Though they called them to the Most High, none at all would exalt him. How shall I give thee up, Ephraim? How shall I deliver thee, Israel? How shall I make thee as Admar? How shall I set thee as Zeboim? Mine heart is turned within me. My repentings are kindled together. I will not execute the fierceness of mine anger. I will not return to destroy Ephraim. For I am God, and not man, the Holy One in the midst of thee, and I will not enter into the city. Now, verse number 10. They shall walk after the Lord, he shall roar like a lion. When he shall roar, then the children shall tremble from the west. They shall tremble as a bird out of Egypt and as a dove out of the land of Assyria. And I will place them in their houses, saith the Lord. So verse 10, we've seen that this setup that we've had about God's incredible love for his people and keeping a remnant. Remember, the Assyrians would go back and make sure that everybody was dead, but God providentially left a remnant of people who were able to get away, therefore keeping the prosperity of His people. Now we look at verse number 10 here. They shall walk after the Lord. He shall roar like a lion. Not only would God not destroy all of Israel, He would preserve a remnant that would actually run or walk toward Him and not run away from the fierceness of His wrath. Imagine that. The people would be drawn by God's power to Him and not away from Him. This was the incredible thing about God's will and God's providence and His sovereignty upon those people. Now, let's go back to chapter 3 for a second. Chapter 3 of Hosea. That's what I like about books like Hosea. They're cyclical. They repeat themselves over and over again. And I know sometimes that seems irritating, but there's a reason behind it. God wants to get his point across. Chapter 3. Let's read the whole chapter. How's that? Five verses. Then said the Lord unto me, Go yet, love a woman, beloved of her friend, yet an adulteress according to the love of the Lord toward the children of Israel. who look to other gods and love flagons of wine. So we look back and now we see this great love of how Hosea could love this adulteress because of the adulterous people of Israel and God's love toward them. So I bought her to me for 15 pieces of silver, and for a homer of barley, and a half homer of barley." That's just a slave's wages. Much like Jesus, Judas, selling out for 30 pieces of silver. The parallel is there. And I said unto her, Thou shalt abide for me many days, thou shalt not play the harlot, and thou shalt not be for another man, so will I also be for thee. Now this is Israel talking about the future faithfulness of his bride, Israel. For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and without teraphim." Afterward, that time in verse 4 deals with the space of time between the testaments, as we call it. No word of God. No nothing. They would be left to their own. as they saw was right in their own eyes. Afterward, shall the children of Israel return and seek the Lord their God and David their King, and shall fear the Lord in His goodness in the latter days." You know what's neat about here, about them seeking after David their King? By the time Hosea wrote this, King David had been dead and buried. So David, their king, is the very person of Jesus Christ on his throne in the latter days. Let's go over to Jeremiah. Somebody's going to put a stop on me here because this is Jeremiah 23. I love the whole chapter. Jeremiah chapter 23. And when I get to verse, when I end verse 8, somebody ring a buzzer or something that can get me to stop. How can I stop at verse 8? But I will. Verse 23, Woe be unto the pastors that destroy and scatter the sheep of my pastor, saith the Lord. Now remember, as priests like people, as people like priests. The priests were supposed to be pastors or shepherds to guide the people in God's love. Therefore, thus saith the Lord God of Israel..." I want to try something here. Can we apply Israel and change it to the church as some do? No, it doesn't happen here. The application is sort of true, but this is dealing with Israel. Therefore, thus saith the Lord God of Israel against the pastors that feed my people. Ye have scattered my flock, and driven them away, and have not visited them. Behold, I will visit upon you the evil of your doing, saith the Lord. And I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all countries, whither I have driven them, and will bring them again to their folds, and there they shall be fruitful and increase. And I will set up shepherds over them, which shall feed them, and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall be lacking, saith the Lord." Again, another portent to the millennial kingdom, to their future. Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous, capital B, branch. and a king shall reign and prosper and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. Verse 6, and in his days Judah shall be saved and Israel shall dwell safely and this is his name whereby he shall be called the Lord our God. Therefore behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that they shall no more, saith the Lord liveth, which brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt, but the Lord liveth which brought up and which let the seed of the house of Israel out of places, and from all countries whither I had driven them, and they shall dwell in their own land." I'm ending right there. If you desire to, when you're at the church, read the rest of the chapter. It gets kind of sad and victorious at the same time. Ezekiel chapter 6. Again, I'm going to go through verse 8. It sounds familiar. We have a bunch of 8's this morning. And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Son of man, set thy face toward the mountains of Israel, and prophecy against them. And say, ye mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord God. Thus saith the Lord God to the mountains, and to the hills, and to the rivers, and to the valleys, Behold, I, even I, will bring a sword upon you, and I will destroy your high places. And your altars shall be desolate, and your images shall be broken, and I will cast down your slain men before your idols. And I will lay the dead carcasses of the children of Israel before their idols, and I will scatter your bones found about your altars." That's what you call severity, isn't it? In all your dwelling places the city shall be laid waste, and the high places shall be desolate, that your altars may be laid waste and made desolate, and your idols may be broken and cease, and your images may be cut down, and your works may be abolished. And the slain shall fall in the midst of you, and ye shall know that I am the Lord. Verse number 8, actually I'm going to go to 10. Yet will I leave a remnant that ye may have some that shall escape the sword among the nations, when ye shall be scattered through the countries. And they that escape of you shall remember me among the nations, where they shall be carried captives, because I am broken with their poorish heart. which hath departed from Me, and with their eyes which go a-whoring after idols. And they shall loathe themselves for the evils which they have committed in their abominations. And they shall know that I am the Lord, and that I have not said in vain that I would do this evil unto them." Stop there before I go on. So we see this remnant that God would preserve that would walk with Him and toward Him in the face of His judgments. Let's go back to Hosea and we definitely have not exhausted this topic and neither will we. Back to Hosea chapter 11. If I had Daniel 11 that would be a good place to go too. They shall walk after the Lord. He shall roar like a lion. So I put a title on this morning's message, The Roar of Victory. See, in most places in the scripture, this roar of the lion deals with a lion devouring its prey, being in judgment. In this place, it's a roar of victory. Because it points once again to who? Jesus. Let's go to the book of Revelation. Revelation chapter 5. See what a blessing it is that we can go to the book of Revelation. Imagine what they did when they didn't have a book of Revelation. And imagine the liberal scholars who believe the book of Revelation shouldn't be there. Verse number 1. So then I saw in the right hand of Him that sat on the throne, this is the heavenly throne, this is God the Father on the throne, a book written within and on the back side sealed with seven seals. So this would be the book with the scroll of the judgments that were coming. And there was only one that could open that scroll and we'll see who that is in a second. And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, try it this way, strong and loud, who is worthy to open the book and to loose the seals thereof. Now that angel is in heaven. His voice roared throughout all of the universe. And no man in heaven nor in earth, neither under the earth, was able to open the book, neither to look thereon. And I wept much, because no man was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look thereon. And one of the elders said unto me, weep not, Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof." Now, put on your sanctified Christian thinking caps, and how has this Lion of the tribe of Judah, who is the the root of David, how did he prevail? And why can he open that book? Well, because he was God and man. All of those judgments that are brought in the book of Revelation, they are all poured upon him in his flesh, and then they will be poured out in this world. He's prevailed by giving victory over sin and death through His body. How do you stand today? We stand through faith in Christ Jesus. There is victory to the overcomers. How do we overcome? By the blood of the Lamb. There's no other way. You can't outdo your next-door neighbor. You can't even be better than yourself. It's impossible. How can I improve? How can I do better? How can I get a better job? All these things are insignificant. But the one thing you can know is that you've overcome sin and death and destruction through the blood of the Lamb. So this, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, He hath prevailed to open the book. And then we also have to think that the book we hold in our hand, He has held back nothing from us as well. He's worthy. Let's go way back to Genesis. Genesis chapter 49. Love this as Isaac is doling out his blessings to his sons who would be the tribes of Israel. Let's go to verse 8. Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise. Thy hand shall be in the neck of thine enemies, Thy father's children shall bow down before thee. Judah is a lion's whelp. From the prey, my son, thou art gone up. He stooped down, he couched as a lion, and as an old lion, who shall rise him up? Now look at verse 10. The scepter shall not depart from Judah. nor a lawgiver from between His feet until Shiloh come. And unto Him shall the gathering of the people be." This Shiloh that would come would be the very Prince of Peace who would reign from the tribe of Judah through David, who would be Jesus Christ. Now, think of that. Think of the promises of God. Because if we looked at the life of Judah, he wasn't a very savory man. But yet, God made the promise from the foundation of the world that Christ would come through Judah. And He has maintained that. In spite of all the human failings, where man would find things to be impossible, God has made it not only possible, but a reality that Christ would come. Now we'll go to the book of Joel. Joel 3.16. The very next book after Hosea. We start with verse 1 of course. In those days and that time, when I shall bring again the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem, I will also gather all nations and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat. and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel whom they have scattered among the nations and parted my land and they have cast lots for my people and have given a boy for a harlot and sold a girl for wine that they might drink." Sounds like they had open borders then, right? That's really what did happen. Yea, and what have ye to do with me, O Tyre and Sidon and all the coasts of Palestine? Will ye render me a recompense? And if ye recompense me swiftly and speedily, will I return your recompense upon your own head? Because you have taken my silver and gold and have carried into your temples my goodly, pleasant things. The children also of Judah and the children of Jerusalem have He sold unto the Grecians, that you might remove them far from their border." Yes, remember that was the Assyrians like to kill everybody. The other nations wanted to take over their societies. That's what they were desiring to do. Behold, I will raise them out of the place where ye have sold them, and will return your recompense upon your head. Yes, this is indeed talking about the remnant that God would preserve. And I will sell your sons and daughters into the hand of the children of Judah, and they shall sell them to the Sabeans, to a people far off. For the Lord hath spoken it. Proclaim ye this among the Gentiles. Prepare war. Wake up the mighty men. Let all the men of war draw near. Let them come up. Beat your plowshares into swords. and your pruning hooks into spears. Let the weak say, I am strong. Assemble yourselves and come, all ye heathen, and gather yourselves together round about. Tither cause thy mighty ones to come down, O Lord. Let the heathen be wakened and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat. For there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about. Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Come, get you down, for the press is full, the fats overflow, for their wickedness is great. Multitudes, multitudes, in the valley of decision, for the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision. The sun and moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining. The LORD also shall roar out of Zion, and utter His voice from Jerusalem, and the heavens and the earth shall shake." Look at the end here. But, the LORD will be the hope of His people, and the strength of the children of Israel. So shall ye know that I am the LORD your God dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain. Then shall Jerusalem be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her no more." So this roar of a lion to those that were without, this roar of devastation. But to those who were within of Israel, it was the show of victory. The roar of victory that God indeed was going to return them, protect them, and return them into their place. Yes, the future is bright and secure for Israel. As one word says, where he shall roar out of out of Shall Roar Like a Lion, there are a couple of real old manuscripts that say His Word shall be as a lion that roars. You know, God's Word. Think of how powerful that is. By the Word, He framed, in the book of Colossians, He framed the whole world. I can't even frame a bathroom. I have a hard time, but God literally did this. And in between his hands, he created the whole world. There is nothing that's too difficult for our God. He can preserve his people. As much of a miracle that was, that his people would be preserved And even greater miracle is that He gave salvation to us, to the Gentiles. Because we don't deserve it. Remember, we weren't part of the original chosen people. We weren't part of the Abrahamic covenant. But we are this wild olive tree that was grafted in. What hope we have. Amen? Verse number 11 back in Hosea, or actually the end of verse 10. When he shall roar, then the children shall tremble from the west. See what's neat here is that roaring would cause the dispersed people to come back to him. Instead of fleeing from the wrath of God, the people would now come to him with a sense of great awe. It's that song we sing all the time. Were you there when they crucified my Lord? It causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble. We think of this trembling being in fear, but this is in great awe. Do you ever listen to any radio talk shows at all? This sounds so simple, but you hear people, I'm a first-time caller. They tremble at the fact they're talking with some guy on the radio. Think of what these Israelites, when they realized that God was calling them out of those nations, they had such a trembling that would motivate them. Such an awe. Look at what it says next to you. when he shall roar, then the children shall tremble from the west." It's weird, because there's no, this isn't really the word for west. The word that's used here for west is actually from the sea. But, give you a hint, what's to the west of the nation of Israel? The sea, that's right. In other words, he brings people from back, from afar off, wherever they may be scattered, He would bring them back. Now, I'll try to go through 11 quickly. They shall tremble as a bird out of Egypt. Now, let's go back to Hosea chapter 7 for a second. It's a bird out of Egypt. Verse 11 says, Ephraim also is like a silly dove without heart. They call to Egypt, they shall go to Assyria When they shall go, I will spread my net upon them. I will bring them down as the fowls of the heaven. I will chastise them as their congregation hath heard. Woe unto them that they have fled from me. Destruction unto them, because they have transgressed against me. Though I have redeemed them, yet they have spoken lies against me, and they have not cried unto me with their heart when they howled upon their beds. They assemble themselves for corn and wine, and they revel against me." Now, so you see them, there is this silly dove. In other words, they were trying to escape from God at the time, and they were aimless, wandering around, because they didn't know exactly where to go. But now, the tide has turned. I like to tell this little personal story of a horse that my aunt and uncle used to have. A great, well-behaved horse when you were out in the distance. But when you were heading back to the house, as soon as he saw that barn, hold on. You couldn't restrain him. Nothing would stop him from going directly to that barn. So hence you'd have to hold him by the neck so you wouldn't get decapitated by the barn door. was a horse that knew where he was going. And likewise, the people of Israel, when God roars, then the children shall tremble, from the west they shall tremble, as a bird out of Egypt, and as a dove out of the land of Assyria. Now, we usually see doves in a kind of movie, right? But when they are on a direct flight, they are one of the swiftest birds around. So they did this. God loves me. I'm going to go racing right back to Him. Hey man, what a great picture that is. They shall tremble. like a bird out of Egypt, and as a dove out of the hand of Syria. See, when Israel, I'll put my own metaphor here, when Israel left the nest, they were lost. But when God called them back, they knew exactly, number one, who was calling, and that number two, his love for them. would be eternal and secure. And I must say, eternally secure. Amen? Just as our salvation, it's not based upon what we do. When we base it upon what we do, we fail. But when we base it upon God's will, Amen. With shuddering, stuttering and trembling, the Lord would bring his people back to the fold. Though they didn't deserve it, God kept that remnant. And I will place them in their houses, saith the Lord. Who is it? that places them back in their houses. It's Jesus, the Lord. I'll close in Ezekiel 36. Ezekiel 36, I'm going to skip all the way down to verse 21. But I had pity for my holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the heathen, whither they went. That's what the beginning of the chapter is all about there. Sins, of course. Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord God, I do not this for your sakes, O house of Israel, but for mine holy name's sake, which ye have profaned among the heathen, whither ye went. And I will sanctify My great name, which was profaned among the heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them, and the heathen shall know that I am the Lord, saith the Lord God, when I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes. For I will take you from among the heathen and gather you out of all countries and will bring you into your own land. I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, and will cleanse you a new heart, read Jeremiah 31 as well, a new heart also will I give you and a new spirit will I put within you and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh and I will give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you and cause you to walk in my statues and you shall keep my judgments and do them. and ye shall dwell in the land that I gave your fathers, and ye shall be My people, and I will be your God. I will also save you from all your uncleanness, and I will call for the corn and will increase it, and lay no famine upon you. And I will multiply the fruit of the tree, and the increase of the field, that ye should receive no more reproach of famine, among the heathen. Then shall you remember your own evil ways and your doings that you were not good, and shall loathe yourselves in your own sight for your iniquities and for your abominations." See, there's part of the gospel message right there. It's not about you, not about your goodness. It's about God and His goodness. Not for your sakes do I this, saith the Lord God, be it known unto you, be ashamed and confounded for your own ways, O house of Israel. Thus saith the Lord God, in the day that I shall have cleansed you from all your iniquities, I will also cause you to dwell in the cities, and the waste shall be builded. And the desolate land shall be tilled, whereas it lay desolate in the sight of all that pass by. And they shall say, this land that was desolate has become like the garden of Eden." I won't go there, but read Revelation 22 sometime. and the waste and desolate and ruined cities are become fenced and are inhabited, then the heathen that are left round about you shall know that I, the Lord, build the ruined places and plant that which is desolate. I, the Lord, have spoken it, and I will do it. Thus saith the Lord God, I will yet for this be inquired of by the house of Israel, to do it for them. I will increase them with men like a flock, as the holy flock, as the flock of Jerusalem in her solemn feast. So shall the waste cities be filled with flocks of men, and they shall know that I am the Lord." I like how it says, flocks of men. Being like sheep. under the Lord. Amen. I like the beginning where we read, we read here, I will sanctify my great name which was profaned among the heathen. See, I'm so thankful that I was one of those that profaned God. I think we all were. That's what something Ezekiel does. He doesn't hold back anything. He doesn't recite the Ten Commandments, but he shows that you're broken at all. You are profound. You are not profound. You are dirty. You're wicked. Again, a very popular message. But the reality is in spite of their wickedness, God still has this plan of redemption for the nation of Israel And because of our wickedness, our lawlessness, God has given us His Son. Of the seed of Abraham. Of the root of Jesse. And He'll be sitting on the throne of David. Amen? Why not to trust? Why not trust Him? No matter what. No matter what stage of life you're in. But to just believe the Good News. the gospel, again for saints and for sinners to be saved, our only hope. Amen.