Hosea+Background

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= Hosea Background =

1. Author Background
a. Hosea means salvation in Hebrew b. Nothing is known where he is from c. Only thing known is that his father was Beeri d. He is assumed to be from the Northern Kingdom since he refers back to many events that happened to Israel (Exodus and wanderings) (Hosea 4:15; 5:1,13; 6:8,9; 10:5; 12:11, 12; 14:6)

2. Date
a. Ministry during Judah king’s time – Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah or roughly 783-687 BC (Hosea 1:1) b. Israel’s King - Jeroboam II (793 – 753 BC) the third king in Jehu’s line, which means blessing will be over after the next line (2 Kings 10:30) c. Not exactly known since there is no specific event or timing that points to a date d. Last Prophet to prophesy before the Assyrians take over Israel

3. People Group Addressed
a. Northern Kingdom

4. Major Themes to look for
a. God’s Jealous Love for his people and how it manifests itself b. Repentance c. Relationship between Israel and God d. Judgment and Love on how they coincide with each other

5. Background to why this letter was written
a. The land in which the Israelites conquered used to be inhabited by Canaanites who were Baal worshipers. There was a remainder of people who kept to the Baal religion and instead of worshiping the True God, they were worshiping Baal. This brings into light why there are different children in the first chapters who are being described. It describes the unfaithfulness off Israel and how much God covets their worship and is jealous for the right reasons.The great prosperity of the time during King Jeroboam’s reign, caused the people to forget who gave them all their wealth. They in turn go to other gods for worship and attribute their success to the other gods, not the true God. (Hosea 4:1-19)

b. Hosea and Gomer relationship are representing the relationship between God and Israel (Hosea 1:1-3:5)

Bible History: Old Testament, Alfred Edersheim Bible Knowledge Commentary The New American Commentary The MacArthur Study Bible Harper’s Bible Dictionary

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