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Simple Bible overview: God sends the last two prophets to warn the North (Israel), Amos and Hosea
Simple Bible overview: Amos (all) and Hosea (all) "Straighten up! (or else) - Amos "I want you back, xoxoxo" -- Hosea
Prophets to the North – Amos and Hosae (goes with Podcast 65)
We now move to the two prophets to the North (Israel) who get their own Old Testament books. Elijah and Elisha were prophets to the North, but they did not get their own books.
A couple more things about the Old Testament prophets. There are 17 of them. They are our 4th “clump of colors” – literary styles in the Old Testament. They are grouped into two categories – the MAJOR prophets and the MINOR prophets. That label has nothing to do with their importance. It has to do with their size. The MAJOR prophets are the big scrolls, the MINOR prophets the smaller scrolls. There are 5 major prophets (Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Lamentations, and Daniel) and 12 minor prophets (Hosea through Malachi)
I am going to present the prophets as “God’s Sticky Notes” You know what Sticky Notes are – those short post-it reminders or comments we don’t want to forget. Attention-getters. For each of the prophets I will give God’s sticky note message in that book.
One important principle to remember when interpreting the prophets. They often are a bit stronger than perhaps intended. By this I mean God it trying to get the attention of his naughty children. Like parents in the front seat of a mini-van who are trying to get the kids to behave, some of the statements in the prophets are very strong (like a parent stating if the kids don’t behave he or she will put them out on the side of the road). These should be view in their context – warnings from a God who deeply loves us.
AMOS. The sticky note: “Straighten up!” (you are very crooked)
Amos was a shepherd and vine-pruner sent by God from Judah. He is sent to Bethel during the time of Jeroboam II – that very strong king late in Israel’s history. Bethel was his home base, and the place where the first Jeroboam (the king that started it all) placed that calf and that altar and made the center of idolatry.
Amos comes to proclaim Gods warning on Israel. He starts by warning all the nations around them, then he focuses on Israel’s sins. Here they are: they oppress the poor, they are heartless and ruthless, they are deviant, you are arrogant about it all. And then they go to church services and put on a religious veneer that they are also righteous.
Amos pulls out a plumbline as a visual aid to how crooked Israel is in their behavior. He ends with a glimmer of hope in his prophecy that one day Israel will be true and straight with God’s laws, but that will not be in their near future.
HOSEA. The sticky note: “I want you back! XOXOXO)
Hosea was God’s final attempt after Elijah, Elisha, and Amos. God used this local pastor as a visual aid to show the infidelity of the nation of Israel to their God. It is scandalous.
Hosea is told by God to marry a prostitute, Gomer. She has three children, and they are named “God will scatter,” “No Mercy” and “Not My People.” Gomer then dumps her pastor husband and starts moving from man to man in town. Supplies keep showing up when she is out on the street. When she is finally used up and nobody wants her, she is being auctioned as a slave. God tells Hosea to buy his former wife back and to “love her again.” He does. This is how God feels about this us.
EPISODE 65 The simple Bible overview of…THE PROPHET AMOS AND THE PROPHET HOSEA – GOD’S FINAL ‘STICKY NOTES’ TO ISRAEL
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The first two of the 17 profits in the old Testament, we've already talked about Elijah and Elisha, but they didn't get their own books unless you count first Kings 17 through second Kings 13, as the books of Elijah and Elisha, the prophets are the fourth clump of the old Testament. Joining the law, the history books and the poetry or writings from our last episode, you learn that profits sometimes predict and sometimes just proclaim the word of the Lord. In the old Testament, the 17 profits are clumped into two categories. The major prophets and minor prophets major and minor does not indicate importance.
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It indicates length or size. The major profits are the big scrolls. The minor profits, the little scrolls today, we're looking at two of the minor prophets, both sent to the Northern kingdom. Israel both sent after Elijah and Elisha to help my students. Remember. I like to think of the profits is God's sticky notes, you know, sticky notes, important messages, reminders, things you don't want to forget with each of these 17 profits. I'm going to give you God's sticky note message to either the nation Israel, the nation of Judah or outside nations. In the case of three of these sticky note profits, just a word about interpreting this.
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John rhe profits are generally sent by God as a wake up call or warning. We want to take the principles in these wake up calls or warnings. Seriously, the language of these wake up calls and warnings. However, sometimes can be a bit exaggerated. In other words, to get God's children's attention. Sometimes the statements are a bit weighted. For example, a family traveling in a minivan where the kids have been out of control. You might hear a parent say, don't make me put you out at the side of the road or turn this car around. It's sending a message. I need this to stop that parent very likely would never put you out at the side of the road or cancel the trip.
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Look for the underlying thing being communicated, but perhaps turn the intensity, dial down just a bit. And remember the context of God's love and care for us. Like those parents in the front seat. Let's look at this playground. Attendance sent to the North Amos and the sticky note message he's bringing from God. I told you earlier, the Bible's written by 40 people from all walks of life. Amos is one of the most blue collar of them all. He was a shepherd and a vine pruner from Judah. This sheep herders sent to Bethel the center of the Northern kingdoms bale worship. That's where Jera Boams main CAF was placed at the time of Amos visit Jeroboam.
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The second was ruling and use that as his main base of operations. The nation of Israel at the time of Amos writings was strong and prosperous, sunny outside, but really decaying and wretched underneath it was corrupt and idolatrous. And it was all veneered over in religiosity. Jaak Amos starts out by pronouncing judgements on all of, you know, nations that circle the nation of Israel. He works his way around from side to Philistia to eat, to Moab, to am, and then to the Southern kingdom of Judah. And by the way, in Judah, he condemns them for rejecting the love of God and following lies, then Amos gets to Israel.
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He says, you are oppressed the poor. He tells him you're heartless. You take the cloaks of poor people and won't return them at night. Just let them freeze. You're ruthless you foreclose on poor people's property. Your deviant fathers and sons will go in to the same prostitute. And at the end of the week, you go to church services and God says, I hate your church services, your priests and prophets who are supposed to warn you tell me to shut up. And worst of all says the Lord over all this you're arrogant. You have swagger. And I hate it says the Lord, Amos the playground attendant.
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Then pronounces God's judgment. 90% of your nation will be destroyed then to illustrate just how warped and crooked they are. Amos pulls out a plum line. I explained to my students what a plumb line is today. I have a six foot level. The bubble tells me to me, if something as straight up and down, but in Amos day, they use the plumb line. It was a string with a plumb. Bob tied at the bottom. As you built the building, you'd hang the plum, Bob off the top course of block, say 12 inches out. Then the plum Bob at the bottom, it better be exactly 12 inches out. Or your building is crooked. The plumb Bob is God's law.
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Amos holds it up to Israel's behavior and they're completely out of line. God sticky note through the prophet Amos Straighten up or else Amos the shepherd vine dresser from Judah in such a sticky note, prophecy to the North with a glimmer of hope. There will be a time when Israel as a nation is rebuilt plum to God's laws, true to the God of Israel. And they will remain in the land and be taken away no more. But as we'll see that wouldn't be in their near future, what would happen in their near future, they would continue to become more crooked, which leads us to our second sticky note, minor prophet to the Northern nation of Israel.
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Their last warning, the prophet Hosea Hosea was God's last playground attendant the Kings and people of the North. They wouldn't listen to the words of Elijah, Alicia or Amos. So God said Hosea to be a living illustration of God's last attempt to demonstrate to them his love for them and his need for them to come back to worshiping the true guide. Hosea his messages often addressed to Ephraim. Ephraim was the largest tribe of the North and represents the whole nation. The theme of Hosea is God's steadfast love despite their infidelity to God.
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The sticky note is I want you back hugs and kisses. It's a shocking story. Almost scandalous Hosea a local pastor is told by God to go marry a harlot and have children with her scholars argue whether he married her as a harlot, or she became one after the wedding. I'm not really sure it matters much to represent reality. My sense is God told Hosea to marry a woman who is already a prostitute. They have three children together. At least you think they belong to Hosea the meaning of the first child's name.
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God sows or scatters. The meaning of the second child's name. No mercy. The meaning of the third child's name, not my people. Can you imagine yelling out the back door to those three kids to come to dinner? God will scatter no mercy, not my people. It's lunch. We're told Hosea his wife leaves him and start sleeping around with men in town. She's passed around from man to man. Meanwhile, apparently provisions show up on her doorstep. So she's not completely desolate. Finally used up disease and unwanted God tells Hosea to buy her back on an auction block.
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As a slave they're in front of all of his parishioners, he buys back his diseased used up trampy ex-wife. He places her in seclusion for a time of purification, then seeks to woo her again, who of us would ever take someone like that back in much less. Love her again. When you read Luke 15 and the new Testament, Jesus tells a story about a prodigal used up diseased broke one. Who's broken his father's heart returning home and the response of that father to that prodigal son. And that's the story of Hosea all over again.
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The lavish love of a God toward an unfaithful people read Hosea chapter 11 Hosea is God's last attempt to get the Northern kingdom's attention to communicate the depths of Israel's unfaithfulness to his God to show a God of steadfast love wringing his hands at their situation, continuing to supply their needs and being ready to buy them back at any price. If their hearts will turn home, do you remember our edge? Peace themes of scripture made God made us and takes delight in us strayed. We wandered away from God lost.
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We got hopelessly lost cost. God bought us back at a great price. The story of Hosea lives out those edge pieces vividly for us. Why would God feel that way about us? Hosea his message and ends with God saying, Oh, Israel how can I give you up? How can I let you go? But if you've listened to Kings of the Hill North, you know, Hosea sticky note of, I want you back hugs and kisses. Doesn't make a difference. Israel refuses to listen and is destroyed by the Assyrians and their people taken into captivity. The 10 Northern tribes of Jacob are gone.
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There's only Judah and Benjamin left. And we'll look at that Southern kingdom, the Southern Hill and the Kings who clawed their way to the top in our next wordpicture.
The final episode, telling the story of Jesus in a way you likely never heard it before!
It is a cover-to-cover overview of the Bible in simple language and clear word pictures for seekers and students of all ages
