Hosea 14
by David Groendyk

This chapter looks an awful lot like part of our normal Sunday liturgy, and it is a fitting way to close this book that’s chalk full of our sinfulness and God’s love. There is a call to confess sin and repent, and it is followed by God’s assurance of mercy and grace, as well as instruction for God’s people. This is actually quite the positive note to end on in contrast to many of the other chapters! But this chapter also shows us the normal pattern for any Christian who is seeking to repent of their sin and return to God. Let’s look at this pattern more closely.

HOPE: This actually comes in the previous chapter—Hosea 13:14. As Pastor Mark pointed out yesterday, despite the many words of judgment in this book, God also offers us words of hope. Our God ransoms us and redeems us and rescues us from death and hell before a single word of repentance can even cross our mind. Outside of God choosing to save us, we would have no hope of ever turning to God. Salvation belongs to the Lord. It is his prerogative to save. Without him, we would never repent and trust in Christ.

CONFESSION: In verses 1–3, God tells us what true repentance looks like, unlike the fake surface-level repentance that Israel had already tried (for example, in 6:4–6 or 8:11–14). To “repent” means “to turn around or to return to God”, which is what we see right at the beginning of verse 1. You must turn away from your sin and start pursuing God. “Take with you words” indicates that we need to plan what we’re going to say to God when we confess our sins. We have to actually think about our sin and why we need to repent. Confessing our sin, whether it’s on Sunday morning or during our daily devotions, is not a mindless, perfunctory formality. Our minds and our hearts need to be in it. Then, Hosea gives us an example of some good words to say to God (vv. 2b–3): “Forgive me for the sin I committed, take the sin out of my life, and I will dedicate my life to you. I will not look for strength or security anywhere else but you, because you are the only God who truly gives mercy.”

ASSURANCE: Verses 4–8 show us God’s response to our confession of sin. If we really have repented, and if we really do trust in Christ alone to save us, God assures us that he listens. He turns away his anger, because Christ himself has already taken God’s anger for us. He forgives our iniquity and heals us from our spiritual sickness. Then he gives us new spiritual life. God is like refreshing dew, and we grow and bear fruit through the life he gives us. God’s shadow offers us protection and care. We no longer have to fear any enemy. What a tremendous promise! Our God is a life-giving God. There is nowhere else you will find this kind of spiritual vitality.

INSTRUCTION: Finally, verse 9 shows us how we are to go on living after we’ve been forgiven and given new spiritual life: keep following the way of the Lord. Lots of people claim to know the “right” way to live or the “smart” way to live; they think they’ve got the world figured out. But always remember this: the only wise way to live is to follow Scripture. To understand and follow God’s commands makes you wise. To go any other route makes you foolish and stupid. Stick close to God and his words in Scripture, and you will never be led astray, no matter how foolish you might look to the world. Part of this instruction includes the command to continue repenting of your sin all throughout your life. Every day we sin new sins. You will never not have sin to confess while you live on this earth. Therefore, keep repenting, keep turning back to God, and keep following this Hosea 14 model of repentance.

Moreover, always remember that it is not in your own power that you obey God. The point of verses 4–8 is to remind you that it is his power and strength coursing through your veins that cause you to obey. Never think you are beyond the need for God’s help. Go to him continually. And may our lives be marked more and more by forsaking our sin and wholly dedicating our lives to God.