Saul Weinreb - Let the Prophets Speak

Hosea 8 - Don't Forget What Makes You Special

God tells Israel, I taught you my Torah, I am here for you, but instead you look everywhere else.  even when you turn to me, you do it with useless sacrifices. 

Hosea 7 - The Baker, The Dove, and The Burnt Cake

Hosea continues to criticze the people for their lies and deceipt, their pretending to be righteous and the corruption of their leaders. He compares the people of Israel to a baker who prepares his flames and his ovens and then presents it to the people only when it is ready to bake.  so to the people in private they sin and lie and steal, but in public they present themselves as if they are righteous. He also compares them to a lost dive who cannot find her way home, and a cake that no one turned so it is useless, burnt on the bottom, and uncooked on top.

Hosea 6 - Kindness and Knowledge is All I Want

Hosea beseeches the people to turn to God for help, as God is the One who brings the suffering, He is the one who can heal it. What does God want? Kindness and knowledge of God. As simple as that.  But the people have chosen to follow their corrupt leaders to dishonesty and depravity.

Hosea 5 - Entrapped and Ensnared

The people of Israel are so entrapped by their arrogance and corruption, that they will not listen to rebuke. Always looking in the wrong places for help, never listenming to those who would teach them the right path. One day God says, they will finally turn to Me and I will listen then.

Hosea 4 - No Truth, No Kindness, No Knowledge

God has a problem with the people of Israel. When there is no hinesty, no kindness, and no knowledge, all that is left is arrogance and corruption. When people are arrogant, thgey will no longer listen to rebuke. Sadly God says, when they are this depraved, we will have to leave them to their idols.

Hosea 3 - A Time of Recommittment to Love

God advises Hosea , as the bond of love between you and your wife remains, recommit yourselves deespite the unfaithfulness. Sometimes there needs to be a period of seperation to rebuild the trust and faith that a relationship requires. As long as the love remains string. So to the people of israel will have atime of exile, but the essential love between God and His people remain, and the physical seperation will end.

Hosea 2b - God Brings His Unfaithful "Spouse" Back home

In one of the most beautifully written prophecies, God "seduces" his unfuathul wife, Israel, and brings them back to Him. No longer will God be viewed as a burden, but the love of their youth shall return.  God will restore nature to its pristine, peaceful state, and all war will end. God will then betroth the entire world with a relationship based on Justice, righteousness, Kindness, and Mercy.  

Hosea 2a - God Compares Israel to a Harlot

The prophet starts by telling the people what they CAN be, if only they cooperate together.  But God berates the nation for turning to all of her other "lovers" while abandoning God Himself.

Hosea 1 - God Tells Hosea to Marry a Prostitute

We are introduced to the prophet Hosea, who was a contemporary of the more famous prophet Isaiah. However, Hosea mostly directed his prophcies to the people of the northern kingdom of Israel. In a most unusual discussion, God directs Hosea to marry a promiscuous woman named Gomer, and to raise a family with her. He has two sons and a duaghter, and through their names, Hosea delivers an ominous message to the people of the Northern Kingdom.

Ruth 4 - Boaz Marries Ruth, and Ruth Becomes the Matriarch of the Davidic Dynasty

Boaz proves that he is a man who keeps his word. He redeems the family property, marries Ruth, and restores the family of Naomi to its' land and heritage. Ruth, once a stranger and foreigner who was rebuffed, becomes the matriarch of the Kings of the Jewish people.