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2 When the Lord first spoke through Hosea, the Lord said to Hosea, "Go, take for yourself a wife of whoredom and have children of whoredom, for the land commits great whoredom by forsaking the Lord." 3 So he went and took Gomer daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son. 4 And the Lord said to him, "Name him Jezreel; for in a little while I will punish the house of Jehu for the blood of Jezreel, and I will put an end to the kingdom of the house of Israel. 5 On that day I will break the bow of Israel in the valley of Jezreel." 6 She conceived again and bore a daughter. Then the Lord said to him, "Name her Lo-ruhamah, for I will no longer have pity on the house of Israel or forgive them. 7 But I will have pity on the house of Judah, and I will save them by the Lord their God; I will not save them by bow, or by sword, or by war, or by horses, or by horsemen." 8 When she had weaned Lo-ruhamah, she conceived and bore a son. 9 Then the Lord said, "Name him Lo-ammi, for you are not my people and I am not your God." 10 Yet the number of the people of Israel shall be like the sand of the sea, which can be neither measured nor numbered; and in the place where it was said to them, "You are not my people," it shall be said to them, "Children of the living God." (Hosea 1:2-10 NRSV)
Happy Wednesday, dear Friend! May the Lord bless you and keep you! May your journey be one of joy and blessing for all! Seek to bless God and to have God bless other through you and your love!
Many preachers from time to time, use props when preaching. If I were to preach this week, which I won't or can't, I would truly need props, like my crutches! A prop is a support used to further draw attention to the theme or main message of the sermon. I am guilty of using many props, like the infamous throwing of tortillas during a sermon on the bread of life. I gained a new family that Sunday thanks to my boldness in doing such a thing. I may or may not have hit a church member during that sermon. (It was so many years ago, but I was so much older than now). One Sunday, during the series The Ten Commandments, I had my janitor bring in an old easy chair from another part of our campus and I wore a running suit under a bathrobe while reading a Sunday newspaper and sipping tea. I may have lost the choir at that point. My idea was to always be unpredictable which one Sunday almost backfired as a homeless man known for holding posters up against the president, asked to preach. His presence and his walking right up to me while preaching caught my ushers thinking I had asked him to do this. I finally had to raise my voice and ask him to sit down. Finally the ushers caught on!
But imagine being Hosea. A prophet called to bring Israel back to the Covenant, he lived in the northern kingdom and he may have been in his mid-20s or 30s when God called him to marry a living sermon prop. Please keep in mind that the Bible is a very honest book filled with unexpected surprises, none more so than for the young Hosea. God told him to marry the type of girl that momma would not approve of and the kind that might bring a smile to grandpa and grandma to her grave. And to be fair, significant number of scholars are not sure that Gomer was necessarily a prostitute, but certainly an adulteress and a promiscious one at that. This version uses the certain word of professionalism, for God wanted Israel to know this woman was them! "For the land commits great whoredom by forsaking the Lord." Ouch. The prophet takes Gomer, daughter of Bilaim, as his wife, and she conceived and bore them a son whose name was Jezreel, a name that means judgment on Israel is coming! What would be the English shortcut name for Jezreel? WhoopinSoon? WaitTilWeGetHome? Okay, it's a lot more serious than that, because God is mad!
Hosea and Gomer have another child, this one a daughter, and the name given her by God is Lo-ruhamah which means "No Mercy" showing Israel that God would no longer have His compassion. With this child, Israel reached the point that God said that He would show pity to Judah and would save them, but not with military might. After Lo-ruhamah was weaned, a third child comes along and this one is named Lo-ammi (“Not My People”): Signifying a broken covenant. Wow! God ain't playing now. Not my people and I'm not your God. "How could God do that?" Uh, God didn't. The people of Israel did. But yet, God says, "Yet the number of the people of Israel shall be like the sand of the sea, which can be neither measured nor numbered; and in the place where it was said to them, 'You are not my people,' it shall be said to them, 'Children of the living God,'"
God’s love is fierce and relentless. Even when His people turn away, He refuses to let go. His heart aches for restoration, not rejection. This story is ultimately not just about punishment—it’s about divine mercy, and the deep, painful, determined love of God who longs for His people to return.
We, too, stray in ways big and small. But God’s response is not to abandon us. In Christ, we see the full measure of God’s faithfulness—taking our shame, restoring our name, and calling us once more: “My people. My beloved.” Their family becomes a living parable of divine love: broken, betrayed, but ultimately restored.
PRAYER: Lord God, Your love both humbles and astounds me. Even when I fail or wander from Your path, You remain faithful. Help me to return to You with a whole heart. Thank You for calling me Your own. May I live today as a child of the living God. Amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord! OUR CALL TO ACTION: Take time today to examine your heart. Where have you drifted from God? Confess, return, and trust that His love is ready to receive you again. Let His mercy shape how you live and love.
I love you and I thank God for you!
Pastor Eradio Valverde, Jr.
