Hosea 7:1—“When I would have healed Israel, then the iniquity of Ephraim was discovered, and the wickedness of Samaria …”

When I would have healed Israel, then the iniquity of Ephraim was discovered, and the wickedness of Samaria … (Hos. 7:1).

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“This verse says that God would have healed his visible people Israel, which included many (if not mostly) reprobates.  However, when God sent his loving kindness and drawings to their nation in order to savingly heal them, their hidden iniquity only became more inflamed.”

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Regarding Hosea:

1. The basic principle for understanding all the OT prophets is the same basic principle by which to understand all gospel preaching today. There are two kinds of hearers: 1) Those who hear outwardly, but for whom the promises were not meant, because they were not God’s elect and were not given the gift of faith, and 2) those who hear outwardly and inwardly. The latter are those truly addressed. The point is not that God was not serious in his words to the first group, but their own unbelief and refusal to repent explains why God’s promises are not fulfilled toward them.

Jesus sets forth this basic principle in Matthew 13 , The parable of the sower. Those who hold to the WMO seem (from my perspective) not to understand Jesus point, and not to be willing to apply it to all preaching in the NT, and prophecy in the OT.”

2. Another key to understanding OT prophecy is Romans 9:6: “They are not all Israel which are of Israel.” (DK, 04/10/2019)

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More to come! (DV)