I will betroth you to me forever; yes, I will betroth you to Me in righteousness and justice, in lovingkindness and mercy. Hosea 2:19
God asked the prophet Hosea to take a prostitute as his bride, and Hosea obeyed. God’s purpose was to use his marriage to show the people of Israel that even though they’d been repeatedly unfaithful to Him and they were utterly unworthy of His love, He would continue to be faithful to them. He said, “I will betroth you to Me forever.” Did you notice that He said that twice in this verse? He was saying, “I will tell you again: I am going to make a covenant with you forever.”
Through the picture of Hosea marrying a prostitute, God shows us that He has done the same thing with us. Romans 3:23 says, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” We’ve all messed up. We’ve all been unfaithful to Him. None of us are worthy. But in spite of our sin, our shortcomings, He takes us as His very own anyway. In both the case of Hosea and Gomer and of God and Israel, the relationship was initiated by the one who would be true.
Interestingly, it’s our mess that brings out who He really is. His actions show us what kind of God we’re dealing with. When someone does wrong toward you or me, we want to tell the world and see that they’re punished. That’s human nature. But God doesn’t do that. He handles it differently. Aren’t we grateful that He does? Experiencing this kind of grace, love, and forgiveness brings us to a deeper knowledge of our great God, stirring our hearts to worship and adore Him more and more.
God, I am overwhelmed by Your grace, Your lovingkindness, and Your mercy. I admit that I am unworthy, but You love me anyway. Thank You that You reveal Yourself to us in this way and that we can truly know You, not because we deserve it, but because You allow us to. Thank You, God. Amen.