Hosea

This book of prophecy details the relationship of a man and his adulterous wife, with the intent of paralleling the relationship between God and the idolatrous Israel. The correlation there is obvious, but what has been debated is whether or not this was an actual marriage or a dream or allegory meant to illustrate a point. The conservative Biblical viewpoint is that this was a literal marriage but most scholars admit that it is contrary to the character of God to ask a prophet to marry a prostitute. There are two means of explanation for this.

First, the Hebrew word used for prostitute ("zonah") is too restricted to allow for the meaning of a soliciting prostitute. It refers more to a personal quality than an activity. Accordingly, the meaning of "zonah" would be closer to "promiscuous" than a professional prostitute. Secondly, scholars suggest that in keeping with Hosea's succinct writing style, it is likely that he was combining what he knew at the time of writing the book with what he knew at the time of his marriage. In this view, the story was shortened to be a synopsis of what Hosea knew his wife would later become. The assertion is that God asked Hosea to take Gomer as his wife and that she was not a harlot at the time. Of course, God knew how things would play out and intended to use Gomer's infidelity and Hosea's loyalty to demonstrate His love for Israel.

Personally, I don't see why it is debated at all. God has asked others to do things that one would not think are befitting a follower of his. Abraham is a great example. Granted, God spared Abraham from following through, but he was asked to do something very contrary to God's nature. Yet we don't question that because we understand that God was using the situation to show His people His love.

Tomorrow's reading: Hosea 2:14-8:14