Hosea’s wife, Gomel (Hosea 1:2-9)

Hosea’s wife, Gomel (Hosea 1:2-9)

 ² When the Lord began to speak by Hosea, the Lord said to Hosea:

“Go, take yourself a wife of harlotry
And children of harlotry,
For the land has committed great harlotry
By departing from the Lord.”

³ So he went and took Gomer the daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son. ⁴ Then the Lord said to him:

“Call his name Jezreel,
For in a little while
I will avenge the bloodshed of Jezreel on the house of Jehu,
And bring an end to the kingdom of the house of Israel.
⁵ It shall come to pass in that day
That I will break the bow of Israel in the Valley of Jezreel.”

⁶ And she conceived again and bore a daughter. Then God said to him:

“Call her name Lo-Ruhamah,^[a]
For I will no longer have mercy on the house of Israel,
But I will utterly take them away.^[b]
7 Yet I will have mercy on the house of Judah,
Will save them by the Lord their God,
And will not save them by bow,
Nor by sword or battle,
By horses or horsemen.”

⁸ Now when she had weaned Lo-Ruhamah, she conceived and bore a son. ⁹ Then God said:

“Call his name Lo-Ammi,^[c]
For you are not My people,
And I will not be your God.

 

Intro)

Gomel is wife of missionary Hosea. Name Gomel means perfection.

Hosea was missionary who worked when there was lots of idolatry was served by miss guided people. Hosea sent his message with Symbolic behavior to God as other missionaries do, but with his life. God told Hosea “Go, take yourself a wife of harlotry
And children of harlotry,” So he met Gomel and married. Word Harlotry here means one who has bad behavior and can’t control own lust. Gomel had three children with Hosea. They named their first son Jezreel this means Scatter on the ground. As second they had daughter they named her Roruhama this means ‘who are not worthy of mercy.’ Finally, third born was son and named him lo-Amami. Amami name means ‘not my people.’ Their name was symbol for northern Israel’s destiny. (Let us learn a valuable lesson through Hosea’s family.)

 

Body)

1. About harlotry wife Gomel

God told Hosea ‘Go, take yourself a wife of harlotry And children of harlotry.’ This sounds shameful and unfair for a man who respects the honor. However, Hosea followed God’s word.

There is a case where parent’s sin influences their child. There was a case mother choked her own daughter. Why is it? one day daughter came back home and mother found kissing mark on her neck. Mother asked daughter about it and she slept with male student. Mother told her same thing happened when she was young like her and sought her anger, and ended up chocking her to death.

 

B)2 Ways to stop Curse in family

 Hosea 2: 6-7 says, ⁶ And she conceived again and bore a daughter. Then God said to him:

“Call her name Lo-Ruhamah,^[a]
For I will no longer have mercy on the house of Israel,
But I will utterly take them away.^[b]
7 Yet I will have mercy on the house of Judah,
Will save them by the Lord their God,
And will not save them by bow,
Nor by sword or battle,
By horses or horsemen.” 

God stops curse in family in 2 ways.

1: Block it with thrones, 2: block it with wall.

This is sort of punishment. God uses throne to punish us it hurts but it wouldn’t do lots of damage. But, if this does not work God will build a wall to stop the curse.

If God is stopping you do not anger, but consider as gift that God is enhancing your discipline.

 

   Person name Jerome once said ‘God's greatest wrath is not to be angry with those who commit sin.’  God’s greatest punishment is that when human sins God shows neglect and gives up on us.

 This means He won’t be relationship of father and son, so if punishment comes we must thankful for it.

Hebrews 12:5~8 says, ⁵ And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to sons:

“My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord,
Nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him;
⁶ For whom the Lord loves He chastens,
And scourges every son whom He receives.”^[a]

⁷ If^[b] you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom a father does not chasten? ⁸ But if you are without chastening, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons.

 If you take a look at book of Jonah God gave him storm when Jonah disobeyed him. God told Jonah to go to East to Nineveh, but he went to West. Jonah knew how all sudden there was a storm in the sea, because he didn’t listen to God. Jonah told people on the ship to throw him into water, and as soon as he was thrown into water he was swallowed up by giant fish. Jonah spent three days in fish’s belly and giant fish puked him out at Nineveh beach area. Therefore, he went to send prophecy of destruction in castle Nineveh. At the end people of Nineveh repented their sins and received salvation. Hallelujah!

 

 

When God warned people that there will be flood through Noah, but people laughed at him, and people who laughed all died.

 

In New testament Saint Paul received his punishment. Paul had spiritual blessing that he went to 3^rd floor of heaven where God is at. However, God gave Paul an illness, which was like throne. Paul prayed God three times to cure him, but God didn’t because without illness Paul would not be humble and pray to his God as often as he would if he has illness. So Paul leaved his rest of life with illness God gave him.

 

Punishment is love. When parent punishes their child it is love, so when God punishes us we need to believe it’s from love.

 

 

Hebrews 12:10-13 says ¹⁰ For they indeed for a few days chastened us as seemed best to them, but He for our profit, that we may be partakers of His holiness. ¹¹ Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. ¹² Therefore strengthen the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees, ¹³ and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be dislocated, but rather be healed.

Author of Psalm says in Psalm 119:71, “⁷² The law of Your mouth is better to me
Than thousands of coins of gold and silver.” 67 says, ⁶⁷ Before I was afflicted I went astray,
But now I keep Your word.

 

 C)2 Lessons Gomel gives us

1. We are all sinners like Gomel.

Bible says, ‘There is no one righteous, not even one.’ Every one of us sin, but with blessing we can get out of sin, but not with devil.

 

There is story about George Washington he was walking and saw there was pit and there was pig and sheep in it. Sheep came out of pit, because sheep couldn’t enjoy the environment, but pig liked the pit with mud so he stayed there. We can see as sheep like people who work hard to get salvation, but people like pig they don’t care about sin and corrupted world.

 

 2. Hosea’s love symbolizes God’s love.

Hosea 3:1~3 says Then the Lord said to me, “Go again, love a woman who is loved by a lover^[a] and is committing adultery, just like the love of the Lord for the children of Israel, who look to other gods and love the raisin cakes of the pagans.”

² So I bought her for myself for fifteen shekels of silver, and one and one-half homers of barley. ³ And I said to her, “You shall stay with me many days; you shall not play the harlot, nor shall you have a man—so, too, will I be toward you.” Hosea had to deal with his wife Gomel who gave birth to three children of his, but spent nights with other men. Hosea had to pay other men to bring her wife back 15 silvers half of Barley and a homel, this price equal to 30 silvers, in this era slave were sold at 30 silvers. Hosea put up a lot with his wife and still obeyed God’s word.

 Gomel continuously worshiped idolatry and committed adultery. However, Hosea was patience with her and forgave her. This is like God’s love.

 

Con)

Today we have learned God’s love through Hosea. Let us think about how are we responding to God’s endless love? We have to go back to him, and we have to stop blaming him for his punishment. Let us go back to God and his love, and serve him with thankfulness.

 

 

-by pastor Ahn 010817

-Translated by Sung h,Ahn