Returning to God and seeking Him is a recurring theme in the book of Hosea (Hosea 3:5; 6:1-3; 14:1). For many of us, "seeking God" is not a new or foreign concept.

Yet, perhaps there have been times where we tried to seek God, but it seems like God was no where to be found.

Interestingly, Hosea 5:6 echoes this. Though God’s people seem to be seeking after God, they will not find Him as He has withdrawn Himself from them!

Why might this be the case? Does God not desire all of us to seek Him?

1) Defiled Hearts

Firstly, God knows our hearts. God knows when His people commit harlotry and are defiled (Hosea 5:3). We may not worship physical idols or commit physical harlotry, but do we have other idols in our hearts? Do we covet for things in this world (Col 3:5)? If our hearts are defiled, how can the Most Holy God dwell in us?

God also sees the pride in our hearts (Hosea 5:5). God Himself has given us the example of perfect humility, coming in the likeness of man and dying on the cross for us. God hates the proud. How can we seek God if we have pride lurking in our hearts?

2) Evil Deeds

Secondly, they do not direct their deeds toward turning to God (Hosea 5:4). This means that though on the surface they seem to seek after God with their flocks and herds (Hosea 5:6), yet the way they went about their daily lives did not reflect a sincere desire of returning to God.

They are like those who "remove a landmark" (Hosea 5:10, Deuteronomy 19:14; 27:17), i.e. they mistreated and cheated one another. This does not reflect the nature of God.

Our God is love, our God is light. If we want to seek after God, the Bible exhorts us to walk in love and walk as children of light (Ephesians 5:1-14). Let us consider our speech and actions in our day to day lives. Do they reflect the image of Christ? Do they display an earnest desire to seek after God?

3) Seeking Foreign Help

Thirdly, the people of God sought after foreign nations. When they were sick and wounded, they turned to Assyria rather than to God (Hosea 5:13).

For us who live in a modern and technologically advanced society, we are accustomed to seeking after help in many forms. For instance, we see a doctor when we are sick. We search Google or ask ChatGPT when we have any questions.

While these are not wrong, the result is that we find it hard to fully let go when we seem to have no answer or solution. We desire to be in full control of our lives.

However, let us not forget that God wants us to wholly trust Him and entrust our lives to Him.

Do we skip church services because we fear that we may not keep up with our studies or work? Do we compromise on our daily cultivation time or time spent on church works because we are stressed and overwhelmed by secular responsibilities?

If so, these might be indicators that we still have yet to fully entrust our lives to God. Throughout the Bible, God promises to care for our needs so long as we put Him first. When we compromise and fail to put God first, we deny ourselves the chance to experience God working in our lives.

May God add to our faith and give us strength to "let go and let God", that we may experience His providence and grace in our lives.

Conclusion

As a result of these various factors, Hosea 5:15 concludes the chapter with God returning to His place, away from His people.

Yet, even then, there still is hope. Though God returns to His place, He in fact is waiting for His people to acknowledge their sins.

To be truly seeking after God, we must sincerely acknowledge our sins and repent.

Perhaps today we have tried to seek God by showing up in church more or accepting more church works. These are all good and right! However, if we still feel like God is distant, or that He is hiding Himself from us, perhaps we could consider whether we are truly seeking Him with all our heart, or whether our "seeking" still remains superficial. Perhaps there is still a part of our hearts or a part of our lives that we are reluctant to give to God.

Hosea chapter 5 teaches us that to truly seek God, God wants us to acknowledge our sins and repent. He wants us to resolve, cleanse our hearts, take action, and make real changes in how we lead our day to day lives. He wants us to rely whole heartedly on Him.

May we sincerely seek the Lord with all our heart, and may He be found by us.

"And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart."
Jeremiah 29:13 NKJV