What The Lord Says (part 2 of 2)

The Scriptural narrative makes it abundantly clear that Israel and Judah, as the covenant people of the Creator God, were held to a different and seemingly higher standard than the surrounding nations.  The evil that was bringing their God’s judgment upon them, according to the prophetic words of Amos (prophecy more often than not the act of calling leaders and rulers to account for their actions, rather than foretelling) was of far greater consequence. 

Of Judah, the covenant God says, “They rejected the Lord’s law; they did not obey His commands.  Their false gods, to which their fathers were loyal, led them astray.  So I will set Judah on fire, and it will consume Jerusalem’s fortresses” (2:4b-5).  This pronouncement, rooted in the Deuteronomic and Levitical curses that were promised to the covenant people if they failed to meet their covenant obligations, would be fulfilled when the Babylonians would come forth to conquer.  Of Israel, God says, “They sold the innocent for silver, the needy for a pair of sandals.  They trample on the dirt-covered head of the poor; they push the destitute away” (2:6b-7a).  Judah was condemned for idolatry, whereas Israel was called to account for rampant oppression as well as idolatry.

Moving along to the end of the third chapter, the Creator God speaks through His prophetic mouthpiece to His wayward people, saying “Certainly when I punish Israel for their covenant transgressions, I will destroy Bethel’s altars.  The horns of the altar will be cut off and fall to the ground.  I will destroy both the winter and summer houses.  The houses filled with ivory will be ruined, the great houses will be swept away” (3:14-15a).  In the fourth chapter, there is a greater elaboration on Israel’s transgression, as it is read, “You oppress the poor; you crush the needy” (4:1b).  The God of Israel’s response to this is to say “Certainly the time is approaching when you will be carried away in baskets, every last one of you in fisherman’s pots” (4:2b).  Furthermore, one finds that God saying, “But surely I gave you no food to eat in any of your cities; you lacked food everywhere you live.  Still you did not come back to Me… I withheld rain from you three months before the harvest…. People from two or three cities staggered into one city to get water, but remained thirsty.  Still you did not come back to Me.  I destroyed your crops with blight and disease.  Locusts kept devouring your orchards, vineyards, fig trees, and olive trees.  Still  you did not come back to Me… I sent against you a plague like one of the Egyptian plagues.  I killed your young men with the sword… Still you did not come back to Me” (4:6a, 7a, 8a, 9a, 10a,c). 

Naturally, all of this is quite significant.  With these words of what the Creator God will do to His people, specific references are being made to the curses that are set forth in Deuteronomy and Leviticus, with a reminder of the highly determinative (for Israel’s identity) Egyptian experience.  When it is said “Still you did not come back to me,” the reader is forced to think about what God promised upon national repentance (2 Chronicles 7:14-if My people…), which would be a restoration from the curse of conquering and exile.  This is the promise that would be seized upon in the story of Daniel, which leads to Judah being restored to their land (though still in exile, as they are not independent from foreign power), and re-gathered for identification as their God’s covenant people.  

Though Daniel and Judah recognized the curses and repented, Israel, on the other hand, did not.  Though their God brought His promised curses, this was not productive of repentance.  They did not return to Him.  What ultimately happened?  Israel was conquered by Assyria, scattered through the Assyrian empire, and the ten tribes that made up the kingdom of Israel were dispersed, never to be re-gathered or identified as part of the covenant people of the cosmic sovereign.  “The virgin Israel has fallen down and will not get up again” (5:2a).  Truly, the Creator God is faithful to His covenant promises and deals seriously with covenant transgressions. 

What The Lord Says (part 1 of 2)

This is what the Lord says – Amos 1:3a  (NET)

The prophet Amos was put in the interesting position of declaring the fact of their covenant God’s judgment on Israel and the nations that surrounded Israel.  Amos is said to have prophesied during the time of the divided kingdom (Israel/North, Judah/South), prior to both the Assyrian and Babylonian conquests.  He introduces their God’s judgment with evocative words, saying that “The Lord comes roaring out of Zion; from Jerusalem He comes bellowing!  The shepherds’ wilt; the summit of Carmel withers” (1:2).  With that said, Amos launches into the telling of judgment. 

Beginning with Syria, it is written, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Because Damascus has committed three crimes---make that four!---I will not revoke My decree of judgment… I will break the bar on the gate of Damascus’.” (1:3a, 5a)  Moving on to the land of the Philistines, we read, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Because Gaza has committed three crimes---make that four!---I will not revoke My decree of judgment… So I will get Gaza’s city wall on fire; fire will consume her fortresses… the rest of the Philistines will also die’.” (1:6a, 7a, 8b) 

Following that, the prophecy of judgment is directed against Tyre.  There, we read, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Because Tyre has committed three crimes---make that four!---I will not revoke My decree of judgment… They failed to observe a treaty of brotherhood.  So I will set fire to Tyre’s city wall; fire will consume her fortresses’.” (1:9a,c-10)  Continuing on, Amos presumes to speak for the Lord God of Israel against Edom, writing “This is what the Lord says: ‘Because Edom has committed three crimes---make that four!---I will not revoke My decree of judgment.  He chased his brother with a sword; he wiped out his allies.  In his anger he tore them apart without stopping to rest; in his fury he relentlessly attacked them.  So I will set Teman on fire; fire will consume Bozrah’s fortresses’.” (1:11-12) 

Looking now to Ammon, one find that “This is what the Lord says: ‘Because the Ammonites have committed three crimes---make that four!---I will not revoke My decree of judgment.  They ripped open Gilead’s pregnant women so they could expand their territory.  So I will set fire to Rabbah’s city wall; fire will consume her fortresses’.” (1:13-14).  Finally, in these decrees about the surrounding nations, Amos directs his words to Moab, and they hear “This is what the Lord says: ‘Because Moab has committed three crimes---make that four!---I will not revoke My decree of judgment.  The burned the bones of Edom’s king into lime.  So I will set Moab on fire and it will consume Kerioth’s fortresses.  Moab will perish in the heat of battle… I will remove Moab’s leader; I will kill all Moab’s officials with him’.” (2:1-2a,3)  All of these pronouncements are punctuated with the phrase “The Lord has spoken!”

One can only imagine his hearers in Israel and Judah listening to him with eager and rapt attention, excited about the judgment that was going to rain down upon their enemies and adversaries.  It is not difficult to envision them applauding Amos and his words before something quite interesting occurs.  While the judgments against these nations are indeed harsh, and most likely deserved, Amos does not stop with Moab, but continues on to say, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Because Judah has committed three covenant transgressions---make that four!---I will not revoke My decree of judgment’.” (2:4a) 

Before Israel can feel secure, Amos goes on to report, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Because Israel has committed three covenant transgressions---make that four!---I will not revoke My decree of judgment’.” (2:6a)  It is impossible to miss the shift in language, as Amos has shifted from speaking about “crimes,” to speaking about something he refers to as “covenant transgressions,” which would have been far more consequential, especially for the people of the covenant.  

Preparing For God (part 2 of 2)

Continuing our correlation of the Levitical/Deuteronomic cursings (and Israel’s understanding of themselves and their plight alongside that comprehension, while also recognizing that it is possible that neither Leviticus nor Deuteronomy had taken their final written forms before the composition of Amos, but Amos’ apparent heavy reliance on the understanding of covenant curses implies knowledge of them) with the fourth chapter of Amos, we also find that “The Lord will make the pestilence stick to you until He has consumed you off the land that you are entering to take possession of it.  The Lord will strike you with wasting disease and with fever, inflammation and fiery heart, and with drought and with blight and with mildew” (Deuteronomy 28:21-22a).  Also, “The Lord will make the rain of your land powder.  From heaven dust shall come down on you until you are destroyed” (28:24). 

Apparently, God takes very seriously the fulfillment of His plans and purposes through the people of His covenant, as He continues and says “The Lord will cause you to be defeated before your enemies…  And your dead body shall be food for all birds of the air and for the beasts of the earth…The Lord will strike you with the boils of Egypt, and with tumors and scabs and itch, of which you cannot be healed” (28:25a, 26a, 27).  Going on, we find that “You shall carry much seed into the field and shall gather in little, for the locust shall consume it.  You shall plant vineyards and dress them, but you shall neither drink of the wine nor gather the grapes, for the worm shall eat them” (28:38-39).  “All these curses shall come upon you and pursue you and overtake you till you are destroyed, because you did not obey the voice of the Lord your God, to keep His commandments and statutes that He commanded you” (28:45). 

All of these things can be intimately connected to health and wealth.  These curses are a destruction of that which represents the wealth of a people.  In Deuteronomy 8:18, we read “You shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He Who gives you power to get wealth.”  Why does God give His people the power to get wealth?  He does so in order “that He may confirm His covenant that He swore to your fathers” (8:18b).  What was that covenant?  To find that, we return to the book of Genesis, and to chapter twelve, when God says to Abraham, as He announces a covenant that will be continued through Isaac and Jacob, to the nation of Israel, and on to those that are the children of Abraham by faith (post-Christ), that “I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.  I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed” (12:2-3).  God blesses His people so that they can properly respond to His blessing in gratitude, as the world’s great patron, that they may extend the cycle and circle of grace and be a blessing to all the earth.  He also promised that whoever dishonored Abraham would be cursed.  Truly, it must be said that the nation of Israel itself dishonored Abraham, in forsaking the faith that had been granted to him and becoming unfaithful, and so they were cursed. 

Israel, whom God had chosen to perpetuate the covenant, had failed to perform according to that covenant given to Abraham, but because Israel had failed, that did not mean God had failed.  He is the faithful God that would keep His covenant of blessing.  He would set things right.  How would He do that in light of the fact that His covenant people had failed?  We find the answer in our text, where the Lord said, “prepare to meet your God, O Israel!” (Amos 4:12b).  Though at first glance, it does appear to be an ominous statement, as we consider it we find that it is actually a statement of God’s profound blessing, as God continues to work to bring about His covenant promises, in spite of the failure of the people that He had appointed to the task of representing Him in His world.  Yes, in spite of everything, God looks forward and says, “Therefore thus I will do to you, O Israel” (4:12a).  In conjunction with this looking forward, God references the curses of the fourth chapter and says, “because I will do this to you” (4:12a). 

Because in His supreme faithfulness to His promises, He would do and had done all of these things to His people; so likewise, in supreme faithfulness, a Messiah would be born, would suffer, die, and rise again.  While there are many facets and implications to the Christ event, part of what was accomplished through it was the Creator God’s gathering together and uniting a new covenant people, in Christ, in recognition of the realization of the hope of the Resurrection, bringing the life of the age to come into the present in union with Christ (belief in Jesus and allegiance to His kingship), and by which the Creator God of Israel would bless the whole of the creation, including all of the peoples of the world (not just national Israel).  Jesus would be set forth as Israel’s king and God.  Though executed as a challenger to Caesar, and charged with being “King of the Jews,” He would go largely unrecognized in these roles, even though Israel had been repeatedly told to be prepared to meet their God.  

Preparing For God (part 1 of 2)

Therefore thus I will do to you, O Israel; because I will do this to you, prepare to meet your God, O Israel. – Amos 4:12  (ESV)

What precedes this statement that we would think of as being rather ominous?  Beginning in the sixth verse of this chapter, and keeping in mind that the prophet and his audience would have Israel’s historical narrative in mind as the framework within which to understand what is happening in and to Israel, we hear their God telling His covenant people that “I gave you cleanness of teeth in all your cities, and lack of bread in all your places” (4:6a).  Now, we would normally think of “clean teeth” as a good thing, but in this case it means, as indicated by what follows it, that there was no food.  The Creator God of Israel had sent famine upon His covenant people.  We have a tendency to think that calamity will somehow always drive a person to seek God, but that is simply our modern interpretation.  Such thinking does not necessarily line up with the example of Scripture.  In the case of Israel, which we will continue to see as we look through the remainder of this chapter, this did not happen.  After speaking of the cleanness of teeth and the lack of bread, God says, “yet you did not return to Me” (4:6b). 

We go on to find the Lord saying “I also withheld the rain from you” (4:7a).  He said that He “would send rain on one city, and send no rain on another city; one field would have rain, and the field on which it did not rain would wither” (4:7b).  With this, it was also said that “two or three cities would wander to another city to drink water, and would not be satisfied” (4:8a).  In spite of directing this upon His covenant people, God said “you did not return to Me” (4:8b).  Lest one think that the rain that came on one city or a particular field could be construed as a blessing for the people of that city or the owner of that particular field, the Lord continues on and says, “I struck you with blight and mildew” (4:9a).  Both blight and mildew result from the presence of water, and serve to ruin crops.  Accordingly, just in case there were plants that escaped the blight and the mildew, the people are reminded that “your many gardens and your vineyards, your fig trees and your olive trees the locust devoured” (4:9b).  Nothing was escaping God’s cursing, even when there seemed to be a blessing at hand, and the Lord declares that even then “you did not return to Me” (4:9c). 

Things just go from bad to worse for the people of the Creator God, as we see in the tenth verse that “I sent among you a pestilence after the manner of Egypt; I killed your young men with the sword, and carried away your horses, and I made the stench of your camp go up into your nostrils” (4:10a).  Yet surprisingly, or perhaps not so surprisingly by this point in time, we find that the people “did not return” (4:10b).  Having done all of that, with no proper response on behalf of these people that He had elected to be a witness of His power and glory and blessings to all of the nations of the earth, and to serve as the vehicle by which He would bless all the earth, we find God now saying, “I overthrew some of you, as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah, and you were as a brand plucked out of the burning” (4:11a).  In this, they could have seen themselves as Lot, who had been directly rescued by God from the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, but they did not, and they “did not return” (4:11b). 

Why would all of this be a cause for return?  Would it not simply be a reason to become even more angry at God, if indeed He was controlling and sending all of these things?  It should have been a cause for return, because it should have been recognized by His covenant people for what it was, which was God’s faithfulness to His promises to them.  Those promises can be found in the books of Leviticus and Deuteronomy.  In the twenty-eighth chapter of Deuteronomy, we can read about the curses for disobedience that God promised to bring about if His people were unfaithful to His plans and purposes for them.  Through Moses, the Lord said, “Cursed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl.  Cursed shall be the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your ground, the increase of your herds and the young of your flock” (28:16-18).  Tying this to Amos, certainly, this will produce a cleanness of teeth and a lack of bread.  Reading on, we find that “The Lord will send on your curses, confusion, and frustration in all that you undertake to do, until you are destroyed and perish quickly on account of the evil of your deeds” (28:20a).  Why is this promised to happen?  “Because you have forsaken Me” (28:20b) is the clear answer, as God’s people would venture outside of their covenant responsibilities and obligations, and fail to provide the appropriate response of gratitude to the grace shown to them. 

Carrying The Ark

As David celebrates his arrival upon the kingship, reveling in the fulfillment of the much-anticipated promise of God, he makes a decision to bring the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem.  “They loaded the Ark of God on a new cart and carried it” (2 Samuel 6:3a) in that way.  Unfortunately for David, this was contrary to the way in which the Ark was to be carried, according to the prescriptions provided in the writings of Moses.  The Ark was not to be transported on a cart, but rather, carried by Levites on poles.  What David and his men were doing was contrary to God’s commandments, so regardless of the fact that “David and all Israel were energetically celebrating before the Lord, singing and playing various stringed instruments, tambourines, rattles, and cymbals (6:5), God was not pleased. 

One is lead to think of the words of the prophet---words that would come later in Israel’s history, through which God would say, “I absolutely despise your festivals!  I get no pleasure from your religious assemblies!  Even if you offer Me burnt and grain offerings, I will not be satisfied; I will not look with favor on your peace offerings of fattened calves.  Take away from Me your noisy songs; I don’t want to hear the music of your stringed instruments” (Amos 5:21-23).  Even though Israel was singing and dancing and praising God, because the Ark was not being transported according to God’s commandments, it was all pointless, and surely, something of a stench to God, as man was, once again, doing things his own way. 

What resulted from this improper carrying?  “When they arrived at the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah reached out and grabbed hold of the Ark of God, because the oxen stumbled” (6:6).  On the surface, this was a good thing, as he wanted to protect the Ark from damage.  However, it was only necessary because the Ark was not being properly transported, and therefore, was only necessary because of the violation of God’s commands.  What happened to Uzzah?  “The Lord was so furious with Uzzah, He killed him on the spot for his negligence” (6:7a).  What we would initially think of as his efforts at being a responsible steward, is viewed by God as negligence because of his participation in the violation of clear commands.  “He died right there beside the Ark of God” (7:7b).  What was it that Uzzah experienced?  More than just simply going down into death, which is quite obvious, he experienced exile.  Not only that, but “David was afraid of the Lord that day and said, ‘How will the Ark of the Lord ever come to me?’  So David was no longer willing to bring the Ark of the Lord to be with him in the City of David.  David left it in the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite for three months” (6:9-10).  Here, the Ark, in a sense, is sent into exile, even though while it resided in that house, “The Lord blessed Obed-Edom and all his family” (6:11b).  This man experienced exodus, while Uzzah and David (to an extent, as he misses out on God’s blessings for a period of time) experienced exile in connection with the Ark. 

Are we right in assigning the theme of exile and exodus to this situation?  It would seem so, especially as the covenant curses of Deuteronomy, which end in shame and exile and death, are said to be brought “if you ignore the Lord your God and are not careful to keep all His commandments and statutes” (28:15a).  Clearly, the issue of the Ark’s mode of movement stood in violation of those commandments, and therefore the curse of death came because of the lack of careful keeping. 

After David was told that “The Lord has blessed Obed-Edom and everything he owns because of the Ark of God” (6:12a), he “went and joyfully brought the ark of God…to the City of David” (6:12b).  This time, however, it was going to be carried properly, with even extra care (as demonstrated by the sacrifices being made every six steps), and therefore the singing, dancing, praising, and sacrifices were going to be pleasing to the Lord.  Then, “As the Ark of the Lord entered the City of David, Saul’s daughter Michal (David’s wife) looked out the window.  When she saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord, she despised him” (6:16).  Michal looked upon David with contempt, and with her despising of him and saying “How the king of Israel has distinguished himself this day!  He has exposed himself today before his servants’ slave girls the way a vulgar fool might do” (6:20b), she is cursing him with words related to exile. 

However, because David knows that he is in the midst of God’s blessing (exodus) in spite of these words from his wife, he revels in what she sees as exile, seizing upon her statement and utilizing words of exile and saying “I am willing to shame and humiliate myself even more than this!” (6:22a)  Michal wants David to suffer humiliation and shame (figurative of death), but ultimately David experiences the vindication of God, experiencing a figurative resurrection when he says “with the slave girls whom you mentioned let me be distinguished!” (6:22b)  Ultimately, we find that the one that referenced the shame of exile is the one that experiences that very thing, as “Michal, Saul’s daughter, had no children to the day of her death” (6:23), which in that day was thought of as a curse, with both childlessness and shame being equivalent to death.