When I would restore the fortunes of my people, when I would heal Israel, the corruption of Ephraim is revealed, and the wicked deeds of Samaria; for they deal falsely, the thief breaks in, and the bandits raid outside. But they do not consider that I remember all their wickedness. Now their deeds surround them, they are before my face. By their wickedness they make the king glad, and the officials by their treachery. They are all adulterers; they are like a heated oven, whose baker does not need to stir the fire, from the kneading of the dough until it is leavened. (Hosea 7: 1-4)

The seventh chapter is a divine indictment of Israel. They are corrupt... treacherous... wicked. They are as a heated oven that does not cool.

I have been re-reading "On the Road" by Jack Kerouac. Much of the novel whirls about the real character of Neal Cassady. Many considered the reformatory graduate corrupt. Certainly his girlfriends, wives, and eventually even Kerouac considered him treacherous. But Cassady was a white hot flame of ardent seeking, perpetual asking, and enthusiastic engagement with the world. He lit up the night - and not a few lives - with inspiration.

Cassady's passion seems entirely right. But the objects of his passion keep shifting, drifting, and suddenly evaporating. I am sure God wanted to restore the fortunes of Neal Cassady.