Peter, Are You Serious? Hosea? (2)

This series of posts tests Peter’s claim that all the prophets spoke about his days and his generation. According to the inmillennial prophetic model, these were the “last days” of the Mosaic age.¹ In previous posts, we verified that Moses, Samuel, Obadiah, Joel, Amos, and Jonah did so, following the chronological order Peter (and Jesus) suggested (Acts 3:24; Luke 24:25).

Now, we are studying Hosea,² Israel’s “deathbed” prophet. He was the last to finish his prophetic ministry before the northern kingdom “died” at the hands of the Assyrians (about 722 BC). His book is the second longest of the so-called minor prophets, just behind Zechariah. 

We saw (here) that Hosea gave a series of woes against Israel, followed by promises of her future restoration—“the time of reformation” (Heb 9:10).

I also want to show how Hosea spoke of Peter’s (and Christ’s) generation as a time of reconciliation. This theme permeates the New Testament (e.g., 2 Cor 5:18–20). The prophet proclaimed in advance that God would reconcile Israel in the Messiah’s reign, resurrection, and reception.

Reconciliation in the Messiah’s Reign

God, through Hosea, said he would reconcile Israel in the Messiah’s reign (Hos 2:14–3:5). He summarizes this section: “Afterward the children of Israel shall return and seek the LORD their God and David their king” (Hos 3:5).

 We know this passage pertains to the apostles’ generation because Paul quotes Hosea 2:23 in his letter to the Romans: 

As He [God] says also in Hosea: “I will call them My people, who were not My people, and her beloved, who was not beloved. And it shall come to pass in the place where it was said to them, ‘You are not My people,’ there they shall be called sons of the living God.” (Rom 9:25–26)

The Messiah’s reign would require a second Exodus (Hos 2:14–15). This time, God would deliver His people from bondage to freedom through Christ’s sufferings on the cross. Shortly before the crucifixion, Jesus was transfigured as Peter and John looked on. They saw Him talking with Moses and Elijah about “the Exodus which He was about to accomplish in Jerusalem” (Luke 9:31). 

The original Exodus from Egypt was a type (or picture) of Jesus’ Exodus on the cross (1 Cor 10:1–11). In the antitype (or fulfillment), God reconciles His people to Himself. He set them free from bondage to sin and death.

This reconciling reign would involve a second marriage (Hos 2:16–20). Before Jesus came as the Messiah, God said He was married to Israel after the flesh (Jer 3:14). Her unfaithfulness—like Gomer’s (Hos 1:2–3)—would require God to put her away. He did so in Peter’s generation before He took a new wife, the church (Rev 19:7–9), in a marriage covenant that will last forever (Hos 2:18–20).

Establishing this reign would involve a time of sowing (Hos 2:20–23). God said, “Then I will sow her for Myself in the earth” (Hos 2:23). Jesus appeals to this imagery in His parables about “the word of the kingdom” being sown (e.g., Matt 13:18–23).

The Messiah’s reign would follow a long time without a king (Hos 3:1–5). We know from history that that period lasted about six centuries, from the Babylonian captivity to the King of kings. Now, Israel, as defined in the New Testament (e.g., Rom 2:28–29), “seeks the Lord their God and David their king” (Hos 3:5). This situation will never end.

God would establish this kingdom “in the latter days” (Hos 3:5). Not in the latter days of the church age, planet Earth, or the cosmos, but in the last days of the Mosaic age—Peter’s generation.

Reconciliation in the Messiah’s Resurrection

God would reconcile Israel in the Messiah’s resurrection: 

Come, and let us return to the LORD; for He has torn, but He will heal us; He has stricken, but He will bind us up. After two days He will revive us; on the third day He will raise us up, that we may live in His sight. (Hos 6:1–2)

Without addressing modern scholarly objections, I will endorse Matthew Poole’s comment: “These words foretell the death, and resurrection, and future glory of Christ and Christians, as 1 Cor. 15:4, and so are generally interpreted and applied by expositors.”³ Christ’s resurrection—and ours in Him (e.g., Eph 2:6; 1 Pet 1:3–4)—is the basis of our reconciliation to God.

In the extended context of this passage in Hosea, God expressed His wish for Israel: “I desire mercy and not sacrifice, and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings” (Hos 6:6). Jesus quotes this passage (Matt 9:13; 12:7), showing that Hosea was speaking about events in His (and Peter’s) generation.

Israel’s return would involve severe judgment (Hos 6:1). We have seen that the prophets often link God’s mercies to His judgment of Israel. (See some examples here.) The New Testament makes the same connection. Jesus, for instance, linked God’s judgment of Israel (Matt 24:21), His enthronement (Matt 24:30), and the gathering of the elect in the messianic age (Matt 24:31). Again, these events pertained to Peter’s generation (Matt 24:34).

Israel returned to God through Christ’s resurrection on the third day! Hallelujah! 

Reconciliation in the Messiah’s Reception

Israel’s reconciliation would occur when God answered their prayer to “take away all iniquity; receive us graciously, for we will offer the sacrifices of our lips” (Hos 14:2). We know this reception occurred in Peter’s day because Paul quotes this verse in Hebrews 13:15. We now “offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name.” Hosea said these offerings would occur after God had accepted us in the Messiah.

This acceptance allows us to return to God, taking words with us (Hos 14:1–2). Let us learn words like justification, sanctification, redemption, etc. If we cannot approach God with a clear understanding of His words that describe our reconciliation, let us study and pray until we can.

This return, Hosea said, would be when God healed our backsliding (Hos 14:4–7). He has now done that through Jesus. God has healed Israel. We “grow like the lily,” our “beauty is like an olive tree,” and our “fragrance like Lebanon.”

We have returned to God, therefore we bear fruit (Hos 14:8–9). God has ordained that it be so (e.g., John 12:24; 15:5–8).

These beautiful results come from the fact that we have returned to the Lord our God, and He has received us graciously (Hos 14:1–3).

Conclusion

In Peter’s generation, God caused Israel to return to Him through a series of saving events: Christ’s life, death, resurrection, enthronement, and reign; the giving of the Holy Spirit; the writing of the New Testament; a 40-year “Exodus”; and the end of the Mosaic age.

We now live in the time of reconciliation—the messianic age.

Have you been reconciled to God? Will you be reconciled to Him?

1. Please consider becoming familiar with the inmillennial view of prophecy. You can read a summary version here or tackle the full book-length version here. The title of the book—Inmillennialism: Redefining the Last Days—hints at the reason for my suggestion. This model says the “last days” are identical to Peter’s “these days”; both terms refer to the “last days” of the Mosaic age. This perspective will shed light on the prophets as we work through them.
   Also, consider watching the sermon I preached about this material at Hopewell Primitive Baptist Church in Opelika, AL, on August 20, 2023. You can watch it here.
2. The image in this post is Profeta Osea by Moretto (ca.1521–24). It is in the public domain.
3. Matthew Poole, A Commentary on the Holy Bible, 3 vols. (1685; repr., Carlisle, PA: The Banner of Truth Trust, 1962), 2:864.