Bible study course
An advanced, collegiate, seven-lesson academic study of the Book of Hosea, exploring the prophet scandalous marriage to Gomer as an embodied sign of covenant adultery, the transformation of the Valley of Achor into a door of hope, the redemption from the slave market and days of waiting, the forensic covenant lawsuit over the absence of truth and knowledge of God, the indictment of fleeting morning dew devotion and the unturned cake, the parental pathos of God calling His son out of Egypt, and the climactic healing of apostasy through the silent dew of sovereign grace.
An academic study of Hosea 1:1 to 2:1, examining the prophet eighth-century historical horizon, the divine command to marry a wife of whoredom (eshet zenunim), the symbolic names of the three children (Jezreel, Lo-Ruhamah, Lo-Ammi), and the shocking reversal of grace in the place of rejection.
An advanced examination of Hosea 2:2 to 23, exploring the formal divorce proceedings against unfaithful mother Israel, the pursuit of false lovers, the hedge of thorns, the transformation of the barren wilderness into a bridal retreat, the Valley of Achor becoming a door of hope, and the magnificent fivefold betrothal in righteousness and steadfast love.
A collegiate analysis of Hosea 3:1 to 5, examining the divine command to buy back Gomer from degradation, the payment of fifteen shekels of silver and barley, the mutual covenant period of sexual restraint, and the prophetic typology of Israel long exilic waiting before returning to seek Yahweh and David their king in the latter days.
An advanced examination of Hosea 4:1 to 6:3, analyzing the formal covenant lawsuit (rib) leveled against the land, the devastating triad of moral failure, the rejection of corrupt priests who feed on the sin of the people, the spirit of whoredom, and the authentic liturgy of return in Hosea 6:1 to 3.
An academic analysis of Hosea 6:4 to 8:14, exploring the fleeting shallowness of Israel repentance, the divine desire for steadfast covenant love (chesed) rather than ritual sacrifice, the moral collapse of the monarchy depicted as a smoldering baker oven, the tragic syncretism of the unturned pancake, and the inevitable judgment of sowing the wind and reaping the whirlwind.
A collegiate theological study of Hosea 9:1 to 11:11, examining the national memory of historical apostasy at Gibeah and Baal-peor, the shattered altars of Bethel, the call to break up the fallow ground, and the climactic revelation of Yahweh maternal and paternal pathos in Hosea 11, where divine love triumphs over legal retribution.
A collegiate capstone exegesis of Hosea 11:12 to 14:9, tracing the patriarchal typology of Jacob at Peniel and Bethel, the ultimate question of ransom from Death and Sheol (quoted in 1 Corinthians 15:55), the penitential liturgy of return with words, the divine promise to heal apostasy freely, the arboreal metaphors of restoration, and the closing wisdom epilogue.