Changes

This theocracy, this beautiful experiment where God is the invisible ruler, deteriorates and later becomes a monarchy as described in the book of Samuel, where we have human kings introduced because the people wanted someone they could see. Then that kingdom is disrupted into two kingdoms. There is split, there is secession from the union described in the books of Kings. Each of those kingdoms Israel in the North, Judah in the South both are swept into exile. There is record of the Babylonian captivity, and record of the Assyrian captivity--as it seems God has abandoned Israel to her demise.

The book of Hosea, in fact, serves in part as extended metaphor—an allegory—illustrating Israel as a whoring wife. It is dinner theater—the “play within the play” in the biblical record. Succinctly, the story is that the Prophet Hosea is commanded to marry a prostitute name Gomer: “And the LORD said to Hosea, Go, take unto thee a wife of whoredoms and children of whoredoms: for the land hath committed great whoredom, departing from the LORD” (Hosea 1:2, KJV). Gomer is subsequently, but not surprisingly, unfaithful: “For their mother hath played the harlot: she that conceived them hath done shamefully: for she said, I will go after my lovers, that give me my bread and my water, my wool and my flax, mine oil and my drink” (Hosea 1:2, KJV). We see the language of divorce used, metaphorically, when God commands one of Gomer's children to be called “Loammi: for ye are not my people, and I will not be your God” (Hosea 1:9). In Hebrew, the verse registers more emphatically, as this child’s name, לֹא עַמִּי (Lo' `Ammiy), literally means “not my people" (see Davidson 400)<ref>Benjamin Davidson, ''The Analytical Hebrew and Chaldee Lexicon''. (Peabody: Hendrickson Publishers, 1995), 400.</ref>.

Finally, the story is reviewed in the book of Chronicles and in the last few historical books of Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther there is just a handful, a little remnant that returns back to Judea. The walls of Jerusalem are rebuilt; but the Davidic throne, no longer exists. All we have in Judea by the end of that historical section are a few Jews who are merely a minor dependency; they don’t even have their own form of government. Outside Judea, they are just scattered to the four winds. One might ask, “What’s happened. Why this change? Here this beautiful beginning and now this sorry declension and decline into other failures. Why?” If we read through the rest of the Old Testament, it ends on a note of sadness because there are unachieved purposes.

SLTJ:Ch 1