The following are five of the most helpful commentaries on the book of hosea. Hosea, a prophet from the northern kingdom, preached in his homeland, which he addresses as israel, jacob or, frequently, ephraim. This first section seems to be a prayer of repentance on the part of israel. The book of hosea is one of the books of the hebrew bible. Andrew dearman considers the prophetic figures historical roots in the covenant traditions of ancient israel, includes his own translation of the biblical text, and masterfully unpacks hoseas poetic, metaphorical message of betrayal, judgment, and reconciliation. Hosea, the son of beeri, prophesied for quite some time, from 785 to 725 b. Read hosea commentary using matthew henry commentary on the whole bible complete. Hosea is supposed to have been of the kingdom of israel. Matthew henrys commentary on the whole bible is an exhaustive study tool, used by countless scholars and laymen for well over 100 years. But some of the messages were for judah, the country in the south. Hosea was a young preacher in the nation of israel, the northern kingdom, and he was a. Hosea himself was the author of this book, and he ministered to the people of israel for about 50 years. 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.
The book of hosea consists of fourteen chapters, which was the record for a minor prophet until zechariah tied it a couple centuries later. Douglas stuart hoseajonah word biblical commentary, 1987. According to the traditional order of most hebrew bibles, it is the first of the twelve minor prophets. He gave most of his messages to israel, the country in the north. Its fourteen chapters contain both a warning concerning future events and an interpretation of these events meanings. The book of hosea stands first in the division of the bible called the book of the twelve in the apocrypha cf. 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. Each blessing or curse is based upon a corresponding type in the mosaic law. Israel, the northern country consisting of ten tribes, and judah, the remaining two tribes in the south.
According to the book, the apostasy of the people was rampant, having turned away from god in order to serve both the calves of jeroboam and baal, a canaanite god. God is a jealous husband and his people are his bride. The word of the lord that came to hosea son of beeri during the reigns of uzziah, jotham, ahaz and hezekiah, kings of judah, and during the reign of jeroboam son of jehoash king of israel. Hoseas message was primarily for the northern kingdom of israel. Hosea was instructed by god to marry a certain woman and experience with her a domestic life which was a dramatization of the sin and unfaithfulness of israel. We hope that you find the complete content of the hosea helpful to your bible studies and for references which allow you to read the books and individual verses of the book of hosea. Matthew henry commentary on the whole bible complete hosea. The nelsons illustrated bible dictionary gives the following outline of the book. The book contains a series of blessings and curses announced for israel by god through hosea. In particular, he frequently offers his own translations of a passage, explaining the subtleties and nuances of his translation. The book of hosea new international commentary on the old testament nicot kindle edition by dearman, j. Most of hosea s messages are announcements of gods anger with israel the northern of the two israelite kingdoms and gods impending judgment on this people.
The back and forth movement from doom to salvation is typical of the book of hosea. In ancient hebrew manuscripts the collection of the minor prophets was written on one scroll, called the book of the twelve. Hosea prophesied during a dark and melancholic era of israels history, the period of the northern kingdoms decline and fall in the 8th century bc. Hosea wrote in the middle of the eighth century bc before christ. According to the superscription, hosea began his prophetic activity during the reign of jeroboam ii c. Israel is the lords bride, but israel has instead joined itself to. Certainly, god brings judgment on those who turn from him, but hosea s powerful act of restoration within his own marriage set the bar high for those of us seeking godliness in our lives. Four important sections occur in the book of hosea. The book is clearly written by hosea during the days jeroboam ii king of israel. 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. The word of the lord that came to hosea the son of beeri. Hoseas days were likely around 760 to 725 bc the dates that the kings of israel and judah occupy as listed at hosea 1. Nov 6, 2017 bible journaling examples from the book of hosea.
Regarded as one of the reformations best interpreters of scripture, calvin is an apt commentator. Mar 18, 2020 book of hosea bible survey what are the major prophets and minor prophets. Transcribed and edited by david sielaff, october 2012. 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 jehovah, metaphorically comparing israels abandonment of jehovah to a.
At the same time he shows the future ways of god with his people. Like the book of amos, the book of hosea is addressed to the people of the northern kingdom israel. Kjv bible verses from hosea offer free, online access, for those of the christian faith, to study scriptural passages for biblical studies, contained in the words. Stuart deals with the details of the text as well as the big picture.
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. In this solid midtoupper level commentary on the book of hosea, j. He spoke forth the word of the lord, and applied that word to his life, and to the people and circumstances around him. The book has many curses and blessings, but there are many more curses than blessings. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading the book of hosea new international commentary on the old testament nicot. Why did god tell hosea to marry a prostitute hosea 1. Hosea commentary matthew henry commentary on the whole. Book of hosea bible survey what are the major prophets and minor prophets. Study the bible online using commentary on hosea and more.
Hosea probably belong to the time of jeroboam ii but it is extremely improbable that any of the prophecies belong to so late a date as the days of hezekiah, when the punishment foretold at the hands of tiglathpileser pul had already been partially fulfilled on israel 2 kings 15. Hosea is the first of the 12 minor prophets called minor not because they are of less importance, but because the books are shorter. In the first section, god commands hosea to marry gomer, a promiscuous woman. The book of hosea illustrates that no one is beyond the offer of our forgiveness because no one sits outside gods offer of forgiveness. The book of hosea always occupies the first place among the twelve prophets, and its general position varies with that of the latter. We hope that you find the hosea summary from the kjv bible chapters and verses helpful to your bible studies and for references as a guide to further reference to the book of hosea. May 02, 2020 hosea is the only prophet of israel who left any written prophecies which were recorded during the later years of his life. Wolff argues that this prayer mentioning rain is part of the canaanite cult. The book of hosea was written in the northern kingdom of israel in the eighth century bc, during the reign of jeroboam ii 786746 bc. So hosea is rather discouraged and in the opening chapter of this little book of prophecy we read a personal note about him. The single best commentary on the first five minor prophets is the commentary by douglas stuart in the word biblical commentary series.
Matthew henrys commentary on the whole biblebook of hosea. Most scholars accept that the book is an allegory of the relationship between god and israel. Book of hosea overview insight for living ministries. The book of hosea offers free, online access to study passages, for biblical studies, contained in the words, text and verses of the roman catholic scripture of. The book of hosea is pound for pound as difficult a prophetic book as one can find in the bible, so we appreciate the work of j. Book of hosea, the first of 12 old testament books that bear the names of the minor prophets, considered as one book, the twelve, in the jewish canon. During the time of the minor prophets, the nation of israel had divided into two separate countries, each with its own government. How are people destroyed from a lack of knowledge hosea 4. The concept of sowing and reaping, found at galatians 6. Book of hosea matthew henrys bible commentary concise. The marital life of hosea and his wife, gomer, provide the rich metaphor which clarifies the themes of the book. Jerome specified that one of the divisions of the jews sacred books was the book of the twelve prophets, which evidently included the book of hosea to fill out the number 12.
Study hosea using matthew henrys bible commentary concise to better understand scripture with full outline and verse meaning. I think hosea brightened up at that, because he was a bachelor, and god said, i have a girl picked out for you. Hosea began the old testament tradition of describing the relation between the lord and israel in terms of marriage e. Often, we do not recognize the derivation of these bible names, but this prophets name would be joseph in english. You can find the best commentary on hosea for you using the tools on the right side. Overview of the book of hosea third millennium ministries. Scholars, pastors, and serious bible students will welcome the.
Dearman captures well the metaphorical theology of hosea, and his thoughtful reflection on the text attends to the various issues of every passage in the book. The scope of his predictions appears to be, to detect, reprove, and convince the jewish nation in general, and the israelites in particular, of their many sins, particularly their idolatry. Under a figure, is represented the shameful idolatry of the ten tribes. This unfaithful behavior will lead to israels destruction by assyria, but gods love will have the last word. The book of hosea was likely written between 755 and 725 b. And his name is related to the name joshua, which means salvation. By them hosea expresses his deep woe over israels condition. This commentary covers every chapter and nearly every verse in the bible, providing a thorough commentary on the holy scriptures. The second part of the book contains longish lamentations of hosea. Chapter 14 closes with an appeal to true repentance.
See more ideas about bible, illustrated faith and bible art. The commentary on hosea within this volume is 220 pages of the total. The prophets name means salvation, likely a reference to hoseas position in israel as a beacon of hope to those who would repent and turn to god because of his message. Hoseas primary audience was ephraim another name for the northern kingdom, israel, which is mentioned 35 times in the book. The book of hosea chronicles the adult life of a jewish prophet during a turbulent time in israels history.
He went to god and god told him to do a strange thing. Top 5 commentaries on the book of hosea ligonier ministries. Hosea 114 niv the word of the lord that came to hosea. He is especially helpful at tracing the curses and blessings proclaimed by the prophets back to their mosaic origin. And the lord said to hosea, go, take unto thee a wife of whoredoms and children of whoredoms. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. The book reveals the personality of the prophet, an emotional man who in a moment could swing from violent anger to the deepest tenderness. The book of hosea new international commentary on the old. Throughout the book, the prophet speaks to the people of israel about the critical situation that developed during the. Hosea with book summary versebyverse bible commentary. The author, gods prophet, was directed by the lord to marry a woman named gomer, who. Men are not to be flattered in sinful ways because they prosper in the world. To explain that the turmoil of the northern kingdom was gods just judgment leading to exile and to assure gods people that a great restoration would take place after the exile.
In this volume, john calvin provides a fascinating commentary on the book of hosea. Hoseas wife and children when the lord began to speak through hosea, the lord said to him, go, marry a promiscuous woman and have children with her, for like an adulterous wife this land is guilty of. In this solid theological commentary on the book of hosea, j. Hosea revealed little about his background, though his book of prophecy offers a few glimpses into his life. Redeeming love is one of those mustread romances worth reading at least once there are two versions of redeeming love. Hosea began his mission in a period of prosperity, the last years of jeroboam ii 783743 b. Israel is the lords bride, but israel has instead joined itself to baal, the false god worshiped in syriapalestine. The 1997 version is basically the same as the original, but was edited to remove any descriptions of the love scenes and any coarse language to make it suitable for the christian. Hosea is the first book of the twelve minor prophets. Hosea delivers a plea to israel and a complaint against her 6. Andrew dearman considers the prophetic figures historical roots in the covenant traditions of ancient israel, includes his own translation of the biblical text, and masterfully unpacks hosea s poetic, metaphorical message of betrayal, judgment, and reconciliation.
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