Amos 3:1-15. Chapter three contains the next message or sermon by Amos.  Again remember what we have here a shepherd from the Southern kingdom in the Northern kingdom.  Paul instructed Timothy a young pastor to not let his congregation “look down on his youthfulness” (1 Timothy 4:12).  I wonder if Amos got a similar vibe from the Northerners.  The book started out with Amos boldly stating the source of his message, Yahweh in Jerusalem, a message for Israel (the Northern Kingdom).  The first sermon stated out fine with proclamations against enemies of Israel and Judah but then turned to injustice and sin between non-Israelite (Gentile) nations.  But then Amos condemned actions of both Judah and finally Israel.  This second sermon starts our very abruptly too; “hear what Yahweh has spoken against you Israel”.

It seems that this reference to Israel could include Judah too, since Amos says, “against the entire family which I brought up out of Egypt.”  This would be a reference to the whole Moses/Pharaoh/Red Sea story in the book of Exodus.  (Actually Exodus and Joshua.  See “The Old Testament Connection” for a little of this history).  In verse 2 we see that with privilege comes responsibility.  The Israelites were chosen by God to be an example to the world (see “The Old Testament Connection”) but that meant that they were also responsible to live for God.  They had the rules and needed to obey them, but they weren’t.  That is the point verses 3-6.  In those verses Amos asks several questions which people would answer by saying, “Of course not!”  Of course two men to not have a meeting unless they have planned it, of course a lion does not roar if he hasn’t taken down the zebra, and so on.  Verse 7 makes this point very clear, “God has spoken to Amos and Amos has to pass it on.”  The cool think about verse 7 is that God does not leave us guessing.  God has been very clear with mankind from the beginning, but we still seem to ignore what he has told us.

Ashdod was a major city in the area where Philistines lived (enemies of the Israelites) and Egypt was a major power to their south.  In verse 9 Amos is basically saying, “Pull up a chair and what what is going to happen in Samaria.”  Samaria was the capital city of the Northern kingdom and here refers probably to the whole kingdom.  In verse 10 this world audience is told that the people of Samaria don’t know how to do what is right.  By the way a citadel is a fortress or castle usually on a high place.  The audience is told that the Northern kingdom has stored up violence and destruction in their fortress.  It is ironic that the audience is described as Egypt and the Philistines since both of these groups were known for their own violence and brutality.  Amos probably did not literally send his message to these foreigners (though they would eventually become aware of any trouble that Isreal suffered) so part of what is going on here is that Amos is trying to get the Israelites to listen; in a way he is comparing the Israelite’s actions to those of their enemies.

In verses 11-15 Amos tells the people of the Northern Kingdom that they will be “snatched” from the land, that their place of false worship, Bethel, is gong to be destroyed, and that their easy life was going to be no more.

What I like most about this whole chapter is that God is very clear with us.  God does not leave us guessing.  We have his word and we have his warning.  I also like how aware God is, he used good examples when chose the “audience” to watch; those example would have made the Israelites really think about what they were doing; or should have.  God is clear to us too, we have the Bible and we have history and archaeology to back it up, but often we do not take the time to read and study and learn what it has to say to us.  We can close our eyes but that won’t save us from the judgment of God.  Jesus said, “I am the way the truth and the life and no one comes to God except through me.”  We need to open our eyes and see the great love God has for us and let him help us live for him before the disaster comes.

God thank you for loving me.  Thank you for dying to pay for my sins.  Thank yo for cleaning me up and making me a suitable place for your Spirit to live.  Thank you for the Holy Spirit who helps me do what I could never do on my own, honor you with my life.  You have spoken, help me listen.