We Will Reap What We Sow

                    Trouble in David's Family

Book of 2 Samuel Chapters 13 and 14

Trouble, what does it mean? The Webster dictionary says: To afflict; to grieve; to distress. Disturbance of mind; agitation; commotion of spirits; perplexity; That which gives disturbance, annoyance, or vexation; that which afflicts.

What we will see is that King David had his share of trouble all his remaining days.

David suffered at the hand of God but this did not cause him to be a bad parent. He did that by himself!

In fact, God will never cause us to do terrible things, it is the yielding to our sin nature that is the cause these things.

Did this trouble affect the promise God had made to David? What was that promise?

2Sa 7:16  And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever. 

What was David to learn and the reason God included all these things in the Bible? We will reap what we sow!

Job_4:8  Even as I have seen, they that plow iniquity, and sow wickedness, reap the same.

Gal 6:7  Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. 

Gal 6:8  For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. 

In these two Chapters we will see the beginning of David's troubles and we will also see him fail as a parent.

*****2Sa 13:1  And it came to pass after this, that Absalom the son of David had a fair sister, whose name was Tamar; and Amnon the son of David loved her. 

2Sa 13:2  And Amnon was so vexed, that he fell sick for his sister Tamar; for she was a virgin; and Amnon thought it hard for him to do any thing to her. 

We can believe that only the Bible would insert such a record of the life of King David and still have believers who have confidence in the truth of the Scriptures.

I believe it is because the Lord does not hide the sin of these historical characters in the Scriptures, that we can have confidence in the truth of the Scriptures.

God does not condone sin, but the Lord Jesus died for all the sin of this world and the fact that we can believe these things happened, proves to us the actions of our own sin nature.

We must be on the alert for the actions of the Devil all the days of our lives!

When the world allows sin to go unpunished, we will see that God will not allow this to happen.

God chastises us because of sin and God's chastisement can be very harsh.

In our world today, King David would only be guilty of attempted murder if it could be proven and it could not be proven in the days of King David because only Joab and the king knew the truth, which is except for God Himself.

It is because of David's sin that sin entered his family.

Remember King David also had many wives and this sin will also show up as his children grew into young adults.

What had the Lord said of David's chastisement?

2Sa 12:10  Now therefore the sword shall never depart from thine house; because thou hast despised me, and hast taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be thy wife. 

2Sa 12:11  Thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will raise up evil against thee out of thine own house, and I will take thy wives before thine eyes, and give them unto thy neighbour, and he shall lie with thy wives in the sight of this sun. 

2Sa 12:12  For thou didst it secretly: but I will do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun. 

Some of the things we will see from King David's own family were rape, incest, revenge, deceit and murder, and there are always innocent victims.

Another thing we will see as the life of King David is opened before us is the fact that many things happen in the homes of the rich when the children are not properly taught the truth of the Scriptures and the sins of this world.

A good steward can come from rich families as well as from a poor family.

Wickedness is a terrible thing and we must defend against it in this world that is so full of it.

The recent slaughter of babies by the Palestinians called Hamas just show us how wickedness has no moral ground and nor does rape and the other atrocities that were committed upon the Jews, just because they were Jews.

This type of terrorism must be abolished along with all other forms of terrorism!

Amnon did not represent human nature that we do not see today. In fact there is so much rape done today that many do not consider it to be such an atrocity to society, but it still is.

Just like the things done by Judas Iscariot, Amnon, and later Absalom, are things we see almost daily throughout this world.

The difference between a sweet child and such corrupt men as Amnon, depends upon the views of society and our society is failing today and leaning toward the dark side of the devil.

We need a society who will express anger and indignation that cannot be mitigated or turned aside and it appears that only true Christians express these things and society does not see much danger from these things.

Certainly, the family of that person such as Amnon have the riches to try to make him completely innocent and lay the blame upon the young lady.

Why is our world so dark today? The innocent are seen as the guilty and the guilty are seen as not at fault.

It was the burning lust of Amnon for Tamar, who was also a child of his father David, which set Amnon on the path to his destruction and his death.

Amnon was at least twenty to have his own house but Tamar was probably still a teenager.

Amnon was a despicable person in his heart!

He craved and lusted so much for Tamar he became ill.

Tamar lived a pure, righteous life and Amnon could not figure out a way to get her into his possession so, a devilish schemer enters into this picture.

Tamar was the full sister of Absalom.

Sometimes our best friends are our own worst enemies!

2Sa 13:3  But Amnon had a friend, whose name was Jonadab, the son of Shimeah David's brother: and Jonadab was a very subtil man.

Subtle in this case means; sly, cunning, crafty, deceitful, treacherous.

Jonadab was such a man.

Jonadab creates a scheme so that King David would allow his daughter Tamar to come into the possession of Tamar and he would cause her much harm all her days.

In fact we could say that Tamar never recovered from this terrible thing that happened to her!

The Bible says: Mal_1:14  But cursed be the deceiver,

Sadly, our own Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ was called a deceiver then and now, because He spoke the truth in a world that has gotten even further from the truth.

Mat_27:63  Saying, Sir, we remember that that deceiver said, while he was yet alive, After three days I will rise again.

Again this is the greatest problem in our societies today!

2Jn_1:7  For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.

Jonadab was a child of the Devil!

*****2Sa 13:6  So Amnon lay down, and made himself sick: and when the king was come to see him, Amnon said unto the king, I pray thee, let Tamar my sister come, and make me a couple of cakes in my sight, that I may eat at her hand. 

Amnon pretended to be sick enough that his father King David came to check on him and the evil, wicked, scheme of Jonadab was put in place.

Now you tell me, is this not a strange request to make?

King David should have known something was happening that was just not right, but he trusted all his children to do what was right.

We cannot trust our children to always do right when they are spending time together with the wrong crowd!

No doubt David's children, at least the boys, were hanging out with the well to do crowd of that day.

Jonadab was a cousin to Amnon.

In other words, they were a bunch of spoiled rich brats.

We must also recognize the peer pressure our children are facing today.

We must also recognize that school higher ups intentionally do things that we would object to if we knew about those things.

Sometimes I believe we have forgotten how to be parents just as King David did.

Some were taught the Word of God and some were taught that there were other gods or many gods.

This was a failure of King David as a parent.

Even this would be looked upon in reverse today, as we live in a world that rejects the truth of the Messiah and the truth of the Cross.

When we teach these things, the world will say that we are wronging our children because we live in a sinful and dark world.

Tamar would never have been alone with Amnon had it not been that she was ordered to do so by her father, King David.

In that day girls of her age were not allowed to be alone with boys of her age and older.

No doubt that all the Jewish girls were taught home economics as we would say.

I can remember when these things were taught in High School.

Cooking, sewing and many other things.

Tamar obeyed because Amnon was her brother, not her blood brother, but they both had the same father.

No doubt they had played together as small children.

She had a brother and he was Absalom.

Later when Absalom had a wife, he named his daughter Tamar after his sister who moved into his home it seems after this incident and remained there all her days in shame.

Amnon requested that everyone leave but Tamar, and he did the unthinkable to his own sister.

*****2Sa 13:11  And when she had brought them unto him to eat, he took hold of her, and said unto her, Come lie with me, my sister. 

2Sa 13:12  And she answered him, Nay, my brother, do not force me; for no such thing ought to be done in Israel: do not thou this folly. 

Keep in mind that Amnon was heir to the throne of David at this time and it may be this one thing the reason King David did not punish Amnon.

Amnon was the prince of Israel.

The only thing we really know about Amnon is this thing he did to his sister.

Tamar begged Amnon not to do what he did.

Let us look back to the time of Jacob:

Gen 34:7  And the sons of Jacob came out of the field when they heard it: and the men were grieved, and they were very wroth, because he had wrought folly in Israel in lying with Jacob's daughter; which thing ought not to be done. 

Even today many consider Israel to be a holy nation for their relationship with Jehovah.

All acts of rape, lewdness, and indulgence in the sexual appetite, are things that just were not supposed to happen in a holy nation or in any nation.

The truth is, America is not a holy nation anymore because of these same type things and even more such things are happening in our nation because the laws concerning these things are so weak.

We should understand most of those in America do not want a holy nation or they would get off their cans and vote for changes in our government.

The Church is also far too silent because they are afraid, they will be called bigots and many other names but the truth is the truth!

We had better forget what the world calls us and remember that the Lord Jesus died for us!

If Israel and America fall, then the world will be in total chaos!

If Amnon is a type of the world and Tamar part of the holy nation of Israel of which David is king, we will see the beginning of the fall of Israel.

King David did not have it within his power to stop these things because he had been the cause of them, though this was no excuse.

Even when we are chastised of God we are still to act according to the Word of God!

It is the same for America.

We may never heal from the acts that began with Obama and continue with Biden, and America cannot survive four more years of Biden.

In fact we could say the deadly spiral America is in right now began in earnest with the Clintons.

After David came Solomon, who was wise and rich, but he held Israel together with force and taxes and at his death Israel became a divided nation.

Tamar would have nowhere to hide her shame and neither does America today!

*****2Sa 13:13  And I, whither shall I cause my shame to go? and as for thee, thou shalt be as one of the fools in Israel. Now therefore, I pray thee, speak unto the king; for he will not withhold me from thee. 

2Sa 13:14  Howbeit he would not hearken unto her voice: but, being stronger than she, forced her, and lay with her.

The crown prince of Israel refused to listen to his sister, he allowed his lust for her beauty to overcome his ties to his family.

We could say like father like son!

Amnon raped his half-sister as if she meant nothing to him because she did not!

Tamar told Amnon the truth.

Amnon was just as one of the fools of Israel.

This does not mean he was stupid or ignorant, but he was someone who had abandoned the fear of God!

At the death of Abner, David said these words:

2Sa 3:33  And the king lamented over Abner, and said, Died Abner as a fool dieth?

How did the Lord Jesus see these things?

Luk 12:19  And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. 

Luk 12:20  But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided? 

Luk 12:21  So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God. 

We know that Amnon by the world's view, would have been the next king of Israel by birth rite and he gave that opportunity away for a few moments of self-satisfaction and also destroyed the life of his half-sister and it cost him his own life.

After this thing took place, Amnon now hated his sister because it had never been about love, it was only about lust.

This is the same story behind many short marriages.

This is the same story behind most the abortions.

This is the story behind the queer movement.

This is the story behind the LBGT movement in America and in the world today.

Lust is a mode of destruction just as is all sin!

True love has been forgotten!

Amnon would fall victim to his half-brother who was a true brother to Tamar, Absalom, who was taking his time and made a certain plan to take vengeance upon his half-brother Amnon.

*****2Sa 13:23  And it came to pass after two full years, that Absalom had sheepshearers in Baalhazor, which is beside Ephraim: and Absalom invited all the king's sons. 

King David had become enraged over what Amnon had done, but King David knew he was at fault for all the things he had done with Bathsheba and Uriah and he did nothing when it was still his place to discipline his children.

David piled sin upon sin rather that accepting the consequences of his sin and growing through them.

Had he done so David may have saved his son's life!

There is never an excuse for not disciplining our children!

Pro_22:6  Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.

David should have at least tried to keep his children straight!

The time of sheepshearing was a festive time of parties and the inviting of friends.

Absalom's plan to murder his brother was coming together and he knew his father King David would not come to such an event but he asked just to make everything seem innocent.

We see that Absalom knew about deception and in fact had King David have gone Absalom would have tried to kill him.

Absalom hated his father for not punishing Amnon and this one thing was his guide his remaining days.

All the brothers or half-brothers of Absalom also hated Amnon for what he had done but they did not hater their father as did Absalom.

The things Jehovah had told the prophet Nathan to tell David were all coming true.

*****2Sa 13:28  Now Absalom had commanded his servants, saying, Mark ye now when Amnon's heart is merry with wine, and when I say unto you, Smite Amnon; then kill him, fear not: have not I commanded you? be courageous, and be valiant. 

Absalom felt himself bound in honor to avenge his sisters wrong and welcomed this opportunity to get rid of this blemish on the family of King David.

Keep in mind that with Amnon gone, Absalom was next in line for the throne of King David.

Absalom would become the new crown prince of Israel and Absalom would take advantage of this a little later.

The servants of Absalom would be used to kill Amnon just as the children of Ammon were used to kill Uriah.

God says what He means and God means what He says!

The other brothers of Absalom fled the scene and escaped to tell their father what had happened.

That old troublemaker Jonadab told the king that only Amnon had been killed and Absalom had made this plan from the time of the rape of Tamar.

Jonadab was David's nephew and any good nephew would have informed the king of the plan of Absalom before it had taken place.

Absalom also fled but he fled to his grandfather, the King of Gesher.

This king's daughter was the mother of Absalom and Tamar.

Gesher was located between the Sea of Galilee and Mount Hermon on the Syria side of Jordan.

David had made a covenant with this King and he had given his daughter to David to be his wife to seal that covenant of peace.

*****2Sa 13:37  But Absalom fled, and went to Talmai, the son of Ammihud, king of Geshur. And David mourned for his son every day. 

2Sa 13:38  So Absalom fled, and went to Geshur, and was there three years. 

2Sa 13:39  And the soul of king David longed to go forth unto Absalom: for he was comforted concerning Amnon, seeing he was dead. 

After three years King David longed to see his son and the pain of the death of Amnon had now passed.

Absalom, during this time was making an even greater plan to cause harm to his father.

If we look, we can see all sorts of typology in these passages.

Next, we will see the time that Joab send a woman with an attempt to tell a parable, but all she does make a fool of herself.

Remember a parable was an earthly picture of a Heavenly truth.

King David sends Joab to bring Absalom home and as we would say, the plot thickens.

Chapter 14 verse twenty-one.

*****2Sa 14:21  And the king said unto Joab, Behold now, I have done this thing: go therefore, bring the young man Absalom again.

2Sa 14:24  And the king said, Let him turn to his own house, and let him not see my face. So Absalom returned to his own house, and saw not the king's face. 

King David had not banished Absalom, he had stayed away himself.

But for King David not to pardon Absalom for killing Amnon was a dangerous policy.

In fact, it may be that Absalom had been confined to his house on the order of King David.

During this time, to Absalom were born three sons and one daughter and he named this daughter Tamar after his sister who would live the life of a widow for what Amnon had done to her.

Absalom was showing her that he still had respect for her.

It is these types of things that caused many in Israel to take their affection from King David and show it to Absalom.

David was looked upon as a harsh father and a bad parent but praise was shown to Absalom.

*****2Sa 14:25  But in all Israel there was none to be so much praised as Absalom for his beauty: from the sole of his foot even to the crown of his head there was no blemish in him. 

2Sa 14:26  And when he polled his head, (for it was at every year's end that he polled it: because the hair was heavy on him, therefore he polled it:) he weighed the hair of his head at two hundred shekels after the king's weight. 

2Sa 14:27  And unto Absalom there were born three sons, and one daughter, whose name was Tamar: she was a woman of a fair countenance. 

Absalom began a plan to be reconciled to his father David.

In doing so, Absalom sought the praise of all of Israel.

In reality, Absalom was conceited, arrogant, and full of himself, self-exaltation.

Absalom had more pride in his hair than he did of his nation.

We see many such things as these in our young people today!

Absalom did his best to appear as royalty.

These things were working for Absalom.

Absalom did not cut his hair until it got too heavy for him to deal with day by day.

When he did cut it and weighed it, it weighed about five or six pounds.

The daughter of Absalom was named Tamar after her aunt of the same name and it is her daughter Maachah named after her grandmother who later became a future Queen of Judah, wife to Abijah the grandson of Solomon.

As we go on through our lessons, we will see Absalom go against his father David because he never forgave his father for what happened to his sister Tamar.

Amen

The Chastisement Of The Lord

Chastisement

Book of Hosea Chapters 4-9


Chastisement is more than just punishment, chastisement is feeling the pain that is inflicted by punishment!

We should understand the chastisement for our sin was the "pain" Christ suffered to restore us to the family of God. We are now at peace with God if we accept that Jesus paid the price for our sin!

Isa 53:5  But he was wounded for "our" transgressions, he was bruised for "our" iniquities: the chastisement of "our" peace was upon him; and with his stripes "we are healed".
Isa 53:6  All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; "and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all".

What is the purpose of personal chastisement?

To teach us not to sin.

Job 34:31  Surely it is meet to be said unto God, I have borne chastisement, I will not offend any more:
Job 34:32  That which I see not teach thou me: if I have done iniquity, I will do no more.

It is really in our own hands just how much pain it will take to teach us not to sin anymore!

Hosea knew exactly how God felt toward Israel because Hosea lived it every day through his own personal experiences with his adulterous wife.

Hosea made it through his marriage that lasted many years, until their death, because he knew the love of God and how much God loved His people.

This is the same God we worship here today!

*****Hos 4:1  Hear the word of the LORD, ye children of Israel: for the LORD hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land.

The truth is that any place that has no knowledge of God then their lives are then a lie.

The nation of Israel was dying and dying fast.

Israel was filled with immorality, injustice, oppression, lawlessness, and violence and they could not address any of these problems because they simply did not know the answers and they just guessed at results.

This again sounds just like America today.

These things demanded the judgment of God in that day and they still do today!

The nation of Israel stood before God, the true "Judge" of this world on this day and God made His case.

The absence of the truth is the downfall of every nation!

This has been proven over and over again throughout history!

Have you noticed how the politicians of today stand by their lies even if they have been proven wrong. They simply will not concede to the truth.

They refuse to have mercy on those who speak the truth and they use every force available to them to keep the knowledge of God away from the people.

This has happened since the days of the early Church and will continue until the end of the Church Age.

God says these things about Israel:

*****Hos 4:2  By swearing, and lying, and killing, and stealing, and committing adultery, they break out, and blood toucheth blood.

This was God speaking and God was saying there was no "moral goodness" left in that land!

Moral goodness is essentially virtue and virtue is nothing but a voluntary obedience to the truth.

Israel was full of profanity, full of falsehood, full of killing, full of dishonesty, full of uncontrolled passions, full of rioting, full of corruption, and full of murder in every way.

Notice Hosea was not addressing the government at this time. He was addressing the people and the priests.

After all the people can eventually change the government if they so choose to do it.

But this people deserved the government they had.

Sounds a whole lot like the America we live in today!

We deserve the government we have because we put them in that position!

Remember God certainly had a controversy with Israel but He has that same controversy with every nation.

Jer 25:31  A noise shall come even to the ends of the earth; for the LORD hath a controversy with the nations, he will plead with all flesh; he will give them that are wicked to the sword, saith the LORD.
Jer 25:32  Thus saith the LORD of hosts, Behold, evil shall go forth from nation to nation, and a great whirlwind shall be raised up from the coasts of the earth.

We would be foolish if we did not see this prophesy of Jeremiah being fulfilled today as the evil of terrorism is moving from nation to nation and a whirlwind of evil is spreading throughout this world!

What did God say the main problem was?

*****Hos 4:6  My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: "seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God", I will also forget thy children.

What is the truth of all false gods and all false religions? They simply do not possess the knowledge to address these problems as described by the Lord.

Study the false gods and the false religions and you will see that they simply have no answers to life's problems!

They give rhymes and poems with no real answers!

Most of this world we live in depends on Science which by definition is supposed to be based on facts but has been twisted to mean theory and theory is exactly what it means. Theory is speculation!

We live in a world where evil men convince people "with speculations" that are twisted for "specific political purposes" in an evil agenda of power and riches.

Philosophy is the love of wisdom but today philosophy only means some man trying to explain things while withholding the truth!

This is the thing that has infiltrated our schools and education has been tossed out in the streets to be trampled on like the other more needed things in this world.

God says to Israel, "you need to listen to what I am saying"!

God says when we forget the Law of God, He have forgotten our children.

It is our children who will one day rule this world and they will rule without God and this thing we also are witnessing today!

The only principles that can secure the stability of all people is the fear and knowledge of the Almighty God!

God will one day say, "did I not tell you these things"!

And what does God say?

*****Hos 4:7  As they were increased, so they sinned against me: therefore will I change their glory into shame.

"As they increased" could mean population or even riches but God is addressing "wickedness" so we need to stick to this thought. (As they increased in wickedness)

It is true that most of the truly wicked do increase in riches but they also have no sense of honor.

They do not observe to rules of "right" but prefer "wrong".

They have no sense of "Good" but only of "Evil".

These Scriptures are addressing the priests so we see then that false priests prefer a world that they can easily adapt too and control for their own pocketbooks and power! (It's truly easy to adapt to a sinful world)

This is another thing we see in America today. The hypocritical priest, preachers, pastors, of the Church gain popularity by allowing the world to come into the Church. It's called "compromising the Word of God"!

When we can glory in our selves or glory in some false god or glory in some false government, then certainly God will change that glory into shame.

When we are ashamed of the Word of God we need to just stay home and bolt the doors and keep our mouths shut!

Any glory we offer to anything that is just the imaginations of man, will certainly end in public shame.

When our church leaders glory in the worldly state of the modern church they are bringing shame to themselves but also to the Lord And Master of our universe who dwells not only in perfect holiness, but also in perfect righteousness, perfect justice, and will certainly bring a perfect "judgment"!

We must be aware of these things in our day because many in the church, if not most, are being deceived.

Deu 11:16  Take heed to yourselves, that your heart be not deceived, and ye turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them;
Deu 11:17  And then the LORD'S wrath be kindled against you, and he shut up the heaven, that there be no rain, and that the land yield not her fruit; and lest ye perish quickly from off the good land which the LORD giveth you.

Why are there so many things happening in nature today?

Maybe it's because we are falling into that trap of deception not only by our church leaders but also by our own government.

What is happening in our world today, in our nation and in our Churches?

*****Hos 4:8  They eat up the sin of my people, and they set their heart on their iniquity.
Hos 4:9  And there shall be, like people, like priest: and I will punish them for their ways, and reward them their doings.

When the men behind the pulpits of the Church and the leaders of our government actually encourage sin in their own wickedness, "they are treading on very dangerous ground".

In Israel the greater the sin, then the greater the sin offerings, and it was the false priests who prospered!

Greater offerings mean more and larger worship centers and shrines!

So the truth is, then and today that these wicked priests will always speak encouraging words to property owners and community leaders no matter how wickedly they are living!

When those who own the liquor stores and the beer depots give willingly to the church that is suppose to be trying to put them out of business, something may be wrong in the church.

When the makers of war machines are giving willingly and excessively to the church that is suppose to be preaching peace in the world and put them out of business, then something may be wrong with that church.

Lawyers would have no work or income without crime, breach of contracts, and social immorality and it is the job of the church to preach against these things!

The newspapers would go out of business if there no scandals to write about and the church is suppose to preach against all these things!

There would be no immorality in advertisements if the church had the right message, because we would also refuse those products!

There would be no sinful love novels without the sin of immorality!

If sin is destroyed, many people simply would not have a job and the church could not pass the plates, so there is a vested interest in being lax on sin in our pulpits and in our government!

When everything is going the wrong way, just check to see which way the money is going!

And today we can add to that power! (See who is gaining the power to increase sin)

God says "I will punish all of them for their evil ways"!

*****Hos 4:10  For they shall eat, and not have enough: they shall commit whoredom, and shall not increase: because they have left off to take heed to the LORD.
Hos 4:11  Whoredom and wine and new wine take away the heart.
Hos 4:12  My people ask counsel at their stocks, and their staff declareth unto them: for the spirit of whoredoms hath caused them to err, and they have gone a whoring from under their God.
Hos 4:13  They sacrifice upon the tops of the mountains, and burn incense upon the hills, under oaks and poplars and elms, because the shadow thereof is good: therefore your daughters shall commit whoredom, and your spouses shall commit adultery.
Hos 4:14  I will not punish your daughters when they commit whoredom, nor your spouses when they commit adultery: for themselves are separated with whores, and they sacrifice with harlots: therefore the people that doth not understand shall fall.

When the Church leaders and the national leaders become a stumbling block to the people they are to serve, then it will not be long until God steps in.

They committed adultery, both physically and spiritually, and sexual immorality had become the national theme.

They had submitted to drunkenness which in actuality means that the Holy Spirit was not enough for them and they were searching for power in worldly things.

They prayed to idols instead of seeking the Lord and they sought what could never come, because imaginary gods simply have no power at all!

Not only did the priests play the harlot but so then did the people enticing the world away from the church.

In this day of Hosea, these people worshiped the so-called fertility gods.

In other words when they prayed for rain, or good harvest, or an increase in livestock, or even an increase in children "they themselves took part in the reproductive process".

There were many priestesses in those Temples for this reason!

This would have been a great attraction at least for the men.

In today's world there are many untold ways that places of worship use to attract newcomers.

For this reason in Israel, a worship center was built in every place possible, to add to the convenience of attending.

These things should sound familiar to us all. Maybe not fornication but the worst fornication of all is to worship a false god in any fashion or be enticed or seduced into worship that does not come from the heart.

These became worship centers and not houses of prayer, and this to is happening today!

Jesus said:

Mar 11:17  And he taught, saying unto them, Is it not written, My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer? but ye have made it a den of thieves.

We can just imagine how these things affected the wives and the daughters of these men who fell into these traps of Satan.

These things would destroy any family and false religion is no excuse, God created the family first!

Notice, God said He would not punish those daughters nor wives who had led astray but God said the entire nation of Israel would fall.

When we fail to understand the truth of God or simply reject the Word of God as being the truth, then those who do this will be destroyed. "the people that do not understand these things shall fall"

God has one job for all His priests and His called men.

Mal 2:7  For the priest's lips should keep knowledge, and they should seek the law at his mouth: for he is the messenger of the LORD of hosts.
Mal 2:8  But ye are departed out of the way; ye have caused many to stumble at the law; ye have corrupted the covenant of Levi, saith the LORD of hosts.

The covenant of Levi was a covenant of righteousness and we must remember, righteousness is just doing things the right way and the right way is by the Word of God!

Rom 9:31  But Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness.
Rom 9:32  Wherefore? Because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law. For they stumbled at that stumblingstone;
Rom 9:33  As it is written, Behold, I lay in Sion a stumblingstone and rock of offence: and whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.

The people of Israel had at one time followed the Laws of Moses.

*****Hos 4:15  Though thou, Israel, play the harlot, yet let not Judah offend; and come not ye unto Gilgal, neither go ye up to Bethaven, nor swear, The LORD liveth.
Hos 4:16  For Israel slideth back as a backsliding heifer: now the LORD will feed them as a lamb in a large place.

Jesus said:

Mat 11:29  Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
Mat 11:30  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

1) The yoke of the Lord is not that hard but when we refuse to draw on God's yoke at all, we have become as a backsliding heifer!

2) When we call on God only in times of distress, we have become as a backsliding heifer.

3) When we grow weary of performing our duties for the Lord, we have become as a backsliding heifer.

4) When we grow weary of battling our lusts and give in to them, we have become as a backsliding heifer.

When we do these things we show contempt to God!
When we do these things we are justifying evil!
When we do this we are ruining our ability to witness probably forever!

These people would swear on the Bible in business deals and the court rooms, but never intended to keep the truth or keep any business deal.

These people would use the name of the Lord in all day by day promises much like we use to could use our hand shake, but they were actually being deceitful.

And no doubt they had become foul mouthed, their tongues were filled with profanity.

Again all these things are familiar to the days we live in now where everyone you meet is saved and go to some imaginary church where they do not even know the pastor's name.

God's says:

Lev 19:12  And ye shall not swear by my name falsely, neither shalt thou profane the name of thy God: I am the LORD.

They were no longer the sheep of the Lord's pasture but only stubborn cows resisting the yoke of freedom and clinging to gods of their own imagination who are powerless to help them.

A Shepherd can only do His work when the sheep know His name!

And a flock of this sort is only fit for the slaughter house!

*****Hos 8:5  Thy calf, O Samaria, hath cast thee off; mine anger is kindled against them: how long will it be ere they attain to innocency?
Hos 8:6  For from Israel was it also: the workman made it; therefore it is not God: but the calf of Samaria shall be broken in pieces.

King Jeroboam had convinced these people that the golden calf-idols had actually saved them from Egypt.

Samaria was the capitol of these Northern Tribes so God was speaking to the entire nation and the government in this Scripture.

Replicas of these idols had been made and every city had become a worship center to them as well as all businesses and all of the government.

In other words they had removed the 10 Commandments from all displays.

They had broken down all the Crosses.

Judah had watched as Samaria had prospered during these times and this would also lead to Judas’s downfall.

The truth is when you worship animals you will begin to act like animals!

This is the process of Evolution in full view and we live in a world and a nation that are calling on animal instincts to survive and prosper in our evil world!

When the animal part of our sin nature over rules the spiritual part of our being, humans can be much worst than the beasts who are the true animals.

Punishment is then the only alternative when it is certain there will be no repentance!

SO, Through the Prophet Hosea, God speaks very bluntly to Israel.

*****Hos 8:7  For they have sown the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind: it hath no stalk: the bud shall yield no meal: if so be it yield, the strangers shall swallow it up.

The truth is that misery is always attached to sin!

**To "sow the wind" is really a farmers expression for laboring in vain.

When people are depending on a harvest but they sow nothing but wind they will starve to death!

God is saying that if you depend upon sin to provide your happiness, you will only bring your own destruction!

Solomon had already tried this method just as so many do today:

Ecc 2:10  And whatsoever mine eyes desired I kept not from them, I withheld not my heart from any joy; for my heart rejoiced in all my labour: and this was my portion of all my labour.
Ecc 2:11  Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought, and on the labour that I had laboured to do: and, behold, all was vanity and vexation of spirit, and there was no profit under the sun.

**To "reap the whirlwind" is a figure that represents extraordinary destruction.

It will be sudden!
It will be inescapable!
It will be tremendous!

Think in terms of that tornado that drops down all of a sudden out of the sky.

The laws of sowing and reaping are some of the most basic principles of life!

We will certainly reap what we sow!

When we sow a life of wickedness we will reap God's judgment!

Wickedness has never been able to produce peace!

Wickedness cannot produce security!

Wickedness cannot produce lasting prosperity!

Gal 6:7  Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
Gal 6:8  For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.
Gal 6:9  And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.

When we refuse to repent, we leave God with only one choice and God does not walk away from it, even with His great love.

God knows when a people will not repent!

*****Hos 9:16  Ephraim is smitten, their root is dried up, they shall bear no fruit: yea, though they bring forth, yet will I slay even the beloved fruit of their womb.
Hos 9:17  My God will cast them away, because they did not hearken unto him: and they shall be wanderers among the nations.

The Northern Tribes of Israel had made friends with the Assyrians, trusting in their help more than they trusted in God's help, so God would use them to punish Israel instead.

Again we see we need to pay attention to the nations we make friends with!

The truth is when we turn away from the Lord, He will turn away from us!

We simply must refuse to listen to the liberal preaching of today and we need to stay away from all those that have yielded to this theology!

The Bible says that God will cast us away!

Sexual immorality has been dominating our culture for a time now and God will execute judgment on all who partake of such things!

The pro-abortionists go against the Word of God and God will execute judgment on all to do such things!

Those who turn away from God will one day realize that they have separated themselves from God for eternity!

Mat 13:24  Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field:
Mat 13:25  But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way.
Mat 13:26  But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also.
Mat 13:27  So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares?
Mat 13:28  He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up?
Mat 13:29  But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them.
Mat 13:30  Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.

REMEMBER, A parable is a Heavenly Truth!

God will separate the wheat from the tares one day soon and the Church will forever be with the Lord.

There is only One who possesses this power!

Luk 12:4  And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do.
Luk 12:5  But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: "Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him".

His name is the LORD!

Questions?

Let's Pray!