Ephraim is oppressed and broken in judgement, Because he willingly walked by human precept.
Hosea 5:11 NKJV
Often, we fall into problems that we are not able to decipher what to do or how to come out. There is an oppression that can come on a man when he has decided to go in his own way without consulting with God. A man who would say he has given his life to Christ can no longer live by himself. He cannot be working in his own ways and precepts. In Hosea Chapter 5, we see God, talking about Ephraim and Israel. And He said that they have committed harlotry. In the sight of God, harlotry is not just that a person who is married has neglected his spouse and then joined with a prostitute. No.
Harlotry in this context is that you have left your first love. You have left your intimacy with God to now start following the things that you think can help you in your way. Harlotry is when you completely ignore the dictates of God. When you completely ignore the instructions that God is giving unto you as a person. We see that a lot of people fall into errors and problems because they have decided to walk in their human understanding. There is a limit to where a person’s understanding can take him. A human being cannot see his own end. Therefore to ignore the God that can see your end even from your beginning is foolishness.
We, as children of God, must therefore continue to walk in the standard of God. However, we cannot say that we want to live our lives by ourselves. Our life is subject to what God says. Any person who says he has given his life to Jesus must live according to the word of God.
Moreover, we see the many problems that happened to Ephraim and Israel. It was because they decided that they were going to go in their own way. So, God was saying that there is the harlotry of Ephraim and Israel has been defiled. Because Israel has joined himself unto another thing that is not of God. The moment you leave God and focus on other things, you are practising harlotry. Then, what will now become of such a person? Oppression and brokenness. For us to continue to live under the saving grace of the Lord, we must decide that we will not work in our own human wisdom. We must walk according to what God says.
