use, and value far less the beloved who, to the lover, is of unsurpassable worth. Who would see his wife wrenched from his absolute love and devotion, throw off her dignity as wife and mother, and become in the eyes of the world, and eventually in her own eyes, a mere courtesan through the passing and passionate whim, the lies and deceits, of another? Who could withhold his anger? Who would not strike out, not in punishment, but in pain? Would we characterize, even dismiss, such a hapless man, in this paroxysm of jealousy and indignation, as simply an innately angry individual with a penchant for punishment? This is the Book of Hosea. If you really want to understand the nature of God's love and the essence of what we misconstrue as His "anger", read the Book of Hosea. Is there a more poignant account of the love of God for His people than what we encounter in these pages? Let us take another tack: what father, upon seeing his son innocently responding to the wanton and perverse solicitation of another man, would not scold the child in a rage as towering in height as the love that provoked it, and strike out at once and without compunction at the one seducing his son from his of innocence? What father, loving a child, would reason thus: "Well, such things are acceptable in these evil days, and any expression of anger on my part would not be deemed "correct", and what is more, I am liable to infringe on the liberty of that man, however salacious (albeit, in a day long gone) his intentions are, and however harmful they will be to my son. I will then restrain myself, hold to correctitude, and say nothing and do nothing that would compromise my esteem in the community." Do we not say as much in our reproach to God's anger? How incredibly blind we are to the love of God! We despise His anger as unworthy of a perfect God, instead of seeing the perfect love of God within it! The Father in His righteous anger --- which flows from |
Who among us has not encountered a situation where gentle appeals to correction fall on deaf and unwilling ears? How often has God first said, "Come, let us reason", and that failing, resorted to the means alone through which correction would be motivated? Even after 40 years in the desert, Israel remained "a stiff-necked people", just as we remain obdurate in our sins until some calamity befalls us that finally causes us to recognize that the way |