Hosea 12

Bible Passage:  Hosea 12

The One and Only

“Ephraim feeds on the wind,

And pursues the east wind;

He daily increases lies and desolation.

Also they make a covenant with the Assyrians,

And oil is carried to Egypt.” (Hos 12:1)

In early chapters of Hosea, we caught a glimpse of what was going on in God’s mind – how He was torn between love and hate for His own children. He hated them for their spiritual unfaithfulness, specifically, their idolatry. Yet His love for Israel was so overwhelming that He could not bear to see His own suffering, although they had thoroughly deserved it.

From today’s chapter, we can see another aspect of Israel’s (synonymous with Ephraim) spiritual adultery: they relied on human ways, rather than God. During the time of prophet Hosea, Israel was quite rich but politically very unstable. Both Assyria and Egypt posed constant threats to the chosen people. But instead of turning to the LORD, Israel used diplomatic means: they signed a treaty with Assyria. In addition, they sent olive oil to Egypt, hoping that Egypt would support them in times of trouble – Israel seriously thought that they could rely on their wealth to buy security for themselves.

Today, we may be like the Israelites at times. Many of us are blessed with a comfortable life, wealth, status, and various talents. In short, we have the resources to rely on ourselves when we face problems. Naturally, we rely first on our own resources, and second on God. As a quick test to verify this claim, we can ask ourselves: What’s the first thing we do when we encounter a problem? Kneel down to pray, or think of a solution?

Sometimes, we may forget about God all together, especially, when the matter at hand seems insignificant… Yet God desires this:

“Therefore turn thou to thy God: keep mercy and judgment and wait on thy God continually.” (Hos 12:6, KJV)

The Lord desires that we turn to Him and wait on Him ALWAYS.. In Hebrew, the term “waiting” implies looking to God in hope. God wants us to rely on Him, instead of on ourselves by praying for His guidance and making decisions based on His will. If we do so, even in small matters, we affirm Him as our only Maker, our sole Provider – the One and Only whom we trust and rely on.