In this commentary, Old Testament scholar Bo Lim and theologian Daniel Castelo help the church recover and read the prophetic book of Hosea in a way that is both faithful to its message and relevant to our contemporary context. Although Hosea is rich with imagery and metaphor that can be difficult to interpret, Lim and Castelo show that with its focus on corporate and structural sin it contains an important message for today’s church. Critically engaging the ancient biblical text, Lim provides a running commentary on Hosea, which is interspersed throughout with theological essays by Castelo. Their interdisciplinary work offers a constructive model for how the church might read and proclaim the message of Hosea today.
For more from the Two Horizons commentary series, see here.
Lim and Castelo have written an up-to-date commentary with a compelling combination of critical alertness and theological sensibility. Probing the deep prophetic claims of the book of Hosea that draw us into the mysterious fidelity of God, they offer their commentary in readable essays that are not cluttered by the usual minutiae of most commentaries. This is a welcome read!
—Walter Brueggemann, William Marcellus McPheeters Professor of Old Testament Emeritus, Columbia Theological Seminary
This skillful collaboration is a model of how thoughtful, balanced, and rigorous scholarship may serve the theological enterprise. The challenges of reading and understanding Hosea are formidable, but one gains from this fruitful pairing of biblical scholar and theologian an informative, lucid, and theologically profound guide to the prophetic book. Whether one is looking for exegetical help or seeking to understand Hosea's contemporary voice, this commentary will prove indispensable.
—Michael Legaspi, professor, Pennsylvania State University
Bo H. Lim is associate professor of Old Testament at Seattle Pacific University and Seminary.
Daniel Castelo is associate professor of dogmatic and constructive theology at Seattle Pacific University and Seminary. He is also the author of Theological Theodicy.