Forsaking All Others . . .

Discussion Guide
7.04.21

ONE Message Series
Justice and Mercy: A Study of Amos and Hosea

“Forsaking All Others . . .”

“I will betroth you to me forever . . . in righteousness and justice, in love and compassion” (Hosea 2:20).

OPEN
Hosea has the distinction of being the only writing prophet from the Northern Kingdom. He
and Amos (from the Southern Kingdom of Judah) were contemporaries and both prophets
delivered their primary message to Israel. The special pathos of the Book of Hosea is that his
message is rooted in his personal life experience with a faithless wife named Gomer. As his
heart had been broken by her, so Yahweh’s heart was broken for his covenant people.

NEXT
In a contract, two or more parties make an exchange of some sort – with each party pursuing
personal advantage from the agreement. In a covenant, two or more individuals form a bond
of love, trust, and fidelity to achieve together what neither can do alone. In the Jewish and
Christian traditions, is marriage a contract agreement or a covenant commitment? Explain.

A Jewish writer, Jonathan Sacks, says this: “A contract is a transaction. A covenant is a
relationship. A contract is about interests. A covenant is about identity. That is why contracts
benefit, but covenants transform.” Why is this understanding of a covenant so crucial to
marriage? To rearing children? To faith? To interpreting the Book of Hosea?

Briefly summarize the stages of the covenant relationship between Hosea and Gomer. How
does their relationship parallel that of Yahweh and Israel?

Hosea’s love for Gomer defies any reasonable expectation. She betrays him, abandons her
children, degrades herself, and is finally reduced to sexual slavery. What does Hosea do at that
point that takes a reader’s breath away? How does this prefigure the work of Jesus?

Adultery is the serious sin of breaking one’s covenant promises – whether a spouse with a
marriage partner or a believer with God. Notice some of the places in Scripture where this
imagery is used in texts such as Jeremiah 3:6-10; 31:32; James 4:4.

CLOSING
Chapters 1-3 focus on the personal life of Hosea. In the two lessons that follow, his life story
with Gomer will be applied to the experience of Yahweh with Israel. It is a marvelous account
of unquenchable love, humbling oneself to pursue an ungrateful soul, and the option of
redemption. As you end your study, thank God for the covenant faithfulness he shows his
people – even though, like Gomer, we have no right to claim his favor.