David is, in underappreciated fact, the first “messiah”, which means anointed by God. God anointed David King over Israel, and made the only covenant in the Bible with and for one man: promising that one of his progeny would always serve as the King of Israel. And through the prophets, God also vowed that from David’s seed would burst forth the ultimate Messiah.
Hosea is one of the earliest written prophets of Israel. He lived and wrote in the eighth century, prior to the fall of the northern kingdom of Israel in 722 BCE (Israel divided into the northern and southern kingdoms around 930 BCE, with the former still titled Israel and the latter Judah). And he is the first prophet who reveals that God’s covenant with Israel is in divine purview a marital covenant, and that God views Israel as His bride. This amazing theme would become ever more important and central as Israel’s understanding of God’s covenant sealed at Mt. Sinai became clearer.
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