Whether this story is to be regarded as a parable or as a record of actual experiences in Hosea's home life is a question concerning which there are different opinions. The material found in the book's third chapter suggests what Hosea regards as the meaning of his experiences in relation to Yahweh's dealings with the people of Israel. Yahweh chose Israel and entered into a covenant relationship with it, but Israel has been unfaithful to the covenant; it has forsaken the one to whom its loyalty was pledged and now serves other gods. The licentious practices followed by the worshipers of the Canaanite Baal gods have become a part of the religious life of the Israelites, and even their professed worship of Yahweh has been contaminated with the ideas and ceremonial rites of Baal worship. Because of this unfaithfulness on the part of Israel, Yahweh will permit the Assyrians to overrun the land and carry the people into captivity. But unlike Amos, for whom the coming captivity would be final, Hosea views the captivity as a means for bringing the Israelites to their right senses: After they have learned their lesson, they will return to their own land, and a king who is like King David will reign over them.
As this lesson, which comes out of his own bitter marital experiences, becomes more clear to Hosea, he records it from the perspective of his later years. Understanding that his own relationship to Gomer parallels the relationship between Yahweh and Israel, he realizes that Yahweh used this lesson to communicate his will and purpose to those who claim to be his people. From this point of view, we can understand Hosea's statement that Yahweh instructed him to marry an adulterous woman and later directed him to make provisions for her moral restoration.
The remainder of the Book of Hosea consists of a collection of miscellaneous statements expressing Hosea's convictions concerning the character of Yahweh and Yahweh's relation to the people of Israel. Hosea appears to have had the temperament of a poet; his thoughts are usually expressed in terms of strong analogies and striking figures of speech. But it is not always easy to understand what he is saying, for his statements are not arranged in chronological order, nor do they indicate the time or circumstances under which they were delivered. In spite of these difficulties, the materials contained in these chapters reveal some remarkable insights that contributed in no small way to the development of Israel's religious ideals.
