Everyone Equal Before God Series

Introduction

How do you think that the Old Testament prophets delivered their messages from God to the people? Did they just sense God wanting them to say something and so they stood up in the market and start speaking? Was it a sort of a “stream of consciousness” extemporaneous speaking?

Hardly. God’s Spirit undoubtedly impressed upon the prophets some truth that he wanted them to communicate. The prophets must have studied the Scriptures that they had access to and thought long and hard about how to craft what they needed to communicate to the people. We will see this particularly clearly in the passage we are going to study today from the Prophet Amos.

Amos was the first of the writing prophets. He came from the southern kingdom of Judah but his ministry was primarily to the northern kingdom of Israel. Both Judah and Israel were enjoying a time of tremendous prosperity, even though there were tensions between the two kingdoms.

In today’s lesson, we are going to examine the prophecy of Amos in which he announces God’s judgment on the nations surrounding the kingdoms of Israel and Judah. But, surprisingly, he announces God’s judgment on Israel and Judah as well. As one examines this prophecy, which was delivered in the northern kingdom’s city of Bethel, one discovers a carefully prepared outline. There are repetitive patterns that mark one nation from the other. There are opening and closing statements, indictments for sin, and punishments promised. It was a wonderful, well-crafted, and powerful message.

Scripture

Let us read Amos 1:3-2:16:

3 Thus says the Lord: “For three transgressions of Damascus, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment, because they have threshed Gilead with threshing sledges of iron. 4 So I will send a fire upon the house of Hazael, and it shall devour the strongholds of Ben-hadad. 5 I will break the gate-bar of Damascus, and cut off the inhabitants from the Valley of Aven, and him who holds the scepter from Beth-eden; and the people of Syria shall go into exile to Kir,” says the Lord.

6 Thus says the Lord: “For three transgressions of Gaza, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment, because they carried into exile a whole people to deliver them up to Edom. 7 So I will send a fire upon the wall of Gaza, and it shall devour her strongholds. 8 I will cut off the inhabitants from Ashdod, and him who holds the scepter from Ashkelon; I will turn my hand against Ekron, and the remnant of the Philistines shall perish,” says the Lord God.

9 Thus says the Lord: “For three transgressions of Tyre, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment, because they delivered up a whole people to Edom, and did not remember the covenant of brotherhood. 10 So I will send a fire upon the wall of Tyre, and it shall devour her strongholds.”

11 Thus says the Lord: “For three transgressions of Edom, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment, because he pursued his brother with the sword and cast off all pity, and his anger tore perpetually, and he kept his wrath forever. 12 So I will send a fire upon Teman, and it shall devour the strongholds of Bozrah.”

13 Thus says the Lord: “For three transgressions of the Ammonites, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment, because they have ripped open pregnant women in Gilead, that they might enlarge their border. 14 So I will kindle a fire in the wall of Rabbah, and it shall devour her strongholds, with shouting on the day of battle, with a tempest in the day of the whirlwind; 15 and their king shall go into exile, he and his princes together,” says the Lord.

2:1 Thus says the Lord: “For three transgressions of Moab, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment, because he burned to lime the bones of the king of Edom. 2 So I will send a fire upon Moab, and it shall devour the strongholds of Kerioth, and Moab shall die amid uproar, amid shouting and the sound of the trumpet; 3 I will cut off the ruler from its midst, and will kill all its princes with him,” says the Lord.

4 Thus says the Lord: “For three transgressions of Judah, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment, because they have rejected the law of the Lord, and have not kept his statutes, but their lies have led them astray, those after which their fathers walked. 5 So I will send a fire upon Judah, and it shall devour the strongholds of Jerusalem.”

6 Thus says the Lord: “For three transgressions of Israel, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment, because they sell the righteous for silver, and the needy for a pair of sandals—7 those who trample the head of the poor into the dust of the earth and turn aside the way of the afflicted; a man and his father go in to the same girl, so that my holy name is profaned; 8 they lay themselves down beside every altar on garments taken in pledge, and in the house of their God they drink the wine of those who have been fined.