“I will betroth you to me forever; I will betroth you in righteousness and justice, in love and compassion.”
Hosea 2:19 (NIV)
I chose Isaiah 9:1-7 as a passage for Parkdale to meditate on as we approach Christmas because this historical Christmas passage features in its language about Christ Jesus, the emphasis the Minor Prophets place on righteousness and justice. This emphasis by the Minor Prophets is rightly taught in our day and age as the duty of Christians to engage in social justice, in terms of defending the weak and standing up for the rights of the oppressed, and restraining our natural inclination to lie, defraud and kill one another. However, in a country like Canada where our laws and society are heavily influenced by the Gospel and therefore have 200 years of public discourse about these duties- our public sense of what justice and righteousness are seems to differ somewhat from the biblical sense. However slight that difference may appear on the surface it will be good for us to examine the passages in the Minor Prophets that mention righteousness and justice, in order that we might be careful to have God’s understanding and not our culture’s understanding.
Hosea chapter 2 is a difficult chapter to sit and read, because of the graphic comparison between how God’s people treat God and how an adulterous spouse treats their faithful spouse. Adultery is ugly, the ramifications and consequences of adultery are uglier - especially the effect upon the children involved(vs4). How wonderful it is to finally arrive at verse 19 and hear our God speak to us about the wonderful future (for the Jews) which is our present situation in Christ Jesus! Our relationship with God through our union with Christ Jesus, is better in every way than the relationship between the Jewish people and God. It’s a different marriage because God has made it different – He has taken the responsibility for both sides of the marriage – it seems that our part is to acknowledge the LORD. So let us acknowledge Him today, let us meditate on and thank Him for the righteousness, justice, love, compassion and faithfulness that he has brought into us - into our relationship and into us. We have all that we need to be the people that He desires us to be. The first step to being righteous and just and loving and compassionate and faithful in our lives today, is to acknowledge that we are in spiritual union with the One truly righteous and just and loving and compassionate and faithful.
Praise His holy Name for betrothing us.
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