Gomer conceived again and gave birth to a daughter. Then the Lord said to Hosea, "Call he Lo-Ruhamah, for I will no longer show love to the house of Israel, that I should at all forgive them. Yet I will show love to the house of Judah; and I will save them" After she had weaned Lo-Ruhamah, Gomer had another son. The Lord said, "Call him Lo-Ammi, for you are not my people, and I am not your God."
(Hosea 1:6-9 NIV)
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I remember in the Godfather 2... there were two consecutive scenes. In the first Michael is saying to his sister, "You've done your own thing for long enough. Why don't you come stay with me now." And then in the next scene he is talking to his brother and he says, "From here on out, you are not my brother. I don't want you ever even in the same city as me. If I see you, I'll have to kill you. You're dead to me."
You're dead to me. Pretty harsh words. But that is pretty much what Hosea is saying here. "I don't love her." And later, "This boy isn't mine." He's making a public statement to the world that his wife has slept around on him. He is shaming both her and her child.
Beyond that, through him God is saying the same thing about Israel. "I no longer love her." Even more... "You're dead to me."
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Now in the Godfather both of Michael's siblings have screwed up. He gives one another chance. He shows her mercy. But then he pronounces judgment on their brother. It' almost as if he's showing favoritism.
Judah and Israel have both messed up. But Israel is done while God is showing Judah another chance. I think back on the twin boys that had been born to Isaac. Many times in scripture God says, Jacob I loved while Esau I hated. Now you can say it's because of the lifestyles they led, but this statement was first made when their mom was pregnant. THEY WEREN'T EVEN BORN!
You can argue that God knew in advance the lives they would lead, but does that mean they were locked into such choices beforehand? If so, are they really choices? I could counter that it's just as likely (if not more) that knowing of this prophesy growing up is what characterized Esau as bitter and Jacob smug later in life. In other words, it was a self fulfilling prophesy.
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But lets get back to Hosea. Again this is, to me, an impossible command. First he, as a respectable Jewish man is told to marry a hooker. Then he has a kid by her that God tells him to name the ancient Hebrew equivalent of Auschwitz. Now she has two more kids (not his) and he names them Unloved and Disowned.
Again the self righteousness in me comes seeping through. Even if those aren't my natural born kids I've still got a responsibility for them. How dare you give them such vile names. Why place on them the sin of their mother. Or perhaps, like Esau God knows in advance what choices tey will make. With names like that, what choice do they have?
At this point I almost feel pity for Gomer. Perhaps she is so much like me. Think about it from her perspective. Yes, this guy cleaned me up. He loved me when I didn't deserve it. He gave me a new lease on life. But then he named my pride and joy... my treasure... Jezreel. Is my precious baby nothing more than a tool for him. Is it any wonder I sleep around on him? If that's what a husband is, why would I want him? What right does he have?
Don't I say the same thing? Don't I do the same thing? Yes, God has saved me, and turned my life around. But now he has taken my pride and joy, my gifts, my works and creations and made them a tool for His Kingdom? Is it any wonder I sin around on him? If that's the kind of God he is, why would I want to serve Him? What right does he have?
