Hosea 10

Israel is guilty of idolatry

Hosea 10:1 Israel is an empty vine, he bringeth forth fruit unto himself: according to the multitude of his fruit he hath increased the altars; according to the goodness of his land they have made goodly images.
Hosea 10:2 Their heart is divided; now shall they be found faulty: he shall break down their altars, he shall spoil their images.

Israel is an empty vine, bringing forth sinful fruit unto himself; as the sinful fruit increases so they built more altars to worship their false gods. Isn't this what has happened in America? The more they prospered, the more they wanted. The more they worshipped acquiring wealth and sensual pleasures and every evil has come out of hiding, anything goes, but their hearts are not rich towards the one true God. Where is the fruit of repentance and righteousness in the LORD?

Joh 15:2 Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.

The LORD will break down their altars, they are under judgment. They have divided hearts, serving idols and saying they also serve the true God. One thing that happened then and now is they have brought the worlds idols into the worship of God. The world has gotten into the church. Some churches are embracing gay pride, the use of alcohol and other sinful ways as part of the religious culture. The god of tolerance embraces all gods, but the God of Israel calls us to be holy and separate.

1Ki 18:21 And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the LORD be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word.

Punishment and removal of kings

Hosea 10:3 For now they shall say, We have no king, because we feared not the LORD; what then should a king do to us?
Hosea 10:4 They have spoken words, swearing falsely in making a covenant: thus judgment springeth up as hemlock in the furrows of the field.

Hos 3:4 For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and without teraphim:

They turned from the King of kings, now their king was taken captive. There is sorrow, but also cynicism. They did not want God to rule over them because then they would have to repent. Sometimes kings are removed or given as punishment. There is a general dislike and rebellion of those in authority. The hemlock was poisonous, so it is as a judgment, the fruit of their labor was as death to them, because they continued in sin.

Israel and its idols removed to Assyria

Hosea 10:5 The inhabitants of Samaria shall fear because of the calves of Bethaven: for the people thereof shall mourn over it, and the priests thereof that rejoiced on it, for the glory thereof, because it is departed from it.

The word for the priests was not cohen, priests of God, but it was comer, priests who serve pagan gods.

Hosea 10:6 It shall be also carried unto Assyria for a present to king Jareb: Ephraim shall receive shame, and Israel shall be ashamed of his own counsel.

Israel and the calf idols were taken by Assyrian invaders as a gift to their king, but the glory of God had already left Bethel, because of idolatry.

Hosea 10:7 As for Samaria, her king is cut off as the foam upon the water.

The king is cut off as bubbles in sea foam, effortless, weightless worthless. I can't help but think of ruthless rulers who persist, in doing much evil like a Hitler. But they shall not escape the hand and judgment of God. Pray for our leaders, that they find favor with God and that they do his will.

Joel 1:6 For a nation is come up upon my land, strong, and without number, whose teeth are the teeth of a lion, and he hath the cheek teeth of a great lion.
Joel 1:7 He hath laid my vine waste, and barked my fig tree: he hath made it clean bare, and cast it away; the branches thereof are made white.

Hosea 10:8 The high places also of Aven, the sin of Israel, shall be destroyed: the thorn and the thistle shall come up on their altars; and they shall say to the mountains, Cover us; and to the hills, Fall on us.

Aven, another name for Bethel or Bethaven, meaning vanity or iniquity. The altars shall be abandoned and cursed plants shall cover them. The people will be miserable taken from their native land. I sometimes wonder at all the sin in our land and in our people that God has so blessed. Has God now turned away? What lies ahead if our people will not repent? Judgment is coming. Pray for our nation.

Luk 23:30 Then shall they begin to say to the mountains, Fall on us; and to the hills, Cover us.

The people of Samaria mourn for their calf idols from Bethaven. This was Bethel, house of God, now called Bethaven, a house of iniquity, because of the worship of the calf idol. In our day, has the Bethel church, become a cult church? Something to watch out for. A big church that once flourished, as in Israel, the place where Jacob met God, now a meeting place of worldly people pretending to do the work of God by a false spirit? We need to pray and examine ourselves daily that we not become as the world and that we walk in the Spirit of God.

Psa 26:2 Examine me, O LORD, and prove me; try my reins and my heart.
Psa 26:3 For thy lovingkindness is before mine eyes: and I have walked in thy truth.
Psa 26:4 I have not sat with vain persons, neither will I go in with dissemblers.
Psa 26:5 I have hated the congregation of evil doers; and will not sit with the wicked.

Failure to learn from history

Hosea 10:9 O Israel, thou hast sinned from the days of Gibeah: there they stood: the battle in Gibeah against the children of iniquity did not overtake them.

This is another reference to the horrible rape and murder of the Levite's wife, and the gathering of the tribes of Israel against Gibeah of the tribe of Benjamin to judge the sinful people. Israel was still as sinful as this and in In like manner nations will come against Samaria because of her iniquity.

Hosea 10:10 It is in my desire that I should chastise them; and the people shall be gathered against them, when they shall bind themselves in their two furrows.

Two furrows; the twin calves of Dan and Bethel?

Jer 2:13 For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.

Hosea 10:11 And Ephraim is as an heifer that is taught, and loveth to tread out the corn; but I passed over upon her fair neck: I will make Ephraim to ride; Judah shall plow, and Jacob shall break his clods.

Ephraim is a heifer used to plowing and freely eating of its corn, unmuzzled. Now he will be driven hard, Judah will plow and Ephraim or Israel shall break up the fallow ground. I was wondering what this means. Why is their ploughing? Is it not to plant seeds? I see Israel being taken to assyria, leaving Judah alone to plough. When we witness for God are we not plowing and planting seed? Israel's heart was hardened by sin, so being a slave laborer in a foreign nation would be a humbling experience. By this the Lord will break up the fallow ground of Israel's heart.

Hosea 10:12 Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the LORD, till he come and rain righteousness upon you.

Repent of your sins and sow seeds of righteousness for a later spiritual harvest of mercy and righteousness.

Gal 6:7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
Gal 6:8 For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.

Hosea 10:13 Ye have plowed wickedness, ye have reaped iniquity; ye have eaten the fruit of lies: because thou didst trust in thy way, in the multitude of thy mighty men.

Job 4:8 Even as I have seen, they that plow iniquity, and sow wickedness, reap the same.

They worshipped gods that were no gods. And they lived a lie before a righteous God; they would reap iniquity, they trusted in their military instead of God. Lies would destroy their foundation and their nation.

I see the path our leaders are taking America and it is not good. There are many lies being sown with evil deeds. Recently the United States voted to affirm homosexual rights with the United Nations. Even Pakistan and Arabia voted against this. Where is our founding fathers faith now? They will testify against this time. If we do not repent we will go under.

Hosea 10:14 Therefore shall a tumult arise among thy people, and all thy fortresses shall be spoiled, as Shalman spoiled Betharbel in the day of battle: the mother was dashed in pieces upon her children.
Hosea 10:15 So shall Bethel do unto you because of your great wickedness: in a morning shall the king of Israel utterly be cut off.

Invaders are coming because they would not repent. Hosea was given an adulterous wife as an example to Israel, how they were committing spiritual adultery against the LORD.

Isa 13:16 Their children also shall be dashed to pieces before their eyes; their houses shall be spoiled, and their wives ravished.

Mic 5:10 And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD, that I will cut off thy horses out of the midst of thee, and I will destroy thy chariots:
Mic 5:11 And I will cut off the cities of thy land, and throw down all thy strong holds:
Mic 5:12 And I will cut off witchcrafts out of thine hand; and thou shalt have no more soothsayers:
Mic 5:13 Thy graven images also will I cut off, and thy standing images out of the midst of thee; and thou shalt no more worship the work of thine hands.

What you have done at Bethel will do this to you. Once the house of God it became a place of false worship and pride, therefore the LORD shall send in another nation to remove you from the land. What about us? We print "In God we trust" on our coins and with our lives many serve idols of wealth, pornography, drug use, sensual pleasures and wicked imaginations. The God, from In God We Trust, will come against our nation, unless we repent.

2Ch 7:14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

Keep praying.