Listen, not just hear.

Hosea is telling the people of Israel to "hear" the Word of the Lord. The Lord has something to say. He knows they faithlessness and lack of kindness. These are things that were supposed to be a part of their life (and yours and mine) but they have been replaced with swearing, deception, murder, and adultery. The consequences of these actions are the "mourning" of the land. There is suffering and heartache for all who go down this road.

Be careful that you don’t think these warning are just for Israel. Take this words to hear. The Lord knows all that is going on in your life.
If your facing heartaches and suffering, seek the Lord. He might be seeking to bring you back to fellowship with Him.

Hos 4:1-7
1 Listen to the word of the Lord, O sons of Israel,
For the Lord has a case against the inhabitants of the land,
Because there is no faithfulness or kindness
Or knowledge of God in the land.
2 There is swearing, deception, murder, stealing and adultery.
They employ violence, so that bloodshed follows bloodshed.
3 Therefore the land mourns,
And everyone who lives in it languishes
Along with the beasts of the field and the birds of the sky,
And also the fish of the sea disappear.
4 Yet let no one find fault, and let none offer reproof;
For your people are like those who contend with the priest.
5 So you will stumble by day,
And the prophet also will stumble with you by night;
And I will destroy your mother.
6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.
Because you have rejected knowledge,
I also will reject you from being My priest.
Since you have forgotten the law of your God,
I also will forget your children.
7 The more they multiplied, the more they sinned against Me;
I will change their glory into shame.
NASU

Explore for Yourself
1. What is the "Yet" connecting?
2. Why should no one find fault or offer reproof? What is important about stumbling by day?
3. Why will the prophets stumble at night? What happens to Israel? Who is the "mother"?
4. Why are the people destroyed? Why don’t they have knowledge?
5. What is the role of a priest....what will not happen?
6. List some of the "conditional" statements.
7. What happens to the glory of the children? Why?