Hosea 9: Group Study Handout

How to use: read Hosea 9 aloud together, then take the questions in order. One page is enough for an evening.

Overview

Israel is warned not to rejoice like the nations because of their unfaithfulness to God. They love the profits from their sin, yet these will not sustain them (vv. 1-2).

Key verse

“The days of visitation have come. The days of reckoning have come. Israel will consider the prophet to be a fool, and the man who is inspired to be insane, because of the abundance of your sins, and because your hostility is great.”
Hosea 9:7 (WEB)

Outline

Hosea 9:1–2 Warning Against Rejoicing
Hosea 9:3–5 Judgment and Exile
Hosea 9:6–7 Days of Reckoning
Hosea 9:8–10 Corruption and Consequences
Hosea 9:11–14 Loss of Prosperity
Hosea 9:15–16 Rejection of Israel
Hosea 9:17 Final Judgment Announced

Discussion questions

In v2, what is said about the threshing floor and the wine press?
What does v10 compare Israel to in the wilderness?
In v8, why is the prophet considered a fool and the inspired man seen as insane?
The phrase 'the beloved ones of their womb' in v16: what does it suggest about God's judgment?
When have you felt spiritually barren like the people in v14 with 'dry breasts'?

Go deeper

Passages that echo Hosea 9: Hosea 7, Hosea 10, Hosea 5.

Before next time: read Hosea 10.