Burned Pancakes, Hosea 7

Boy, there is nothing better than a fluffy, hot pancake for breakfast – although I make them more for supper than breakfast – not much of morning person myself! In Hosea 7 we read a lot about the region of Ephraim, which is part of the nation of Israel. Hosea, being divinely inspired by God,  basically calls Ephraim a burned pancake! Yuck!


God just spills His heart about His desire for Israel in Hosea 7:1. God wants to heal the nation, and more specifically, the people in the nation. However, they just keep arrogantly sinning like God cannot even see what they are doing. God compares Ephraim and its people three times to a heated oven. I think we can even better understand this in terms of a “pre-heated” oven. Why do you pre-heat an oven? You pre-heat in prepartation to cook something.


Let’s examine these three instances:
1. Verse 4: They are all adulters, Like an oven heated by the baker who ceases to stir up the fire from the kneading of the dough until it is leavened.
2. Verse 6: For their hearts are like an oven as they approach their plotting;…
3. Verse 7: All of them are hot like an oven and they consume their rulers; All their kings have fallen…


Woe…that is a whole lot of heat. Let’s unpack this a little. First, the oven analogy is used in reference to their lust. Now you may be thinking of sexual sins and that is probably part of the meaning here. However, these people were deeply engaged in idolatry, which is cheating on God. Remember to whom Hosea was married –  Gomer, an adultress. This parallel  in Hosea’s life is reflective of us committing adultery before our God. Their hearts were inflamed by evil desires (Matthew Henry commentary).  The things that our heart and mind dwell on is the fuel for this heated oven. What is it that has captured your heart and your mind friends? Whatever it is will fuel your passions. 


The next thing that is stoking the heated oven is their plotting. The people of Ephraim (and the nation of Israel) were “plotting” to do evil things. So many times we say we “accidently” sin – oops – didn’t mean to do that God. But so many times we premeditate sin and plot what we are going to do. It makes me think of Aaron in Exodus 32. While Moses is on Mt. Sinai receiving instructions from God, the people get restless and want something to worship. Well, Aaron is more than happy to oblige. Notice that in Ex. 32:4, Aaron fashions a gold molten calf for an idol. He intentionally crafted this idol with tools. Later, when Moses comes down off he mountain, Aaron tells him that this golden calf just jumped out of the fire (v. 24). Hogwash – Aaron plotted and crafted this idol – it was not an accident. Let your mind be so occupied with the Word of God, that there is no room for this kind of plotting and premeditation in your sin.


Finally, Hosea tells us that the heat from this oven consumed their rulers. If you study the book of I Samuel (chapter 8 in particular), you will find that God told the nation of Israel that He was their King. However, they rejected Him and wanted to be like the pagan people around them and have a king. So God gave them a king. Now their kings are dropping like flies. Whenever, we go against God’s plans in favor of our own, we will always come out in worse shape. Why do we think we know better than God and that He is just ignorning our sin?

So, a half-baked, burned cake is what Ephraim is like according to verse 8. They are mixing their so called worship to God with worship of their idols.They are mixed, but not turned. Imagine mixing up your pancake batter and pouring it on a hot griddle. You watch it  bubble and steam to just the right moment, but then you do nothing. The pancake just burns because you fail to take the proper action. This is what  Ephraim was like. They knew what to do, but they refused to do it. So they became as worthless as a burned cake. Don’t let your life become a burned cake by not taking the proper action – let God take your life and heal you as He so longs to do.