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Amor em Ruínas

Amor em Ruínas: Israel's historical and political context

To understand Amor em Ruínas, we must travel back centuries to the political crises, material prosperity and spiritual weakness of Hosea's Israel.

3 min readBy Editorial team

To understand Amor em Ruínas and the political context of the time, let us travel back centuries…

Hosea's story takes place in one of Israel's most turbulent periods. The prophet lived during the eighth century BC, an era marked by opulence and lust, and conversely by social inequality and political violence. The people were spiritually far from God, yet politically they appeared stable.

The Bible names the kings on the throne at the time in Hosea 1:1: *“The word of the Lord that came to Hosea… in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam, son of Joash, king of Israel.” (Hosea 1:1)*

While the Kingdom of Judah in the south had some stability under kings such as Hezekiah, the Kingdom of Israel in the north faced a major political crisis. ⚔️

During the time of Jeroboam II, in Samaria (Israel's capital), there was great material prosperity and territorial expansion, but under his rule, idolatry and social injustice took root. As a result, corruption grew stronger as morality degenerated.

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| King Jeroboam II seated on his royal throne.

All this was reflected in how the people treated their relationship with the Creator, abandoning past teachings and becoming intoxicated with the idolatry of the time.

Hosea denounced this practice: *“Only swearing falsely, lying, killing, stealing and committing adultery prevail…” (Hosea 4:2)*

After Jeroboam II's death, the political situation worsened further. Israel entered a period marked by conspiracies, coups and the assassination of kings: Zechariah, Shallum, Menahem, Pekahiah and Pekah (2 Kings 15:10-25), names you 🫵 will see and follow in full in Amor em Ruínas. 😎 (Let me say now: this is not a spoiler; it is all in the Bible 😉)

Alongside its internal crisis, Israel also lived under pressure from the Assyrian Empire, the largest and most powerful of its time, which conquered various neighboring nations through territorial expansion and military strength. Consequently, smaller kingdoms lived under the tension of Assyrian wars and invasions.

Faced with these threats, the kings of the time relied on political alliances with other peoples, such as Egypt, instead of trusting in God's Covenant. “For Ephraim is like a naive dove, without understanding; they call upon Egypt, they go to Assyria.” (Hosea 7:11)

In this political and historical setting, amid spiritual weakness, God raised up Hosea, the man who wrote what He wept. His personal life became a symbol of the relationship between the Creator and His creation, showing that despite unfaithfulness and contempt, His love remains there.

Amor em Ruínas | Premieres July 24, only on UNIVER Vídeo. 🪻

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