Verse 1. “Thus says the Lord, ‘For three transgressions of
Moab and for four I will not revoke its punishment, because
he burned the bones of the king of Edom to lime.’”
Once again, the Lord is speaking through the Prophet Amos,
pronouncing judgment upon a neighboring country of the
nations Israel and Judah. Moab the man was both the son and
"grandson" of Lot through incest with his older daughter
(Genesis 19:30-38), and Lot was the nephew of Abraham.
Moab’s descendants became the people and country called by
that name, as described in Numbers 21:13-15. Moab refused
Israel passage to Canaan (Judges 11:17-18), but God’s
intention, as expressed to Israel, was that the nation Moab
was to be treated with kindness (Deuteronomy 2:9). However, trouble
often existed between those nations (example: 2
Kings 13:20).
The Edomites were descended from Esau, the older son of
Isaac, son of Abraham. The incident of this verse is not
directly in
Scripture, but likely it was an unrecorded event after the
time Edom marched with Israel and Judah against Moab (2
Kings 3:9 & context). In history, cremation has been
somewhat thought to be acceptable, but at the time and place they burned
this king, the practice was considered an abomination. God
recognized the hatred in the hearts of the Moabites, and this
cremation was a symbol of the need to bring judgment upon
them.
Verse 2. “So I will send fire upon Moab and it will consume
the citadels of Kerioth; and Moab will die amid tumult, with
war cries and the sound of a trumpet.”
Just as the Moabites “burned the bones of the king of Edom”
(verse 1), so God would “send fire upon Moab” (this verse).
God’s judgments are very sure to occur, even though they may
sometimes seem long in coming, and also His judgments are utterly
appropriate. Just as they did to others, it would happen to
them. Note that if you ignore “the Lamb of God who takes
away the sin of the world” (John 1:29), you and I
will be judged - our only hope is to trust in Him.
“Kerioth” meant “cities,” likely denoting the capital city
of Moab and its suburbs in the eighth century BC, when these
words were spoken and written. Kerioth may have been a
double-city, like upper and lower, or old and new. What is
certain is that the country and people of Moab would be no
more, as reflected in Jeremiah Chapter 48. The Lord
offers Himself to mankind, and Moab responded by offering
“sacrifices in the high places” and burning “incense to his
gods” (Jeremiah 48:35). You won’t meet anyone from Moab today
because they did indeed "die"
as a nation.
Verse 3. “‘I will also cut off the judge from her midst and
slay all her princes with him,’ says the Lord.”
To “cut off the judge” and “slay all her (Moab’s)
princes”
would have the effect of eliminating law and order in that
country. Society would break down and chaos would prevail.
Invading armies could conquer them. “Moab (would)
die amid tumult, with war cries and the sound
of a trumpet” (as in verse 2). The country of Moab was
to
disappear as has happened to so many nations and empires of
history.
You’ve likely noticed that many people everywhere are
AGAINST the established order of whatever nation or region
they happen to live in. Certainly there are circumstances
where the rulers are so horrible they NEED to be overthrown.
But watch out – anarchy (no government at all) leads to
civil war and the destruction of far more than
ever was intended. You need to trust in the true King, to
be saved when your earthly nation is no more.
Verse 4. “Thus says the Lord, ‘For three transgressions of
Judah and for four I will not revoke its punishment, because
they rejected the law of the Lord and have not kept His
statutes; their lies also have led them astray, those after
which their fathers walked.”
“Judah” was one of the sons of Jacob, the Jacob whose name
was changed to “Israel” (Genesis 32:28). The descendants of
Jacob became the nation Israel, which split into two parts
after the death of King Solomon (2 Kings 12:16-17 &
context). To Solomon’s son, God gave “one tribe,” Judah (1
Kings 11:36), so “David may always have a lamp before (God)
in Jerusalem.”
In this verse in Amos, we see that God was going to put out
the “lamp” of Judah, and Jerusalem its capital, for a time.
It would be just for a time because the “gifts and calling
of God are irrevocable” (Romans 11:29). The people of Judah
had chosen “lies” (as in this verse) instead of the truth
and they did not keep “His statutes,” His word. The sin of a
people will ruin the blessings given to them, but in His
time, Israel (Judah) would become a nation once more.
Verse 5. “So I will send fire upon Judah and it will consume
the citadels of Jerusalem.”
The tiny nation
called “Judah,” with its capital, “Jerusalem,” would be
destroyed by the uncaring, terrible invading armies of
Babylon (Jeremiah 17:27, Hosea 8, 2 Kings 25:9). Words
similar to this are reflected in Jeremiah 17:27, where the
prophet said, “I will kindle a fire in its gates, and it
shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem, and it shall not be
quenched.” God’s direct issue with them in that verse in
Jeremiah, was the “Sabbath day.” They were disobeying the
Sabbath, and it was God’s will for Israel and Judah to keep
that day in remembrance of Him. God intends for us all that
we will respond to His will for our lives.
In 2 Kings 25:9, we can read what subsequently happened:
Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, “burned the house of
the Lord and the king’s house; all the houses of Jerusalem,
that is, all the houses of the great men, he burned with
fire” (2 Kings 25:9). When Jerusalem fell, Judah fell with
it. In the light of these verses, a later prophet poses this
interesting question from God: "Do I have any
pleasure at all that the wicked should die?” The answer is,
“I have no pleasure in the death of one who dies…
therefore
turn and live!” (Ezekiel 18:32). It is a message to us all:
Turn to the Lord – and live!
Father, we see
from these Old Testament Scriptures that Your judgment is
upon all of us in all nations. Our only hope is
Your Son and we look to Him now. We confess we are
sinners and we trust in You. Fill us with Your Spirit
and give us the peace of God. In Jesus Name.
Amen.
Audio Bible Study – Amos 2:6-10
Verse 6. "Thus says the Lord, 'For three transgressions of
Israel and for four I will not revoke its punishment,
because they sell the righteous for money and the needy for
a pair of sandals.'"
God loves the
people called "Israel." His
interest is to "father the outcasts of
Israel and gather together the dispersed of Judah"
(Isaiah 11:12). He promises, "I will
bring them back into their land which I gave to their
fathers" (Jeremiah 16:15). But He would first
reasonably JUDGE them because of "their
detestable and abominable idols" (Jeremiah 16:18).
All of us should be warned by this verse in Amos because
"money" (or almost anything else) can become an "idol" to
those who love what it can do for them.
It was understood
in that culture that hard times do come and people actually
sold themselves as surety during difficult times. But the
person who sold himself was not to be treated as a slave
(Leviticus 25:39); he would be like an employee (Lev.
25:40). There was to be a provision for his release (Lev.
25:41). He was to be well-treated (Lev. 25:43) and HE COULD
NOT BE SOLD (Lev. 25:42). But according to this verse in
Amos, they WERE being sold and God was not pleased. The
leading people in Israel were treating God’s people badly
and breaking His Law.
Verse 7. “These who pant after the very dust of the earth on
the head of the helpless also turn aside the way of the
humble; and a man and his father resort to the same girl in
order to profane My holy name.”
Do you want to be
religious? Do you want to please God with your religion?
James tells us how to do it: "Pure and
undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to
visit orphans and widows in their trouble.." (James
1:27). Most of the widows and orphans in the history of
this world have lived very "humble"
lives. God is making it very clear to all, that He will
JUDGE those who mistreat the "humble"
and "helpless" of this world.
He is displeased with those who oppress the poor.
There
have been those in our time who refer to fornication and
adultery as "victimless crimes," and many now don't regard
such acts as "crimes" at all. That's because they don't
believe God and do not recognize His utter holiness. He
says: "The adulterer and the
adulteress shall surely be put to death" (Leviticus
20:10). If a man lies with his father's wife, both of them "shall
surely be put to death" (Leviticus 20:11). If a man
lies with his daughter-in-law, "both"
must die, and so on. All young people should read and heed
this: "Marriage is honorable in all
and the bed undefiled, but fornicators and adulterers God
will judge" (Hebrews 13:4). God is holy and He will
not abide the "man and his father"
who "resort to the same girl,"
as in this verse in Amos.
Verse 8. “On garments taken as pledges they stretch out
beside every altar, and in the house of their God they drink
the wine of those who have been fined.
To continue the
context of Verse 7 into this verse intimates that those who
"stretch out beside every altar"
are committing sexual sin while they are in those places.
The men were taking advantage of young girls (Verse 7)
within a religious setting (Verse 8). There were many
idolatrous altars in Israel where such actions occurred,
and, as we see in 1 Corinthians 6:9, "neither
fornicators nor idolaters ...
shall inherit the kingdom of God."
The "garments"
of this verse in Amos are "begadim,"
which formed the poor man's outer clothing in the daytime
and his cover by night. If such a garment was pledged in
relation to a debt, God had told them, "You
shall return it to him before the sun goes down"
(Exodus 22:26). But at the time of this verse, the lenders
KEPT the garments, covering THEMSELVES with them as
blankets, to take a nap after their abominations committed
at the altars of Israel. And instead of keeping the wine
taken in trust, they drank it! Your sin is 1) SEEN by God,
and 2) will be judged by Him.
Verse 9. “Yet it was I who destroyed the Amorite before
them, though his height was like the height of cedars and he
was strong as the oaks; I even destroyed his fruit above and
his root below.”
God would now
discuss INGRATITUDE, a grievous and widespread sin within
humanity and one which was rampant in Israel at the time of
this verse. There were seven major nations in the land of
Canaan, when Israel was commanded and enabled to take that
land in the name of God. The Amorites were especially
fierce, large and strong, the kind of bully you DON'T want
to meet on the way home from school!
Outwardly, it was the nation Israel that conquered the land
of Canaan, defeating the seven nations in that place,
one-by-one. But the reality is that GOD was the One who "destroyed
the Amorite before them." The "fruit(s)"
of a nation are its children, and the "root"
are those who came before. The mighty Amorites are no more
- because God has made it so. Have you accomplished
something significant in your life? - God has made it so,
and it's time to thank Him for all He has given to you.
Verse 10. "It was I who brought you up from the land
of Egypt, and I led you in the wilderness forty years that
you might take possession of the land of the Amorite."
When Stephen spoke
to the religious leaders of Israel, not long before they
killed him for his belief in Christ, he related what they
all had been taught to believe: that it was God through
Moses who saved the nation Israel from slavery in the land
of Egypt (Acts 7:36 & context). And yet, it was often Moses
who received the credit, when it was in fact, GOD who led
them out. Moses, who knew firsthand that it was GOD and not
Moses the man, said: "These forty
years the Lord your GOD has been with you; you have lacked
nothing” (Deuteronomy 2:7).
Note
that God could have led them to the Promised Land in a few
days, but He took them on a path that lasted "forty
years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know
what was in your heart" (Deuteronomy 8:2). A similar
process is occurring right now in your life and mine. God
could have defeated the Amorites and other occupants of the
land by bombarding them with meteorites or hitting them with
lightning, and He can eliminate your problems in a minute.
But just like Israel, He will "humble"
and "test" you and me. And in
His time, the victory shall be won - in and through HIM!
Father, just like You "humble" and "test" nations, You do it
with individuals as well. I place my trust in You,
dear God. Please forgive me and cleanse me of my sins.
I will follow You, Lord. Thank You for all that You do
for me. In Jesus Name. Amen.
Friday Study 12/16/05 – Amos 2:11-16
Verse 11. “Then I
raised up some of your sons to be prophets and some of your
young men to be Nazirites.” Is this not so, O sons of
Israel?" declares the Lord.”
"Nazirites" ("dedicated" or "consecrated" ones), were those who took
vows of separation and self-imposed abstinence for the
purpose of special service to God. There were two
different kinds of Nazirite, the temporary and the
"perpetual." We only know about three of the "perpetual"
type: Samson, Samuel and interestingly, John the Baptist.
The Nazirite was to: 1) renounce wine and all products of
the vine, including grapes, 2) not use a razor, and 3) avoid
ritual defilement, such as contact with a dead body.
John the Baptist was a Nazirite from birth (Luke 1:15).
Typical "temporary" vows could last from about 30-days to a
lifetime (Numbers 6:1-21, Judges 13:5-7).
"Prophets" were
those who received and gave the Word(s) of God to the people
and their leaders, revealing God's will for them. "Nazirites"
have been called by some, "Holy Doers."
Prophets who spoke and/or wrote have been called "Holy
Speakers." Prophets spoke, but Nazarites SHOWED holiness of
life. It was the Lord who inspired the vow of the Nazirite and enabled him to carry it out. Prophets and
Nazirites were God's gifts to Israel. Then as now, God
gives "gifts" to mankind through ordinary people (Ephesians 4:8).
He led people to service in His Name then, just as He does
now.
Verse 12. “But you
made the Nazirites drink wine, and you commanded the
prophets saying, 'You shall not prophesy!’”
But (continued
from Verse 11) Israel did not benefit from or choose the
gifts of God, just as most today do not acknowledge or receive those gifts.
Instead, the contemporaries of the prophets and Nazirites of
Israel and Judah, did their best to CORRUPT those sent by
God to help the people. With the "wink of an eye,"
they seduced those who had become Nazirites, into breaking
their vows. And they interfered with God's prophets.
The leaders of
Israel actually HARMED God's messengers: "They
(God's holy men and women)
were... stoned...
sawn in two,
were tempted, were slain with the sword...
wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute,
afflicted, tormented..." (Hebrews 11:37). If you
decide to truly follow God, things likely will not be easy, but
God is with those who say "Yes" to Him, just as He was WITH
the prophets and Nazirites of Israel.
Verse 13. “Behold,
I am weighted down beneath you as a wagon is weighted down
when filled with sheaves.”
The various
English translations of this verse suggest that God was
burdened, weighed down by their sins, as in Isaiah 43:24,
where He does say, "You have burdened Me with Your sins."
But the underlying Hebrew language of this verse in Amos, as
discussed in works like "The Pulpit Commentary," is
this: "I will
press you down with the full force of war, as a loaded wagon
presses the earth over which it passes." There is a
point where every one of us discovers we are in some context
claustrophobic, and our sins will bring us to such a place.
It's like our sins
put us in a position where we are run over by a pickup
truck loaded with something heavy. Our sins DO trouble
the Lord our Holy God, who intends to deliver us from them. The sins of the world (including yours and mine)
fell on Jesus Christ. As it is reported in places like
Hebrews 7:27, "He offered up Himself." That closed-in
feeling you may have is caused by the pressure of the sins of this world -
but Jesus
died to set you free.
Verse 14. “Flight
will perish from the swift, and the stalwart will not
strengthen his power, nor the mighty man save his life.”
Mankind, like
Israel in this verse, has run away from God. He
created us, loves us, sent us prophets and others to warn
us, and saved us from our sins by extending the grace of God
through Jesus Christ. But the whole world has run from
Him who would save you and me. Note there is a point
for each one, where we just cannot run away anymore.
We are to find that "NOW is the day of salvation" (2
Corinthians 6:2) and not run anymore.
In this verse, we
see that the strength of Israel would fail them. Their
armies would not be enough. Their walls and other
defensive fortifications wouldn't do the job. The
heroes of that generation could not save them and their
great men couldn't
even save their own lives. It's true of us now, just
as it was true then. We need the Lord, because our
cleverness, our supposed strength, the abilities we think we
have - will fail.
Verse 15. “He who
grasps the bow will not stand his ground, the swift of foot
will not escape, nor will he who rides the horse save his
life.”
The "bow," the
foot soldier, and the "horse" were among the chief weapons
of war in that time. Israel as a nation, by the way, was noted for
its abilities with the bow and arrow. But the user of
the bow, as is true of any weaponry, is only effective if he
stands his ground and fires at the enemy.
God was saying there would come a time when all who defend
Israel would run (or ride) for their lives - but they would
not escape.
I don't know if
you've noticed it or not, but nobody escapes from this earth
alive. Medical insurance, though valuable and helpful,
won't save your life indefinitely. Money in your bank
or wallet is useful, but ultimately it won't buy what you
need. You can call yourself an "atheist" and try to
believe that none of this applies to you, but it does, and
all will meet God, face-to-Face. What will you say to
Him in that day?
Verse 16. “Even
the bravest among the warriors will flee naked in that day,"
declares the Lord.
Some among us are faster and/or
stronger than others (Verse 14). Some come up with
ideas better than most which is considered a type of
strength also. Possessing the atomic bomb makes one
nation seem stronger than another. But what you have
in this world is not enough to sustain your nation - or you!
Bravery is insufficient - "Even the bravest" in that day
"will flee naked." It happened to Israel and it will
happen to every nation of this world.
The man named "Job" lost everything,
including his assets, his children and his health.
(Job Chapters 1-2). It was very difficult for him, but
his response was this: "Naked I came from my mother's womb
and naked shall I return there. The Lord gave, and the Lord
has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord" (Job 1:21).
You need to have faith in the Lord, for in the day you "flee
naked" into His presence, faith is all that you will have
- or you have nothing at all.
Lord, we need You and want You
right now. Please forgive my sins as I trust in the
Son of God right now. Heal me. Fill me with Your
Holy Spirit and let me know Your peace. In Jesus Name.
Amen.
Ron
Beckham, Pastor
Friday Study Ministries
The First Church On The Net
www.FridayStudy.org
www.FirstChurchOnTheNet.org "While
we were yet sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8)
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