Daily Blast - Minor Prophets: Day 9
Scripture
“This is what the Lord says:
“For three sins of Israel,
even for four, I will not relent.
They sell the innocent for silver,
and the needy for a pair of sandals.
7 They trample on the heads of the poor
as on 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 “Yet I destroyed the Amorites before them,
though they were tall as the cedars
and strong as the oaks.
I destroyed their fruit above
and their roots below.
10 I brought you up out of Egypt
and led you forty years in the wilderness
to give you the land of the Amorites.
11 “I also raised up prophets from among your children
and Nazirites from among your youths.
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.
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.”
Reflection
Amos was a shepherd and farmer in Judah: Judah was in the southern part of Israel which was ruled by King Jeroboam. In the lead up to this passage, Israel had received both political and military success and had accumulated immense wealth. The Israelites (wrongly) attributed this to God’s grace: forty years earlier, Elisha (2 Kings 13:17-19) prophesised that Israel’s power would be restored after it had fallen. However, entangled within this success, was corruption which Jeroboam permitted throughout Israel. The Israelites had begun to forsake God, turning to worship idols, carry out acts of immorality, corrupt the judicial system and oppress the poor. Notably, in 2:10, Amos reflects upon how God helped the Israelites escape Egypt and their oppressors and yet now through warped circumstances the Israelites are the ones enslaving and abusing others.
In chapters 1 and 2, God calls Amos – an articulate and God-fearing man – to go to the nations warning them that their actions will not go unpunished. Looking geographically, these nations form a circle with Israel at its centre. The significance of this is that it is drawing attention to Israel as the core culprit of all the wrongdoing: Israel is God’s kingdom and therefore should be the most righteous and yet, as highlighted by Amos’ accusation against Israel which is four times longer than for any other nation, they are the worst.
The book of Amos serves as a warning to God’s people. It states that wrongdoing will not go unnoticed by God. Instead, justice will be served, and ill doers will be punished.
Challenge
My challenge for you today is to reflect upon your life. Is there anything you could change or begin to do to help you live more righteous lives? I challenge you to set yourself one target –make sure that it is achievable – and work to achieve this goal every day/week.