Hosea 3:1

Hosea 3:1 Then said the LORD unto me, Go yet, love a woman beloved of her friend, yet an adulteress, according to the love of the LORD toward the children of Israel, who look to other gods, and love flagons of wine. So I bought her to me for fifteen pieces of silver, and for an homer of barley, and an half homer of barley: And I said unto her, Thou shalt abide for me many days,… and thou shalt not be for another man: so will I also be for thee. The book of Hosea is a strange book. God asked Hosea to marry a woman that he knew was an unfaithful wife. But God used Hosea and his unfaithful wife, Gomer, as an illustration of how Israel was unfaithful to God. But God still loved Israel. Just like Hosea still loved Gomer. Hosea’s wife left him and went back to her evil lovers and became a penniless street woman. But Hosea still loved her. Just like God still loves us as we rebel against Him and sin against Him, our loving Lord.  So God told Hosea to go out into the streets and find Gomer. But Gomer was now a slave living in the worst area of town. But Hosea still loved her! So he bought her as a slave and then set her free to be his loving wife once again. And that is a picture of how Jesus Christ redeemed us from Satan’s clutches. We were in sin and hopelessly lost, but Jesus found us. He paid for our salvation with His own blood and loves us with an everlasting love! And what a wonderful story if is of Hosea and Gomer. And what a wonderful story it is of us and Jesus Christ or wonderful Savior!