Amos
2 continues the assessments of the competing nations from the
previous chapter. I picture the prophet Amos as the experienced
evaluator of talent in the boxing gym, sizing up each foe and quickly
spotting their weakness. The next nation up for God’s judgment is
“Moab“.
These folks were cousins to the Hebrew people, but they had little
in common. They were not raised together, and they fought more than
they worked together. He is the obnoxious guy in the corner, trying
to make deals for himself. Moab had a reputation for taking
shortcuts and generally being unhelpful. God proclaimed, “Because
he burned to ashes the bones of Edom’s king… Moab will go down in
great tumult amid war cries and the blast of the trumpet“.
This was show of great disrespect toward the Edomites and the laws
of God. The dead were to be buried and to dishonor royalty was
particularly heinous. God concludes His judgment on Moab, “I
will destroy
her ruler and kill all her officials“.
At this point, I’m sure the Jewish people were all nodding in
agreement as each of their opponents is publicly exposed. It is
arrogant to think that only other people should be brought to
justice. Many people today quote Mathew 7:1 “Do
not judge“. Sadly, they leave
out the next verse which makes it clear that God will hold each of us
accountable for the standards we set for others, “the
measure you use, it will be measured to you“.
This is Justice.
Imagine
the shock when Amos turned his glare toward Judah.
“The Lord says…
Because they have rejected the
law of the Lord
and have not kept His
decrees, because they have been led astray by false gods… I will…
consume the fortresses of Jerusalem“.
We have a tendency to measure ourselves against worst possible
people, “Well, I never killed anyone”; but God’s standard is
perfection. Are you only focused on the sins of others?
The
chapter ends with Amos looking at the Northern kingdom of Israel.
Without hesitation he begins, “the
Lord says… They sell the innocent for silver, and the needy for a
pair of sandals… They trample on the heads of the poor“.
The law allowed someone to sell themselves into servitude to pay off
a debt, but that was only to be a temporary thing. “At
the end of every seven years you must cancel debts… And
when you release them, do not send them away empty-handed”
(Deuteronomy 15). God’s judgment continues, “Father
and son use the same girl and
so profane
My holy name“. And the list
of sins continues, “you
deny justice to the oppressed…
garments taken in pledge… In the house of their god they drink wine
taken as fines“. God explains
that He displaced the evil people that had taken possession of the
Promised Land, only to watch His holy people become just as vile.
When the people sinned, “I…
raised up prophets from among your children… But you… commanded
the prophets not to prophesy“.
Because Israel rejected God, He allowed them to suffer consequences,
“The swift will not escape…
the warrior will not save his life… Even the bravest warriors
will flee“.
Have you been dealing with consequences lately? There is a cool
option also given in Deuteronomy 15, for those that have found a
loving master. An individual could become a “bond-slave” for
life, “because he loves you and
your family“. Later, the
apostle Paul called himself a bond-slave of Christ and he offered
this option for those of us that keep getting knocked down, “For
the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in
Christ Jesus our Lord”
(Romans 6:23). Do you want justice, or mercy?