Breaking the Word

14^th Week in Ord. Time, Wednesday – 10^th July 2024 – Hosea 10,1-3.7-8.12; Mt 10,1-7

Seek the Lord of Justice

In the first reading, Hosea communicates God’s judgment to sinful Israel. He says that the nation will become a wasteland, the people will soon be dispersed to Egypt and Assyria, the monarchy of Israel will fall, and the idolatrous sanctuaries in Bethel and Dan will be destroyed. Today’s reading connects Israel’s material prosperity with their idolatry: the more Israel prospered, the higher the standard of living, the more idols, altars and sacred pillars to false gods were set up. The people used all their energies in worshipping and pursuing. Their hearts were divided between worship of Yahweh and the Baals, or hesitating between Egypt and Assyria for their alliances. They chose false gods and Baal over the one true God. Hosea warns his listeners that after all their unfaithfulness, it was time “to seek out justice and mercy of God”. Seek the Lord means turning fully toward the Lord and proclaiming God as their Lord, instead of seeking to build altars and offer sacrifices to false gods. Those who seek the Lord look back and recall his wondrous deeds, his miracles and his judgments. The hearts that seek the Lord rejoice because they are filled with true joy. If the people change their ways and begin to plant justice, then they will reap the fruits not only for themselves, but others as well. It is time now to plough new field and unproductive ground and go in search of God, in order to become productive and fruitful.

14^th Week in Ord. Time, Tuesday – 9^th July 2024 – Hosea 8,4-7.11-13; Mt 9,32-38

Clarion Call to Avoid Idolatry

In the first reading, Hosea makes a scathing attack on the idolatrous practices of Israel, Samaria and Ephraim and for setting up kings without the Lord’s approval. He makes a clarion call to avoid idolatry by his enigmatic statement “For they sow the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind.” This is a familiar proverb about the results of doing evil, gleaned from the agricultural process of sowing and reaping. The principle of duplication means, the type of seed sown would grow and the same would be multiplied and harvested. But here it means, one evil leads to something much worse. Israel sowed the wind of idolatry and reaped the whirlwind of judgement. “Wind” means something worthless and foolish (Job 7,7; Prov 11,29; Eccl 1,14.17). Israel’s foolish pursuit of false gods would reap a severe judgement from the Lord. It also means Israel’s sin of idolatry would bring forth an amplified consequence that would sweep them all away. Further Hosea points out, “The standing grain has no heads; it shall yield no flour; if it were to yield, strangers would devour it.” So, the crop would yield nothing. Outsiders would steal anything that did happen to grow. Here, God is warning his people that their idolatry would lead to ruin. The idolatry of the people, their turning their backs to their God in favour of idols, will lead to the disaster of the Assyrian invasion and their deportation into exile.