Anyone who reads the Book of Hosea will be impressed by Hosea's conception of the deity. For Amos, as well as for most of his predecessors, Yahweh is conceived primarily as a god of justice. He gave laws for his people to obey, and disobedience of these laws must inevitably bring punishment sufficient to atone for the wrongdoing. But for Hosea, Yahweh is a god of love and mercy. Our best understanding of Yahweh's nature can be grasped by means of analogies drawn from family relationships. The love of a husband for his wife and the love of a father for his children are appropriate symbols for indicating the character of the deity. Speaking for Yahweh, Hosea declares, "When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son." And again, "How can I give you up, Ephraim? How can I hand you over, Israel? I will not carry out my fierce anger, nor will I turn and devastate Ephraim."
Punishment for wrongdoing is indeed necessary, but according to Hosea, the purpose of punishment is not to meet the demands of justice but rather to restore the ones who have done the wrong. This moral restoration is achieved by getting the wrongdoers themselves to recognize the error of their ways and then to repent in humility and turn from their evil paths. In other words, for Hosea, punishment is remedial rather than retributive, an expression of Yahweh's love for his people. Punishment should be used as a last resort to teach lessons that people have refused to learn in any other way. Israel will surely go into captivity, but it will not be a final or complete destruction of the nation. Rather, it will be an opportunity for Israelites to gain a clearer understanding of the character of Yahweh so that when they return to their land as free people, they will know how to worship Yahweh in an appropriate manner.
