Week 36, August 30–September 5: 1 Thessalonians 4–5; 2 Thessalonians 1–3; Hosea 1–14

• Sun      Aug 30 1 Thess. 4–5
• Mon     Aug 31 2 Thess. 1–3
• Tue      Sep 1   Hos. 1–3
• Wed     Sep 2   Hos. 4–5
• Thu      Sep 3   Hos. 6–8
• Fri        Sep 4   Hos. 9–11
• Sat       Sep 5   Hos. 12–14     

Paul’s second letter to the Thessalonian church continues the same tone and themes from 1 Thessalonians. Readers are encouraged to set our minds and hope on heavenly realities and future promises. There will be judgement at the time of Christ’s return, but that judgement will be for the vindication of those who are in Christ. In the day of Jesus’s coming, he will be glorified in those who are his, and they will marvel at him.

In light of this, Paul prays that God would make them (us) worthy of their (our) calling. As we await our Savior’s promised return, let us also pray that the Lord would “fulfill every resolve for good and every work of faith by his power, so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in us, and us in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.” (2 Thess. 1:5–12).

After 2 Thessalonians, we move back to the OT prophetic books. Hosea is the first in the group of books referred to as the Minor Prophets. You will notice we skipped over Daniel, which follows Ezekiel in our English Bibles. In the Hebrew Bible, Daniel is grouped with the last of the three sections, the Writings (Ketubim). Remember, the Hebrew Bible is sometimes called the TaNaK, which is a made-up word based on the first letter of its three major sections: The Law, or teaching/instruction (Torah), the Prophets (Nebi’im), and Writings (Ketubim). We discussed this a bit in the write up for week 25. So we will come back to Daniel and read it a little later in the year.

The Minor Prophets is a group of twelve relatively short biblical books (Hosea–Malachi). This grouping was considered a single book in the most ancient collections of writings of the Hebrew Bible, at it is referred to as the Book of the Twelve. Historical evidence points to the intentional composition of these writings into one unified collection. And in addition to this historical evidence for the unity of the group, there are several features within the text that seem to indicate they were deliberately tied together. Here are several examples of these kinds of strategic links (sometimes referred to as “intertextuality”) between the Minor Prophets:

• “Restore their captivity” (Hos. 6:11; Joel 3:1; Amos 9:14; Zeph. 2:7; 3:20
• “I will send fire on their cities and consume their fortresses” (Hos. 8:14; Amos 1:5ff)
• “Day of Yahweh is near” (Joel 1:15; 2:1, 11; 3:14; Amos 5:18–20; Obad. 15; Zeph. 1:14–15
• “Day of gloom and darkness” (Joel 2:2; Amos 5:18; Zeph. 1:15)
• Quote of (or allusion to) Exod. 34:6 (Joel 2:13; Jon. 4:2; Mic. 7:18–20; Nah. 1:3 [Also maybe Hos. 4:1-8; 8:13; 9:9; Amos 3:2,14])
• “Who knows whether he may turn and have compassion” (Joel 2:14; Jon. 3:9)
• “Everyone who calls on the name of Yahweh will be saved” (Joel 2:32; cf. Amos 9:12; Jon. 1:8; 3:8; Zeph. 3:9)
• “There will be deliverance on Mt. Zion” (Joel 2:32; Obad. 17)
• “I will gather all nations and enter into judgment with them” (Joel 3:2; cf. Zeph. 3:8)
• “Beat your plowshares into swords and your pruning hooks into spears” (Joel 3:10; cf. Mic. 4:3)
• “Yahweh will roar from Jerusalem” (Joel 3:16; Amos 1:2)
• “Jerusalem/Zion will be holy” (Joel 3:17; Obad. 17)
• “Strangers/wicked will no longer pass through you (Joel 4:17; Nah. 1:15)
• “Mountains drip with wine and hills with milk (Joel 3:18; Amos 9:13)
• “What I have not punished I will punish” (Joel 3:21; cf. Nah. 1:3)
• “Yahweh will dwell in Mt. Zion” (Joel 3:17, 21; cf. Obad. 17; Mic. 4:7)
• “Every face grows pale” (Joel 2:6; Nah. 2:10)
• “That they may possess a remnant of Edom” (Amos 9:12; cf. Obad. 17, 19–21)
• “In that day I will assemble the lame and gather the scattered (Mic. 4:6; Zeph. 3:19)
• “Day of trouble” (Nah. 1:7; Hab. 3:16; Zeph. 1:15)
• “Be silent before Yahweh” (Hab. 2:20; Zeph. 3:19)

Other similar threads like this could be added, demonstrating a deliberate interconnectedness between the twelve Minor Prophets. So when we read the Book of the Twelve as one book, we follow the design of Scripture and can see unifying themes. We can read Hosea and track its message on its own, but we should also follow along with the message of the whole collection to hear and respond to that overall message too.

With that being said, here we will include just a brief introductory overview of the individual contributions of each of the twelve prophets in this collection.

Hosea serves as sort of a thematic introduction to the Book of the Twelve. His name, Hosea, means “He saves” or simply “salvation” and it is the same as Joshua’s original name (Num. 13:16). It is also related to the Hebrew name behind Jesus’s name. The time of Hosea’s prophetic ministry spanned the reigns of Uzziah (aka Azariah, 2 Kgs. 15:1; 2 Chr. 26:1), Jotham (2 Kgs. 15:32-38), Ahaz (2 Kings 16), and Hezekiah (2 Kings 18–20) in the southern kingdom of Judah, and Jeroboam son of Joash (2 Kgs. 14:23; 15:1) in the northern kingdom of Israel. Hosea’s prophetic message is mostly directed towards Israel just prior to their fall and exile to Assyria.

Hosea’s own life story contributes significantly to the message of Hosea and to the message of the Book of the Twelve as a whole. It provides a sort of parable for the Lord’s critique of his people. The prophet’s relationship with his unfaithful wife represents God’s relationship with unfaithful Israel. The theme of Israel’s unfaithfulness runs through all the OT prophets, both the so-called Major Prophets of Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel, and the Minor Prophets as well.

The prophets’ words to the people, and their written words we read now, declare God’s righteous judgement on his wayward, sinful people. These books call God’s people to turn from their sinful ways and return to the Lord (Hos. 6:1a). Punishment and consequences dominate the prophetic books, but a persistent message of hope is included throughout all these books as well.

Hosea cries out for the people to return to the Lord. “For he has torn us,” Hosea announces, “that he may heal us; he has struck us down, and he will bind us up. After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will raise us up, that we may live before him.” (Hos. 6:1b–2)

Earlier in Hosea we also read that God’s people will return to him at a later time, and the will “seek the Lord their God, and David their king, and they shall come in fear to the Lord and to his goodness in the latter days” (Hos. 3:5). This verse, which could be seen as the theme verse for the whole Book of the Twelve, speaks of a time to come, from the prophets’ perspective, when a new David would come and reign over God’s kingdom. He would restore his people to the Lord and to resurrection life.