Bible. Hosea. English. Authorized.

Hosea begins with the prophet, following God’s commands, marrying a loose woman, siring children and giving them foreshadowing names, throwing the woman out when she cheats, then taking her back in forgiveness. I get the symbolism – the Lord insisting that Israel adhere to its contract with him – but I hope that the opening chapters were merely a parable. Hosea spends the rest of the book showing Israel (especially Ephraim) its sins while promising forgiveness. I was happy that the prophet was as angry at them for how they treated each other as much as for how they disowned their God. Stefan Rudnicki read it in his very deep and precise manner, with restrained passion.
Joel is a very short book that is beautifully written and much quoted. John Rubinstein read it with his usual vehemence. I wondered if that was the best match.
Amos was a rustic who became angered with how God and man were treated under Israel’s heterodox (at best) kings and prophesized so effectively against them that he was told by the government to leave the country. Juliet Mills reads a man who could have been accurately read by someone with a Southern country accent as if he was an offended schoolmistress.… (plus d'informations)