbols of god disregarding the northern kingdom of israel as being his people or his children at the time they were born and living. The story of hosea and what it teaches about god and holy. Background it all began with a marriage, begins david hubbard in his commentary on the book of hosea p. Hosea was called to marry a woman of adultery and produce children of adultery. In fact the name of her children implies that as well. God chose us, adopted us as sons and daughters, despite our sin. The book of hosea is a collection of prophetic messages delivered by the prophet hosea and narrative descriptions of hosea s marriage and the birth of his children 1. That is, hosea refer to an actual marriage involving the prophet.
When we, like gomer, were enslaved, god bought us back. After bearing hosea three children, she left him to live with another man. Through hosea, the lord tells the story of israels disobedience, his discipline, and his steadfast, faithful love. This workbook was designed for bible class study, family study, or personal study. Hosea we are currently reading from the book of the prophet hosea at. The lord used hosea and gomers relationship as an object lesson to show how israel had sinned against him by following other gods and how god remains faithful even when his people dont. When god ordered hosea to marry an adulterous woman, he married gomer. So hosea is rather discouraged and in the opening chapter of this little book of prophecy we read a personal note about him. Jun 28, 2019 hosea was a prophet for approximately 38 years in the 8th century b.
Diblaim is derived from the word develah figcake, since she was as sweet in everyones mouth as a fig. Hoseas wife was a woman lacking any sense of fidelity. Hosea s response to his wife s unfaithfulness is all the more. Three children were born to her, but they were not hosea s. We dont know about gomers past, but we know that it was against all worldly logic that hosea, a prophet, a man of god, would take her to be his wife. The comparison between gomers behavior and the israelites seems to be what is at issue in this text. Gomer wife of hosea from wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Just as hosea redeemed his estranged wife and sought to continue his relationship with her, god promised to redeem israel and.
Gomer in the bible was the unfaithful wife of hosea the prophet. Given these realities ofculture and society, hoseas. The unfaithful wife and the faithful husband hosea. The book of hosea stands first in the order of the socalled minor prophets in common english bibles, as well as in the ancient hebrew and septuagint texts. Because of gomers unfaithfulness, the prophet divorced his wife and lived apart from her.
Hoseas wife, gomer, leaves him for anotherjust like israel has left god to worship idols. Because of gomer s unfaithfulness, the prophet divorced his wife and lived apart from her. The second main portion of the book is often viewed as an unstructured or loosely structured succession of repetitive discourses, with law and gospel alternating. The prophet hosea has great courage and in spite of the humiliation he suffered because of his wife gomer s adultery. God directed him to take her as his wife, and so it was that gomer, the. Hence the name implies a lineage of unfaithfulness. While the entire second chapter of hoseas prophecy describes jehovahs relationship with his unfaithful wife israel, it is difficult to escape the feeling that it grows out of hoseas relationship with gomer, sandwiched as it is between two chapters that clearly describe that sad and sordid story. Hoseas wife, gomer, whom he married in good faith, proved to be an adulterous woman. Most of hosea s messages are announcements of god s anger with israel the northern of the two israelite kingdoms and god s impending judgment on this people. Gomer was the daughter of diblaim, and an immoral woman. The book of hosea is a collection of prophetic messages delivered by the prophet hosea and narrative descriptions of hoseas marriage and the birth of his children 1.
According to the book of hosea, god had him marry a harlot. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading the story of gomer. Oct 04, 2012 so, i believe that there really was a man named hosea, whom god called to do something that the majority of people would shy away from. Hosea refers to the northern kingdom as ephraim constantly. The questions contain minimal human commentary, but instead urge students to study to understand scripture. The first part of hosea records the tragic story of the prophet s unhappy marital experiences. Hosea s wife gomer conceives and has two other children and it conspicuously does not say that hosea is the father. Gomer, wife of the prophet hosea hosea idiom ingenuity. It is difficult, however, to separate historical facts about the couples domestic problems from the. The tragedy of hosea s home life chapters hosea s personal sorrows. Hoseas wife, gomer, bears this label, not necessarily because she is a. The name of gomers father, diblaim, means double embrace.
Mar 07, 2008 gomer s husband, hosea, was among the last of the prophets who spoke the word of the lord. Gomer gomer was the wife of the prophet hosea 8th century bc, mentioned in the hebrew bible s book of hosea. So, i believe that there really was a man named hosea, whom god called to do something that the majority of people would shy away from. Alternatively she is mentioned as a promiscuous woman niv, a harlot nasb, and a whore whoredoms kjv. It is difficult, however, to separate historical facts about the couples domestic problems from the theological message expressed through them. Possibly, hosea was the father of only the first son, or none of the children. Hosea s wife, gomer, whom he married in good faith, proved to be an adulterous woman. The book of hosea says that, during hosea s lifetime, the kings of the northern kingdom, their aristocratic supporters, and the priests had led the people away from the law of god, as given in the pentateuch. In her sexual activity, gomer is condemned as being like a whore, although she is not a prostitute by profession. Hosea s marriage was extraordinary in that he was called to marry an unfaithful woman ho 1. This naming of the children is similar to what we read in isaiah where isaiahs children have prophetic names.
Hoseas wife gomer conceives and has two other children and it conspicuously does not say that hosea is the father. Gomer was an unfaithful wife and mother of three children. Go, take a harlot wife and harlots children, for the land gives itself to harlotry, turning away from the lord. Gomer was a harlot with many lovers, yet the prophet hosea married her at gods request. Gomers mother also engaged in the same profession and both were commonly the subject of slander and gossip. As an account full of harsh judgment unfolds, we find in its midst a rare and pure gem. Ephraim was the first of the twelve tribes of israel to backslide. Hosea is one of those books that some people throw out, like jonah, because its just too hard to swallow. To the marriage of gomer and hosea to love and truth. Love her as the lord loves the israelites, though they turn to other gods.