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This episode not only takes you through the historical context of Hosea but also intertwines listener reflections and testimonies about spreading God's Word. Through personal letters and heartfelt stories, witness how core values become real experiences of faith and compassion shared globally. Engage with the encouraging and powerful moments that reveal God's timeless mercy and love for all His children.
SPEAKER 01 :
The foundation, ye saints of the Lord, is laid for your faithful.
SPEAKER 02 :
Have you ever wondered if we can out-sin God? Or to put it another way, can we ever sink so low and sin so much that God's grace can't reach us? Well, welcome to Through the Bible. I'm so glad that you're here as Dr. J. Vernon McGee answers these important questions and so many more as we dive into Hosea 1. Known as one of the minor prophets, and you'll hear Dr. McGee take exception to that description, minor, Hosea is really a fascinating book. It begins with a big scandal, one that could show up on any made-for-TV movie. You know, but ultimately, when we get to the end of this book, I think what you'll remember most is the amazing depth of God's love for every one of us. I'm Steve Schwetz, and before we get started, Greg and I have got some listener stories that we want to share with you.
SPEAKER 03 :
And today, Steve, we want to do something that we do from time to time, which is reflect on our core values and how they are very real. They're not just sort of statements that you put on a poster on a wall. And one of our core values that we have been taught by Dr. McGee, and he was taught by Jesus, so that's a pretty good chain of reference. Yeah. is that we are simply called to fling the seed of the Word of God. And we have just heard so many stories here in North America and around the world of we fling the seed, others pick it up, and then they fling it some more.
SPEAKER 02 :
Yeah, absolutely. I think of the illustration of the seed that we're flinging. The Lord keeps putting more seed in this bucket, and we keep throwing it out, and we're not piling seed on seed. There's new opportunities that the Lord is bringing to us that we've talked about this before. Neither one of us is smart enough to know what we're going to go to. Now, we're good stewards, and we plan to an extent, but so much of the growth of this ministry into different aspects of it has not come from Yeah, I know.
SPEAKER 03 :
We haven't sat in a conference room and planned out the future.
SPEAKER 02 :
Yeah, I think about using that Bible bus pass. I mean, I've used it myself. I'm on an international flight into, I think I was going to Dubai, and I start chatting with one of the stewards. And the person says, hey, I used to listen on KFAX out of San Francisco. And it's like, oh, well, you can't listen to it anymore because your flight schedule. Well, here's the Through the Bible app with the QR code on it. And now she's listening again to the program. Yeah.
SPEAKER 03 :
And we've heard over the years some pretty cool stories about truck drivers who give out Bible passes at truck stops. We've heard about people even paying to put up billboards, make bumper stickers, license plate frames, all kinds. We've heard about families who use the World Prayer Team for their homeschool kids.
SPEAKER 02 :
Yeah. Another way that people are starting to use the resources of Through the Bible is the Bible Companions. Oh, yes. Which I love. I'm looking at one. one of them i mean one of that the bible is a person that's using them yes we have yeah that's me we have uh the entire new testament done and they are an outstanding free by the way yes resource that you can use electronically for your own home bible study and if you do want the printed copy we can get those to you i believe we're bundling them in 10 packs we're trying to get the price down as low as we can remember digital is free for us because it's almost nothing to distribute it Paper costs money. Shipping costs money. So we cover our costs there. But it's a great way to introduce and fling the seed through the Bible by getting your friends and family interested in studying God's word introduced to Dr. McGee through these Bible companions.
SPEAKER 03 :
I love it. And so we also have some fresh stories of listeners. You want to read this one from Krista in England?
SPEAKER 02 :
Yes, it says, please send me a pack of the Bible bus passes so that I can pass them on and encourage people in my community. I have been on the Bible bus now for a while and I'm still going strong. It's become a regular part of my day, a snack-sized portion of the Bible that I can now not do without. I regularly listen to the daily message two to three times just to make sure I haven't missed something. If we are driving in the car, my two little ones also listen with me And they now know the theme song by heart. It's interesting. I've heard that before with kids that don't understand, but they know the theme song. I am so enthused by Dr. McGee and his direct and unwavering truth when unpacking the whole Bible. I am learning so much and have spoken to a few people about him and the amazing message and truthful saving grace the Lord Jesus Christ longs for us to experience. I look forward to being able to hand out some of the Bible bus passes to sow the seed further. Now, I just want to point out, remember, this person was from England, Yorkshire, England to be specific, not exactly the Bible Belt of Europe.
SPEAKER 03 :
No, not at all. And I felt the same way. I was like, Yes, this is great. Someone in England is passionate about the word of God. Now, I think we have time enough to hear from Joyce from the USA who says, hi there. Well, Joyce, hi. Greg and Steve say hi. She says, I'm writing to request the Bible bus passes to share with people. I still send Christmas cards and thought it might be nice to add one in our card this year. Good idea, Joyce. I really appreciate Through the Bible and the letters you read at the beginning and the projects you share are so encouraging. I know the people doing the translating and recording in other languages are facing obstacles and resistance to getting the programs ready, and I appreciate their faithful perseverance. I record Bible verse songs and get them up on YouTube to help kids memorize the verses. Every day I face some sort of issue that tries to discourage me from persevering. So thinking of those folks doing these programs in other languages, it's obvious to me that they have lots of resistance from our enemy. May God richly bless you and them for hanging in there no matter what.
SPEAKER 02 :
So encouraging. Thank you for that, Joyce. Let me pray for us as we begin. Heavenly Father, we're so thankful for the wonderful opportunity you give us to fling the seed, the good news of Jesus Christ. I pray that you continue to bless the ministry through the Bible as it goes around the world, and bless us now as we seek to understand your word better. In Jesus' name, amen. Open your Bible to Hosea 1, and let's get started going through the Bible with Dr. J. Vernon McGee.
SPEAKER 04 :
Now, I return today to the prophecy of Hosea. For the past two times, you've listened to a message that we gave some time ago as a sermon, but we felt it furnished a proper introduction to Hosea. This man is a remarkable prophet, and I personally do not like the classification of major and minor prophets. Actually, that was put in by the church, I suppose, about the third century. It was not that way in the Hebrew Bible. And Hosea was just put with the other prophets and was not put last in the Old Testament. If they had waited until I got here to make an arrangement of the books of the Bible, I would have made the arrangement of putting the prophetic books with the historical books, the ones they belong with. And if you noted that practically all of the writing prophets Their message belongs to the divided kingdom. When the kings failed, God raised up prophets to speak to the nation. And these men, every one of them are outstanding. And just because some of them didn't write long prophecies, after all, you wouldn't want to call Elijah a minor prophet, would you? He'd be a mini-minor because he never wrote any prophecies. If Elijah might be classified the first, John the Baptist, the last of the prophets, never wrote anything, and yet he was a prophet of God and announced the coming of the Savior. So that when we come here to the prophecy of Hosea, we're coming to one of the great books of the Bible. It actually belongs before Jeremiah. Hosea was contemporary with Isaiah and Micah. and also his compatriot in the northern kingdom, Joel. Hosea and Joel in the north, Isaiah and Micah in the southern kingdom. And this man Hosea would compare to Jeremiah. Jeremiah is the last prophet before the southern kingdom went into captivity. But over a hundred years before that, Hosea had been the prophet in the northern kingdom, and he occupied the same position of warning the nation, and he did it with a broken heart. But his broken heart comes from an experience that he's had, and that's what we've been dealing with. You see, Jeremiah, his was personal, but nevertheless, it was more public. He loved his nation. And he was a tenderhearted man that broke his heart to have to give them a harsh message. But that's the kind of a man God chose. Now, I don't consider Hosea a tenderhearted man like Jeremiah. But this man had an experience. And as we've seen the past two days, he comes out of a broken home with a broken heart. And we're going into detail now into the text. And from that broken home and that broken heart where a wife had been unfaithful to him and had become a harlot, he even loved her so much, he went back and took her again and she played the harlot again. This man with hot tears rushing down his cheeks, walks out before the nation, and he says, I want to tell you how God feels about you because I feel the same way. I've had a personal experience in my own home, and this man with a broken heart could speak to his nation, you see. Now, with that in mind, let's look here for just a few moments at the outline that we've made of this book. Very simple outline. Actually, in just two major divisions, we have 14 chapters here. Actually, more than you have in the book of Daniel, yet we call this a minor prophet. And we have in the first three chapters that which is personal. And that's the prophet and his faithless wife, Gomer. It's the scandal of his home and the gossip of the town that we get in the first three chapters. Then we have the prophetic. It's the Lord and the faithless nation, Israel, from chapter 4 through 14. So now we come in chapter 1 to the marriage of Hosea and Gomer, the harlot. Let's read this as we move along. Verse 1 again, the word of the Lord that came unto Hosea, the son of Bere, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah. Now, these were the kings in the south at this particular time. And in the days of Jeroboam, the son of Joash, king of Israel, he in the north. Now, you can't have them any worse than what we got here in the way of kings in the northern kingdom. Now, we have the time given to us. Verse 2, the beginning of the word of the Lord by Hosea. This is the way that God approached the prophet, and it's a rather startling thing. And the Lord said to Hosea, go, take unto thee a wife of harlotry. and children of harlotry, for the land hath committed great harlotry, departing from the Lord. Now, I highly recommend the Scofield Reference Bible. If you don't have one, you ought to get one. I still use the old one a great deal, but right now I have before me the new Scofield Reference, and I recommend it. Some people get the idea that those of us who use and recommend the Schofield Bible, that we feel like the notes are inspired. Now, just to show you that I don't believe they're inspired, I want to say I totally disagree with the first statement that you have here in the way of notes for this verse. And I'm reading the note. God did not command Hosea to take an immoral wife, but permitted him to carry out his desire to marry Gomer, warning him that she would be unfaithful and using the prophet's sad experience as a basis for the presentation of lessons about God's relation to Israel. Now, I consider this a very nice way to get God off of the hook. But you don't have to get him off the hook. He takes full responsibility for this. And the way I understand this is that the Lord said to Hosea, go. And my parents said that to me as a boy, go someplace, go to the store or go to school. I always interpreted that as a command. And I'm of the opinion that this is not just a permission, it's a command. Because this man, Hosea, as we've said in the message that we've given, a young man there in the northern kingdom, probably in the Ephraim country, this beautiful girl that he met, he fell madly in love with her. And then she played the harlot. And naturally, he wanted to put her aside. He wanted to marry her, but he wouldn't dare do it in the little town. And the Mosaic law said, stone her. What's he going to do? God says, go and marry her. And God's actually asking him to break the Mosaic law. Somebody says, well, that's terrible. Not when God says you to do it, friends. God said to him, Hosea, you were in love with her. Now you want to put her aside. I don't want you to put her aside. I want you to marry her. And he said that she's a wife of harlotry. She's played the harlot and children of harlotry. Apparently, there was a record in the family of that. Then he's going to make it clear to him at the beginning how he's going to use this in this prophet's life. He says, for the land, that is now the northern kingdom, hath committed great harlotry, departing from the Lord. Now he's comparing that which is physical harlotry or physical adultery to that which is spiritual adultery or spiritual harlotry. And that, you'll find, is applicable to the believer today. You can play fast and loose with God, and you're nothing in the world but a harlot, a spiritual harlot in his sight. That's exactly the language that he uses, and God uses pretty plain language. And I could wish today the pulpit was a little stronger than it is. We are trying to be very nice today, all of us are. And as a result, we're not really sometimes as strong as the Word of God. Now, will you notice, we move on. Verse 3 now of chapter 1 of Hosea. So he went and took Gomer, the daughter of Diblayan. who conceived and bore him a son. And the Lord said unto him, Call his name Jezreel, for yet a little while, and I will avenge the blood of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu, and I will cause to cease the kingdom of the house of Israel. Now we can see readily not only the marriage, but the children are going to present here a real spiritual lesson for the nation Israel. Jezreel is the name of the sons. And it means God will scatter and God will avenge the blood of Jezreel. Now, Jezreel is the name of a city. I've been through the ruins of it. And it's the name of a famous plain. I've been through that. I'm sure that many of you have. We call it Armageddon, actually. Esdraelon, the Valley of Esdraelon. And it has a long, bloody history in the past. and still has and will have in the future. Now this is a son. God is going to scatter the northern kingdom. And you remember Isaiah's children had a spiritual message for the nation. Now I read verse 6. And she conceived again and bore a daughter. And God said unto him, Call her name Lo-ruhamah. Now, what does Lo-Ruhamah mean? And by the way, you have a whole lot of daughters in your family and you've run out of names. I've got several suggestions to make to you. And here's one of them, Lo-Ruhamah. I don't know whether you'd want to use it or not because it means unpity. And this has a tremendous message. Listen to it. Call her name Lo-Ruhamah, for I will no more have mercy upon the house of Israel, but I will utterly take them away. There's always been the question of whether it's possible for a person to step over a line and the grace of God not be able to reach them. And there are those that believe that you could never step over that line. Then there are those that believe that you can step over the line. Well, may I give you my viewpoint of it, and you can take my judgment for what it's worth, but I think the meaning is actually somewhere between. And this is what I mean, and I'm not trying to run with the hare and with the hounds, both in this, but I do not believe you can ever get to a place where the grace of God couldn't reach down and touch you. They just don't get that low that the grace of God can't go down and get you. But wait just a minute. You can keep on sinning in the face of the grace and mercy of God and keep turning it down and keep turning away from God as these people were doing. And there comes a day. When you've stepped over a boundary, and it doesn't mean the grace of God can't reach you, but it does mean that there'll be nothing in you that the grace of God can lay hold of. I think I've used this illustration recently about when I first came to Pasadena as pastor in a church here. That's been many years ago, back in about 1940. And shortly after I came here, a wife, wanted me to go see her sick husband. He was at home and dying there. I went to see him, and I presented the gospel to him. She wanted me to, and he was a very polite man. He listened to me. He said, Dr. McGee, you know, I would say yes, I will accept Christ as my Savior. In fact, I'm going to do it. But he said, I want to tell you this. I have played and trifled with God all my life. I have been down to an altar 25 times. I have promised him. And then I've turned from him. And I've never been sincere. And I'll be honest with you. I can't tell you right now when I tell you I'll accept Christ whether I'm sincere or not. And all I could do at the funeral, when I looked down at him, could say under my breath, oh, God, I hope he was sincere. I hope he really meant it. I hope the grace of God reached down and touched him. But you can trifle with God. This nation did. And the day came, God says, I'll no longer have mercy on you. And that day came. It was a tremendous day, by the way. Now he says, verse 7, but I will have mercy upon the house of Judah. Now, God said, I'm not ready yet to judge the house of Judah. Why? Well, for the sake of David, God said for the sake of David, he wouldn't divide the kingdom under Solomon. He said for the sake of David again and again that he would save the southern kingdom. Well, may I say to you that somebody may want to criticize this and say that's not fair. Well, I don't know whether it's fair or not, but I thank God, friends, that God showed mercy to me. And that he was patient and continued to show mercy. And he continues today to show mercy. He says, I will have mercy upon the house of Judah, and I'll save them by the Lord their God, and will not save them by bow, nor by sword, nor by battle, by horses, nor by horsemen. Now, he says, I'm not going to save them by the fact that they've got phantom jets and atom bombs. I'm not going to save them by the means of arms. And if you want to read that story, it's a tremendous story of how God delivered these people. You'd have to go back into 1 Kings. No, you'd have to go to 2 Kings, the 19th chapter, and to Isaiah 37. You'll read how God miraculously delivered these people, the southern kingdom at this time. But he didn't deliver the northern kingdom. Now, will you notice verse 8? Now, when she had weaned Lo-Ruhamah, takes about a couple of years over in that country to wean a child, sometimes three years. She conceived and bore a son. Now, here's another son. Then said God, call his name Lo-Ami, for ye are not my people and I will not be your God. Now, if that was the only verse in the Bible, I would agree with the amillennialists today that God is through with the nation Israel. And I wish devoutly that even many of our premillennial brethren would quit reaching in and pulling a verse out here and a verse out there. and saying this is being fulfilled. I challenge anybody to read the prophecy of Hosea and come up with an intelligent answer that says God is through with the nation Israel. Now just read the next verse and we'll be clear on this. Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be like the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured nor numbered. And that's a marvelous thing. They have been decimated again and again by persecution. Think what Hitler did. And here's a marvelous prophecy that he's going to increase their number. And he says, and it shall come to pass that in the place where it was said unto them, you're not my people, there it shall be said unto them, you're the sons of the living God. God is not through with them. You just have to keep reading the Bible, friend, and don't pull one verse out. Now will you notice verse 11? Then shall the children of Judah and the children of Israel be gathered together. The nation will come together. There's no ten lost tribes, by the way. And appoint themselves one head. They don't have that, and they're not all in agreement, even over in Israel today, I can assure you. And they shall come up out of the land, for great shall be the day of Jezreel. My, what a wonderful prophecy this is here. Verse 1 of chapter 2. Say ye unto your brethren, Ami, and to your sisters, Ruhamah. That is, you are pitted now, and you are my people. God is not through with the nation Israel. Now, I'm going to develop that farther when we get to the third chapter. But there are too many people today that are saying that the present return of the nation Israel to that land is a fulfillment of prophecy in the Old Testament. I totally disagree with that viewpoint. That's not a fulfillment of the prophecy of the Old Testament. And I'm going to talk on that. I think I'll get that far next time. If I don't, it's coming up in the near future. So until next time, may God richly bless you, my beloved.
SPEAKER 02 :
We've got a lot ahead of us in Hosea. I'm Steve Schwartz and I'll meet you back here next time. Until then, to be in touch, call 1-800-65-BIBLE or visit ttb.org. Or better yet, download our app and take through the Bible with you wherever you go.
SPEAKER 01 :
All to him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain. He washed it white as snow.
SPEAKER 02 :
Our story on the Bible Bus today is just one step in a five-year journey through the entire Word of God. Come along for the ride, and you'll study both the Old Testament and New Testament, discovering God's great redemption story. Is this your story too?
In this episode of Through the Bible, we delve into the powerful teachings of the book of Hosea as Dr. J. Vernon McGee guides us through the trials of the Northern Kingdom of Israel. Ignoring God's word not only led to spiritual adultery but also brought about God's judgment in a dramatic and prophetic transition. As we reflect on the message shared by the evangelist D.L. Moody and stories from Dr. McGee's own ministry, we're prompted to consider the essential role of scripture in our everyday lives. Throughout Hosea chapter 4, we witness the consequences that befell Israel when they neglected their sacred texts. Dr. McGee draws parallels to modern times, illustrating how turning our backs on divine guidance can lead to moral decay and personal dissatisfaction. Whether through personal anecdotes or deep scriptural insights, this episode calls listeners to introspection and a return to God’s word. Join us as we uncover the inhibitors to spiritual fulfillment and the inevitable consequences of idolatry and sin. Whether you are a long-time believer, a part of our World Prayer Team, or someone in search of spiritual clarity, this study provides profound insights. Prepare to embark on this enlightening journey through Scripture with renewed understanding.
SPEAKER 1 :
The foundation, ye saints of the Lord, is laid for your faith.
SPEAKER 01 :
The evangelist D.L. Moody was right when he said, The Bible will keep you from sin, or sin will keep you from the Bible. Listening to and obeying God's Word is a protection over our lives. And that's one reason that I'm so glad that you're here at Through the Bible, ready to get into God's Word with Dr. J. Verna McGee. And as you know, we're in the book of Hosea on our five-year journey through the whole word. And in this study, we're going to learn how the northern kingdom of Israel turned away from God because they forgot his word. Well, not only did they forget it, they wanted nothing to do with it. They completely turned their backs on God's ways. And you know, that's when God's man Hosea stepped up and said, my people are destroyed for lack of knowledge of God's word. And then he relayed God's chilling consequence. Because you forgot the law of your God, I will also forget your children. I will change your glory into shame. Wow. I don't know about you, but that sobering pronouncement makes me sit up and listen. We're in Hosea chapter four. So as you open your Bible, let's listen to Dr. McGee's introduction on why God will judge his people.
SPEAKER 03 :
Now God says that he must judge the nation. And he says that he will change their glory into shame. Now the glory of Israel was actually the temple with the Shekinah glory upon it and his visible presence with the nation and his definite leading of them. And they're witness to the world of that day of monotheism. In a world of polytheism, they worship the living and the true God. That was their glory. It brought the Queen of Sheba from the ends of the earth. Now what is happening is this. God says, I will remove my glory from you. I'll remove my blessing from you. And I will judge you. I'll let the enemy come in upon you and take you away. And of course, the enemy is going to be able to say, look, they said they were God's chosen people. And look what's happening to them. And apparently their God's not a very strong God. Friends, we're seeing today in this land of ours something very similar to that. God is judging many churches and he's closing many doors today. You can look about you in this land of ours and see that God is still judging. And we are inclined to say, isn't it a shame to see a decline in a certain church? Well, maybe God closed the door. We need to recognize that only God today can afford to judge his own people, and he does that.
SPEAKER 01 :
Before jumping into our study, I invite you to join our World Prayer Team. Together we pray for listeners like Nora in the Philippines who writes this. I heard your message and want to know if you will really be forgiven. I have sinned in the past and I have thought that I am unforgivable. I got involved with another man and our entire village knows. I'm hurting and crying right now, but your words in my language of Locano comfort me and give me hope. For the first time, I feel as if God might accept me as I am. Please tell me what to do next. Please tell me more about Jesus and how I can be redeemed. Are you ready to join us for the journey? Well, hop aboard as we pray for millions of listeners like this one all over the world by signing up at ttb.org forward slash pray. And let's do that now. Thank you, Heavenly Father. Thank you for the privilege of hearing your word. Help us to turn what distracts us and do what pleases you. Thank you for allowing us to be a part of sharing your word with the world. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. We're off to Hosea 4 on Through the Bible with Dr. J. Vernon McGee.
SPEAKER 03 :
Now, we got down last time through the sixth verse of the fourth chapter of Hosea. And again, I'd like to say that this sixth verse here of this fourth chapter is considered one of the most familiar verses that we have. It's one that is quoted a great deal. My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. And that's the way it opens. I went through it last time, and I'll not go any farther than that. But it was a lack of the knowledge of the Word of God that was the background of the sin of these people. The minute that Christian friend, you get away from the Word of God, you could not live a triumphant Christian life by any means. You could not live well-pleasing to the Lord. And I do not care how many of these method conferences you go to that have all these little gimmicks that if you do this and do that and do the other thing, that things are going to work all right for you in your home and in your place of business and in your social life, and everything will work out right. My friend, the Word of God makes it very clear that That's not by these little gimmicks, these little methods. It's by a knowledge of the Word of God. Now, that is as clear as the noonday sun in this book and certainly in other places. Now, will you notice as God continues to bring against the northern kingdom his judgment upon them, that is, he hands down a decision. He's going to judge them. And he has now proven that To them, his case, they broken the Ten Commandments. He went down the list and they had broken them. Now he says, as they were, verse 7, as they were increased, so they sinned against me. In other words, as the nation increased, God had promised to bless them by multiplying them. He told Abraham that. But all it did was just bring another sinner into the world. And after all, that's what happened when I came into the world. Just another sinner came into the world. But thank God, the grace of God reached down and somebody gave me the Word of God. And I was able to trust Christ as my Savior. But these people, they have an ignorance. They have no knowledge of the word of God. As they were increased, so they sinned against me. Therefore, will I change their glory into shame. God says, I'm going to turn your glory into shame. They eat up the sin of my people. They set their heart on their iniquity. They not only sin, but they like to brag about it. As a young fellow, ran with a pretty fast crowd in the bank I worked in. And we always like, especially on Monday morning, to brag about our weekend, what we did. And you know what it was, either to get drunk or... some adultery or something like that. That's what you brag about. And they not only sinned, they bragged about it. And there, verse 9 now, chapter 4 of Hosea, and there shall be like people, like priests. The unfortunate thing is that the priesthood had sunk down to the level of the congregation. Now, I have always believed, and as you've heard me say, that I started out in the ministry. I wore a Prince Albert coat and a wing collar. I look like a mule looking over a whitewash fence. But I soon gave that up. I dress just like the man sitting out in the pew. And I'm no different than that man in the pew. But I want to say this, that I want in the pulpit to give out the word of God so that I don't sink down to the level of that which is the man of the world. And today there are many ministers. They're the good guys. one man boasted to me he says you know he says my preacher says you know he says he comes out to our golf club he plays golf and i'm for that i do that i think it's great to mix with folk like that says after the game says he goes in the bar room with us has a drink with us says you know said he's just one of the fellas says i sure do like him well I wonder what God thinks about him. Like people, like priests. And I'll punish them for their ways and reward them for their doings, for they shall eat and not have enough. In other words, famine is coming to the land. And who would ever have believed that this great land of ours, just last year, a few years ago, that there would be no scarcity. Whoever heard of it, that you couldn't buy meat at the meat market, you couldn't buy bread, that there would be a scarcity of anything. May I say to you, I'm not sure. I think God judged us in the dust bowl many years ago. That's when I entered the ministry. And nobody listened to God then. Then we had to fight World War II. God judged us. And we didn't come back to God even World War II. So we've been fighting somewhere ever since. Just can't give it up. They shall eat, not have enough. They shall commit harlotry and shall not increase. You know, there's one thing, friends, about adultery. And I know today that I'm talking to a great many people that have had this in their mind and their heart because we're living in this day. And you can take it from a fellow that one time in his life before he's saved, you can never, never enjoy in a way in which God really wants you to until you can enjoy it in marriage. And when you can put your arms around the woman that you have been loving and you can say to her, I love you. above everything else in the world. Now, I say when you can say that, my friend, then there'll be an increase. And it'll be wonderful. Oh, they were committing adultery then, and they're doing it today. But actually, there's really no satisfaction in it. It's just a sort of a temporary release. And you hate yourself after that. And I know that. And some of you know that, my friend. And God knows that because that's what he's saying here. God's spelling it out for you. They shall eat and not have enough. They shall commit harlotry, adultery, and they shall not increase because they have ceased to take heed to the Lord. Harlotry and wine and new wine take away the heart. Last time we gave you all these statistics about liquor in this country today. And nobody, and I mean nobody today, is lifting a voice against this. And I don't think I've said very much about it. But I sure have said a whole lot the past couple of days. And from time to time, we do mention it. Arlatrin wine and new wine take away the heart, my friends. And part of our problem in Washington today are these two sins, harlotry, adultery, and liquor. They're the two problems in our government today. That's the reason that men lie. That's the reason that men will do crooked things. And that is not confined to one party or just one group. The whole crowd is guilty today. One writer said that in Washington, you don't know who to trust. May I say to you, what a sad commentary on our nation today. Don't tell me the new morality is working. It didn't work for Israel. They got away from the word of God and they said, we try something new. And they went in for it. The northern kingdom, you see, they had sin galore. They put up two golden calves. And with that worship of Baal, I was connected with it, the grossest forms of idolatry and the Verse 12, my people ask counsel of their idols, and their staff declareth unto them, for the spirit of harlotry hath caused them to err, and they have played the harlot departing from under their God. Now he's speaking here of the harlotry, spiritual adultery, which is turning from God. They went to inquire of idols. And today, we find people running after the gurus of India. Well, they haven't done much for India, by the way. But yet, we've had a crowd running after them. And someone has said that one of them that came over here, he said that very candidly, he came for the money. And that it was nothing in the world but a religious racket as far as he was concerned. Yet people went after him. People are going off into this type of thing today. And there's actually the worship of Satan today. I have here a clipping that comes from Daytona Beach, Florida. A group of Satan cultists tortured and beat a 17-year-old youth to death, believing he was an undercover narcotics agent, police said Wednesday. May I say to you that worship of Satan today is certainly not helping morality by any means. And these people going into idolatry, idolatry was leading them into gross immorality. Now, let me keep reading here. And They sacrifice, this is verse 13 now, chapter 4. They sacrifice upon the tops of the mountains and burn incense upon the hills under oaks and poplars and elms because the shadow of them is good. That's where they put their idols, was on top of a hill under a grove. And you hear a great deal in scripture. And they found out today, archaeologists, that the center of worship of idolatry was in these groves. It was cool there, nice place to go. Therefore, your daughters shall commit harlotry and your spouses shall commit adultery. You see, the worship of idols, and we today have turned to idolatry, covetousness, All of this today, the greed of this country today has caused many a family to try to get on in the world. They want to move to a better neighborhood. They want a swimming pool. They want a boat to take down. And they say we're doing this for their children. And then all of a sudden their children take off and there are thousands. Thousands of young people today that are wandering up and down this country and all over the world. I saw them in Hawaiian Islands. I talked to three young people in Constitution Square in Athens, Greece. Two young men and a young lady. And I'm sure that none of them were beyond their teens. One of them could have been 20. And there they sat, and they were then under the influence of drugs. I tried to talk with them, and I tried to find out who they were. And they said, we're nobody. We don't count. We've dropped out. What's happened today, friends? What's taking place today? Why, the problem is back there in the home. We're idolaters. We're worshiping the almighty dollar. We've forgotten God. We've turned away from the living and true God, and we no longer worship him. And we've not turned to a savior that can redeem us and help us. Now, verse 14. He says, I will not punish your daughters when they commit harlotry, nor your spouses when they commit adultery, for they themselves are separated with harlots, and they sacrifice with harlots. Therefore, the people that doth not understand shall fall. God says ignorance, so the law excuses no one. And because these people have gone on, I'm not going to judge them for the sin they're committing right now. I'm going to judge them because they've turned from the living and true God and from his way. My friend, as I said to a man, and I met him on a golf course, by the way, and he said, joined our foursome he soon left us when he found out we were three preachers and this man made a statement well he said that he guessed that he was a sinner he'd done this that and the other said yes I guess I'll go to hell and I said brother you know you're not going to hell because you commit these sins he says what do you mean I'm not going to hell because I thought that's what you preachers said I said this preacher never said that I said you're going to hell because you've rejected Jesus Christ These people were being judged not because they had become harlots. They were judged because they've turned from the living and true God. Now, will you notice he says here, though thou Israel play the harlot, yet let not Judah offend and come not ye unto Gilgal, neither go ye up to Beth-Avon or swear the Lord liveth. God says, I'm going to hold Judah back. I'll not judge Judah yet. And Judah, don't come up and worship these calves that they put up here. Now we come to something that's quite interesting. Verse 16. For Israel slideth back like a backsliding heifer. Now the Lord will feed them as a lamb in a large place. Now, friends, let's look at what really backsliding is. A great many people think backsliding means that you have become a Christian, joined the church, and then you drop back into sin, and that's backsliding. Now, may I say to you, that's not backsliding the way it's used here. And God illustrates it so you can't miss it. For Israel slideth back like a backsliding heifer. Now, I'm very happy the fact that as a boy, I had the privilege of living in the country and in a little town. And I think I've mentioned this before. There's a live next door to us in southern Oklahoma in a little town. We lived in a rancher. He had a big ranch and he had two boys and they were both about my age. And we three played together. We used to ride these heifers out in the lot and they would, you know, tie a rope around. As we said in that day, a belly band we'd put on them. We'd hold on to that. And then they'd buck us off. Now, every now and then, this rancher would load up. This was in the days before the automobile. In a wagon, he would load up these heifers to take them to market or take them out to the ranch. And he had a great big board. That is, it was a thing constructed out of boards that he put up at the back end of the wagon. It was a runway that you just try to run the heifer up back. Well, what they'd do, you'd put a rope around the heifer, and then you'd push her from the back. And as you'd get the heifer up, she'd go a part of the way, then she'd stiffen those front feet. She'd just put them out stiff. And you know what would happen? You couldn't pull her. She'd start sliding backwards. That's what backsliding is. Backsliding heifer. They were stiffening their front feet. And instead of being led of God, they were slipping backward all the time. And backsliding means when you turn your back on God and you step on that little neck of yours and that little mind of yours and you say, I'll have nothing to do with God. You're backsliding when you do that. You see, when you refuse to go the way God wants to lead you. Now he calls Israel here a backsliding heifer. There are a lot of backsliding heifers today and bulls also, by the way. Now, let me read the next verse. Ephraim is joined to idols, let him alone. Now, we come to another word here. The word backsliding is mentioned three times in this book, and you'll recall it's only Jeremiah and Hosea, and they spoke to a nation ready to go into captivity, accused them of doing this, refusing to be led of God, refusing to come to God. Now, Ephraim, that name occurs 36 times. He picks out one of the tribes of the 10 tribes in the north and applies it to all 10 of the tribes. And I frankly have never been able to figure out just how God uses that term. Is he using it in a way that is the term of endearment or is it a term of ridicule? Now, this time through Hosea, I've come to the conclusion that it's a term of endearment. It's a pet name. You see, Israel in the north had really no name as a nation. Judah in the south was really the nation. And these 10 tribes had revolted, you see. And now God gives them, I think, a pet name. And you'll find all the way through, it'll occur 36 times, Ephraim. And he says this in, I would say, a longing sort of way, but with a note of finality. He says here, Ephraim is joined to idols, let him alone. God says there comes a day in a man's life that if he keeps on being in a backslidden condition, refusing to listen to God, there'll come a day when God no longer can speak to that man. Now he says to them, your drink is sour. You'll become an alcoholic if you keep at it, brother. And it's not a disease. It's a sin. Their drink is sour. They have committed harlotry continually. Her rulers love shame more than glory. And the sad thing today is that we have men in government in high places instead of using a language that is clean. And chase. They love to cuss. And they love to drink. They love the shame more than glory. The wind hath bound her up in its wing. They're carried away by every wind of doctrine. And they shall be ashamed because of their sacrifices. God says, I'm going to make them ashamed before it's over with. Well, that brings us to the conclusion of chapter 4. Begin chapter 5 next time. Until then, may God richly bless you, my beloved.
SPEAKER 01 :
Well, Dr. McGee convinced me of the joy and peace found in living a quiet, righteous life before the Lord. How about you? We're midway through our study in Hosea now, so if you'd like to share these studies with a family member or friend, they're available on our app or at ttb.org. Or to purchase our Bible bus flash drive that conveniently holds all of Dr. McGee's five-year messages and also includes all of his notes and outlines for our studies and more than 100 of his booklets, you Shop our online store at ttb.org or call us at 1-865-BIBLE. And while you're at ttb.org, check out our new softcover Bible companions for the New Testament. Again, that's ttb.org or 1-865-BIBLE. And when you call us, please tell us how you listen. Is it by app or online? Is it YouTube, your local Christian radio station? There are so many different options. And you know, by sharing this little bit of information, you help us to be good stewards of the resources that God has so graciously provided through faithful listeners like you. Now, as we break for the weekend, join me for Dr. McGee's Sunday sermon. You can listen by app, online, or look at our radio station listing at ttb.org. I'm Steve Schwetz, and I'll meet you right back here next time as we continue to make our way through the Bible.
SPEAKER 02 :
We're grateful for the faithful and generous support of Through the Bible's partners, whom God uses to take the whole word to the whole world.
Join us on the Bible bus as we delve into the profound messages found in the book of Hosea. This episode uncovers the deeper meanings behind the prophet Hosea's life and name, emphasizing the theme of salvation through history and biblical context. Through a poignant letter from a listener in Oregon, we explore the difficult questions of morality, justice, and faith in our modern world, linking these struggles to the book of Hosea and its timeless counsel.
SPEAKER 03 :
The foundation, ye saints of the Lord, is laid for your faith in his excellent word.
SPEAKER 01 :
Here's an interesting fact for you. The name Hosea, who is God's spokesperson in the book that we're studying right now on the Bible bus, is another form of the name Joshua, which is the Hebrew version of the Greek name Jesus. Hosea, Joshua, Jesus. All their names mean salvation. The Old Testament men named Hosea and before him Joshua were pictures of what Jesus Christ embodied in the flesh, God's salvation. Welcome to Through the Bible with Dr. J. Vernon McGee. I'm Steve Schwetz and I'm welcoming you aboard the Bible bus as we continue together our five-year journey through God's entire word. Now, Dr. McGee begins our program by sharing a letter from a concerned listener. No doubt we all will be moved by this issue we still deal with, and it all comes down to what we'll hear about in our study of Hosea 3 and 4, that people follow destructive ways because they don't know or understand God, and that individual tragedy naturally leads to despising the truth and withholding mercy. Let's listen now to this letter from Corvallis, Oregon.
SPEAKER 02 :
As the chairman of Corvallis Right of Life, I have been involved lobbying state legislators concerning several bills. One bill we are concerned with has to do with handicapped babies being denied food and water after birth to hasten their death. In talking to legislators, the feeling among them seemed to be that it is better to let the child die, whatever the methods, to spare the family the burden of a handicapped child. After talking to them, doubt began to creep into my mind. Maybe it's better for such a child to die. Maybe God would have it this way. But I still felt sure that starvation and dehydration weren't the way. As this was happening, a baby girl was born in an Oregon town severely deformed, right to life, knew she would soon die, but fought for nearly a week to legally secure food and water. It wasn't easy. The night the baby died, I was led to read in Lamentations. Before I went to sleep, this scripture made an impact. And it's from Lamentations 4, 3 and 4. Even jackals offer their breasts to nurse their young. But my people have become heartless like ostriches in the desert. Because of thirst the infant's tongue sticks to the roof of its mouth. The children beg for bread, but none gives it to them. And that's the end of that quotation. The next morning at 7.30 a.m., I switched on the radio and there you were, reading the very same scripture. I took it as a sign from God to me, that this was indeed a heartless thing that is happening and removed any doubt I had. I thank you for your part in reaffirming to me what I am certain God was trying to impress on me. I also thank you for the words of your own that morning, denouncing abortion as a major evil of our time, You're probably not surprised to hear that the clergy in this community do not share your strong convictions against abortion. But with the help of God, we continue our fight against it. May God bless your ministry as it opens the eyes of many like me who are seeking answers in the Bible but stumbling along through it. We need your help so much. I appreciate that letter, as you can well understand. And may I just say this one word, regardless of the condition of the baby, to take that baby's life as murder and to say that you can take that baby's life, you're taking the place of God. And God doesn't like to share his place with anyone, by the way.
SPEAKER 01 :
Let's give the Lord his proper place in our attention now. Pray with me. Heavenly Father, thank you for your great love, for giving us what's best even though we don't always understand it. Please help your word to quicken our hearts to bring comfort and instruction and conviction. Thank you, Lord, for its truth that helps us discern truth and obey you. In Jesus' name, amen. Well, it's time. Let's open to Hosea 3 as we go through the Bible with Dr. J. Vernon McGee.
SPEAKER 02 :
Now, friends, today as we come to the fourth chapter of Hosea, we're now coming to a section where we're leaving the private life of Hosea. It fades into the background, and the emphasis now is upon the Lord and Israel. But I would just like to back up for just a moment, therefore, to chapter 3 at verse 1, because this, I believe, is very important. Here we read again, "...then said the Lord unto me, Go yet, love a woman beloved of her friend, yet an adulteress, according to the love of the Lord toward the children of Israel, who look to other gods, and love cakes of raisins." Now, four times in this little verse here, you have the word love mentioned. Great many people think you have to get to the New Testament before you find anything about love. I believe that if you'd examine it carefully, you'd probably find that there's more said about love in the Old Testament than in the New. That is because, of course, the Old Testament is much longer. And there's more of it than we have of the New Testament. But it is interesting to note that there's a great deal about love. Now, I was thinking after I made the broadcast last time that this first verse here is actually an equation, a mathematical equation. And it puts it like this. God's love equals Israel's sins. And I shouldn't say equal, but God's love times Israel's sin equals Hosea's love times Gomer's sin. So you see that we do have an equation here. And out of that home, he comes now to speak to the nation, and he knows how God feels about them. Now, everything up to this point has been in the way of generalization. God has said they've sinned, that they have played the harlot. They've been unfaithful to him. Now he's going to spell it out. And you can make a comparison actually between this particular chapter and the first chapter of Isaiah. And you ought to compare it there because Isaiah spoke to the southern kingdom and then he spelled out God's charge against the nation. Now, here again, God brings them into court. He makes certain charges and he proves them. That is the message of chapter 4. In fact, chapters 4 and 5, he's saying now to Israel, you are playing the harlot. And Israel in this chapter is guilty of lawlessness, immorality, ignorance of God's word, and idolatry. And we see here in this first verse, the Lord confronts Israel with the fact that they have no knowledge of God. And then in verse 2, he spells out their specific sins. Now, will you listen to it? Hear the word of the Lord, ye children of Israel, for the Lord hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land. Now, he says these three things here. There's no truth, there's no mercy, and there's no knowledge of God in the land. In other words, these people have been brainwashed with idolatry. And as a result, there was actually no mercy. And God had instructed them to be merciful. In fact, he said, when the stranger comes into your land and the poor, they are permitted to go in and glean. And God says, I take care of them this way and you're to do this. Why? Because he says, I am the Lord your God and I'm a holy God. They'd forgotten that. They were no longer being merciful. And there was actually no knowledge of God in the land. Oh, there's a great deal of religion, but no knowledge of God in the land. Now, they were breaking the Ten Commandments. Listen to this. By swearing and lying and killing and stealing and committing adultery, they break out and blood toucheth blood. Now, each one of these things that he mentions, they were breaking the Ten Commandments. Go back to the 20th of Exodus and read it. Thou shalt not bear false witness. Thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal, thou shalt not commit adultery." And all of this was even among their relatives, blood touching blood. They were committing all of these sins. They actually were breaking the Ten Commandments. I want to say something very carefully at this time. And will you listen very carefully? God gave the Ten Commandments which is only part of the Mosaic system, to the nation Israel. But in that, God expresses His will. The church today is not put under the Ten Commandments as a way, that is, that is not living the Christian life if all you do is keep the Ten Commandments. Now, that doesn't mean you break them. It just simply means he's called you to a higher plane, and you're called to live in the power of the Spirit of God. Now, God is not asking the unsaved world anything, but he does have a great deal to say about nations. And the nation Israel that he chose and dealt with them furnishes a pattern to the other nations of the world. Now, we have had what has been so-called a Christian civilization in Europe. It never was really Christian, but it had the semblance of it. The laws were patterned after this. And these are laws for a nation. I shall not kill. I shall not commit adultery. Among those are other things. God condemned drunkenness. God condemned homosexuality. And he has the strongest language for that. He says when a people or an individual indulges in that, and I don't care what you call it, my friend, God says he gave them up. He gave up this nation. They were guilty of that. They were guilty of indulging in these sins. We today are guilty of the same thing. There's no knowledge of God in this land. Oh, I know there's a church on every corner, and Sunday morning you can hear church bells everywhere. But of course, a very small percentage of the population go to church, and very few are actually being reached with the Word of God. There is a Gideon Bible in every hotel room and motel room in this country. As far as I know, the first thing I do when I go to a new hotel or a new motel to stay, I look around for the Gideon Bible. And I've noticed recently it's been out on the table. That is, it's been out and opened up so you can see it. Now, I do not know how much it's being read. The Gideons say they receive many letters telling of conversions. But I'm sure that a great many of those Bibles are not ever opened. I know I've been to several places where I'm convinced that the Bible had never been opened before. We're a nation of biblical ignoramuses. We do not know the Word of God today in this land. But the Watergate hearings in Washington certainly turned the spotlight on our government and actually not the one political party but to both political parties that there's corruption in this land of ours. And I wasn't quite sure whether all of the liars were sitting in the witness stand or were on the other side on the committee. And I think you'll find them in both parties. I think that you will find corruption today in this land in both parties. And the chairman of the committee was greatly disappointed in him, the way he not only misquoted Scripture, he misinterpreted it and said that the four Gospels contradicted each other. And that went out on television. And may I say to you, I, for one, protest that. Because I felt like demanding equal time, everybody else demands equal time to answer that, that there is no contradiction in the four Gospels. And when a man says that, he reveals a woeful ignorance of the Word of God. Now, I'm saying all of this to say this, that our land is in the same kind of a condition that these people were in in that day. I'm going to take just one particular phase. We're told that a few years ago that in Washington, there were 128 cocktail parties every day. And again, the spotlight that's been turned on these hearings reveals that there's drinking probably in Washington. Couldn't be more in Los Angeles, but there's been a great deal of it there. Now, I want to share with you today some facts and figures, and there are a few brave editors today in this country, but most of it's the liberal press. They follow one particular line, and just like Israel was brainwashed, Our nation today is being brainwashed by nothing in the world but propaganda and liberalism. But down in San Diego, the local paper down there had a headline, and this goes back to January the 11th, 1972. It was on the front page of the paper, bottom of the page, but it was a headline, Alcoholics Cost Area Businesses $10 Million." May I say to you, people cry out about the high cost of living, cry out about the high cost of war and high cost of government. All of that is true. But who's crying out against liquor today? No one's crying out against it. What do you suppose that has to do with what you buy at the store today? They say, preacher, this is none of your business. It's my business in several different ways. And I wish there were more crying out against this sort of thing. The pulpits become extremely silent in these matters. And when I go to the store, I'm paying a higher price for things because government, And the nation, we are engaged in gross immorality today, breaking these Ten Commandments. You don't get by with it as a nation. These commandments have been the basis of every so-called Christian civilization. And I'm not going to debate that point with anyone. Now, will you listen to this? Today they're saying alcoholism is a disease. And this has been answered by a doctor. He says, alcoholism a disease? If so, listen to this. It's the only disease contracted by an act of the will. It's the only disease that is habit-forming. It's the only disease that comes in a bottle. It's the only disease causing hundreds of thousands of family disruptions. It's the only disease promoting crime and brutality. It's the only disease contributing to hundreds of thousands of automobile accidents. It is the only disease playing a major part in over 50% of the more than 50,000 annual highway deaths. It is the only disease which is sold by license. It's the only disease that's bought in grocery stores, drug stores, and Wellmark retail outlets. It's the only disease that is taxed by the government and on and on. There's more to this. I'll just read that to you today. May I say to you, our eyes are shut to this because we've been brainwashed and the liquor interests have this tremendous control today. And as a result, our nation sinks lower and lower because we have what's called a new morality. It wasn't new at all. Israel was practicing it way back yonder. In about 700 B.C., and I wouldn't call it new morality back there by any means, they were breaking all these commandments and God condemned them for it. And homosexuality was practiced even back as far as Sodom and Gomorrah. It's the reason he destroyed these places. He judged them. And today, actually, some of the legislatures filled with men ignorant of the Word of God ignorant of this thing which has been basic for this nation of ours, and they pass legislation that makes it so that two homosexuals can get married. The liberal church says that we should not consider them sinners, And I know I speak to many homosexuals. I'll get letters on this. May I say to you, the Lord Jesus Christ says that you've got to be born again. And he can deliver you from it. These things are not diseases today. But when they're treated as what they really are, sin, then God can deal with us. We are doomed as a nation, as much as Israel was condemned and sent into captivity. And after all, they were God's chosen people. We are not. By any stretch of the imagination, we can't make that claim. But this is the basis on which God judges nations. I spent a little time there and I got warmed up on that. I think somebody today needs to be saying something along this line. But the pulpit is strangely silent in this connection. Well, one reason they never study Hosea. You know, here's one of the forgotten prophets. Now I'm going to keep on reading. Verse 3. Therefore shall the land mourn, and every one that dwelleth in it shall languish, with the beasts of the field, with the fowls of the heavens, yea, the fish of the sea also shall be taken away." The land will languish. All of a sudden we found out that we're polluting everything today. When I was a boy, I went swimming in a swimming hole in a creek in southern Oklahoma that was as clear you could see, 25 feet to the bottom. My friend, may I say to you, it smells to high heaven. We polluted the land today. The land here is mourning. And then another very interesting thing is a few years ago, it was plenty. All of the granaries were filled with grain. It was plenty of everything. And may I say today, we're hearing something about scarcity. You see, when God judges a nation, the land is involved, and even the beasts and the fowls have to suffer for the sin of man. And they are suffering also today because of man's sin. Verse 4, Yet let no man strive, nor reprove another. For thy people are as they that strive with the priest. What has happened? Why, the priest in that day was not doing his duty. Not warning the people. And God had raised up the prophet. What about that? Verse 5. Therefore shalt thou fall in the day, and the prophet shall fall with thee in the night, and I will destroy thy mother. That is the nation. Why? Because now even there were the false prophets that were rising up and telling people, well, everything's going to be all right. This thing's going to work out. We live in a new day. The Bible is an old book in the Ten Commandments. They belong to the past, to our grandfathers and grandmothers. But we today have reached a very high plane. May I say to you, we are a dirty lot. We have sunk very low today as a nation and as a people. Now, verse 6 is probably one of the most quoted verses. It's considered to be one of the most familiar verses. I'm reading now Hosea 4, verse 6. My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. That's the reason we're teaching the Bible today. That's the reason we're going into a book like this, is because, my friend, it's the ignorance of the Word of God. They're destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because thou hast rejected knowledge, I'll also reject thee, that thou shall be no priest to me. You see, God intended the whole nation. to be priests unto him. And in the millennium, they will be that. But God says, you're not even going to have priests at this particular time. Seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children. That is, even the people of the nation, now God says, I will also forget you. Because you've forgotten me. In other words, they've come to the time of judgment because they've gone through a long sordid history of departing from the Lord. Now, I'll have to leave off there today. But you can see how important this chapter is. And we hope, though, to finish it next time. Until then, may God richly bless you, my beloved.
SPEAKER 01 :
It's a sobering reality that we see the people of Israel in Hosea's time and also in our culture turn their backs on God. Augustine said it so well. Spend some time thinking about what we've studied. And as you do, why don't you confess to the Lord how, at many times, you've forgotten Him as the priority of your life. And then tell Him that, as of now, He's first place again. You know, there's more to learn from this great book of Hosea. And as always, if you'd like to listen to this study again, or any other study from our five-year journey through the whole Word of God, all of Dr. McGee's studies are available in our app or online. Just visit ttb.org to listen now. to your many options. Or you can call us at 1-800-65-BIBLE for help in finding what you're looking for. Now as we go, I'd ask that you join me in reading through the rest of Hosea 4 before tomorrow's study. It always helps with the program to have read the passage in advance. to read ahead each day and prepare your heart for what God wants to teach you through His Word. You can download our free Bible reading schedule at ttb.org or just call us at 1-865-BIBLE to receive it by mail. Again, that's ttb.org or 1-865-BIBLE. You can also write to Box 7100, Pasadena, California, 91109. In Canada, Box 25325, London, Ontario, N6C 6B1. I'm Steve Schweitz. For all of us at Through the Bible, we're praying that you walk with God until we meet again. See you next time.
SPEAKER 03 :
Jesus came in all, all to be my own. Sin had left the prince unsaved. He washed it white as snow.
