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The Bible Breakdown
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The Bible Breakdown
Hosea 04: The Jealous Husband
What happens when God decides He's had enough of unfaithfulness? Hosea chapter 4 gives us a front-row seat to witness "The Jealous Husband" in action as God brings serious charges against His people Israel.
This powerful message unpacks the vivid imagery of God as a husband returning to find those entrusted with caring for His beloved have instead led them astray. The corrupt priests, who should have been spiritual shepherds, were actively benefiting from the people's sin—they were "glad when the people sinned" because it meant more offerings and food for themselves. God's verdict is devastating: "My people are destroyed because they don't know me."
The heart of this message reveals why God refuses to share our devotion with idols. It's not because He's controlling or insecure—it's because He knows that anything we place above Him will eventually disappoint us. We were designed for relationship with our Creator, and nothing else will truly satisfy the human heart. As Pastor Brandon explains, "God doesn't mind if we have stuff; He just doesn't want stuff to have us." This is profound truth for a culture obsessed with possessions, status, and pleasure.
Perhaps most encouraging is the revelation that when we properly order our lives with God first, everything else falls into place. We actually end up loving our spouses, children, and even our possessions more genuinely when we love God most. By submitting everything to God's authority, we find the true freedom we've been seeking all along.
Are you struggling with idols that have taken God's place in your life? Listen now to discover how God's jealousy for your heart is actually the most loving thing you could experience. When you align your heart with His purpose, you'll find the peace and satisfaction you've been looking for all along.
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The More We Dig. The More We Find.
Well, hello everybody, welcome back to the Bible Breakdown Podcast. We're your host, pastor Brandon. Today, hosea, chapter 4, and today's title is the Jealous Husband the Jealous Husband, and I'm telling you, I tried to tell you that this is like the soap opera of the Old Testament and we're going to get to see more of that today, and the reason why I'm laughing is hopefully become evident in just a moment. But if you have your Bibles, open up with me to Hosea, chapter 4. While you're doing that, as always, if you're new around here, make sure you like, share and subscribe to the YouTube channel and the podcast, make sure you leave us a five-star review on the podcast and make sure you're going to the Bible Breakdown Discussion on Facebook. It's an amazing group of people doing a wonderful job and, as always, the more we dig, the more we find. Well, once again, as you're getting everything ready, don't forget that Hosea is about the reckless love of God, and God had told Hosea hey, listen, I want you to go marry a prostitute, have family with her. She's going to cheat on you and that's just going to. It's going to be an example of what Israel does to me and how you're going to go back and save her. Over and over again. You're going to do all the things and this is exactly what I'm doing for Israel over and over again. And today, in Hosea 4, we're going to see God as the vengeful husband.
Speaker 1:And the reason why I laugh is I can't tell you I went through this season not too long ago and I don't recommend it at all because it'll just make you doubt humanity. But I got on YouTube and there are these people who would post these YouTube videos of police officer, like dash cams and body cams when they would go and do these house calls or traffic stops. And man, can I just say this for everyone who is listening or watching this all over the world who is involved in law enforcement. Thank you. Now I get that. In your profession, just like in every other profession, nobody hates a bad cop worse than a good cop. Just like in what I do for a living, no one hates a bad pastor more than a good pastor. You know what I mean and that's true for everybody. I'm sure no one hates a bad pizza delivery person better than a good one. I mean, it's just the way it goes. So I know that they're bad, but there's a whole lot of really good police officers and when you realize the fools they got to deal with, listen, just thank you, just thank you so much. But I would watch these body cams and stuff like that.
Speaker 1:And, man, you want to talk about the funniest thing in the world and it wasn't funny at the time, but it is when you're watching it through YouTube. But anytime you'd see some random something going on and then all of a sudden, out of nowhere, here comes Billy Joe in his pickup truck and he gets out of there and he's coming at you. It's usually a vengeful or jealous husband who thinks something's up, and I can't tell you how many times all of a sudden he gets to coming up there because it'd be like an unarmed, an unmarked police officer, you know, and he's kind of detaining someone and he's coming with some smoke and all of a sudden that police officer flashes his badge real quick and that guy just stops in his tracks. Oh, hey, hey. Well, here's the thing. God's coming after some folks, but I don't care what they're going to flash. You know they're going to flash no badge against God. He's had enough. And so in the last chapter we talked about how Boaz Hosea had to go rescue Gomer and bring her back again. Well, now it's like he's turning around and he's saying okay, now, just like Gomer was unfaithful, the nation of Israel has been unfaithful, and I want to talk to you fools for a minute, and so that's what he's going to do. So, if you're ready, get your popcorn and your Bibles.
Speaker 1:Hosea 4, verse 1. Here is the vengeful God coming after him. Verse 1, hear the word of the Lord, o people of Israel. The Lord has brought charges against you, saying there is no faithfulness, no kindness, no knowledge of God in your land. You make vows and break them. You kill, steal and commit adultery. There is violence everywhere, one murderer after another. That is why your land is in mourning and everyone is wasting away. Even the wild animals and the birds of the sky and the fish of the sea are disappearing. Don't point your finger at someone else and try to pass the blame.
Speaker 1:My complaint, you priests, is with you. So you will stumble in broad daylight and your false prophets will fall with you in the night. I will destroy Israel, your mother, my people are destroyed because they don't know me. Pause, man, that's good. My people are destroyed because they don't know me. Other translations say my people are destroyed due to a lack of knowledge. They don't know who I am. What he's saying is I'm mad at these guys, the ones who have been doing all this. Is these evil. Are these evil priests and people? And so I'm after you right?
Speaker 1:Rest of verse six says since you priests refuse to know me, I refuse to recognize you as my priests. Since you have forgotten the laws of your God, I will forget to bless your children. The more priests there are, the more they sin against me. You have exchanged the glory of God for the shame of idols. And when the people bring their sin offerings, the priests get fed. So the priests are glad when the people sin. And what the priests do, the people also do so.
Speaker 1:Now I will punish both priests and people for their wicked deeds. They will eat and still be hungry. They will play the prostitute and gain nothing from it, for they have deserted the Lord to worship other gods. Wine has robbed my people of their understanding. They ask a piece of wood for advice. They think a stick can tell them the future, longing for their after idols. They have made them foolish and they have played the prostitute, serving other gods and deserting their god. They offer sacrifices to idols on the mountaintops and they go up into the hills to burn incense In the pleasant shade of oaks, poplars and terebinth trees.
Speaker 1:That is why why your daughter has turned to prostitution and your daughters-in-law commit adultery. But why should I punish them for their prostitution and adultery? For your men are doing the same thing, sinning with whores and shrine prostitutes. Oh, foolish people, you refuse to understand. So you will be destroyed, though you, israel, are a prostitute. May Judah not be guilty of such things. Do not join false worship at Gilgal or Bethhaven. Do not take oaths there in the name of the Lord. Israel is stubborn like a stubborn heifer, so should the Lord feed her like a lamb in a lush pasture. Leave Israel alone, because she is married to idolatry. When the rulers of Israel have finished their drinking off, they go to find some prostitutes. They love shame more than honor. So mighty winds will sweep them away. Their sacrifices to idols will bring them shame.
Speaker 1:He's upset. He's upset, and the reason why is because he is saying the people that were supposed to take care of them you know what I'm saying, like, the priests who were supposed to be leading them toward me are the very ones who have pulled them away from me and look at what they're doing. And so God's had enough. It's like the same thing as a man who goes off on a trip and he says, hey friend, will you take care of my wife and kids while I'm gone? Sure, I will. And then while he's gone he abuses and mistreats them, and when he comes back he's going to deal with it. And that's the love of God.
Speaker 1:And can I tell you, one of the things I love about God is God will systematically go to war with every idol in our life. It doesn't matter what that idol is. Here's the thing God doesn't mind if we have stuff. He just doesn't want stuff to have us. And if anything takes the throne of our heart away from him, he will systematically tear every idol down, because he knows we were made for him. He made us, and so our heart only finds its joy and its peace in him. Nothing else will satisfy. And so it's not because he hates us, it's because he knows that that's what's best for us, because that's what we were made for. And so he'll never stop until he systematically tears down every idol in our life. And so here's the thing If we love that idol more than we love him, then that's how much it's going to hurt, because he will get rid of every idol in our life. And that's what he's saying right here. He's saying I'm gonna destroy all you fools because you have set these things up and you've turned my people against me.
Speaker 1:So the lesson for us today, the application point, is number one never be that idol or never be that person leading other people away from God, cause then you put God's heart against you. We all need that kind of ain't. Nobody got time for that. You know what? Be aware that if we put anything in our life as more important than God, god will systematically go to war with that until it submits to his leadership. That means everything. You put anything on the throne of your life, it will not satisfy. It will eventually let you down, because only God can occupy that place. And so make sure everything in our life submits to the authority of Christ.
Speaker 1:But here's the good news is that when you do that, god places everything in order and you're able to enjoy it more. For instance, you put your spouse as more important than God. It will ruin your relationship. It will, because they're not perfect Eventually, I don't care how much you love that spouse, they're gonna wake up with bad breath, they're going to make a bad decision and all of a sudden, now this thing you've idolized is no longer perfect.
Speaker 1:But if you put God first and you love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, then what's going to happen is God is going to then teach us how to love our spouse as Christ loved the church and gave himself for it. And God is going to then teach us how to love our spouse as Christ loved the church and gave himself for it. And so you'll end up loving your spouse more by putting him or her second. Same thing with your kids. You put them under the authority of Christ in your life and you look at your child and you say child, I love you, but I love Jesus more. Which means then I don't care if you don't want to go, we're going to go to church.
Speaker 1:I don't care if you don't want to go, we're going to get involved. We're going to have devotions together. We're going to pray together. Why? Because I love you enough to love Jesus more. Watch what happens, and you could do that with any area of your life. And so, if you want to be free. Submit to God, because that's where true freedom is, and that's what he is telling these people. Since you didn't do that, it's about to get bad. Let's pray together right now.
Speaker 1:God, thank you so much for today. Thank you, god, that you're with us and you're for us, and that the endless, reckless love of God is all around us. I pray you'll help us to see that and to fall in love with you more every day. In Jesus' name, we pray Amen, amen. Well, god's word says in Hosea 6, verse 6, I want you to show love, not offer sacrifices. I want you to know me more than I want burnt offerings. My hope for you is that you will have a rich, fulfilling, true relationship with God that's not full of form, but full of compassion and love. I love you. I'll see you tomorrow for Hosea, chapter 5.
