Hosea
1:4–12 The Lord told Hosea to marry a woman named Gomer. She wasn’t faithful to Hosea just like Israel wasn’t faithful to God. The Lord also told Hosea to name their children Jezreel, Lo Ruhamah and Lo Ammi. Jezreel means a place of war. This name showed that Israel would soon go to war. Lo Ruhamah means not loved. God was no longer going to show love to the people. Lo Ammi means not my people.
Because of Israel’s sin, God had turned away from his people.
In verse 10, the Lord said that he was still willing to forgive them. Then the Israelites would again be his people.
1:10 Find some dry sand and spread it out on a tray or a table. Can you count the grains of sand?
Thinky read something interesting about sand. It’s thought there are about 83,300 grains of sand in a cubic inch of sand.
Can you work out how many grains of sand there are in one cubic foot of sand?
Do you think it’s possible to work out how much sand the sea contains?
That is what Hosea wanted to tell us. The people of Israel would become too many to count.
2:5–6 Hosea tells us that his wife kept running away to do sinful things. He tried to stop her and bring her back home.
Hosea wanted to show the Israelites that they were like his wife. They were always running away from the Lord. They turned away from the Lord and went to worship false gods.
2:18–20 Find a sheet of paper. Write on it the words that tell what the Lord will do for his people. Read verse 19.
Arty says you can decorate your page with colors that remind you of God’s love.
Underline the words on your page that describe God’s love for you.
5:8–9 How are the people in your town or city warned when there is danger?
In Hosea’s time, people blew on ram’s horns and trumpets. They did this whenever there was danger or when an enemy attacked them. Then the people ran to the temple or to the middle of the town. There they would hear the news and receive directions. This time it was bad news. God’s people would suffer for a while. But that had to happen so they would turn back to him.
9:15–19 Daniel loved his people and prayed for them. In fact, he pleaded with the Lord to forgive their sins and bring them back home. Daniel knew that the Lord continued to love his people. He trusted that the Lord would forgive them.
Inny knows that we love our families, friends, and community. And it’s important that we pray for them. We are to ask God to forgive our sins and the sins of our community. And we know that the Lord hears our prayers.
Inny thinks you should write down what you want to say to the Lord. Use what you write over and over again as you pray. And begin praying for your family and community today.
10:12–13 Inny read that the Lord wanted to bless the Israelites. Why couldn’t he bless them? What were their hearts like?
What would happen if they returned to the Lord? What would he do?
When a person believes, their heart is changed. They will be ready to follow God’s commands. They will work to treat other people fairly and do what is right. And that is the blessing the Lord gives to every believer. Does knowing that the Lord will help you do what is right encourage you? Do you need to make changes in your life?
12:6 Crafty doesn’t think it’s very difficult to understand what the Lord is asking people to do. On a card write down the three things the Lord asks his people to do.
Which one of the three things would be the most difficult for you to do?
Put a check mark next to it.
Now take time to pray. In your prayer, tell the Lord that you love him. Ask him to help you do the things listed on your card. Then continue to use your card as a reminder of how you should live.
14:2–5 When our friends or parents are angry, we have to fix our relationship with them. We must make things right again. We usually need to say that we are sorry.
Inny knows that saying sorry isn’t always an easy thing to do. But if we have done something wrong, it’s the only way to make the relationship right.
The same thing is true in your relationship with the Lord. When you pray to the Lord every day, begin by saying you are sorry. Confess to the Lord the wrong things you have done. You can be sure he will forgive you.
