Feeling distant from God? Please take a look with me at what we're told in the book of Hosea about this very concept.
Hosea was a prophet in Israel who served in his role for roughly 60 years. His book was written sometime between 755 B.C. and 725 B.C. during a very spiritually dark season in Israel's history.
During that era, Israel was consumed with idolatry, and the nature of their idolatry was both vulgar and blasphemous. Like many people in our own generation, the people of Israel were highly consumed with the desire to gain the best of what this world can offer. It was a common belief in the paganism of the day that material prosperity and fruitful crops could be obtained by worshipping the false god Baal and participating in vulgar activities with temple prostitutes.
I can only imagine how it must have felt for God to witness this spiritual unfaithfulness among the very people He had rescued, redeemed, and called unto Himself. Sometimes, people picture God as unfeeling and distant, but that's not the image of Him that's painted for us in Scripture. We're told that He rejoices over His people. We're also told that His children can grieve His heart. The book of Hosea reveals the depth of God's emotions toward those He loves.
Throughout Hosea's writings, we're shown that God remains faithful, even when His people are unfaithful. He keeps His covenants, remains patient, and demonstrates His love even to those who seem to be making themselves unlovable. I find this highly comforting, particularly as I contemplate the various ups and downs of my own spiritual development.
The first three chapters of Hosea's book give us an overview of his unique family life and the ways in which the Lord ordained that his family would serve as a visible demonstration of the nature of the relationship of God with His people.
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It Is Never a Wise Choice to Forsake the Lord.
When the Lord first spoke through Hosea, the Lord said to Hosea, “Go, take to yourself a wife of whoredom and have children of whoredom, for the land commits great whoredom by forsaking the Lord.” So he went and took Gomer, the daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son.
And the Lord said to him, “Call his name Jezreel, for in just a little while I will punish the house of Jehu for the blood of Jezreel, and I will put an end to the kingdom of the house of Israel. And on that day I will break the bow of Israel in the Valley of Jezreel.” - Hosea 1:2-5
There seems to be a mistaken notion prevalent among some Christians that following the Lord will result in an automatically easy and comfortable life. While that will certainly be part of the ultimate outcome that believers will eventually enjoy, the Lord has also promised us that during the course of our earthly lives, we will begin seeing things like He sees things and experiencing treatment at the hands of others that resembles the ways in which Jesus was treated during His earthly ministry.
When the Lord called Hosea to serve as a prophet to the people of Israel, He didn't call him to an easy life. On the contrary, God called Hosea to live a life that bore a close resemblance to many of the things God Himself was experiencing.
For instance, the Lord told Hosea to get married. Hosea married a woman named Gomer, and he did so knowing that she was eventually going to be unfaithful to him. I can't imagine the pain that must have caused him. There are few things in life that can illicit that level of sorrow, but there was a point to the grief Hosea was about to experience.
Hosea's grief over Gomer's unfaithfulness was meant to illustrate the pain God experienced over the unfaithfulness of Israel. Even the name of their first-born son, Jezreel, had symbolic significance. It is believed that it was a name that was intended to hearken back to the sins of King Ahab who encouraged the people of Israel to worship Baal instead of worshipping the Lord.
In 1 Kings 21, Ahab took the vineyard of a godly man named Naboth. This vineyard was in Jezreel, and with the help of Ahab's wife, Jezebel, false accusations of blasphemy were brought against Naboth, resulting in him being stoned and his property being taken. Naming Hosea's son Jezreel served as a reminder of this terrible act.
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Where Would We Be without the Lord's Mercy?
She conceived again and bore a daughter. And the Lord said to him, “Call her name No Mercy, for I will no more have mercy on the house of Israel, to forgive them at all. But I will have mercy on the house of Judah, and I will save them by the Lord their God. I will not save them by bow or by sword or by war or by horses or by horsemen.” - Hosea 1:6-7
At the time when these events took place, the nation of Israel was divided into two parts. The ten tribes of the northern kingdom were typically just referred to as Israel or Ephraim. The two tribes of the southern kingdom were typically referred to as Judah. It's worth noting that when God the Son, Jesus Christ, came to this earth and took on flesh, He was born as a descendant of the tribe of Judah.
Gomer gave birth to a second child, a daughter who was given the name No Mercy. Based on the wording of this passage, it's highly likely that this daughter was not conceived by Hosea. Her name, No Mercy, was meant to illustrate the ways in which the northern kingdom of Israel were going to be treated by the Lord because of their lack of faith and continual, willful rebellion against Him. The Lord made it clear to Hosea that He would not show the people of Israel mercy as they may have expected Him to. The time of His patience was coming to an end, and their sin would be dealt with severely.
At the same time, mercy would continue to be shown to the southern kingdom of Judah. They would experience salvation and rescue, but not by military might. Their rescue would be deeply spiritual in nature. I cannot help but see foreshadowing of Christ's eventual rescue of His people when I read these verses.
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How Can We become Children of the Living God?
When she had weaned No Mercy, she conceived and bore a son. And the Lord said, “Call his name Not My People, for you are not my people, and I am not your God.”
Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be like the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured or numbered. And in the place where it was said to them, “You are not my people,” it shall be said to them, “Children of the living God.” And the children of Judah and the children of Israel shall be gathered together, and they shall appoint for themselves one head. And they shall go up from the land, for great shall be the day of Jezreel. - Hosea 1:8-11
As she had done before, Gomer conceived another child with someone other than Hosea and he was symbolically and prophetically named Not My People. Just as this child was not genetically a descendent of Hosea, so too were the people of Israel currently living as if they weren't the people of God.
Now if the story ended there, that would be painfully tragic, but I'm grateful for the ways in which the Lord reveals His goodness toward humanity and His future plans for those He has created in His image, even though we make a habit of dishonoring Him.
Remembering the promise He made to Abraham roughly 1300 years earlier, God reiterated the fact that the number of the children of Israel would one day be so numerous that it would resemble the grains of sand in the sea. Those who were presently living as if they weren't His people would one day be called the "Children of the living God." Likewise, the northern and southern kingdoms which had been divided would one day be united together under the headship of a singular individual.
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5 Beautiful Promises to Remember When God Feels Distant
These are beautiful promises to read, and they find their ultimate fulfillment in Jesus. Jesus is the long-promised King and Messiah who will accomplish all of this relationally, physically, and spiritually.
1. Through Jesus, those who were objects of wrath are shown mercy.
"But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ ." - Ephesians 2:4-5a
2. Through Jesus, those who were not a people are made part of His body, the church.
"But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ." - Ephesians 2:13
3. Through Jesus, those who were divided are united.
"For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility." - Ephesians 2:14
4. Through Jesus, those who lived as God's enemies become His children.
"So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God." - Ephesians 2:19
5. Through Jesus, we find the kind of leadership our hearts need and are longing for.
"Built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord." - Ephesians 2:20-21
Looking at the opening chapter of Hosea, we see the power of sin and how it so often prevails in the hearts of men, but we are also shown the goodness of God who deals with sin justly and offers humanity an undeserved opportunity to experience life, hope, rescue, and redemption through His Son, Jesus Christ.
© John Stange, 2025 Originally published on Bible Study Headquarters. Used with permission.
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John Stange is the Lead Pastor at Core Creek Community Church and a professor at Cairn University where he leads the Digital Media and Communication program. He also leads an online community called Platform Launchers where he helps people build message-based online platforms.
John has authored over 30 books and presently hosts several podcasts on the LifeAudio podcast network. His shows have been downloaded millions of times by listeners throughout the world.
You can learn more about John’s ministry, books, and podcasts at BibleStudyHeadquarters.com.
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Originally published Wednesday, 05 March 2025.