In the book of Hosea, Hosea shared how Jehovah God said to the nation of Israel, “Hear the word of the LORD, you children of Israel: for the LORD has a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land. By swearing, and lying, and killing, and stealing, and committing adultery, they break out, and blood touches blood”, and in chapter four and verse three of Hosea, Hosea said, “therefore shall the land mourn” where we read,
Therefore shall the land mourn, and every one that dwells therein shall languish,
with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven;
yes, the fishes of the sea also shall be taken away.
The verse begins, “Therefore shall the land mourn, and every one that dwells therein shall languish, ...” Hosea began with the words, “therefore shall the land mourn” or “then and on this account will the country, territory, region, district and earth lament and be in sorrow”, “and every one” which means “and each, every, the whole and all of the people”“that dwells therein” or “who inhabit, abide, remain and live within the land” “shall languish” which means “will be weakened, exhausted and droop in heart”. Hosea shared that not only would the territory and earth be in sorrow, but also the people who lived within it for the awful sin that was being perpetrated.
The verse continues, “... with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven;” Hosea added the words, “with the beasts” or “alongside the living and active animals” “of the field” which means “belonging to the cultivated land”, “and with the fowls” or “and alongside the flying creatures, birds and winged insects” “of heaven” which means “belonging to the visible skies”. Hosea shared how Jehovah God included the “mourning” of the wild animals and flying creatures within the sky that would have sorrow because of Israel's sins.
Finally the verse says, “yes, the fishes of the sea also shall be taken away.” Hosea concluded this verse with the words, “yes, the fishes of the sea” or “even so and indeed, the squirming fish with their vibratory action of their tails will within the large bodies of water such as the Red, Dead and Mediterranean Seas” “also shall be taken away” which means “even so and indeed will be gathered together, removed and withdrawn”. Hosea shared how Jehovah God also declared that squirming “fish” would be removed as well.
When we think through the words in this verse, we discover through Hosea how the land, wild animals, birds and fish would also suffer because of the nation of Israel's sin. Sin leaves it's mark, and when it does not seem to affect the perpetrator, sin affects everyone and everything within our world. Sin separates us from God, and even as the nation of Israel separated themselves from God through sin, we are separated from a personal relationship with Him as well. This is why He sent His Son Jesus into the world to die on the cross for the sins of all mankind, and if we put our faith and trust in Him as our “Savior and Lord”, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and cleanse us from all unrighteousness so we and others are not affected by the damage sin causes. (See 1 John 1:9)
Next time Hosea says, “let no man strive, nor reprove another”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until tomorrow…there is more…
See more devotionals on the website "thewordfortodaywithray.com" or look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".
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