Who was biblical Hosea?

Answer 1

One thought:

Hosea was the son of Beeri and a prophet of YHWH (along with Isaiah, Micah and Amos) during the time when Judah's Kings Jotham, Ahaz, Hezekiah and Uzziah ruled, and King Jeroboam2 ruled Israel.(Hosea 1:1) During his prophesying (around 804BCE-745BCE) God used him as a prophet to hold out love and support to any faithful Israelites (Hosea 2:19, Hosea 11:1-4, Hosea 14:4) and to discipline and correct those who had turned their back on God(Hosea 2:8+13, Hosea 4:2+13+14, Hosea 10:5,Hosea 6:6, Hosea 13:17)even using Hosea's personal life as an illustration(Hosea 1:1-Hosea 3:5).

Hosea's wife committed adultery, just as Israel had committed 'spiritual' adultery against YHWH, by worshiping Baal, and he made it clear that if they repented, and turned around, to serve him once again, he would love them as before (Hosea 2:16+19+20) as illustrated in Hosea's support of his once-adulterous wife (Hosea 3:1-5). They refused and because of their rebellion, the fall of Samaria (capitol of apostate Israel), was prophesied by Hosea (Hosea 8:7-10, Hosea 13:16) and fulfilled in 740BCE when they became Assyria's captives (2 KIngs 17:3-6).

There are also Messianic prophecies in the book of Hosea, such as Hosea 11:1 "out of Egypt I called my son"(Matthew 2:14+15).