Ugly Pot

No one would want to take and dirty, ugly pot and cook their supper in it. If you could clean it up it would get tossed out and replaced with a shiny new one. God is telling Israel that they are like that ugly pot. They have gone wild, hired lovers, employed allies to "protect them" simply put they have multiplied their sins. The final result of Israel’s sin is judgement.


Hos 8:8-9:1
8 Israel is swallowed up; They are now among the nations Like a vessel in which no one delights.
9 For they have gone up to Assyria, Like a wild donkey all alone; Ephraim has hired lovers. 10 Even though they hire allies among the nations, Now I will gather them up; And they will begin to diminish Because of the burden of the king of princes. 11 Since Ephraim has multiplied altars for sin, They have become altars of sinning for him. 12 Though I wrote for him ten thousand precepts of My law, They are regarded as a strange thing. 13 As for My sacrificial gifts, They sacrifice the flesh and eat it, But the Lord has taken no delight in them. Now He will remember their iniquity, And punish them for their sins; They will return to Egypt. 14 For Israel has forgotten his Maker and built palaces; And Judah has multiplied fortified cities, But I will send a fire on its cities that it may consume its palatial dwellings. NASU


Cleaning "your pot"!


So you might ask, "what does that have to do with me?" First let me say that we are all "ugly pots." Romans 3:23 says that we are all sinners.....dirty, filthy pots. God has provide a way to "clean our pot." Jesus Christ has died on the cross so that if we place our trust in His cleansing power we will be forgive and cleansed from our sin.


Rom 10:8-12
9 if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; 10 for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. 11 For the Scripture says, "WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED." NASU


(Emphasis mine)


Explore for yourself
1. What happens to Israel? Where are they now? What are they "like"?
2. What has Ephraim done? (What does this mean?)
3. Why does God go after them? What will happen? Why?
4. What is readily available?
5. What did God provide for them? What did they do with them?
6. How is they offering described? What did Israel forget?
7. What awaits Judah? What warning is their for us?