Week 25c--Amos

Amos is the second minor prophet we meet this week; he speaks in Israel during the days of Uzziah king of Judah and Jeroboam II king of Israel. Many of the words in the book are actually the words of God Himself--and He is not happy with the nation of Israel (no surprise there--they refuse to love and honor Him and continue to chase the false idols of the surrounding nations).

Judgment is coming against many nations, including Damascus, Gaza, Tyre, Edom, the Ammonites, Moab, and Judah and Israel. Each nation is punished for “three crimes, even four.” Some crimes are listed; most have earned fire and exile.

Amos reminds Israel of God’s protection and also of their sin. The phrase “This is the Lord’s declaration” is repeated a dozen times in the middle chapters of the book. “I have warned you,” God says, “Judgment has been warranted for a very long time. I gave you chance after chance to return to me, but you have not obeyed. So, judgment is coming soon.”

Yet even here there is a promise of a remnant, for God says that 1 of 10 will be left at the end. These are really bad odds to be sure, but God never completely destroys his people. In fact, even among all the promises of judgment God offers His people the chance to seek Him, to seek good and to live.

God also demands that the people establish justice, for perhaps God will then be gracious (it worked for Nineveh). “I do not want your pointless sacrifices!” God says. “You congregate, you offer sacrifices, yet you steal from the poor and oppress the widow and orphan.” Again, judgment is coming.

God even goes to the trouble of detailing the judgments. Locusts and fire are both promised. However, God in his mercy relents from these specific punishments because of Amos’ prayers. Amos also sees a vision of a plumb line, a symbol of God’s righteous standard. The people don’t like these prophecies (obviously) but when they complain God sends down harsher consequences.

Amos then speaks of a new kind of famine--a famine of the word of the Lord.  People will seek the word but not be able to find it. 

Finally, Amos sees the Lord standing beside the altar in the temple. God tells him that the people will not be able to escape His wrath. In echoes of Psalm 139, God says He will find them if they hide on the mountain, the sea floor, or in the wilderness. The nation will be destroyed almost completely. But even here God is merciful, because He says He will save a remnant and will eventually restore the nation. A land and a future is promised to them--twice more we have the words “This is the Lord’s declaration,” so we can be sure that this, too, will come to pass.