1Israel, return to Yahweh your God;
for you have fallen because of your sin.
2Take words with you, and return to Yahweh.
Tell him, “Forgive all our sins,
and accept that which is good;
so we offer bulls as we vowed of our lips.
3Assyria can’t save us.
We won’t ride on horses;
neither will we say any more to the work of our hands, ‘Our gods!’
for in you the fatherless finds mercy.”
4“I will heal their waywardness.
I will love them freely;
for my anger is turned away from them.
5I will be like the dew to Israel.
He will blossom like the lily,
and send down his roots like Lebanon.
6His branches will spread,
and his beauty will be like the olive tree,
and his fragrance like Lebanon.
7Men will dwell in his shade.
They will revive like the grain,
and blossom like the vine.
Their fragrance will be like the wine of Lebanon.
8Ephraim, what have I to do any more with idols?
I answer, and will take care of him.
I am like a green cypress tree;
from me your fruit is found.”
9Who is wise, that he may understand these things?
Who is prudent, that he may know them?
For the ways of Yahweh are right,
and the righteous walk in them,
but the rebellious stumble in them.
This is the chapter of hope, it flows in like a tide of light. It begins with repentance, a willingness to admit that we are wrong and a readiness to turn away from it. God as he hears our confession pours out his mercy and brings forgiveness.
We often think that forgiveness is the end goal of the mercy of God, and while it is very important forgiveness is only part of the process. God’s mercy also brings healing hand in hand with forgiveness. I heard a man tell of the forgiveness he had experienced in his life as he turned to God from a life of crime and addiction. His story did not finish there as he talked about healing for his relationships with his family that had broken down because of his sin. While he accepted that his wife may not every take him back, healing for the hurts that had been inflicted needed to take place. He acknowledged this healing was a part of the process of God’s mercy in his life.
In chapter 14 we are also reminded that restoration is part of God’s mercy. God talks about restoring the land and the people as his children once again. The story of Gomer confirms that, when she was bought back from the marketplace, she wasn’t taken home as a slave or a housekeeper. She was restored to her position as wife. God’s mercy restored her place in the family. Mercy is not a single action, it’s the purchase of freedom through forgiveness, it’s healing from brokenness and the restoration of our position as a child of God. Through God’s mercy we are restored to his family.