Hosea 2:14-2 ESV
'"Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak tenderly to her. And there I will give her her vineyards and make the Valley of Achor a door of hope. And there she shall answer as in the days of her youth, as at the time when she came out of the land of Egypt. "And in that day, declares the LORD, you will call me 'My Husband,' and no longer will you call me 'My Baal.' For I will remove the names of the Baals from her mouth, and they shall be remembered by name no more. And I will make for them a covenant on that day with the beasts of the field, the birds of the heavens, and the creeping things of the ground. And I will abolish the bow, the sword, and war from the land, and I will make you lie down in safety. And I will betroth you to me forever. I will betroth you to me in righteousness and in justice, in steadfast love and in mercy. I will betroth you to me in faithfulness. And you shall know the LORD. "And in that day I will answer, declares the LORD, I will answer the heaven and they shall answer the earth, and the earth shall answer the grain, the wine, and the oil, and they shall answer Jezreel, and I will sow her for myself in the land. And I will have mercy on [Lo-Ruhamah], and I will say to [Lo-Ammi], 'You are my people' and he shall say, 'You are my God.'"'
Lo-Ruhamah is the Hebrew name that the ESV translates to "No Mercy" and Lo-Ammi is the Hebrew name translated by the ESV as "Not my people". This scripture refers to Hosea's wife Gomer, and two of her children. God had commanded Hosea to take a wife who was a prostitute, who would stray. He also commanded Hosea what to name the children born to her within their marriage. It is possible that the children born to her were not even his because she continued to return to her lovers again and again. What a potentially devastating life for her husband. Instead of allowing this to destroy him, Hosea follows God's commands, and continues to take her back. His marriage becomes an illustration of God's people as a wayward bride.
In the midst of her betrayal, in the midst of her darkness, what does God promise? He says "I will allure her... and speak tenderly to her" and later "I will have mercy... and I will say... 'You are my people'".
It is from this view point that I look at the first half of chapter one in Captivating by John and Stasi Eldredge.
"...there was only one alternative... and that was paddling back upriver in total darkness... the fact that it required all of me, that I was in it with my family and for my family....made the time... transcendent... [pg. 3]" So often the choices we know can lead us to something great, something wonderful (and even unknown to us, is part of God's plan for our lives) are scary and painful, dark and seemingly impossible.
"Then the time came when the risk it took to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom -Anais Nin [pg. 3]" There are five women in the scriptures who faced such choices in their lives. To the world, to women of our generation even, they may have seemed to be shameful women. They were most likely unseen and unsought. They must have had moments on their journeys that left them uncertain of the path they had chosen to take and it's consequences. As a modern woman, there would be the temptation to pass them by and ignore them. In the context of their culture, they should have been killed.
God had the grace in their situations to reverse their destinies. He used their periods of seemingly utter darkness and made instead a life of glory and filled them with His light. He hand-picked these women as the five women named in the lineage of His son, our Savior.
Matthew 1:3,5-6,16 ESV
"and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram... and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of David the king. And David was the father of Solomon by [Bathsheba]... and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ."
I won't go into each passage about them, but will list basic references and what they signify about each woman listed here.
Tamar: Genesis 38:6-26; Tamar was a young wife who unfortunately married a wicked man. When her husband died for his sins, he left her childless. Her father-in-law gave her to his second son, who was also wicked, so that she could become pregnant with a child to carry on her first husband's name. Her second husband prevented this, dishonoring his brother's name. He died as well. In fear for his third and last son's life, Tamar's father-in-law Judah tricks her by promising her his third son when he come of age as a husband, a promise he does not keep. Tamar, in turn, deceives Judah and becomes pregnant by her father-in-law in order to continue her first husband's name.
Rahab: Joshua 2:1-4, 8-14, and 19-21; Rahab was a prostitute in the land of Jericho. When spies came to her for help, she disobeyed her king and became a traitor to her country in order to assist God's people. Her choice of God over country could have put her and her family at risk.
Ruth: Ruth 3:4-14; After following her mother-in-law to a foreign land, Ruth lived a life of a poor immigrate widow. She had no one to care for or provide for her, and instead found herself caring for her mother-in-law. She followed her mother-in-law's advice and slept in the same bed as a man (she was not married to) in a public place.
Bathsheba: 2 Samuel 11: 3-5, 14-17, and 26-27; A married woman (who I believe according to verses 26 and 27 loved her husband) Bathsheba found herself seduced by a king. She slept with him and became pregnant. She informed her lover of her pregnancy and he used his power to try to cover his tracks. Bathsheba's husband was a good man, and refused to take advantage of his leave from war that was provided, and so the king had him killed.
Mary: Matthew 1:18-19; Mary was a young girl who loved God and was engaged to marry an older man. She became pregnant by the Holy Spirit, and was on the verge of divorce (an engagement or "betrothal" in her culture was equivalent to marriage in our culture).
These women risked a lot. At times, they sinned to make these risks. All five of these women, according to the law, should have been killed. But God forgave their sins, God covered them in His grace. He counted them as worthy. Yes, he took these women who may have been unseen, unsought, and uncertain and transformed their lives. They are seen by the world, even today. Their spirits are and have been sought after by other women for generations. And we are certain that these women prove not only that sometimes it's hard to be a woman, but more importantly, with God's grace we can be exceptional women.
