The second of our “minor” prophets – after Hosea – is Amos. References within the book of Amos tell us that he lived during the days of Jeroboam II, the ruler of Israel, the northern kingdom (793-753 B.C.). The people of God had been split into two kingdoms – north (Israel) and south (Judah) – since end of Solomon’s reign. Amos was a rancher or a farmer in the southern kingdom whom God called to travel to the north to call the northern kingdom to accountability. Other clues within the book narrow down the time of his prophecy within Israel to approximately 760 B.C.
When we look at Amos, we can see why he has the reputation of being a “gloom and doom” kind of prophet. Yet the book has to be interpreted in light of the confrontation he has with the high priest of Israel, Amaziah. In Chapter 7, this confrontation is described as follows:
“Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent a message to Jeroboam king of Israel: “Amos is raising a conspiracy against you in the very heart of Israel. The land cannot bear all his words. For this is what Amos is saying: “‘Jeroboam will die by the sword, and Israel will surely go into exile, away from their native land.’”
Then Amaziah said to Amos, “Get out, you seer! Go back to the land of Judah. Earn your bread there and do your prophesying there. Don’t prophesy anymore at Bethel, because this is the king’s sanctuary and the temple of the kingdom.”
Amos answered Amaziah, “I was neither a prophet nor a prophet’s son, but I was a shepherd, and I also took care of sycamore-fig trees. But the LORD took me from tending the flock and said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to my people Israel.’”
(Amos 7:10-15, NIV)
Amos was without standing, without reputation, without any kind of credibility recognized by the elite in Israel; he was armed only with the message from God. It was a message they did not want to hear and rejected as subversive to their way of life.
We do not have much information about Amos’ life after this trip other than to note that his message was written down. There is no indication that he sought to develop followers or that he continued to pursue public speaking in any fashion. In short, God told him to go and speak a message, he did, and then he returned to his life in Judah.
What was the message?
The book of Amos can be understood in three sections. The first section involves God’s indictment of eight nations in the form of the “Lord roars from Zion”: Damascus, Gaza, Tyre, Edom, Ammon, Moab, Judah, and, finally, Israel. The second section is an extended judgment of Israel (3:9-6:14). The third section involves Yahweh’s judgment.
All of the indictments in the Lion’s Roar (1:1 – 3:8) begin with the formula, “For three sins of ______, even for four, I will not turn back my wrath.” (NIV). In other words, each of these nations has sinned enough and more than enough to justify God’s judgment. The list of sins is fairly similar for the first six, talking about abuse of the poor by the rich. God condemns Judah 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.”
The most lengthy judgment is entered against Israel. It is cited because of specifically forbidden behavior against their neighbor – “Father and son use the same girl and so profane my holy name” – and therefore also offend God. This extended indictment transitions into the second part of the book, where some of the more well-known passages in Amos, including:
“Woe to you who long for the day of the LORD!
Why do you long for the day of the LORD? That day will be darkness, not light. It will be as though a man fled from a lion only to meet a bear, as though he entered his house and rested his hand on the wall only to have a snake bite him. Will not the day of the LORD be darkness, not light— pitch-dark, without a ray of brightness?
“I hate, I despise your religious feasts; I cannot stand your assemblies. Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them. Though you bring choice fellowship offerings, I will have no regard for them. Away with the noise of your songs! I will not listen to the music of your harps. But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!”
(Amos 5:18-24, NIV).
The third section is the consequences – that is, God’s judgment – are revealed. These are not happy words:
o ““In that day,” declares the Sovereign LORD, “the songs in the temple will turn to wailing. Many, many bodies—flung everywhere! Silence!”” (Amos 8:3, NIV)
o ““In that day,” declares the Sovereign LORD, “I will make the sun go down at noon and darken the earth in broad daylight. I will turn your religious feasts into mourning and all your singing into weeping. I will make all of you wear sackcloth and shave your heads. I will make that time like mourning for an only son and the end of it like a bitter day.” (Amos 8:9-10, NIV)
o “Men will stagger from sea to sea and wander from north to east, searching for the word of the LORD, but they will not find it.” (Amos 8:12, NIV)
o “Not one will get away, none will escape. Though they dig down to the depths of the grave, from there my hand will take them. Though they climb up to the heavens, from there I will bring them down. Though they hide themselves on the top of Carmel, there I will hunt them down and seize them. Though they hide from me at the bottom of the sea, there I will command the serpent to bite them. Though they are driven into exile by their enemies, there I will command the sword to slay them. I will fix my eyes upon them for evil and not for good.”” (Amos 9:1-4, NIV)
Amos does conclude with a word of hope regarding the fulfillment of his covenant through the remnant of Israel: ““I will bring back my exiled people Israel; they will rebuild the ruined cities and live in them. They will plant vineyards and drink their wine; they will make gardens and eat their fruit. I will plant Israel in their own land, never again to be uprooted from the land I have given them,” says the LORD your God.” (Amos 9:14-15, NIV)
Amos is often cited today in support of “social justice” causes. As one commentary notes, “True, erroneous emphases have been placed on the biblical doctrine of social justice, both in the pre-Reformation period and in recent decades, and the stress on social responsibility (or “good works”) has sometimes become a legalistic system opposed to the biblical doctrine of salvation. But human interpretations should not distort the clear teachings of Scripture. Amos was not the first to stress social justice – nor the last. Human responsibility to one’s fellow is part of the biblical religion from the story of Cain and Abel to the closing chapters of Revelation, and nowhere is emphasized more than in Jesus’ teachings and Paul’s epistles.” (LaSor, Old Testament Survey, p. 324).
So, what should we take from Amos? Several things:
Sin has consequence. God cares about how we treat one another as an indication of whether we are living in obedience to the covenant he has provided. The indictments and judgments are rendered based upon the behavior of the people of the various nations. Their oppressive and exploitative behaviors reflected how the people brazenly disregarded God’s commands. Later, James would write, “What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? ….Show me your faith without deeds and I will show you my faith by what I do.” (James 2:14, 18). In Amos, the message is clear that election by God carries with it the responsibility to live according to his revealed will.
God’s word rings true regardless of the status of the one speaking it. Sometimes we get the urge to stand up for what is right and fail to do so because we think, “Who am I to say something?” Amos was called to speak into the moment and did so. He did so regardless of the criticism that he faced from the top brass in Israel. He delivered his message even though it was unlikely to find a receptive audience; and, in fact, did not find a receptive audience. Nonetheless, his witness and words survived longer than the kingdom of Israel that rejected him.
May God bless us with understanding and courage as we seek to live obediently to his revealed will.
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