February 28 ▪ Day 59

Scripture Readings

Proverbs 12:9
Hosea 1–2
I Corinthians 8–10
Psalms 59

Verse Focus (Proverbs 12:9)

Better to be a nobody and yet have a servant
     than pretend to be somebody and have no food.

Meditation

Congratulations! Today we complete two months along this journey. Okay, so February is the shortest month of the year… but that doesn’t diminish the accomplishment at all. I’m so proud of you — and of myself! — for getting this far. Hallelujah!

Thank you, Father God, for bringing us all along on this journey through your Scripture. Thank you for enabling me to be consistent in seeking you each day. May we all continue to learn and grow by the power of your Holy Spirit. Amen.

There is a fair amount of variety in how Proverbs 12:9 gets translated into English, although most versions say more or less the same thing using slightly different words. “Better to be despised and have a servant, than to be self-important and lack food,” says the NRSV. Some translations say “lightly esteemed,” others say “ordinary” or “lowly” or even “humble.” For the second half of the proverb, many translations talk about pretending. Others say, one who “honors himself” or acts “important” — or even one who boasts of his own status. There are even a couple of translations that see the humble person as becoming a servant or a slave rather than having a servant, but the same idea applies about how much better it is to be humble than to put on a show that covers up very real deficiencies in your life.

So, what do we learn from this proverb? We learn that the people who have status or importance — they have the good life, we think! — and yet, it might actually be an illusion. We learn that pretending to have status or doing things to honor yourself in the eyes of the world can lead to a bad outcome. Instead of using funds for your basic needs, your income might be frittered away on keeping up appearances.

We also learn that how the world views you is not the real measure of your success in life. You may seem very ordinary. You may even be despised. But in truth you may possess greater riches than those who look down upon you.

Father God, keep me from trying to look more important than I am. Let me be content with humble circumstances. I know that you will always provide for me in Christ Jesus. Thank you.

Yesterday we finished reading Isaiah, the first of the major prophets in the Old Testament. Isaiah prophesied primarily for the kingdom of Judah, for 40 years or so, from about 740 BC to about 701 BC. His tenure covered the end of the kings of Israel (who were conquered and deported in 722 BC) as well as the reigns of four different kings of Judah.

Today we turn to the book of Hosea, who is the first of the so-called “minor” prophets. As you recall, the distinction between major and minor prophets is mostly a matter of how long their books are, although the major prophets were also concerned a bit more with international politics than the minor prophets were. (The book of Daniel, which precedes Hosea in the Old Testament, is considered the last of the major prophets even though his book is actually a tiny bit shorter than Hosea is.)

Hosea had a pretty lengthy tenure as a prophet. Verse 1 tells us that Hosea, son of Beeri, prophesied “in the days of Kings Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah of Judah, and in the days of King Jeroboam son of Joash of Israel.” These are the same four kings of Judah that Isaiah prophesied to, so Hosea and Isaiah were contemporaries for a number of years. However, King Jeroboam (usually called Jeroboam II to distinguish him from an earlier king of Israel that had the same name) predates King Uzziah by 27 years. Depending on when scholars believe Hosea started prophesying, estimates of his preaching range from 60 to 80 years.

Hosea’s ministry was primarily to the Kingdom of Israel during a very turbulent period of their history — this was the time leading up to the Assyrian invasion and the fall of Samaria. Perhaps the reason why Hosea doesn’t mention any kings of Israel other than Jeroboam II is because after Jeroboam’s death, Israel (Samaria) had six different kings in about twenty years. Four of those kings were assassinated and the last was forcibly removed from the throne.

Chapters 1 and 3 in Hosea are mostly prose, but the rest of the chapters are poetry. Just like with Isaiah or any other poetry, the language will be beautiful and there will be vivid images, symbols, and themes, but some stuff will be enigmatic or obscure.

If you recall from earlier this year, I mentioned that a number of Biblical prophets did a kind of “performance art” prophecy. Hosea is one such prophet. He is directed in chapter 1 to go marry a prostitute and have children with her. He is further directed to given these children very specific and symbolic names. The marriage itself is symbolic of the relationship between God and Israel — like Hosea’s wife Gomer, Israel has been continually unfaithful. Having symbolic names for the children gives constant opportunity for Hosea to discuss the reason for these names with his neighbors.

Hosea’s first son is to be named Jezreel, which literally means “God sows” but metaphorically it means that God will scatter. It is a prophecy of the fall of Jeroboam II and his house, as well as the fall Israel that will occur about 20 years after Jeroboam’s death. The family first and then the nation will be scattered. The name “Jezreel” also refers to the city of Jezreel, which was the capital for a number of kings of Israel — up until Jehu violently overthrew that particular reign. Even though Jehu was also fulfilling prophecy, God now will make Jeroboam II pay for the bloody massacre at Jezreel committed by his great-grandfather Jehu.

Hosea’s second child is a daughter that he is told to name “Lo-Ruhamah,” which means either “not pitied” or “not loved” (depending on how your translation puts it). Again, the name is symbolic of how God feels about Israel and what He intends to do, but I always felt extremely sorry for the daughter. Imagine what being called “Not Loved” must have done for her self-confidence!

Hosea’s last child was another son, to be called “Lo-Ammi,” or “Not my people.” Again, symbolic.

Despite the news of the impending fall of Israel, there is still hope that is communicated in these chapters. Even as God explains why Lo-Ruhamah is to be named that, He says that even though He will not have mercy on Israel, He will have mercy on the kingdom of Judah. God will save Judah, and He “will not save them by bow, or by sword, or by war, or by horses, or by horsemen (v. 7).” Here we have a prophecy of God’s miraculous rescue of Jerusalem from King Sennacherib in 701 BC that we read about earlier in Isaiah 37.

Even with the naming of Lo-Ammi, we get a prophecy of the restoration. Hosea 1:10 says:

Yet the number of the people of Israel shall be like the sand of the sea, which can be neither measured nor numbered; and in the place where it was said to them, “You are not my people,” it shall be said to them, “Children of the living God.”

Hosea chapter 2 speaks about the faithlessness of Israel. Unless Israel changes its ways, God will remove His protection of them. Verse 7 has the faithless wife deciding to return to her “first husband,” because “it was better with me then than now.” Did any of you hear the echoes of the Prodigal Son in this Scripture?

The prophet continues to speak of how God will punish Israel for her idolatries, but then things shift in verse 14. Now it is a prophecy of hope again. God promises in verse 15 that He will “make the Valley of Achor a door of hope.” This is remarkable reversal. Achor means “trouble.” There was a specific geographic place that was called the Valley of Achor; it reminded Israel of a time in their history when they had gone through trouble and distress because of the disobedience of one man. God’s promise to transform the valley of trouble into a “door of hope” is both a literal and a metaphorical promise.

Chapter 2 ends with a promise of restoration for the people of Israel. There will come a day when Israel no longer sees God as “master” but will call Him “husband.” The chapter closes by referring back to the prophetic names of Hosea’s children. Previously these names indicated the coming judgment and separation from God, but now it will be completely reversed.

In 1 Corinthians 8, Paul talks about food sacrificed to idols. While this particular issue is not one that we struggle with today, the principle that we should not let our liberty in Christ cause anyone else to stumble is of utmost importance. A more modern example might be a church congregation that believes dancing is sinful. Or card-playing. Or reading books like Harry Potter. Differences of opinion occur between believers, but we should take care that what we do will not cause someone else to do something they believe is wrong. If they believe it’s sinful, then for them it is sinful (Romans 14:23; James 4:17). We must take care that we do not injure another believer in this manner and so “sin against Christ (v. 12).”

Today as I read this chapter, it was Paul’s statement in verse 1 that particularly resonated. “Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up.” Knowledge and wisdom are important, but love is preeminent. Love is what encourages and strengthens the body of Christ.

In chapter 9, Paul shares the principle of how a worker should expect to share in the harvest. I love the way he takes one of the laws about oxen in the Old Testament and draws out an interpretation that applies to us! He talks about how apostles and ministers of the gospel have a right to expect support from church congregations, but notes that he did not take advantage of this right. Paul had a duty to share the gospel of Christ, but it was his pleasure and joy to present the gospel free of charge.

In verse 22 Paul says, “I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some.” While some might take this out of context and interpret that Paul was advocating artificial behavior, it is more that he was telling us to make the most of whatever we have in common with others.

The chapter concludes with a call to self-discipline. Paul exhorts us to “Run in such a way as to get the prize (v. 24).”

Chapter 10 again calls us to consider our behavior not in terms of what is allowable, but in terms of what is beneficial. Paul mentions various examples of misbehavior in the Old Testament and tells us, in verse 6, “Now these things occurred as examples for us.” It helps to make some sense of some of the stories we read in the Old Testament. Even the story of David and Bathsheba, which we discussed fairly recently, occurred as an “example” for us.

In fact, Paul warns us that if we think we are “standing firm,” we should be careful that we don’t “fall” (v. 12). When we take pride in our spiritual progress, that is when we are at most risk. However, Paul is quick to reassure us in verse 13, “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.” As you probably know, the word for “temptation” in the Greek can also mean “testing.”

The chapter ends with another verse gem in verse 31: “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God.”

Psalm 59 is another one of the psalms that has that “Do not destroy” inscription. Perhaps the name of a tune, or perhaps a reference to God’s promise in Isaiah that He will always save a remnant. The inscription also refers to an incident in David’s life “when Saul ordered his house to be watched in order to kill him.” There is a brief story about this in 1 Samuel 19:11.

Twice in the psalm David describes these men who are watching him, saying, “They return at evening, snarling like dogs, and prowl about the city.” David prays that these men might be “trapped in their pride (v. 12)” and that God might “consume them until they are no more (v. 13).”

Verse 9 is reprised at the end of the psalm in verse 17. They are both jewels:

⁹O my strength, I will watch for you; for you, O God, are my fortress. ¹⁰My God in his steadfast love will meet me.
¹⁷O my strength, I will sing praises to you, for you, O God, are my fortress, the God who shows me steadfast love.

Amen!

Father God, thank you that you are our strength and fortress. Thank you for your steadfast love. Thank you for giving us your Scripture to teach us; help us to learn from the stories and examples, even though sometimes the stories are so bleak it doesn’t seem like we could benefit from them. Thank you for Hosea. Thank you that your pursue us with your love, even when we are faithless.

Help us to do everything for your glory. May we choose things that are beneficial and that build up your church. In Jesus’ name, Amen.