For those who may wish to ‘study’ this chapter, the following simple resources are provided for you. Each passage has a four-Part approach to help you take in and think further about what you have read.

Passage: Hosea 6:1-4

1 “Come, let us return to the Lord.
He has torn us to pieces
    but he will heal us;
he has injured us
    but he will bind up our wounds.
2 After two days he will revive us;
    on the third day he will restore us,
    that we may live in his presence.
3 Let us acknowledge the Lord;
    let us press on to acknowledge him.
As surely as the sun rises,
    he will appear;
he will come to us like the winter rains,
    like the spring rains that water the earth.” 4 “What can I do with you, Ephraim?
    What can I do with you, Judah?
Your love is like the morning mist,
    like the early dew that disappears.

A. Find Out:

1. What were Israel saying they should do? v.1a
2. What did they say the Lord had done and would do? v.1b,c
3. How soon did they expect things to be well? v.2
4. What did they say they should do and with what result? v.3
5. Yet how did the Lord describe them? v.4

B. Think:

1. How do Israel’s words seem at first sight to be correct?
2. What does the Lord’s picture of them reveal?
3. What is the lesson being conveyed here?

C. Comment:

In verses 1 to 3 we see Israel’s apparent desire and intent to return to the Lord. It all looks very good at first sight. 

First, they acknowledge what the Lord has done: He has torn them to pieces, He has injured them,   i.e. He has afflicted them.

Second, they state what they will do: they will return to the Lord (v.1), acknowledge the Lord (v.3) and press on to acknowledge Him (v.3).

Third, they state their expectation of the Lord: He will heal, He will bind up their wounds, He will restore them, He will restore them to His presence, He will come with blessing. All very good, or is it?

The Lord’s response indicates that it is not! “Your love is like the morning mist, like the early dew that disappears”. What an indictment! Your love, your turning to me is very superficial and will soon be gone! Yes, their words are all too easy, too simple, too superficial. There is no heart felt grief for their sin, they don’t see the awfulness of what they have done, they only want to escape the consequences of what has happened, they want to be restored but at little cost to them. But true repentance is not like that (see 2 Cor 7:9-11),  it means real heart felt anguish to be rid of the sin, to be cleared of the guilt and to be put right with God.  Wanting to simply escape punishment is not repentance, it is self-motivated and God will reject it.

D. Application:

1. True repentance desires to be rid of the sin.
2. False repentance simply desires to be free of the punishment.

Passage: Hosea 6:5-11

5 Therefore I cut you in pieces with my prophets,
    I killed you with the words of my mouth—
    then my judgments go forth like the sun.
6 For I desire mercy, not sacrifice,
    and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.
7 As at Adam, they have broken the covenant;
    they were unfaithful to me there.
8 Gilead is a city of evildoers,
    stained with footprints of blood.
9 As marauders lie in ambush for a victim,
    so do bands of priests;
they murder on the road to Shechem,
    carrying out their wicked schemes.
10 I have seen a horrible thing in Israel:
    There Ephraim is given to prostitution,
    Israel is defiled.

11 “Also for you, Judah,
    a harvest is appointed.

“Whenever I would restore the fortunes of my people,

A. Find Out:

1. What had the Lord done? v.5
2. Why? What had He wanted? v.6
3. What had they been doing? v.7
4. What sin did the Lord then speak against? v.8,9
5. What had happened to Israel? v.10
6. How does Judah get included? v.11

B. Think:

1. How does this passage link with the previous one?
2. What sins are spoken against?
3. What two forms of judgement are mentioned?

C. Comment:

Israel has spoken of returning to God but their superficial words were rebuffed by the Lord. The Lord saw that, as so often in their history, their words had been short lived, therefore throughout their history He had spoken against them through His prophets. Continually they had acted religiously, performing the required religious actions but without any heart commitment.

‘Adam’ in verse 7 is more probably a place where they had broken the covenant and worshipped idols. Gilead also came in for censure but for the sin of violence against others. It seems that this means literal physical violence but in the context of unfaithfulness in verses 7 and 10 it may, perhaps, mean spiritual violence that brought about spiritual death, although it is not clear.

What is clear is that yet again the Lord speaks powerfully against both Israel and Judah. The prostitution of v.10 is obviously spiritual adultery and Judah is similarly indicted (see “also” v.11a).

Again and again the prophetic word comes through Hosea in a sharp cutting manner, indicting Israel for its spiritual unfaithfulness and the accompanying sins. No, mere surface words of return are inadequate.   Israel has been like this throughout its history!

D. Application:

1. The prophetic word comes to reveal in for what it is.
2. It also comes with the intent of returning the people to God.