Hosea
Prophet of the northern kingdom in its last decades. He read his marriage to an unfaithful wife as a picture of the covenant between the Lord and Israel, and set beside the coming judgment a love that would not give Israel up.
Hosea son of Beeri prophesied, according to the heading of his book, from the days of Jeroboam II of Israel into those of Hezekiah of Judah (Hosea 1:1). The first three chapters tell of his marriage to Gomer, the naming of their children and the buying of an adulterous woman, all as signs of the Lord’s dealings with Israel (Hosea 1:2–9) (Hosea 3). The rest of the book charges Israel with faithlessness, bloodshed and idols (Hosea 4:1–3) (Hosea 8:4–7), and yet holds out healing and return (Hosea 11:8–9) (Hosea 14:1–4).
The New Testament quotes him several times, among them “I desire mercy, and not sacrifice” (Hosea 6:6) (Matthew 9:13) and “Out of Egypt I called my son” (Hosea 11:1) (Matthew 2:15). See Amos and Hosea Prophesy to Israel.
In the timeline
- about 755 BC, estimated dateAmos and Hosea Prophesy to Israel
In the prosperous years of Jeroboam II, Amos, a herdsman from Judah, denounces injustice and worship without righteousness at Bethel. Hosea makes his own marriage a picture of Israel’s unfaithfulness and of a love that will not give it up.