Enmity or Friendship with God | Hosea

By Rev. Jeremiah Cheung

From Hosea Chapter 13:9-16

^10:9 “You are destroyed, Israel, because you are against me, against your helper. ¹⁰Where is your king, that he may save you? Where are your rulers in all your towns, of whom you said, ‘Give me a king and princes’? ¹¹So in my anger I gave you a king, and in my wrath, I took him away. ¹²The guilt of Ephraim is stored up, his sins are kept on record. ¹³Pains as of a woman in childbirth come to him, but he is a child without wisdom; when the time arrives, he doesn’t have the sense to come out of the womb. 

¹⁴“I will deliver these people from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death. Where, O death, are your plagues? Where, O grave, is your destruction?

“I will have no compassion, ¹⁵even though he thrives among his brothers. An east wind from the Lord will come, blowing in from the desert; his spring will fail and his well dry up. His storehouse will be plundered of all its treasures. ¹⁶The people of Samaria must bear their guilt because they have rebelled against their God. They will fall by the sword; their little ones will be dashed to the ground, their pregnant women ripped open.”

The Lord announced one thing to Ephraim right away: He is as good as dead in God’s eyes. This is a terrible announcement. Now Ephraim has to make one of the most important decisions – whether he wants to be a friend of God or an enemy of God. The Lord said, “ You are destroyed, Israel, because you are against me, against your helper.” The consequences of being an enemy of God are terrible. 

Israel’s Request for a King

In this passage, the Lord mentioned Israel’s request for a king. The Lord told them two things:

• First, a king was established but he was not able to save them. Hosea 13:10 “Where is your king, that he may save you? Where are your rulers in all your towns, of whom you said, ‘Give me a king and princes’?” The Israelites saw that the Gentiles had kings. They saw their military strength and they asked for a king to lead them. They wanted to have military might like the other nations. But what happened? They had a king but the nation did not become powerful and the nation was not saved.  In the end, the Lord gave them a king in his anger, but He took the king away in his wrath.   

• Second, setting up a king didn’t cleanse away their sins. Hosea 13:12 “The guilt of Ephraim is stored up, his sins are kept on record.” The Lord saw through the real reason they wanted a king. They didn’t want God to be their king. For them, it was frightening, for the Lord is so righteous and they could not live in the presence of the holy God.  They thought that they could hide their sins if it were a man ruling over them. But they underestimated the power of the Lord, no sin can be hidden from the Lord.

Ephraim must choose

Now God is giving them a choice – to be His enemies or His friends.  The outcomes of the two are very different. Verses 13 to 16 speak of the consequences of being the enemies of God.  While they thought there was peace and prosperity, disaster will suddenly come. Hosea 13:15 “even though he thrives among his brothers. An east wind from the Lord will come, blowing in from the desert; his spring will fail and his well dry up. His storehouse will be plundered of all its treasures.”

We must choose

Church, do you want to be an enemy of God? Can we afford to be? Turn back quickly and make friends with God. Psalm 30:5 “For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.”

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與神為敵或是與神為友 | 何西亞書 

張國強牧師

何西亞書 13:9-16

^13:9 以色列阿, 你與我反對, 就是反對幫助你的, 自取敗壞。¹⁰你曾求我說: 給我立王和首領, 現在你的王在哪裡呢? 治理你的在哪裡呢? 讓他在你所有的城中拯救你罷。¹¹我在怒氣中將王賜你, 又在烈怒中將王廢去。¹²以法蓮的罪孽包裹, 他的罪惡收藏。¹³產婦的疼痛必臨到他身上, 他是無智慧之子, 到了產期不當遲延。

¹⁴我必救贖他們脫離陰間, 救贖他們脫離死亡, 死亡阿, 你的災害在哪裡呢? 陰間哪, 你的毀滅在哪裡呢? 在我眼前絕無後悔之事。

¹⁵他在弟兄中雖然茂盛, 必有東風颳來, 就是耶和華的風從曠野上來, 他的泉源必乾, 他的源頭必竭, 仇敵必擄掠他所積蓄的一切寶器。¹⁶撒瑪利亞必擔當自己的罪, 因為悖逆他的神, 他必倒在刀下, 嬰孩必被摔死, 孕婦必被剖開。

神在前面向以法蓮宣告一件事: 在神眼中她已經死了。這是何得可怕的宣告, 現在以法蓮要作一個最重要的決定, 她要與神為友, 或是要與神為敵。神告訴她: 你與我反對, 就是反對幫助你的, 自取敗壞。與神為敵的後果是非常可怕的。

以色列要求立王

在這段經文中, 神將以色列要求立王的事提出來, 神在告訴他們二件事： 

• 第一.立了王卻沒有得拯救。13:10 你曾求我說: 給我立王和首領, 現在你的王在哪裡呢? 治理你的在哪裡呢? 讓他在你所有的城中拯救你罷。以色列人看見外邦有王, 他看見他們軍事的強大, 他們也要求有一位王來帶領他們, 他們的目的是要強大, 但結果呢? 王是有了, 但國家沒有強大, 國家沒有得拯救。最後神在怒氣中將王賜他們, 也在烈怒中將王廢去。

• 第二.立了王卻不能將惡變藏。13:12 以法蓮的罪孽包裹, 他的罪惡收藏。神看出以色列人立王真正的原因, 他們不要神作他們的王, 為什麼? 因為神太可怕了, 太公義了, 他們不敢活在聖潔的神面前, 他們以為活在人的面前, 他們的罪惡便可以被包裹, 被收藏起來。但他們低估了神的能力, 沒有任何的罪在神面前是隱藏的。

他們必須選擇

現在神給他們一個選擇, 要與神為敵或人與神為友呢？結果是非常的不同的。從13節開始到16節都在告訴以色列人與神為敵的結果, 當他們自以為平安, 豐盛的時候, 災難要忽然間臨到; 13:15 他在弟兄中雖然茂盛, 必有東風颳來, 就是耶和華的風從曠野上來, 他的泉源必乾, 他的源頭必竭, 仇敵必擄掠他所積蓄的一切寶器。

我們必須選擇

教會, 你要與神為敵嗎? 你承受得起嗎? 或是快快回轉, 與神為友吧, 詩篇 30:5「因為他的怒氣不過是轉眼之間, 他的恩典乃是一生之久, 一宿雖然有哭泣、早晨便必歡呼。」