Hos 1:10-11 | KingComments | STEP | A bright ray of hope is expressed in the first word of this verse, “yet”. After the warnings of the coming judgment, here the sovereign grace of God comes to the fore. If, because of Israel’s unfaithfulness, He has had to cut through every bond with them, this does not mean forever. There will come a time when God will take up the thread with His people again. Then He will fulfill all the promises made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The expression “the sand of the sea” recalls God’s promise to Abraham that his offspring will be “as the sand which is on the seashore” ( ). God makes that promise after Abraham has sacrificed his son by faith ( ). In that event, the picture of God sacrificing His Son Jesus Christ on the cross is clearly visible. It is only because of the sacrifice of Christ that God will fulfill all His promises to Israel. The people have forfeited all rights to restoration and all claims to fulfillment of the promises. God would bless them if they would remain faithful to Him. They agree with that condition when they pronounce it three times at Sinai: “All that the LORD has spoken we will do!” ( ). But in the course of their history they have shown how they have despised and trampled on all God’s righteous commandments and statutes. It is on this basis that God must pronounce His judgments, as He does in this first chapter of Hosea. These judgments He actually executes. However, this does not mean that His promises have thereby failed ( ). He will fulfill His promises to a remnant that He Himself has chosen, a rest of the people. How this will be done is described in detail in Romans 9-11. There remains a future for Israel. That future is there, not according to the merit of the people, but according to the merit of Jesus Christ. Where Israel has failed, He has perfectly done everything God asks of man. He has earned the fulfillment of His promises. When the present era, that of the church, has come to an end – that is, when the Lord Jesus has taken the church up to Himself ( ) – He will start working with Israel again. Then He will pour out on them “the Spirit of grace and of supplication” ( ). Then He will come back to earth and they will see Him Whom they have pierced ( ). All who will come to repentance will be allowed to share with Him in the fulfillment of His promises. The masses will be judged because they have accepted the antichrist, who will then reveal himself. The elect will not be dragged along with the masses in their worship of the image of the beast that was put into the temple by the antichrist ( ). They will, despite fierce persecution, remain faithful looking forward to the coming of the Messiah. From their side, this is no merit. Only grace will make them remain faithful. Everything comes from God. In the realm of peace, this rest, this remnant, will grow into a huge crowd and become “like the sand of the sea, Which cannot be measured or numbered”. In the expression “sand of the sea” there is an indication that it concerns God’s earthly people, Israel. This in contrast to the expression “stars of the heavens” ( ) which refers to the heavenly people of God. However, there will not only be a great change in numbers. There will also, and more importantly, be a change in their relationship to the LORD. Instead of idolaters, they will, after their restoration, be called by God His ‘sons’. This change can only be effected by the grace of God. But if everything is only based on grace, that grace cannot be limited to the Jews, but the door will also be opened to the nations. That is why Paul quotes this verse from Hosea in Rom 9 ( ). With this he shows that God is not obliged to limit His grace to the Jews. Romans 9 is a chapter that shows that God is sovereign, also in showing grace to whom He wills. He has the right to call people from the nations and to justify them by faith ( ). The fact that Paul quotes this verse from Hosea is also because it speaks of “sons of the living God”. This is typically an expression of the relationship between God and the Christian. God can no longer be in connection with the Jew, as He never has been in connection with the Gentile. Of both He has had to say: “You are not My people.” This applies to the Jews since God, as a result of their unfaithfulness, had to break His connection with them. For the Gentiles it has always been the case that God has allowed them to go their own way. And now Paul, the apostle of the Gentiles, cites this verse as proof that all who are called by God, both from the Jews and from the Gentiles, are called by Him “sons of the living God”. God is called here “the living God”. With this He is in sharp contrast with the dead idols. This contrast is beautifully expressed in the conversion of the Thessalonians, and if it is good for every person who repents ( ). That He is the living God not only indicates that He lives, but also that all life finds its origin in Him ( ). When Peter answers the question of the Lord Jesus: “Who do you say that I am?” with: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” ( ), he indicates that life is present in Christ Himself. Therefore, the Lord can connect to this confession of Peter about the truth of His Person the wonderful promise of building the church. On Him, the Son of the living God, the church is built, a church that cannot be affected by death ( ).

‏ Hosea 1:10-11

Numerous and Sons of the Living God

A bright ray of hope is expressed in the first word of this verse, “yet”. After the warnings of the coming judgment, here the sovereign grace of God comes to the fore. If, because of Israel’s unfaithfulness, He has had to cut through every bond with them, this does not mean forever. There will come a time when God will take up the thread with His people again. Then He will fulfill all the promises made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

The expression “the sand of the sea” recalls God’s promise to Abraham that his offspring will be “as the sand which is on the seashore” (Gen 22:17). God makes that promise after Abraham has sacrificed his son by faith (Heb 11:17-18). In that event, the picture of God sacrificing His Son Jesus Christ on the cross is clearly visible. It is only because of the sacrifice of Christ that God will fulfill all His promises to Israel.

The people have forfeited all rights to restoration and all claims to fulfillment of the promises. God would bless them if they would remain faithful to Him. They agree with that condition when they pronounce it three times at Sinai: “All that the LORD has spoken we will do!” (Exo 19:8 ; Exo 24:3 ; 7). But in the course of their history they have shown how they have despised and trampled on all God’s righteous commandments and statutes. It is on this basis that God must pronounce His judgments, as He does in this first chapter of Hosea. These judgments He actually executes. However, this does not mean that His promises have thereby failed (Rom 9:6).

He will fulfill His promises to a remnant that He Himself has chosen, a rest of the people. How this will be done is described in detail in Romans 9-11. There remains a future for Israel. That future is there, not according to the merit of the people, but according to the merit of Jesus Christ. Where Israel has failed, He has perfectly done everything God asks of man. He has earned the fulfillment of His promises.

When the present era, that of the church, has come to an end – that is, when the Lord Jesus has taken the church up to Himself (1Thes 4:15-18) – He will start working with Israel again. Then He will pour out on them “the Spirit of grace and of supplication” (Zec 12:10). Then He will come back to earth and they will see Him Whom they have pierced (Rev 1:7). All who will come to repentance will be allowed to share with Him in the fulfillment of His promises. The masses will be judged because they have accepted the antichrist, who will then reveal himself.

The elect will not be dragged along with the masses in their worship of the image of the beast that was put into the temple by the antichrist (Rev 13:14-15). They will, despite fierce persecution, remain faithful looking forward to the coming of the Messiah. From their side, this is no merit. Only grace will make them remain faithful. Everything comes from God.

In the realm of peace, this rest, this remnant, will grow into a huge crowd and become “like the sand of the sea, Which cannot be measured or numbered”. In the expression “sand of the sea” there is an indication that it concerns God’s earthly people, Israel. This in contrast to the expression “stars of the heavens” (Gen 22:17) which refers to the heavenly people of God.

However, there will not only be a great change in numbers. There will also, and more importantly, be a change in their relationship to the LORD. Instead of idolaters, they will, after their restoration, be called by God His ‘sons’. This change can only be effected by the grace of God.

But if everything is only based on grace, that grace cannot be limited to the Jews, but the door will also be opened to the nations. That is why Paul quotes this verse from Hosea in Rom 9 (Rom 9:26). With this he shows that God is not obliged to limit His grace to the Jews. Romans 9 is a chapter that shows that God is sovereign, also in showing grace to whom He wills. He has the right to call people from the nations and to justify them by faith (Rom 9:30).

The fact that Paul quotes this verse from Hosea is also because it speaks of “sons of the living God”. This is typically an expression of the relationship between God and the Christian. God can no longer be in connection with the Jew, as He never has been in connection with the Gentile. Of both He has had to say: “You are not My people.” This applies to the Jews since God, as a result of their unfaithfulness, had to break His connection with them. For the Gentiles it has always been the case that God has allowed them to go their own way. And now Paul, the apostle of the Gentiles, cites this verse as proof that all who are called by God, both from the Jews and from the Gentiles, are called by Him “sons of the living God”.

God is called here “the living God”. With this He is in sharp contrast with the dead idols. This contrast is beautifully expressed in the conversion of the Thessalonians, and if it is good for every person who repents (1Thes 1:9-10). That He is the living God not only indicates that He lives, but also that all life finds its origin in Him (Jn 1:4 ; Jn 5:26).

When Peter answers the question of the Lord Jesus: “Who do you say that I am?” with: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Mt 16:15-16), he indicates that life is present in Christ Himself. Therefore, the Lord can connect to this confession of Peter about the truth of His Person the wonderful promise of building the church. On Him, the Son of the living God, the church is built, a church that cannot be affected by death (Mt 16:18).

One People, One Leader

After the blessing for the ten tribes in Hos 1:10 – and for the Gentiles, as it becomes clear in the light of the New Testament (Rom 9:26 ; 30) – Hosea speaks in this verse of the blessing for all Israel. That blessing lies in the future. There will then be a reunion of the two and ten tribes that have been torn apart since the days of Rehoboam and Jeroboam I (1Kgs 12:16-19). Jeremiah also spoke about this (Jer 31:31).

When that time comes, they will join their Messiah as one nation. Then they will no longer be two nations, each with its own ruler. No, they will be one nation with “one Leader” (cf. Eze 37:24). They will acknowledge the God-given King in the rejected Jesus of Nazareth. From all over the land they will go to Jerusalem, the dwelling place of God, to honor Him.

It is possible that “go up from the land” also refers to their return from the scattering. “The land” then presents the land of Egypt as a symbol of all the nations to which the Israelites are scattered (cf. Hos 2:14-15; Deu 28:68). In the course of time, many Israelites have returned to their land.

It is not possible to make this verse refer to the return of God’s people from Babylon under Ezra and Nehemiah. That concerns only a rest. Moreover, they are still under the authority of the nations under which God has placed them, in the person of Nebuchadnezzar. They have not been able to choose a ‘leader’ themselves. Until 1948 they were never even independent.

When the day or time of which Hosea speaks has come, it can rightly be said that that day is “great”. What no one has dared to dream of, what no enemy of Israel thinks of, will then happen. All God’s promises will be fulfilled in that day and to that people by Him Who is their Leader. That day is called “the day of Jezreel”. Jezreel means, as already said in Hos 1:4, ‘God will scatter’ or ‘God will sow’. The first meaning becomes true when the Assyrians deport the ten tribes and scatter them over all the countries they have conquered. But when Israel has placed itself under his one Leader, God will sow His people into the land. Then it will never be scattered again.

It is not a day of humiliation, but of public glory. Everyone will have their own inheritance in the land and will be able to enjoy the blessings that God will then give generously. At the end of the next chapter we will see how great this blessing is and how God will make it come, where again is spoken about Jezreel (Hos 2:22).

Indeed, “great will be the day of Jezreel”. The time corresponding to that day is the thousand years of peace. Then the undivided, independent nation will experience a time of unprecedented, reborn glory under Christ as the acknowledged Leader (cf. Isa 2:1-5 ; Isa 11:1-14; Rev 20:1-6).