Oholah
First of all, let’s talk about the name. The name Oholah literally means, “her
tent.” The word for tent from which this
name is derived is a word that is commonly used in the Old Testament as a
reference to the worship place of God – the tabernacle, if you will. Therefore, many people think that this name
is symbolic because God calls attention to the fact that it is not His tent,
but “her tent.”
From this perspective, it makes sense that God is calling Samaria
– the capital of the Northern Kingdom of Israel – Oholah. The northern kingdom created their own
worship spaces after the Hebrew kingdom split apart. Soon after that the worship centers in the
northern kingdom were worshiping all kinds of false gods. It wasn’t too much longer after that and the
northern kingdom was in exile under the Assyrians.
What is important to note in the opening section about Oholah is
that idolatry is the root issue. But
notice from where God says that the idolatry comes. God blames the idolatry on the foreign
powers. In fact, God specifically names
Assyria. However, we know historically
speaking that it was more than just the Assyrians. But God’s premise is declared. When we open ourselves up to the world,
idolatry is sure to come quickly.
The question is, why is God so upset about associating with
non-Hebrew nations? After all, are we
not called to go out among the world and proclaim God to the world?
If we look at how the northern kingdom related to Assyria we get a
much clearer answer. You see, Syria –
not to be confused with Assyria – was often threatening to expand into
Israel. We know from Assyrian historical
evidence that on several occasions the kings of the northern kingdom pledged
allegiance to Assyria if they would come to their aid against Syria. Now we get to the heart of the matter. God doesn’t mind so much that Israel and
Assyria talked to one another. What God
minded was that instead of trusting in God to be their salvation, they trusted
in Assyria. God’s problem is not one of
association, it is one of relational trust.
Now we can understand why God feels as though Israel – Oholah – is
acting like a prostitute. Oholah fell in
love with Assyrian power. Oholah began
to worship the foreign gods. Oholah got
a good taste of what Assyria could do with that power and God was not there to
stop Assyria because the covenant between God and Israel had been broken.
Oholibah
As we did with Oholah, let’s talk about the name Oholibah. This name means “my tent is in her.” Again, this name really makes a ton of
sense. Oholibah is the name that God
gives to the southern kingdom of Judah.
Within Judah was Jerusalem.
Jerusalem was where the tabernacle rested last and where the temple to
God was permanently built. Literally,
the tent of God was within her.
As for the sins of Oholibah, God calls her sin worse. Even though the kingdom of Judah had far more
kings who tried to reawaken the nation from a spiritual perspective, from God’s
perspective the sin of Judah was worse.
You see, Judah lusted after the power of Assyria as well. Judah lusted after an alliance with Assyria
as a protector. But when Assyria drew
close and almost captured Jerusalem, the people cried out to God and God saved
them.
Yet, they did not stay loyal to God in any sense of the
matter. As soon as the threat was gone,
the people of Judah started lusting after the power of Babylon. When Babylon drew near, the people of Judah
called out to Egypt for help. You see,
instead of trusting God and being in relationship with Him, Judah turned from
Assyria to Babylon to Egypt. And that’s
only counting the big super-powers of the day.
Time and time again Judah turned to other nations for help rather than
turning to God. This is why God says
that in the end Oholibah’s sin is actually worse than Oholah’s sin.
Judgment
What is the consequence of idolatry? What is the consequence of turning to
everyone but God for help? What is the
consequence for spiritual adultery?
God allows the Hebrew people to get that for which they ask. In a sense, this is actually brilliant from
God. Israel wanted so much help from
Assyria that they eventually got to become a part of their empire as they
marched off into captivity. Judah wanted
to be so much like the nations that they eventually got to become a part of
them for a while as they were marched off into captivity. It’s a brilliant punishment! Haven’t you ever heard of a child who lusts
after something so much that when they finally gorge themselves on it they make
themselves sick? That’s what God is
doing here!
What is interesting is the terminology that the Lord uses. God talks about how the children will be
treated. Children are the natural
consequence of relations. God wanted
spiritual children between His people and Him.
Instead, the Hebrew people turned to the other nations and created
non-spiritual children who likewise lusted after the things of the world. God would have protected His children. But spiritually, there is nothing of God in
the Hebrew people as they go into exile.
God also speaks of nakedness, lewdness, and being laid bare. When the Hebrew people were pursuing alliances
with these super-powers they would send lavish gifts. They would invite emissaries in to see their
stately palaces. The Hebrew people would
put on a show for these foreign dignitaries while not even honoring God with a
token of appreciation. So God would
allow their stateliness to fall away.
They took pride in their affluence; it would be taken away.
It is sad, but true. Human
beings rebel against God. When we do, we
usually get what we seek after. Then we
need to repent, rebuild, and repair. But
it all comes back to our relationship with God.
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