Ephraim or Judah–Believer or Unbeliever?

So much time is spent on the subject of repentance in the Bible. There is a reason for that. I think this passage in Hosea–Hosea 5.11-15–brings to light that importance as it contrasts the believer, who is being called to repentance by discipline, with the unbeliever.

This issue is like this. Let’s say there is a mom at the playground with her kids Billy and Samantha. She looks at her watch and it is time to go. The mom yells out, “Billy, Samantha, time to go home.” Samantha is closest to the mom, but doesn’t even here her, so she goes on playing. Billy does hear his mom, but when he looks at Samantha, he sees that she isn’t going, so he chooses to stay and play, ignoring his moms call.

Billy is the believer who is ignoring the call to righteousness and allows himself to be in sin. Samantha is the unbeliever. She hasn’t even heard the call to righteousness. Going to the passage in Hosea; Ephraim is Samantha and Judah is Billy. Ephraim, at this point, has given themselves over to the world for quite some time. There is little trace of Yahweh God left in their culture. They are completely pagan for all intents and purposes. Judah is still attempting to follow, but they have a problem. Because the nation of Israel has been split, they are unable to go and worship at the temple in Jerusalem. They are, at this point in history, being enticed to worship as the pagans do because they are unable to worship as God directed. Even though their motive is to worship Yahweh God, they are turning away from God’s standards in turning to pagan worship. The world is enticing them to sin without even realizing it. Just like Samantha, who did not even hear the call of her mother, enticed Billy to be disobedient, Judah was enticed by the world to worship as they do—as the pagans do.

Stepping away from the story for a minute, let’s spend some time creating a list of characteristics of the believer who is in sin vs. the unbeliever.

SIMILARITIES:

1. They are both experiencing the pains of the world which come from not being in a right relationship with God.

2.

3.

DIFFERENCES:

1. Even though there is sin, Judah desires to follow God even though Ephraim does not.

2.

3.

EPHRAIM

According to verse 11, Ephraim is absolutely determined to follow the the world. Ephraim was not interested in following God at all. This is the character of the unbeliever. Even if they have heard about God, they are so determined to follow their own ways that they cannot even think of following God. That is why they went to the Assyrians (the Ninevites) when they needed to be rescued from the pains they were experiencing as a result of their disobedience. They went to King Jareb of Assyria and he was unable to help them.

When the unbeliever experiences pain in this world, they have to make a decision where to go. If they don’t know about Christ, their only option in most cases is to go to the world; to drugs, alcohol, crime, unholy relationships, etc.

JUDAH

Judah is in a little different situation. Judah knows the truth, but is not following. They are involved in sin even as they attempt to worship God. The pain that they are experiencing comes in the form of discipline. This is like the believer in Jesus Christ who is involved in sin. The world brings enough struggles on it’s own, but sin results in discipline on top of the struggles of the world.

SO WHAT?

Regardless of which person you are—and hopefully you are neither—God is going to rain down a greater destruction if there is no obedience. In verse 12, God says He is a moth, but by verse 14, God has become a great lion, causing far more distress due to continued disobedience. Even at this, if we are damaged beyond recognition because of discipline, God finds a greater discipline. He says, “I will go away and return to My place” (v. 15). God will cease to protect us if we refuse to submit to Him.

There is hope. He will only refuse those who are disobedient “Until they acknowledge their guilt and seek [His] face;” (v. 15). There is hope in repentance. For the believer, they can come back to Christ and be restored to fellowship and to the peace that God provides. For the non-believer, he can come to Christ to be forgiven.

The application is that if you are Judah, the believer who is in sin, you have to come to repentance. But, there is a far greater challenge in this passage. The passage requires that we address Ephraim, the unbeliever. Israel’s purpose was to be a light to the world, that they would also be saved. Our purpose as believers is to be a light to the world, that others might come to Christ because of us. We are to get out into the world and show them God’s love, so that they too can come and experience the salvation that we have experienced through Jesus Christ.