The stigma of cowardice applies to her as she yielded to temptation and turned away from the sanctity of marriage, engaging instead in unlawful behavior, disregarding that which leads to righteousness. This reflects the condition of the Jewish synagogue in its relationship with Almighty God: He called it into spiritual union through Moses, likening her to a woman who engaged in idolatry within Egypt, adopting the mindset and worship of the Egyptians. He even welcomed her into His household. Yet, when she became ensnared in her former defilements and chose to stray by serving her own creations, He repudiated her, severing her from His fellowship, casting her aside as one despised and cowardly. As stated by a holy prophet to the Israelites, “Judge your mother, judge, for she is not my wife, and I am not her husband: I will remove her harlotries from my sight and her adulteries from between her breasts. I will strip her naked and expose her as on the day she was born; I will make her like a desert and a parched land, and I will cause her to die of thirst: I will show no mercy to her children, for they are the children of harlotry, for their mother has played the harlot and has brought shame upon those who have borne her” (Hos. 2:2-5). God clarifies their transgressions through Ezekiel, asking, “Son of man, will you judge Oholah and Oholibah, Jerusalem and Samaria, and reveal their sins? For they have committed adultery, and blood is on their hands; they have led their children through the fire. They have done these things to me, and they have profaned my sacred things and my Sabbaths. They have hardened their hearts with their idols and entered my holy places to desecrate them” (Ezekiel 23:36-39). Ten tribes inhabited Samaria and half the tribe of Ephraim, while in Jerusalem were Judah and half of Benjamin; yet both groups acted wickedly—indeed, with unruly zeal, reaching the peak of folly, they practiced spiritual adultery through the idols they fashioned for themselves, diverting their hearts from God, who had taken them as His bride. Thus, the Almighty addressed the people of Judah through Jeremiah, saying, “Your forehead has become like that of a harlot; you are not ashamed of your actions. Have you not called me your Father and leader of your virginity?” (Jer. 3:3-4). It is thus fitting to describe the wayward offspring of the Jews as forsaken, cowardly, and hated from their youth. However, this message is aimed at the Gentiles, indicating that they are not referred to in the same manner as the rejected wife who has long been forsaken and scorned. There exists a glaring contrast in this calling: the Jewish synagogue was partially veiled in darkness, as the wise Paul notes, their eyes were blinded and their posture became unsteady, constantly fixated on worldly matters (Romans 11:10). In contrast, the Gentiles did not suffer such darkness but rather experienced illumination; their spirits were refined, and they lacked none of the divine promises that Israel held. Instead, they were wholly embraced by Christ, granted salvation, released from the chains of sin, and transfigured into the light of the Son of His love. Hence, their calling diverges significantly from that of the rejected and despised woman. Yet, He asserts, “For a brief moment I have forsaken you, but with great mercy I will show compassion.” In former times, as the disciple of Christ asserts, God permitted the nations to follow their own ways (Acts 14:16); this implies a temporary abandonment, since, even if it may seem prolonged, it is still a short period compared to the extensive and infinite grace that is to come. Similarly, He indicates that while His wrath may be brief, His everlasting mercy will prevail: the period of anger is brief in comparison to the boundless mercies of God, who has rescued you from darkness and ushered you into the kingdom of His beloved Son. Understand this great mercy as that which Christ affords; it delivers from all impurities, absolves from judgment and retribution, leads through sanctification into fellowship with Him, adorns you with the privileges of sonship, and makes you heirs of eternal life.
THEOSIS