‘“Come, let us return to the Lord . He has torn us to pieces; now he will heal us. He has injured us; now he will bandage our wounds. In just a short time he will restore us, so that we may live in his presence. Oh, that we might know the Lord ! Let us press on to know him. He will respond to us as surely as the arrival of dawn or the coming of rains in early spring.” “O Israel and Judah, what should I do with you?” asks the Lord . “For your love vanishes like the morning mist and disappears like dew in the sunlight. I sent my prophets to cut you to pieces— to slaughter you with my words, with judgments as inescapable as light. I want you to show love, not offer sacrifices. I want you to know me more than I want burnt offerings. But like Adam, you broke my covenant and betrayed my trust. “Gilead is a city of sinners, tracked with footprints of blood. Priests form bands of robbers, waiting in ambush for their victims. They murder travelers along the road to Shechem and practice every kind of sin. Yes, I have seen something horrible in Ephraim and Israel: My people are defiled by prostituting themselves with other gods! “O Judah, a harvest of punishment is also waiting for you, though I wanted to restore the fortunes of my people.’ Hosea 6:1-11(NLT)
Hosea’s prophecies emphasized Israel’s rebellion so much and in so many different ways that it can seem overwhelming. So, it helps if we think in terms of two issues: God’s accusations and his judgments.
On the one side, Hosea’s revelations drew attention to four types of accusations against Israel. First, he pointed out that Israel had violated the fundamental requirements of God’s covenant and law. In the section dealing with God’s lawsuits, God’s earlier lawsuit begins with categorical condemnations. In chapter 4:1, Hosea said that Israel had “no faithfulness or steadfast love” and “no knowledge of God.” In verse 2, Hosea alluded to the Ten Commandments when he said that Israel was full of “swearing, lying, murder, stealing, and committing adultery.” And in this same verse, God stressed the particularly heinous sins of violence in Israel, saying, “bloodshed follows bloodshed.” Verse 6 sums up widespread conditions in Israel by explaining that the Israelites had “forgotten the law of … God.” In God’s later lawsuit, Hosea spoke again of widespread violence. In chapter 5:2 he declared, “the revolters have gone deep into slaughter.”
Then, in Hosea’s prophecies highlighting God’s calls for alarm, God’s first call for alarm repeats this focus on God’s covenant and law. In chapter 6:7, God said that “like Adam they transgressed the covenant.” Verses 8 and 9 mention violence again, saying that “Gilead is … tracked with blood… robbers lie in wait … and even the priests … murder.” Chapter 7:1 raises another accusation of widespread violence when it says, “the thief breaks in and the bandits raid outside.” God’s second call for alarm records God’s accusation in chapter 8:1, saying “Israel transgressed my covenant and rebelled against my law.” And, in verse 12, God sarcastically concluded that Israel would ignore him, even if he wrote “laws by the ten thousands.” In fact, chapter 9:7 tells us that Israel viewed God’s covenant messengers, the prophets, with contempt, saying, “The prophet is a fool; the man of the spirit” — the Holy Spirit — “is mad.” Hosea left no room for doubt. Israel had flagrantly violated God’s covenant and his law.
from The Prophetic Wisdom Of Hosea