“…I will soon fence her in with thorns; I will wall her in so that she cannot find her way. Then she will pursue her lovers, but she will not catch them; she will seek them, but she will not find them. Then she will say, ‘I will go back to my husband, because I was better off then than I am now.’
“…In the future I will allure her; I will lead her back into the wilderness and speak tenderly to her. From there I will give back her vineyards to her and turn the ‘Valley of Trouble’ into an ‘Opportunity for Hope.’ There she will sing as she did when she was young, when she came up from the land of Egypt. –Hosea 2:6-7, 14-15
What amazing love our Savior has for His bride. To wall her in with thorns and keep her away from what destroys (Hos 2:6-7). He exposes her shame so she can see her need (2:10), and drives her into the wilderness of suffering to reveal her dependency (2:14). For it is there that the LORD demonstrates His lavish love and purchases back His bride (2:2). It is there He reverses trouble into hope (2:15), and brings about a repentance that leads to life (2Co 7:10; Hos 14:2). Because it is there that we seek the good God (3:5) who has blessed and delivered us all along (2:8; 11:1-4).
Thank You, LORD, for not leaving us in our comfort, but hedging us in with pain to keep us from death. Thank You for leading us into the wilderness to build our faith and teach us how to hunger and thirst for You. Help us to truly trust Your good and sovereign hand, as we experience Your loyal love that is better than life.
Billy Neal
