Hosea 4-8

Hosea lists the sins of the Northern Kingdom:


1. There is no recognition of Truth (Hosea 4:1). All have rejected knowledge (Hosea 4:6).


2. The priests no longer teach the Truth but take joy in the iniquity of the people (Hosea 4:8). Back then, Israelites still brought animal sacrifices for their sins even though they bowed to man-made idols. The priests, no longer preaching the Truth, would take those animal sacrifices as feasts.


3. There was no relationship with God (Hosea 5:4).


4. There was no true repentance. The Israelites knew things were not right because they would cry out at night. However, they did not cry out for God (Hosea 7:14). Instead of turning to God for help, they turned to Assyria (Hosea 5:13).


5. When the Northern Kingdom split, they appointed their own priests and holy places for worship, abandoning their roots set by the Mosaic law (Hosea 8:4-6). The Mosaic law required worship to be done in THE temple of Jerusalem.


6. Israel had forgotten their maker, God (Hosea 8:14). They had turned their face away from God, choosing to run toward their enemies.


In Hosea 4-8, we see that EVERYONE in the Northern Kingdom is guilty: the king, the priest, and the house (the general population).