Hosea 2:14-23

Hosea 2:14-23
14 Therefore, I am going to persuade her, lead her to the wilderness, and speak tenderly to her.
15 There I will give her vineyards back to her and make the Valley of Achor [trouble] into a gateway of hope. There she will respond as she did in the days of her youth, as in the day she came out of the land of Egypt.
16 In that day —this is the LORD’s declaration —you will call Me, “My husband,” and no longer call Me, “My Baal.”
17 For I will remove the names of the Baals from her mouth; they will no longer be remembered by their names.
18 On that day I will make a covenant for them with the wild animals, the birds of the sky, and the creatures that crawl on the ground. I will shatter bow, sword, and weapons of war in the land and will enable the people to rest securely.
19 I will take you to be My wife forever. I will take you to be My wife in righteousness, justice, love, and compassion.
20 I will take you to be My wife in faithfulness, and you will know Yahweh.
21 On that day I will respond —this is the LORD’s declaration. I will respond to the sky, and it will respond to the earth.
22 The earth will respond to the grain, the new wine, and the oil, and they will respond to Jezreel.
23 I will sow her in the land for Myself, and I will have compassion on No Compassion; I will say to Not My People: You are My people, and he will say, “You are My God.”

In this section, we find the bride of Hosea (a prostitute) running after her old life. In the longing and pursuit of her old habits, she forgets just what is waiting there for her. She may be deluded, or maybe she feels unworthy. Whatever the case, God is patient with her. He knows she is in a terrible place. He knows the desires of her heart. But He is patient. He decided that He will pursue. He will persuade her with actions and loving words. He will speak tenderly to her- regardless of the fact that she is doing the very thing she is accused of. He will lead her- woo her- from the valley of trouble and through the gates of hope. That love will cause a response of gratitude. A reminder of the love she once knew. An innocent love. A pure love. The sins she saturated herself in would be removed so completely that she will not even remember them. He will be enough. More than enough. He will replace every area in her heart with such a thorough love that she will begin to grow. Change. The life of ruin she once lived will no longer bear any evidence. The things that caused her to be cast off will be replaced with  God's acceptance.
What an awesome concept! We know that this small book depicts the relationship of God to His chosen people - Israel. It is also relevant to us today. We are the bride of Hosea. We have been given every opportunity to partake in the heart of God. Yet so often we run. Like slaves, we turn back to familiarity. Back to the guilt and shame that condemn us. To a place we believe defines us. We run head first into the junk we were delivered from; forgetting the love that has changed us. Whether we believe the lies of satan or his condemnation, we allow his voice to replace the tender words of our loving Husband. We find ourselves in the valley of trouble. Like a lost child, we struggle to find our way back. Yet, He pursues us. He finds us in our defeated state. He speaks the words we know. He reminds us of His love. He reminds us of the way He sees us. He builds up our ability to trust. Then, He reaches out His hand to us. After staying in the valley of trouble with us, He begins to guide us. Lovingly, tenderly, He takes us to the gates of Hope. As He walks us through, He is constantly speaking the words that block out all other voices. He begins to permeate our entire being with His grace. We begin to see things as He does- once again. It is here we see the fields around us begin to grow. To bear fruit. The sweet songs of His promise floating through the air. The fragrance of His redemption drenching our once-stagnant soul. We- the "no compassion", "not my people"- are made whole.
I am so incredibly blessed to see the nature of our Father in Heaven. He sees us, knows us, hears us, and loves us so completely that we are never too far. His redemption is deeper than even we can ever know! How amazing is this? We are children of God. His bride. One He loves so tenderly and completely. Nothing will stop His pursuit of us!