We, meaning those who believe that the scriptures shows us a new people founded before the foundation of the world began in Christ, often use Hosea as a prophetic ending temporarily for the nation of Israel and the starting point of a new dispensation or economy with a mystery that was hid in God and now is revealed. I can't help wonder if this is in correct. I awoke the other morning with this on my mind. Search the scriptures and we shall see. Our normal points are as follows:
the prophecy of Hosea, which makes it clear that at some time in their history, Israel must go into a state indicated by the word, "lo-ammi," "not My people," a condition that could only be resolved by the full restoration of Israel as a nation and people, in other words, the restoring again of the kingdom to Israel, as expressed in Acts 1:6. There is no other point of time in the record of the New Testament that fits all the requirements of Hosea's prophecy before Acts 28, and inasmuch as a few years after Acts 28 Jerusalem was destroyed, there can be no other point of time after it that will fulfil all Scriptural requirements. Let those who deny that Israel became lo-ammi at Acts 28 tell us when that event happened. Let us examine this prophecy of Hosea and see what are the conditions of this lo-ammi position.
The Hebrew words lo-ammi mean "not My people" and is the symbolic name given to one of the prophet Hosea's children. "Call his name Lo-ammi," the reason and purport of this name being "For ye are not My People and 1 will not be your God" (Hos. 1:9). The verse that follows makes it clear that however long the rejection may last it will not be forever, for it looks forward to the day of Israel's restoration and to the fulfilment of the promise made to Abraham that his seed should be as the sand of the sea for multitude. The second chapter ends on this high note of restoration. Israel is to be betrothed in righteousness forever; the lo-ammi condition is to be reversed; the Lord will say, "Thou art My people," and they will say, "Thou art my God" (Hos 2.18-23). From the days of Hosea, unti! the scattering of Israel at the end of the Acts, no such condition has been recorded that fulfils all that Hosea has predicted. Under the "New Covenant." Jeremiah declares:
"Behold the days come, saith the Lord, that I sow." (See the name, "Jezreel," in Hos. 2:18, where this sowing and this covenant include both Israel and the beast of the field.) . . "I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah." (Jer. 31:27-37)
In the third chapter of Hosea, the prophet throws further light on this lo-ammi condition, after telling his wife that she would "abide" as a sequestered woman (see Deut. 21 :13). He proceeds:
"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."
During the last 1,900 years, since the rejection of their true KING, Israel has had no territory and no king, yet by reason of their dispersal in many lands, no Ruler has been able to claim their allegiance. Since the destruction of the temple at Jerusalem in A.D.70, soon after Acts 28, the Priestly office in Israel has become a cypher. Yet, on the other hand Israel through all these dark years have never again lapsed into idolatry. The introduction of the seraphim over against the ephod, supports the idea that these were ancestral tablets, no one being permitted to officiate as a Priest in Israel who could not produce his genealogy (Neh. 7:64), and as these genealogical records which were stored in the temple perished in the destruction of the city soon after Acts 28, the position of the Priest in Israel lost all significance. We are assured however that after this period of sequestration and suspension, Israel shall seek the Lord and David their king "in the latter days" (Hos 3:5), which latter days by all the signs around us are drawing very near. The actual length of Israel's blindness is unrecorded, Paul speaks of it as "a mystery" (Rom. 11:25), and this period of the mystery of Israd's blindness is parallel with the period and character of that phase of the kingdom of heaven, called, "the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven," both aspects terminating at the same moment, Israel's restoration.
This concerns me a little. Although what is used for this conviction is very true. But after reading Hosea, I have a short coming in stating as of yet, that this is the whole picture. Lets take a look and search and see what we find.
The first thing we have to note is whom it is written by and when. Hosea, the son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel. The first verse wants us to notice that as in other scriptures there were to loaves. One being Israel, and the other being Judah. Can we ignore this. The other thing the scripture is having us notice is when this was written, mainly Jeroboam the son of Joash King OF Israel. Looking up in a quick search Jeroboam II., the son and successor of Jehoash, and the fourteenth king of Israel, over which he ruled for forty-one years, B.C. 825-784 ( 2Ki 14:23). He followed the example of the first Jeroboam in keeping up the worship of the golden calves ( 2Ki 14:24). His reign was contemporary with those of Amaziah ( 2Ki 14:23) and Uzziah ( 15:1), kings of Judah. He was victorious over the Syrians ( 13:4; 14:26,27), and extended Israel to its former limits, from "the entering of Hamath to the sea of the plain" ( 14:25; Amo 6:14). His reign of forty-one years was the most prosperous that Israel had ever known as yet. With all this outward prosperity, however, iniquity widely prevailed in the land ( Amo 2:6-8; 4:1; 6:6; Hsa 4:12-14). The prophets Hosea ( Hsa 1:1), Joel ( Joe 3:16; Amo 1:1,2), Amos ( Amo 1:1), and Jonah ( 2Ki 14:25) lived during his reign. He died, and was buried with his ancestors ( 14:29). He was succeeded by his son Zachariah ( q.v.). His name Jeroboam: meant, he that opposes the people. We know now plainly when this was written.
My next concern is the names of the Children and their meaning. Hosea 1:6 And she conceived again, and bare a daughter. And God said unto him, Call her name Loruhamah: for I will no more have mercy upon the house of Israel; but I will utterly take them away. Now that would be great, this verse being used to forward what we believe, but there is a next verse and what does this say. 1:7 But I will have mercy upon the house of Judah, and will 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. Clearly we can see that there is two seperate prophecies given to two distinct names, one to Israel, and one to Judah.
Lets go on. 1:9 Then said God, Call his name Loammi: for ye are not my people, and I will not be your God. 1:10 Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured nor numbered; and it shall come to pass, that in the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not my people, there it shall be said unto them, Ye are the sons of the living God. So if we take this in the context that we are putting forward then we must state at the place where this is said you are not my people, there it shall be said in return, And that would mean In Rome? But we keep on reading 1:11 Then shall the children of Judah and the children of Israel be gathered together, and appoint themselves one head, and they shall
come up out of the land: for great shall be the day of Jezreel. Notice that they will be under one Head, this has to play some great importance. Not as two distint nations.
And way back after Solomon this was done. The nation of Israel was set aside and became not my people, while Judah still stood before the Lord. Israel was carried away and scattered. But not every Israelite was scattered, for those who believed in God went and lived in Judah.
Amos
7:7 Thus he shewed me: and, behold, the LORD stood upon a wall made by a plumbline, with a plumbline in his hand. 7:8 And the LORD said unto me, Amos, what seest thou? And I
said, A plumbline. Then said the LORD, Behold, I will set a plumbline in the midst of my people Israel: I will not again pass by them any more:7:9 And the high places of Isaac shall be desolate, and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste; and I will rise against the house of
Jeroboam with the sword. 7:10 Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, Amos hath conspired against thee in the midst of the house of Israel: the land is not able to bear all his words. 7:11 For thus Amos saith, Jeroboam shall die by the sword, and Israel shall surely be led away captive out of their own land.
7:12 Also Amaziah said unto Amos, O thou seer, go, flee thee away into the land of Judah, and there eat bread, and prophesy there:
In truth Israel was a ten tribe nation 2 Sam 19:43 And the men of Israel answered the men of Judah, and said, We have ten parts in the king, and we have also more [right] in David than ye: why then did ye despise us, that our advice should not be first had in bringing back our king? And the words of the men of Judah were fiercer than the words of the men of Israel. And those un-godly men became Lo Ammi, not my people, but never every single person who belonged to those tribes became Lo Ammi, they simply moved to Judah.
In the southern kingdom, as Hosea had propheting names of his children, This was happening also with his friend Isaiah. Isaiah, also, had two boys. Their names are jaw-breakers to pronounce, but they mean something. The younger boy's name was Shearjashub, which means"a remnant shall return." That was God's promise to Israel that even though they were taken into captivity, a remnant would come back. The older boy's name was Mahershalalhashbaz. Mahershalalhashbaz means "haste to the prey" or "haste to the spoil," and it was God's prophetic way of telling the nation that they were in deep trouble. But he also comforted them with the words "a remnant shall return."
I 've tried to come a short way to this question. With all that is in the history Of Israel, can we see in this reasoning, not my people a Lo ammi, as the fore view of Acts 28:28. Has Israel, the ten un-godly tribes are taken away before the Acts of the Apostles. Judah was as well, but was restored. But along with them, bits of Israel was with them. |
