Moth and Rust

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Scripture Hosea 5:12-15

12       But I am like a moth to Ephraim,

and like dry rot to the house of Judah.

          13       When Ephraim saw his sickness,

and Judah his wound,

                   then Ephraim went to Assyria,

and sent to the great king.

                   But he is not able to cure you

or heal your wound.

          14       For I will be like a lion to Ephraim,

and like a young lion to the house of Judah.

                   I, even I, will tear and go away;

I will carry off, and no one shall rescue.

          15       I will return again to my place,

until they acknowledge their guilt and seek my face,

and in their distress earnestly seek me. [1]

Devotion

          In this reading we see Hosea warning Ephraim and Judah what God is going to do to them because of their sin. How God will punish them for following other gods and seeking protection from other kings. What will God do to them if they do not listen even after he sends disaster upon them?

          The answer to that question begins in verse 12. Commentators disagree over the exact meaning of the words translated “moth” and “rot” in verse 12. Some commentators translate them as maggot and gangrene, respectively. Regardless of the translation God is not helping to cure their wounds he is instead irritating and causing decay in them to get the attention of the people and turn hearts toward God

          God goes on to say after they have gone to foreign kings and they have been unable to cure their sickness. God will then attack them like a lion and tear them. Then as a final judgement God just goes away. Returning to His throne in heaven God leaves them alone to marinate in their sickness. God waits for his children to come and seek him.

          That is what the Hebrews understood as they read or heard these words for them. What meaning can we take from these words for our own time. Is God deliberately causing us to suffer via fire, storm, social upheaval, and “the virus”? Will God indeed abandon this world to its own decay and rot until the final judgement comes? The answer can be found in verse 15.

          What is a people to do when God abandons them to their sin? We see examples in the New Testament in the way Jesus handles Peter after the resurrection, restoring him after Peter confesses his love for the Lord. Also, we see it where Paul will turn someone over to Satan. But the reason he does so is that they will repent and turn to the Lord. So, we must return to God. He will not hide his face forever from a truly repentant people. Since God is a God of love and Jesus has forever taken on himself the wrath of God, we can be confident in God’s forgiveness and love. We have hope in Jesus Christ for our ultimate salvation and fellowship with God.

 

Prayer

          Heavenly Father we come before you as sick and indeed dying people. Hear us as we cry out to you for healing and salvation. Please Lord do not abandon us in this our hour of great need, but rather shine upon us and heal our sin sickness and straighten our crooked paths. May we learn to follow you in the path you would lead us on beside the still waters and into green pastures. Hear our cry Lord. Amen.


[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Ho 5:12–15.

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