Amos: Seek The Lord and LiveНамуна

Even though the Lord’s complaint is against Israel, He starts off by proclaiming that He will judge every nation. God’s throne was located in Jerusalem in the southern kingdom of Judah, but He’s the sovereign ruler over all the earth and wants all to recognise that. 

The repeated drumbeat is obvious when you read this passage: 

• 'For three sins of...even for four, I will not turn back my wrath'
• 'Because...'
• 'I will send fire...that will consume'
  

‘For three ... even for four’ probably is an equivalent expression to our ‘this is the final straw’. The Lord is saying, ‘Enough! The time has come for justice to fall.’ 

The sins of these pagan nations are what we would call ‘crimes against humanity’. Damascus has ‘threshed’ humans (v. 3), that is dragged heavy iron rollers over people to crush them. Gaza ‘took captive whole communities’ and sold them as slaves (v. 6). You can almost imagine the screaming mother saying, ‘Please leave the children.’ Tyre and Edom are similarly culpable (vv. 9, 11). Ammon ‘ripped open’ pregnant women (v. 13), and so killed two people, merely ‘to extend his borders.’ Moab burned alive Edom’s king (2:1). 

Here is comfort the next time you see some horrific crime against humanity described on TV: the Lord sees; the Lord knows; the Lord will bring justice. That’s an enormous relief. 

Reflection

Praise God that He will judge all wickedness. The dictators of history who have died in luxury and comfort, having slaughtered thousands, will receive their punishment.