Thy Strong Word

Hosted by Rev. Randy Asburry.

With guest Rev. Larry Troxel of St. Paul Lutheran Church in Bowen, IL.

Lutheran Heritage Foundation - Underwriter of Thy Strong Word — Underwriter of Thy Strong Word

Hosea 13

The Lord‘s Relentless Judgment on Israel

13 When Ephraim spoke, there was trembling;
    he was exalted in Israel,
    but he incurred guilt through Baal and died.
²And now they sin more and more,
    and make for themselves metal images,
idols skillfully made of their silver,
    all of them the work of craftsmen.
It is said of them,
    “Those who offer human sacrifice kiss calves!”
³Therefore they shall be like the morning mist
    or like the dew that goes early away,
like the chaff that swirls from the threshing floor
    or like smoke from a window.

⁴But I am the Lord your God
    from the land of Egypt;
you know no God but me,
    and besides me there is no savior.
⁵It was I who knew you in the wilderness,
    in the land of drought;
⁶but when they had grazed,^[a] they became full,
    they were filled, and their heart was lifted up;
    therefore they forgot me.
⁷So I am to them like a lion;
    like a leopard I will lurk beside the way.
⁸I will fall upon them like a bear robbed of her cubs;
    I will tear open their breast,
and there I will devour them like a lion,
    as a wild beast would rip them open.

⁹He destroys^[b] you, O Israel,
    for you are against me, against your helper.
¹⁰Where now is your king, to save you in all your cities?
    Where are all your rulers—
those of whom you said,
    “Give me a king and princes”?
¹¹I gave you a king in my anger,
    and I took him away in my wrath.

¹²The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up;
    his sin is kept in store.
¹³The pangs of childbirth come for him,
    but he is an unwise son,
for at the right time he does not present himself
    at the opening of the womb.

¹⁴Shall I ransom them from the power of Sheol?
    Shall I redeem them from Death?
O Death, where are your plagues?
    O Sheol, where is your sting?
    Compassion is hidden from my eyes.

¹⁵Though he may flourish among his brothers,
    the east wind, the wind of the Lord, shall come,
    rising from the wilderness,
and his fountain shall dry up;
    his spring shall be parched;
it shall strip his treasury
    of every precious thing.
¹⁶^[c] Samaria shall bear her guilt,
    because she has rebelled against her God;
they shall fall by the sword;
    their little ones shall be dashed in pieces,
    and their pregnant women ripped open.

Footnotes:

Hosea 13:6 Hebrew according to their pasture
Hosea 13:9 Or I will destroy
Hosea 13:16 Ch 14:1 in Hebrew

Rev. William Weedon

We have the distinct privilege of borrowing LCMS Director of Worship and International Center Chaplain Rev. William Chancellor Weedon for an hour a day to add Host of Thy Strong Word to his list of titles. Native to the central Maryland area just outside of Washington D.C., he enthusiastically enjoys his coffee, playing piano, and singing heartily, as well as spending time in the pool with his wife Cindi, three children and their spouses, and seven grandchildren. He’s one of those people that listens to Christmas music year-round, but we still let him in our studios. You may find him reading a good murder mystery or some writing by Johann Gerhard, Joseph Ratzinger, or Alexander Schmemann while eating a chocolate torte made by his wife Cindi. When he’s read all the books he can manage, he escapes outside to hike, bike, or even run in his Vivobarefoot shoes that Andy Bates, his favorite famous person, told him to buy.