1 Commentary to Amos - Rev. John Schultz AMOS Introduction: The Book of Amos is the third in the Hebrew Canon known as The Twelve Minor Prophets. Amos is the only “layman” among those prophets. He calls himself “a shepherd” and a cultivator of sycamore-fig 1 trees. Evidently, the prophet did not want to be considered to be a prophet or a theologian. The irony of history is that God sometimes bypasses established institutions and acknowledged offices because they have become useless as channels of His revelation. In calling Amos, God demonstrated that He chose that which the world despised. In the words of the apostle Paul: “He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things-and the things that are not-to nullify the things that are, so that no one may 2 boast before him.” Thus speaks Amos, a farmer, an uneducated person, in simplicity and with clarity, with a spiritual insight that makes us stand in awe. Thus the book found its way into the Canon of Scriptures as mockery of literature, but as the Word of God. Outline: Nelson’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary provides the following outline of the book: I. Introduction to Amos 1:1-2 II. The Eight Judgments 1:3--2:16 A. Judgment on Damascus 1:3-5 B. Judgment on Gaza 1:6-8 C. Judgment on Tyre 1:9-10 D. Judgment on Edom 1:11-12 E. Judgment on Ammon 1:13-15 F. Judgment on Moab 2:1-3 G. Judgment on Judah 2:4-5 H. Judgment on Israel 2:6-16 III. The Three Sermons of Judgment 3:1--6:14 A. The First Sermon: Israel’s Present 3 1. Israel’s Judgment Is Deserved 3:1-10 2. Israel’s Judgment Is Described 3:11-15 B. The Second Sermon: Israel’s Past 4 1. Israel’s Judgment Is Deserved 4:1-5 2. Israel’s Judgment Is Demonstrated 4:6-11 3. Israel’s Judgment Is Described 4:12-13 C. The Third Sermon: Israel’s Future 5:1--6:14 1. Israel’s Judgment Is Deserved 5:1-15 2. Israel’s Judgment Is Described 5:16--6:14 a. The First Woe of Judgment 5:16-27 b. The Second Woe of Judgment 6 IV. The Five Visions of Judgment 7:1--9:10 A. Vision of the Locusts 7:1-3 B. Vision of the Fire 7:4-6 C. Vision of the Plumb Line 7:7-9 D. Opposition of Amaziah (Historical Parenthesis) 7:10-17 E. Vision of the Summer Fruit 8 F. Vision of the Doorposts 9:1-10 V. The Five Promises of the Restoration of Israel 9:11-15 I. Introduction to Amos 1:1-2 1 ch. 7:14 2 I Cor. 1:28,29 © 2003 E-sst LLC All Rights Reserved Published by Bible-Commentaries.com Used with permission 2 Commentary to Amos - Rev. John Schultz 1 The words of Amos, one of the shepherds of Tekoa-what he saw concerning Israel two years before the earthquake, when Uzziah was king of Judah and Jeroboam son of Jehoash was king of Israel. 2 He said: "The LORD roars from Zion and thunders from Jerusalem; the pastures of the shepherds dry up, and the top of Carmel withers." Amos prophesied in the Northern Kingdom during the reign of King Jeroboam II, but he was a southerner from Tekoa, a place 5 miles south of Bethlehem. It seems strange that God sent Amos to Israel, where he was a foreigner. From a human point of view, Amos had everything against him. The only explanation for his prophetic authority was his obedience to the divine mandate. Amos’ message must have seemed irrelevant to the people of his time. Amos faced the problem that both Israel and Judah experienced a 3 time of the great prosperity under the reign of King Uzziah and Jeroboam II. The earthquake, which is mentioned to pinpoint the time of the prophecy, must have been a tremendous event in Israel’s history. Two hundred years later the memory of it had not yet faded. We read in the prophecy of Zechariah: “You will flee by my mountain valley, for it will extend to Azel. You will flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the LORD my God will come, and 4 all the holy ones with him.” Zechariah establishes a relationship between that natural disaster and the coming of the Lord. We have the impression that the reference to it in Amos’ prophecy is more than a mere indication of time. Amos’ prophecy also points to this earthquake as a shadow of the coming of the Day of the Lord. His book directs us to the coming judgment. “The LORD roars from Zion…” What a way to begin a sermon! Amos compares God to a wild animal, a roaring lion. We tend to speak respectfully about “the wrath of the Lord,” and we would think it disrespectful to compare God to a roaring and snarling animal. Yet, Amos knew God to be just that. God’s speaking reminded him of the awesome sound he had learned to fear as a shepherd when a furious and famished lion would throw himself on one of the sheep. For a human being, who indulges in sin and who thinks he can play around in it, it is a wholesome shock to learn this side of God’s character. It is important to note that: “The LORD roars from Zion.” The mention of the place is of the utmost significance. The following verses contain a judgment upon the surrounding nations to prove that God is not merely a national deity, but that He is the God of the whole world, yet, He only revealed Himself in Zion and Jerusalem. We can imagine what impression those words must have made upon the citizens of the Northern Kingdom, which Jeroboam I had detached from Jerusalem. We read that when Jeroboam I became king over the ten tribes, he “thought to himself, ‘The kingdom will now likely revert to the house of David. If these people go up to offer sacrifices at the temple of the LORD in Jerusalem, they will again give their allegiance to their lord, Rehoboam king of Judah. They will kill me and return to King Rehoboam.’ After seeking advice, the king made two golden calves. He said to the people, ‘It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Here are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.’ One he set up in Bethel, and the other in Dan. And this thing became a sin; the people went even as far as Dan to worship the one there. Jeroboam built shrines on high places and appointed priests from all sorts of people, even though they were not Levites. He instituted a festival on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, like the festival held in Judah, and offered sacrifices on the altar. This he did in Bethel, sacrificing to the calves he had made. And at Bethel 5 he also installed priests at the high places he had made.” The king pretended that the essence of the worship of YHWH had not changed but that for the Israelites the center of worship had merely shifted from Jerusalem to Bethel and Dan. The issue, however, was that Jeroboam I broke with God’s revelation of Himself. The outward ceremony was maintained but the service of God became a religion manipulated by man. But Amos states that God roars and shouts from Zion. Amos’ ministry, his character, and his words are directly opposed to all the golden calf in Bethel stood for. The result of God’s roaring is poetically, although not literally, depicted with the words: “the pastures of the shepherds dry up, and the top of Carmel withers.” It could be that Amos referred to a drought, but what the prophet wanted most of all to express was the paralyzing effect God’s displeasure had upon all of nature. If nature as a whole responds like this to God’s speaking, can man remain far behind? 3 See II Kings 14:23-29; 15:1-7; II Chr. 26:1-15 4 Zech. 14:5 5 I Kings 12:26-32 © 2003 E-sst LLC All Rights Reserved Published by Bible-Commentaries.com Used with permission 3 Commentary to Amos - Rev. John Schultz II. The Eight Judgments 1:3--2:16 A. Judgment on Damascus 1:3-5 3 This is what the LORD says: "For three sins of Damascus, even for four, I will not turn back [my wrath]. Because she threshed Gilead with sledges having iron teeth, 4 I will send fire upon the house of Hazael that will consume the fortresses of Ben-Hadad. 5 I will break down the gate of Damascus; I will destroy the king who is in the Valley of Aven and the one who holds the scepter in Beth Eden. The people of Aram will go into exile to Kir," says the LORD. Beginning with vs. 3, Amos gives a detailed description of God’s judgment upon the nations surrounding Israel. The first judgment is upon the people of Aram because of their crimes committed against Israel. The tension between Israel and Damascus dated back to the days of King Ahab, when King Ben-Hadad of that day laid siege against Samaria. Ben-Hadad was defeated in battle and entered into a pact with King Ahab, the terms of which he never observed. Ramoth Gilead remained a point of contention between the two 6 nations. Ahab died in the battle of Ramoth Gilead. The words Amos “For three sins… even for four” serve as introduction to all the judgments announced in this chapter and the following. The Pulpit Commentary explains: “This form of expression is repeated in each of the following strophes, and some critics have taken the terms literally, and have tried to identify that particular number of transgressions in each case; but this is trifling. The phrase and others similar to it are not uncommon, and are used to signify a great number, the last mentioned being supposed to fill up the measure and make it overflow. Thus … Job 5:19, ‘He shall deliver thee in six troubles, yea, in seven there shall no evil touch thee’ (comp. … Job 33:29; … Proverbs 30:15, 18, 21; … Ecclesiastes 11:2).” It is obvious that the words “for three sins, even for four” are a matter of style and not of arithmetic. In every case, only one sin is actually mentioned. But there is a suggestion that more than one sin is involved. God had given an interesting vision to the prophet Elisha regarding Hazael, the successor of Ben-Hadad, which must have been representative of the character of the nation of Syria. We read the moving story in the Book of Second Kings: “Elisha went to Damascus, and Ben-Hadad king of Aram was ill. When the king was told, ‘The man of God has come all the way up here,’ he said to Hazael, ‘Take a gift with you and go to meet the man of God. Consult the LORD through him; ask him, `Will I recover from this illness?’ Hazael went to meet Elisha, taking with him as a gift forty camel-loads of all the finest wares of Damascus. He went in and stood before him, and said, ‘Your son Ben-Hadad king of Aram has sent me to ask, `Will I recover from this illness?’ Elisha answered, ‘Go and say to him, `You will certainly recover'; but the LORD has revealed to me that he will in fact die.’ He stared at him with a fixed gaze until Hazael felt ashamed. Then the man of God began to weep. ‘Why is my lord weeping?’ asked Hazael. ‘Because I know the harm you will do to the Israelites,’ he answered. ‘You will set fire to their fortified places, kill their young men with the sword, dash their little children to the ground, and rip open their pregnant women.’ Hazael said, ‘How could your servant, a mere dog, accomplish such a feat?’ ‘The LORD has shown me that you will become king of Aram,’ answered Elisha. Then Hazael left Elisha and returned to his master. When Ben-Hadad asked, ‘What did Elisha say to you?’ Hazael replied, ‘He told me that you would certainly recover.’ But the next day he took a thick cloth, soaked it in water and spread it over the king’s face, so that 7 he died. Then Hazael succeeded him as king.” The people of Aram behaved toward Israel in a most inhuman and criminal way. The Bible only furnishes us with a few sparse hints on this subject, but enough to prove what is meant by the accusation that “she threshed Gilead with sledges having iron teeth.” In Amos’ days all this was past history. The Bible states about Jeroboam II: “He was the one who restored the boundaries of Israel from Lebo Hamath to the Sea of the Arabah, in accordance with the word of the LORD, the God of Israel, spoken through his servant Jonah 8 son of Amittai, the prophet from Gath Hepher.” When Amos spoke this prophecy, the general sentiment toward Damascus may have been conciliatory. In that case, Amos’ prophecy came as a bolt from the blue. It remains true that God is interested in the international relations between nations. There are crimes against humanity that God is not willing to wipe out. But this is not, at least not in the first place, what is 6 See I Kings 22:3 7 II Kings 8:7-15 8 II Kings 14:25 © 2003 E-sst LLC All Rights Reserved Published by Bible-Commentaries.com Used with permission 4 Commentary to Amos - Rev. John Schultz meant here. The main reproach to Damascus is in their relationship to the people God had chosen to reveal Himself in the world. This means that the accusation of Damascus is indirectly also an indictment of Israel. Israel had darkened this revelation by a life of indifference, instead of letting its light shine brightly in the darkness of the world. In condemning Damascus, God also takes away Israel’s support. Israel becomes more and more isolated as it comes itself under God’s judgment. It will no longer be able to put the blame on others. The exile Damascus is threatened with is deportation to Assyria, which would also be the place of 9 Israel’s captivity. B. Judgment on Gaza 1:6-8 6 This is what the LORD says: "For three sins of Gaza, even for four, I will not turn back [my wrath]. Because she took captive whole communities and sold them to Edom, 7 I will send fire upon the walls of Gaza that will consume her fortresses. 8 I will destroy the king of Ashdod and the one who holds the scepter in Ashkelon. I will turn my hand against Ekron, till the last of the Philistines is dead," says the Sovereign LORD. In verses 6-8 Amos addresses the Philistines, Gaza being one of the main cities of that country. It is not clear what the “whole communities” were that Gaza took captive and sold to Edom. The Pulpit Commentary suggests: “The event referred to may be the invasion of Judah by Philistines and Arabians in the time of Joram, mentioned in … 2 Chronicles 21:16, etc., and in which it is possible that a compact was made that the captive Judaeans should be delivered to their bitterest enemies, the Edomites.” The Wycliffe Bible Commentary believes that it may refer to slave trade. The following lines mention “a treaty of brotherhood” with Edom, which suggests that it involved Israelites. “Whole communities” probably refers to one or more cities in Israel. This must pertain to more than one crime the Philistines committed in league with the people of Tyre and Sidon. The punishment would mean the end of Philistia as a nation. It is often difficult for an individual to understand the meaning of survival of a people’s group of which he is a part. We all have a national conscience, but we can seldom look beyond the boundaries of our personal lives. God, however, does not think in terms of years only, but in spans of human life, in generations, nations, and centuries. The more we think about this, the more we become aware of the limitations of our own life, as well as of the importance of life itself. If in Amos’ days, a handful of Philistines had turned to the God of Israel and asked for His grace, there would still have been a Philistine nation in this world today. C. Judgment on Tyre 1:9-10 9 This is what the LORD says: "For three sins of Tyre, even for four, I will not turn back [my wrath]. Because she sold whole communities of captives to Edom, disregarding a treaty of brotherhood, 10 I will send fire upon the walls of Tyre that will consume her fortresses." The sin of Tyre is the same as that of Gaza. Yet, there is no mention of a total annihilation of Tyre as a nation. It is not up to us to investigate the measure of judgment God uses. We may assume that the 10 Judge of all the earth will do right. It is possible that, although both nations committed the same crime, the guilt of one is greater than the other. God takes into account the motives and the amount of light that was rejected. In the eyes of God, guilt is a growing process. The accumulation continues till the measure is full. God said to Abraham: “In the fourth generation your descendants will come back here, for the sin of the 11 Amorites has not yet reached its full measure.” For Tyre the final judgment was postponed, not cancelled. In Isaiah’s prophecy over Tyre, which was pronounced approximately at the same time, there seems even to 9 See II Kings 15:19,29 10 See Gen. 18:25 11 Gen. 15:16 © 2003 E-sst LLC All Rights Reserved Published by Bible-Commentaries.com Used with permission 5 Commentary to Amos - Rev. John Schultz be a ray of light. We read: “Yet her profit and her earnings will be set apart for the LORD; they will not be stored up or hoarded. Her profits will go to those who live before the LORD, for abundant food and fine 12 clothes.” Ezekiel’s prophecies over Tyre, in chapters 26-28 of his book, are the most significant. He demonstrates that Tyre had grown into a project in which Satan and all he stands for was reflected. He was the instigator and inspirer of Tyre decadent glitter and prosperity. We must always remember that behind the whole complex of international tensions stands the great struggle between God and Satan for the right to the throne of the universe. As this struggle is reflected internationally, so it is on a personal level in the Book of Job. Both features are part of the same image. D. Judgment on Edom 1:11-12 11 This is what the LORD says: "For three sins of Edom, even for four, I will not turn back [my wrath]. Because he pursued his brother with a sword, stifling all compassion, because his anger raged continually and his fury flamed unchecked, 12 I will send fire upon Teman that will consume the fortresses of Bozrah." It seems that the judgment upon Edom occupies the central place in these verses. All the lines run from Gaza and Tyre to Edom. Edom had over-indulged in revenge. It had suppressed all natural feelings toward a brother nation and thrown itself with an perpetual wrath upon a defenseless people. That is why fire would descend upon Teman and consume the fortresses of Bozrah. E. Judgment on Ammon 1:13-15 13 This is what the LORD says: "For three sins of Ammon, even for four, I will not turn back [my wrath]. Because he ripped open the pregnant women of Gilead in order to extend his borders, 14 I will set fire to the walls of Rabbah that will consume her fortresses amid war cries on the day of battle, amid violent winds on a stormy day. 15 Her king will go into exile, he and his officials together," says the LORD. The judgment upon Ammon appears to parallel that of Damascus. Both committed violence upon Gilead. The horrible cruelties executed are mentioned in more specific detail in these verses. There can be little doubt about it but that these things happened literally. There is no limit to the satanic cruelties man can inflict upon his fellowmen. The person who has separated himself from God does not recognize the image of God in his fellowmen either. It is not clear whether the “violent winds on a stormy day” are meant literally, or whether this is symbolic for the panic of the “war cries on the day of battle.” This could very well refer to a natural disaster, as does the reference to the earthquake in vs. 1. Those singled out for judgment are the king and his officials. They carried, evidently, more responsibility for the cruelties committed than the people. F. Judgment on Moab 2:1-3 1 This is what the LORD says: "For three sins of Moab, even for four, I will not turn back [my wrath]. Because he burned, as if to lime, the bones of Edom's king, 2 I will send fire upon Moab that will consume the fortresses of Kerioth. Moab will go down in great tumult amid war cries and the blast of the trumpet. 3 I will destroy her ruler and kill all her officials with him," says the LORD. The last of the surrounding nations upon which judgment is pronounced is Moab. His crime is again linked to Edom. Without any knowledge of the historical background it is difficult to reconstruct what happened. The burning of the bones of Edom’s king would qualify as grave robbery. There is a suggestion that Moab had taken advantage of Edom’s weakened condition after the latter was defeated in battle. Moab’s judgment seems to be the end of a chain of events. The judgment will mean the end of Moab’s existence. In only a few words, the prophet paints for us the picture of a horrible holocaust in which a whole nation is 12 Isa. 23:18 © 2003 E-sst LLC All Rights Reserved Published by Bible-Commentaries.com Used with permission 6 Commentary to Amos - Rev. John Schultz slaughtered. “War cries and the blast of the trumpet” are no romantic sounds for those who have lived through the horror of a war. G. Judgment on Judah 2:4-5 4 This is what the LORD says: "For three sins of Judah, even for four, I will not turn back [my wrath]. Because they have rejected the law of the LORD and have not kept his decrees, because they have been led astray by false gods, the gods their ancestors followed, 5 I will send fire upon Judah that will consume the fortresses of Jerusalem." Then judgment falls upon Judah. The accusation is their rejection of the law of the Lord and with it the renunciation of God Himself. The Lord says that false gods led them astray. Evidently, it all began with a forsaking of their first love, which is the first step on the way to apostasy. Such things never happen at the spur of the moment; they consist in stages. When the relationship of love ceases to exist, reverence for the revelation weakens also, and this precedes apostasy. Other things and person occupy the unique place God ought to take up in life. Once we distance ourselves from God’s revelation, our moral consciousness begins to shrink. The process may stretch out over several generations, but there comes a point where certain moral prescriptions become irrelevant to the younger generation. In Amos’ day, Judah was somewhere on the road of degeneration, whilst Israel had already reached the end of it. Our present generation is probably closer to Israel than to Judah on this point. That makes Amos’ prophecy so relevant to us. For many people moral consciousness is gone. There is a subtle difference between the religious history of Judah and Israel. As we mentioned before, Jeroboam I broke with God’s revelation. Not the fact that Israel seceded was wrong, because that 13 happened in accordance with the prophecy of Ahijah. God had given the Ten Tribes of Israel to Jeroboam. His sin consisted in the fact that he made a copy of the worship of the living God and substituted the worship of God with the ritual of the worship. This resembled the real worship, but it wasn’t. God no longer occupied the center of Jeroboam’s religion. It was like the dying of love in a marriage relation. The partners do not separate; they continue to live together and to go through the same motions, but the core of it has disappeared. The church in general is guilty of the sin of Jeroboam! But Judah had held on to God’s revelation. Her sin was more blatant. Judah’s relationship with God took on the form of an immediate divorce. The intimate fellowship with God was replaced by open idolatry. This is exemplified in Hosea’s heartrending prophecy. In Judah’s history, however, we see a moment in which the unfaithful woman returns to the first love of her legal husband. Israel continued to maintain hypocritically that there was nothing wrong between God and her. H. Judgment on Israel 2:6-16 6 This is what the LORD says: "For three sins of Israel, even for four, I will not turn back [my wrath]. They sell the righteous for silver, and the needy for a pair of sandals. 7 They trample on the heads of the poor as upon the dust of the ground and deny justice to the oppressed. Father and son use the same girl and so profane my holy name. 8 They lie down beside every altar on garments taken in pledge. In the house of their god they drink wine taken as fines. 9 "I destroyed the Amorite before them, though he was tall as the cedars and strong as the oaks. I destroyed his fruit above and his roots below. 10 "I brought you up out of Egypt, and I led you forty years in the desert to give you the land of the Amorites. 11 I also raised up prophets from among your sons and Nazirites from among your young men. Is this not true, people of Israel?" declares the LORD. 12 "But you made the Nazirites drink wine and commanded the prophets not to prophesy. 13 "Now then, I will crush you as a cart crushes when loaded with grain. 14 The swift will not escape, the strong will not muster their strength, and the warrior will not save his life. 13 See I Kings 11:29-39 © 2003 E-sst LLC All Rights Reserved Published by Bible-Commentaries.com Used with permission 7 Commentary to Amos - Rev. John Schultz 15 The archer will not stand his ground, the fleet-footed soldier will not get away, and the horseman will not save his life. 16 Even the bravest warriors will flee naked on that day," declares the LORD. In verses 6-8 Amos states the points of the Lord’s indictment of Israel. Although the number four is filled out here and not only one crime is mentioned as in the previous accusations against the others, we should not take the expression “For three sins of Israel, even for four…” literally as a statement of arithmetic. The Lord picks a few items out of an abundance of incriminating material. The accusation gains more in intensity because of what is not said than because of what is said. It is not so that if Israel had not committed these four sins that are mentioned, she would have been acceptable to God. Only a few of the symptoms of Israel’s sickness are stated here and no diagnosis is given. The root of evil is the broken relationship with God. The very fact that this is not even mentioned is an indication of how deeply Israel had fallen. The majority of Israelites were so far gone that such a message would not have called them back to reality. Most people in our day do not believe that a restoration of a right relationship with God would be the solution to their problems. Amos begins there where the people are. They would understand that the social injustice they committed was not right. They may not have understood the fact that their sin meant falling short of the glory of God, but no one who sells out a needy person for a pair of sandals will think that he does a good work. Those who commit such acts have to first lull their conscience to sleep. If the Word of God can awaken their conscience, there is hope that this would cause a chain reaction, which could lead to the awareness: “I am a sinner before God.” People who think that Amos merely preached a Social Gospel do not understand the matter. Every human being knows that the soul of man is worth more than money or a pair of shoes. One cannot treat a fellowman in such a way without violating the image of God in him and in oneself. This sin is linked to the awareness of human dignity. The second sin mentioned is indicative of the moral decline of man. Laws of sexual restraint have disappeared. But more is at stake than sexual license. One might find excuses for extra marital affairs, but if a father and son have sex with the same girl, they have violated their own nature. No one can do such things without feeling some kind of guilt. It is only a small step from guilt feelings to consciousness of sin. And if God says: “You have profaned My holy Name” the perpetrator will have to admit: “I knew it all the time.” The third sin is a reference to social relations. The law stated: “If you take your neighbor’s cloak as a pledge, return it to him by sunset, because his cloak is the only covering he has for his body. What else will 14 he sleep in? When he cries out to me, I will hear, for I am compassionate.” It was not illegal to take a deposit from a debtor, but it was inadmissible to push people to despair and suck them dry. Lying down on garments taken in pledge was a literal transgression of the above-mentioned command. It is the combination of two factors that makes this verse so gripping: lying down on a garment taken in pledge and lying down next to an altar. Amos makes us understand that there is always a link between idolatry and social injustice. Man always bears the image of the God or god he serves. Those who serve the living God give proof of being created in His image and likeness. Those who make idols of stone, wood, or metal bear the stamp of their god in their acts. They become obtuse to the point where they become equal to the work of their own hands. The fourth sin mentioned is probably mainly a transgression practiced by the priests: “In the house of their god they drink wine taken as fines.” It is difficult to trace the meaning of the words “wine taken as fines.” In the Levitican law there is mention of fines under the section of guilt offerings and sin offerings, 15 16 but wine is not a part of that. It was actually forbidden for priests to drink wine while on duty. Wine is initially not even mentioned in the Law of Moses. During the wilderness crossing it must have been very scarce. Only later, when Joshua is mentioned as Moses’ successor, we read about wine being poured out 17 over the altar as a drink offering. Whenever wine was brought as a sacrifice, it was always poured out at 14 Ex. 22:26,27 15 See Lev. 4:1-5:7 16 See Lev. 10:8-11 17 See Num. Chapters 28,29 © 2003 E-sst LLC All Rights Reserved Published by Bible-Commentaries.com Used with permission 8 Commentary to Amos - Rev. John Schultz the altar. It was never a sacrifice by itself and we do not read that priests were allowed to drink it. Amos evidently speaks against a human regulation that has replaced the law of God. We read little about the extermination of the Amorites in the Bible. They inhabited the northern part of Canaan, the area that was assigned to the tribe of Dan. The Book of Judges tells us that the Danites experienced difficulties in driving out the Amorites. We read: “The Amorites confined the Danites to the hill country, not allowing them to come down into the plain. And the Amorites were determined also to hold out in Mount Heres, Aijalon and Shaalbim, but when the power of the house of Joseph increased, they too were 18 pressed into forced labor. The boundary of the Amorites was from Scorpion Pass to Sela and beyond.” According to Amos’ reference, the annihilation of the Amorites occurred by an act of God. We are not told how this happened. The description of the Amorites as “tall as the cedars and strong as the oaks” concurs with what we read about them in the Book of Judges. God wants the Israelites to reflect upon their history. There was the miracle of the exodus from Egypt and of the forty-years’ desert crossing. God had been involved intensively with His people. On the other hand there was moral decline of the inhabitants of Canaan among whom the measure of their sin had filled up. Evidently, the Amorites had played the most important part in this. Now Israel had fallen away from the living God to the point where it was hard to see any difference between them and the Amorites whose place they had taken. If we don’t understand what role the nation of which we are a part has played in history, we will not be able to understand the present. And if we don’t know where we are, we can hardly show the way to others. From His side, God had maintained His relationship with Israel. “I also raised up prophets from among your sons and Nazirites from among your young men.” God has never been silent throughout Israel’s history. He had put His hand on some of the people and had put His Word in their mouth. Thus Israel had always known that there is a living God. It is amazing to see how God, by the Holy Spirit, works like a brooding hen to the point where He evokes in the heart of young people a desire to consecrate themselves to Him. God always reveals Himself to the younger generation as the Great Attractive One. Throughout the ages, young people have discovered that it is worthwhile to live and die for Him. A human being would never arrive at this point without God taking the initiative. This revelation has kept the people from perishing. The Book of Proverbs states: “Where there 19 is no revelation, the people cast off restraint; but blessed is he who keeps the law.” God never severed His relationship with His people because there always remained a small group of prophets and Nazarites. The people must have understood this, maybe more intuitively than otherwise, but the knowledge was always there. The devil understood this also and for that reason he directed his main attacks against this lifeline. To the Nazirites they gave wine to drink and the prophets received a gag order. Thus the people of God were cut off from God and they died. Then comes the judgment as it is described in verses 13-16. First there is the creaking sound of the wagon that has been loaded beyond capacity, and then the crash. The fact that there is first a creak is, in itself, proof of God’s grace; it was a warning. There still would have been an opportunity to lighten the load in order to prevent the collapse. But nothing is done and then comes the crushing down. There is a direct link among giving wine to the Nazirites, the gag order to the prophets, and the perishing of the people. Moral disintegration usually precedes physical collapse. The conscious cutting of the lifeline to God results in a literal destruction. Amos makes a list of qualities that constitute human security: the swift, the strong, the warrior, the archer, the fleet-footed soldier, the horseman, and the bravest warriors. The securities on which the human being leans for protection prove to be insufficient in the encounter with God. In opposition to these words stands Isaiah’s prediction that “those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on 20 wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” III. The Three Sermons of Judgment 3:1--6:14 A. The First Sermon: Israel’s Present ch. 3 1. Israel’s Judgment Is Deserved 3:1-10 18 Judg. 1:34-36 19 Prov. 29:18 20 Isa. 40:31 © 2003 E-sst LLC All Rights Reserved Published by Bible-Commentaries.com Used with permission 9 Commentary to Amos - Rev. John Schultz 1 Hear this word the LORD has spoken against you, O people of Israel-against the whole family I brought up out of Egypt: 2 "You only have I chosen of all the families of the earth; therefore I will punish you for all your sins." 3 Do two walk together unless they have agreed to do so? 4 Does a lion roar in the thicket when he has no prey? Does he growl in his den when he has caught nothing? 5 Does a bird fall into a trap on the ground where no snare has been set? Does a trap spring up from the earth when there is nothing to catch? 6 When a trumpet sounds in a city, do not the people tremble? When disaster comes to a city, has not the LORD caused it? 7 Surely the Sovereign LORD does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets. 8 The lion has roared- who will not fear? The Sovereign LORD has spoken- who can but prophesy? 9 Proclaim to the fortresses of Ashdod and to the fortresses of Egypt: "Assemble yourselves on the mountains of Samaria; see the great unrest within her and the oppression among her people." 10 "They do not know how to do right," declares the LORD, "who hoard plunder and loot in their fortresses." The first two verses of this section are a summary of all that preceded. God appeals to the history of salvation as a basis for judgment. That which ought to have been words of consolation, the exodus from Egypt and the intimate and personal fellowship with God, are stated here as a threat. The words: “You only have I chosen of all the families of the earth” do not refer to His omniscience but to His love. We may suppose that, in ancient times, Satan also must have been in God’s confidence, which made his fall so much more absolute. This kind of relationship with God does not tolerate any unrighteousness. God said to 21 Moses: “Among those who approach me I will show myself holy.” Israel’s privileges became their undoing, because they had forsaken the love of the Lord. This must have broken God’s heart. In a way, this prophecy is God’s cry of distress. God roars … because of pain! The examples in verses 3-8 are an illustration of the law of cause and effect. The truth that is illustrated is found on top of the ladder; the other images are the steps that lead upward to the last question: “When disaster comes to a city, has not the LORD caused it?” Evidently, the Israelites had come to the point where they considered disasters to be unrelated accidents. They did not see any link between them and their broken relationship with God. But the rungs of the ladder that lead upwards suggest more than the law of cause and effect alone. They are seven open illustrations in which Israel could recognize herself. “Do two walk together unless they have agreed to do so?” Usually, truth distinguishes itself from the lie by its simplicity. It is useless to try to walk with the Lord without a common basis. It is obvious that the basis of fellowship is broken by sin. 22 “Does a lion roar in the thicket…?” Amos represents the Lord in his prophecy as a roaring lion. This picture seems to us to be incongruous with the character of God. Peter compares Satan with a lion. We read: “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for 23 someone to devour.” That we can understand. In a way, the image does not truly represent reality. God is good. James tells us: “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” And: “When tempted, no one should say, ‘God 24 is tempting me.’ For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone.” The source of evil is not in God but outside Him. Evil carries its own built-in punishment. Disaster strikes when God withdraws. His presence keeps evil in check. God’s withdrawal is the judgment. This allows the breaking loose of the evil that man unchains himself. 21 Lev. 10:3 22 See ch. 1:8; 3:8 23 I Peter 5:8 24 James 1:17,13 © 2003 E-sst LLC All Rights Reserved Published by Bible-Commentaries.com Used with permission 10 Commentary to Amos - Rev. John Schultz Judgment, of course, is not something that does not involve God. God keeps the judgment in His hand but it is not part of His being. In the story of Job, we see that God gives permission to Satan to attack Job. God uses the intentions of the Evil One as a weapon against himself. This is the sense in which Amos condenses the picture, making God the great avenger. He is the roaring lion and Israel is the prey. If the Israel of Amos’ days could have seen herself as a prey for the lion, and in their terror they had cried to the Lord, they would have recognized in the lion the lamb. Now we can say that they became a prey for God because they had become a prey to Satan. “Does he growl in his den…?” The image is continued here. The NIV fails to bring out the fact that two different words are used for “lion.” The NKJV stays closer to the Hebrew with: “Will a young lion cry out of his den…?” The Hebrew uses two different words. 'Ariy means “a lion.” In the second part of the verse the word kephiyr is used, which can either mean “a village (as covered in by walls),” or “a young lion.” In the repetition the picture is brought closer. The young lion is in the process of tearing apart his prey. Escape at this point has become impossible. But at the moment Amos pronounced this prophecy, the door of escape was still wide open. God’s announcement of judgment is always an act of grace. The words: “Does a bird fall into a trap on the ground…?” and the following statement portray the situation from Israel’s angle. There is temptation to sin. The bait looks like good food, but those who eat it will die. Israel must understand that the life they were leading led to destruction. Behind the spirit of the age, the enlightenment, and the despair stands the “Great Fowler.” Personal conversion is needed to escape the net. When the trap springs, it is too late. Those who play with sin will discover to have been wrong when it is too late. Yet hope remains for those who realize that the Lord is still there, even after they have been caught. The Psalmist says: “We have escaped like a bird out of the fowler’s snare; the snare has been broken, and we 25 have escaped.” The Lord can perform this miracle, even when we think it is too late. With the words: “When a trumpet sounds in a city,” judgment has come frightfully close. Amos’ words are still based upon the law of cause and effect. They are a prophecy of what is about to take place. Enemies will surround the city and then will happen what is described here. In a spiritual sense it is Amos who blows the trumpet, but the city dwellers do not wake up from their sleep. Spiritual reality can be very incongruous with what we call reality. “When disaster comes to a city, has not the LORD caused it?” With this question, Amos states what he actually has to say. What will happen to Israel is no coincidence. There are no accidents in God’s dealing with men. What happens constitutes, in the most literal sense of the word, “an act of God.” The cause is the broken fellowship with God which results in judgment. To come back to what was said earlier regarding the roaring of the lion, death and destruction are not part of God’s character. The presence of God constitutes life, peace, and love. God causes the disaster by withdrawing from the scene. As the body decomposes when the spirit is gone, so the people collapse because God is no longer there. “Surely the Sovereign LORD does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets.” This is a profound statement. It says more than merely that God shows to the prophets what will happen in the future. If God confers with human beings in what He plans to do, He delegates part of His authority to them. It means that, not only man becomes involved in God’s planning, but that man is allowed to give input to it. This is illustrated in the visions recorded in chapter 7, where Amos’ exclamations cause the Lord to change His plans. We read: “When they had stripped the land clean, I cried out, ‘Sovereign LORD, forgive! How can Jacob survive? He is so small!’ So the LORD relented. ‘This will not happen,’ the LORD said.” And: “Then I cried out, ‘Sovereign LORD, I beg you, stop! How can Jacob survive? He is so small!’ So the 26 LORD relented. ‘This will not happen either,’ the Sovereign LORD said.” In this manner God confirms the reasonableness of His dealings. There remains a group of people in this world who are still on the Lord’s side. Those people have the task to let the Word of God be heard. Some have, what we call, “the gift of prophecy.” Others take the revelation of God and apply it to the time in which they live. The question is always: “What is God saying and why is it so difficult to understand?” Some people have even come to the conclusion: “God is dead!” Amos, however, says: “God roars!” Those who do not hear Him are obviously willingly deaf. How can anyone refrain from prophesying when God speaks so clearly? Every preacher ought to put these words on the walls of his study: “The lion has roared-- who will not fear? The Sovereign LORD has spoken-- who can but prophesy?” 25 Ps. 124:7 26 See ch. 7:2,3,5,6 © 2003 E-sst LLC All Rights Reserved Published by Bible-Commentaries.com Used with permission