Reflections on Amos 1

Amos 01 (Contemporary English Version)


1. I am Amos. And I raised sheep near the town of Tekoa when Uzziah was king of Judah and Jeroboam son of Jehoash was king of Israel. Two years before the earthquake, the LORD gave me several messages about Israel,
   
2. and I said: When the LORD roars from Jerusalem, pasturelands and Mount Carmel dry up and turn brown.
   
3. The LORD said: I will punish Syria for countless crimes, and I won't change my mind. They dragged logs with spikes over the people of Gilead.
   
4. Now I will burn down the palaces and fortresses of King Hazael and of King Benhadad.
   
5. I will break through the gates of Damascus. I will destroy the people of Wicked Valley and the ruler of Beth-Eden. Then the Syrians will be dragged as prisoners to Kir. I, the LORD, have spoken!
   
6. The LORD said: I will punish Philistia for countless crimes, and I won't change my mind. They dragged off my people from town after town to sell them as slaves to the Edomites.
   
7. That's why I will burn down the walls and fortresses of the city of Gaza.
   
8. I will destroy the king of Ashdod and the ruler of Ashkelon. I will strike down Ekron, and that will be the end of the Philistines. I, the LORD, have spoken!
   
9. The LORD said: I will punish Phoenicia for countless crimes, and I won't change my mind. They broke their treaty and dragged off my people from town after town to sell them as slaves to the Edomites.
   
10. That's why I will send flames to burn down the city of Tyre along with its fortresses.
    
11. The LORD said: I will punish Edom for countless crimes, and I won't change my mind. They killed their own relatives and were so terribly furious that they showed no mercy.
    
12. Now I will send fire to wipe out the fortresses of Teman and Bozrah.
    
13. The LORD said: I will punish Ammon for countless crimes, and I won't change my mind. In Gilead they ripped open pregnant women, just to take the land.
    
14. Now I will send fire to destroy the walls and fortresses of Rabbah. Enemies will shout and attack like a whirlwind.
    
15. Ammon's king and leaders will be dragged away. I, the LORD, have spoken!
    

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Amos was a sheep-breeder from Tekoa and not a life-long prophet. He was given this one assignment of which we read in this book. Although he was from Judah the southern kingdom, he was sent to Israel, the northern kingdom, with a message of judgment, not just for Israel as are so many of the books of prophecy, but also for the nations around Israel. Their sin? They had all rebelled against God's authority. The strongest judgment was reserved for Israel, though, because of her covenant relationship with God. As Luke pointed out (Luke 12:48), "If God has been generous with you, he will expect you to serve him well. But if he has been more than generous, he will expect you to serve him even better." God had been more than generous with Israel and so more was expected of the nation and greater was the judgment for her rebellion against God's authority.

Is it too much to expect that after giving us life and everything we have that God should want us to recognize Him as our Creator and source of all blessings? In recognizing God for who He is as Creator of all things, we must also accept the guidelines He gives for living this life He has given us. When we do so life goes much better for us and for those around us. But when we rebel against God that rebellion goes also against His guidelines for life and often leads to a disregard for the lives of other people. A look at the sins of the nations outlined in this first chapter of Amos points to this disregard for life.

The first charge is brought against Damascus for threshing Gilead in Israel, slicing and crushing the people as grain is threshed. Next was Gaza. The charge? They captured whole communities in slave raids, selling the people for profit. Once sold, the people were shipped to other parts of the world. Tyre was also charged with slave trading, but considered even worse was the fact that she inflicted this atrocity against a people with whom she had a treaty of brotherhood. Then there was Edom who showed persistent hostility toward his brother, Israel. This is a reference to the kinship between the two nations going back to the twin brothers Esau and Jacob. Edom, the descendants of Esau, continually nurtured a hatred for his brother and persistently pursued him with the sword. Finally, in this chapter, Ammon is charged with the cruelty of ripping open pregnant women when overtaking another nation. This was not a defensive measure, since pregnant women and unborn children are defenseless, but merely a tool for terrorizing and decimating an enemy.

A primary reason for rejecting God is an attempt to avoid what we consider to be His restraints upon us. We want what we want and don't want His interference in our lives. We see from the charges against these nations how this ultimately leads to a disregard also for other people. Neither do we want them to hinder our pursuits. Our interests are reduced to just ourselves. What we want is all that is important. Jesus summarized all of scripture in just two commands: Love God with all your heart and your neighbor as yourself. There is a balance in this regard for both God and man. Remove regard for God and regard for man soon follows.