I compared the book of Hosea to the book of Proverbs. In Hosea, God tells Hosea to marry a prostitute, Gomer, to signify his displeasure of how the people of Israel were sinning and worshiping other Gods. Gomer sinned giving birth to three children. She eventually left Hosea; but God tells Hosea to go get her and bring her back to his home. This decision signifies that God was willing to forgive Israel for their sins. Proverbs is a book of wisdom with no common story from chapter to chapter unlike Hosea.
In both Hosea and Proverbs, God wants to be known as the sovereign God. Throughout Hosea, God complains and identifies sins the people of Israel committed. For example, in Hosea 8:6, God tells the people: “This calf you worship, O’Israel, was crafted by your won hands! It is not God! Therefore, it must be smashed to bits.” In Hosea 8:13, God says, “The people of Israel love their rituals of sacrifice, but to me their sacrifices are all meaningless.” He urgently pleads with them to change their ways. Similarly, in Proverbs 5:22, the writer warns that “an evil man is held captive by his own sins; they are ropes that catch and hold him.”
Even though God warns against sinning, he shows that he is a forgiving God in both books. In Hosea 13:8, God tells the people of Israel: O Israel, stay award from idols! I am the one who answers your prayers and cares for you. I am a tree that is always green; all your fruit comes from me. In Proverbs 18:10, the writers asserts that “the name of the Lord is a strong tower and the godly run to him and is safe.”
God hurts when his people sin. But he redeems them when they turn back to him.