Hope or Horror?
Reflections on the Book of Amos
Sometimes when you first read a book, Scripture or otherwise, the initial impression you come away with is not always the best sense of the work. I have had student friends tell me they read a book two or three times before starting their "book review". Well lucky for them, they have more time than I do! But I agree, the point is that a better understanding of God's word requires meditation, this process takes time and revisiting a text the second time is usually more helpful than the first. Such was my recent experience in thinking about the message of the prophet Amos...
My first thoughts about Amos were focused solely on the severity and totality of God's judgement. These things are certainly true, after all the book opens with the Lord roaring like a Lion (Vs 1:2). The later observations in (3:4 & 3:12) about what this means for His prey leaves little to the imagination. The remainder of the book sees God intent on justifying the coming judgement, laying all manner of charges at the feet of Israel. These include gross social injustices (2:6-8, 4:1-4), religious hypocrisy (4:4-5, 6:21), stubbornness (4:6-10), idolatry and the list goes on. In a way the prophetic story unfolds like a court case against Israel. The accused identity is confirmed (3:1-2), the charges are laid out, the witnesses are called (3:9) the evidence is given, the verdict pronounced and the punishment prescribed (7:1-9). There appears little hope by the end of the book for the people of God, who have become like no special people at all (Vs 9:7-8). What glimmer of hope there is for restoration and the recovery of Israel is confined to the last few verses of the book and almost seem unconvincing under the crushing condemnation of 9 chapters.
Over the course of the week, I began to think more about God's mercy in the context of this book. If the situation for northern Israel were so impossibly bleak and their sin so audacious, why bother to even send Amos to tell them? Why not just wipe them out!? There is no mention of Amos visiting Damascus, Ammon or Edom, yet Israel receives the warnings of God first hand, from a prophet of Judah no less. With this sentiment I went back to reading, and took more notice of the expressions of God's love inter-twined with his anger at their sin. For example His disciplinary actions in 4:6-11 in the hopes of their return to Him, invitations to repent (5:5-6, 5:14), offers of mercy (5:15b) and so forth. And so the prophetic message, though seemingly harsh, is in fact merciful. God is righteous, He cannot overlook their sin forever, however there is time for Amos to complete his work, to tell the people and hope for their repentance. And so, "..the Sovereign Lord does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets" (Amos 3:7).
What lesson can we learn from this? Firstly bad news is good news if it leads to repentance! If the situation is dire, we need an accurate assessment and an honest account of the consequences to come. At times our own evangelistic efforts are too focused on the so called "love of God", without communicating exactly what that love is saving us from - wrath and judgement. Amos didn't mince words, and in a similar way neither should we. Only through believing in the reality of God's anger and judgement can we discern His Mercy and then actually desire to receive it!
"Will not the day of the LORD be darkness, not light - pitch-dark, without a ray of brightness?" -Amos 5:20
