Hosea 6:2
"After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will restore us, that we may live in his presence."
The Bible scholars say hosea was a contemporary of the prophets Isaiah and Micah. That would mean his prophecies were made in the middle to late eighth century BC (755–715 BC). Using the, one thousand years equals a day formula, we're likely living in the three thousandth year now. And if that be the case we have maybe two hundred or less years left in this prophecy about the second coming advent of the millennia age.
And all that is well and good but really it's all just speculation for us. Prophecy isn't intended to give us a workable timeline, it's really only about creating a narrative for repentance and providing evidence that God is indeed omnipresent. If God returns in the next two hundred years or not, faith is not shaken.
What's important is the covenant, and the basis for that covenant. God makes many covenants and mankind is forever breaking their end of the bargain.
So why is it important to know the prophets?
I believe these prophets help the people of God understand, on a personal level, their role in that covenant. More than any other prophet, Hosea linked his prophetic messages closely with his own personal life. He's what we would call today a preacher who teaches by making the gospel relevant. The law did this as well, but the law was impersonal. Jesus did this as well, he brought the law down to earth, made it relevant to the times and places. And what typically happens when you truly make the gospel relevant is you find out that the people have failed to keep the covenant. Throughout the prophetic book, Hosea pictured the people turning away from the Lord and turning toward other gods (Hosea 4:12–3; 8:5–6).
And yet God restores.
The book of Hosea illustrates that no one is beyond the offer of forgiveness because no one sits outside God’s offer of forgiveness. The offer exists, it's done, it's finished. It's the goodness of God that provides second chances. Not only does the book of Hosea provide for us an example of God’s love to an adulterous people who have left God behind, but it also shows us what forgiveness and restoration looks like in a close relationship with the Savior. A family-like relationship, a marriage of sorts. Christ the groom, the bride his church. Hosea uses the intimate and personal language of “sons” to describe His wayward people (Hosea 1:9–10; 11:1) and he describes God's redemption of the lost people in the birth, love, and care for his third child, Lo-ammi (which means "not my people" ). God expresses his deep abiding love for the people in these prophecies. He's bound to keep his covenant no matter what.
All that remains now is repentance and faithfulness to follow The Lord Jesus into his kingdom. The work of salvation is finished, the way has been made, the day is set. All that remains is YOU and your life.
It is essential that we learn to respect our Creator. God is dishonored and angered by the actions of His unfaithful children. Hosea helps us recall the long suffering faithfulness of God. Hosea has shown us God’s heart of loving commitment, and later in the gospels we learn that he brings us back to himself in Christ. And he really wants to restore us, he goes out of his way to help us into his restoration.
Ultimately Hosea's broken marriage and family is us. It's all of us. It's how God sees us. It dispels one axiom, "essentially all people are good". No one is good, everyone is broken. And everyone needs the Savior. Hosea uses the analogy of a silly dove, you throw a stone at it and it just sits there oblivious. They haven't got a clue.
Hosea 8:7
"For they have sown the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind."
Actions have consequences. God desires to heal the adulterous Israel, but their idolatrous sins are a barrier. He really wants to keep his covenant with Israel, but their unrestrained passion for sin and senselessness blocks his Spirit. God has forgiven us ALL...but we must confess our sin and accept his loving grace. We confess the sin, He forgets the sin. We accept his grace, he puts that sin out of his mind, GONE, as far as the East is from the West. That action, (repentance and acceptance), has consequences, (covered sin and restoration of the covenant). A new chapter in the marriage between you and Christ. He is making that new relationship now. He's making a new home for you with him. And he's making a way for his bride to come home. Boundless mercy and restoration available through genuine repentance.
All you got to do is own it.