God Is like a Bear
The message of Hosea is a hard one for us to wrap our heads around. God is saying that because of their long and stubborn persistence in sin, he is resolved to punish them severely – though not finally. He will undertake a drastic pruning – but not so as to END Israel, but actually, so as to save them. This is like cutting off a leg in order to save the body. This is like putting a patient into a medically induced coma in order to bring a raging fever under control. This is God saying that he will...