Hosea 3: Group Study Handout

How to use: read Hosea 3 aloud together, then take the questions in order. One page is enough for an evening.

Overview

Yahweh commands Hosea to love a woman who is loved by another and an adulteress (v. 1). Hosea buys her for fifteen pieces of silver and a homer and a half of barley (v. 2). He instructs her to stay with him without engaging in prostitution or being with another man (v. 3). The children of Israel will live without king, prince, sacrifice, sacred stone, ephod, or idols for many days (v. 4). Following this period, they will return and seek Yahweh and David their king (v. 5).

Key verse

“Yahweh said to me, “Go again, love a woman loved by another, and an adulteress, even as Yahweh loves the children of Israel, though they turn to other gods, and love cakes of raisins.”
Hosea 3:1 (WEB)

Outline

Hosea 3:1 God Commands Hosea to Love Gomer
Hosea 3:2 Hosea Redeems Gomer
Hosea 3:3 The Call to Faithfulness
Hosea 3:4 Israel's Future Exile
Hosea 3:5 Promise of Restoration

Discussion questions

In v1, who is instructed to love 'a woman loved by another'?
What does Hosea buy Gomer for in v2?
In v3, what does the phrase 'you shall not play the prostitute' convey about Gomer's expected behavior?
In v4, why does Yahweh mention the lack of 'king', 'prince', and 'sacrifice' for Israel?
When has an act of love challenged you to face unfaithfulness like Hosea did in v1?

Go deeper

Passages that echo Hosea 3: Jeremiah 29, Jeremiah 30, Jeremiah 3.

Before next time: read Hosea 4.