Justin Houtz

Hi. I’m Justin. I write code and things but enough about that…

Let’s talk about Jesus.

  • Daily Bible Study

    Hosea 13-14; Psalms 100, 102; Hebrews 5

    DateVersionReading Plan
    July 8, 2026ESV (2016)ESV Life Journal Plan – 2026

    Hosea 13-14

    Observation & Interpretation

    Hosea continues in description of Israel’s idolatry and rebellion against the LORD and of the consequences they would incur because of their guilt. God through Hosea declares that He alone is God and that there is no savior besides Him (Hos. 13:4). He knew them in the wilderness, but when they grazed they became full and their heart was lifted up, forgetting God (Hos. 13:6). The result would be divine judgment, symbolized by predatory animals that would tear open their breast and rip them open (Hos. 13:8). The LORD destroys them because they are against Him (Hos. 13:9). The LORD through Hosea asks where is their king and that He gave them a king but took him away in his wrath (Hos. 13:11). Graphic language regarding God’s judgment continues, that Samaria would bear her guilt and fall by the sword. Their little ones shall be dashed to pieces and their pregnant women ripped open (Hos. 13:16).

    Chapter 14 opens with a plea for the people to return to God, that they had stumbled because of their iniquity (Hos. 14:1). The LORD through Hosea tells them what to say to the LORD, to ask that He take away all iniquity and confess that Assyria shall not save them. Only in the LORD does the orphan find mercy (Hos. 14:3). The people shall return and dwell beneath God’s shadow, to flourish like the grain and blossom like the vine (Hos. 14:7). The LORD through rhetorical question speaks of how He has nothing to do with idols but instead is an evergreen tree from Whom comes their fruit (Hos. 14:8). The chapter ends with a call to all who are wise and discerning, “emphasizing that wisdom and prudence lie in obedience to the ways of the Lord.” (BBC)

    Application

    The vivid language used of God’s judgment of His people for their wickedness and rebellion against Him should strike a healthy fear into our hearts. God is gracious and kind but He also perfectly righteous and just. Sin, transgression and iniquity have no share in God’s economy and incur His due wrath. This is not to scare us into obligatory compliance, but to realize that the Creator God of all things is infinitely holy and solely deserving of our exclusive worship. May this be a clarion call for those who are functionally ascribing ultimate worth and value in something or someone else, to turn from such idolatry and pursue the Lord in supreme devotion.

    Hebrews 5

    Observation & Interpretation

    The author shifts focus from the previous chapter to the priests who were chosen among men and appointed to act on behalf of men (Heb. 5:1). Such priests can deal gently with the ignorant and wayward because he himself is beset with sin (Heb. 5:2). “His own frail flesh equipped him to understand the problems his people were facing.” (BBC). Because of this, he is obligated to offer sacrifice for his own sins just as he does for the sins of others (Heb. 5:3). This honor is given to him by God in the same way it was given to Aaron, Moses’ brother and Israel’s first high priest (Heb. 5:4).

    Comparison is made to Christ who was also appointed as High Priest and reference is made to Ps. 2:7 and Ps. 110:4 of the One who bestowed such an appointment (Heb. 5:5-6). The author speaks of Jesus’s days of the flesh, offering up prayers and supplications with loud cries and tears to the One who is able to save Him from death and He was heard because of His reverence (Heb. 5:7). The Believer’s Bible Commentary provides necessary context and explanation:

    Christ’s prayer was not that He might be saved from dying; after all, to die for sinners was His very purpose in coming to the world (John 12:27). His prayer was that He might be delivered out of death (JND), that His soul might not be left in Hades. This prayer was answered when God raised Him from the dead. He was heard because of His godly fear.

    Being made perfect, Jesus became the Source of eternal salvation to all who obey Him as He was designated by God as High Priest after the order of Melchizedek (Heb. 5:10).

    The author shifts again to focus on his hearers in an address of admonition, that they had become dull of hearing, remaining in a state of immaturity, needing someone to teach them the basic principles and oracles of God (Heb. 5:11-12). They needed milk rather than solid food and everyone who requires milk is unskilled for the word of righteousness since he is a child (Heb. 5:13). Solid food, however, is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil (Heb. 5:14).

    Application

    It should persist as an ever-fresh wonder that the Lord Jesus has been appointed to be our faithful High Priest. He lives to intercede on our behalf, seated at the right hand of throne of the majesty on high. May we take in this glorious truth and the exhortation of the Hebrews author, to strive toward maturity and “grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.” (Eph. 4:15b-16).

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