December 9 – Amos 3 and 4 from the Old Testament
Amos 3 and 4 – Every Effect has its Cause
3:1 Listen, you Israelites, to this message which the Lord is proclaiming against you! This message is for the entire clan I brought up from the land of Egypt: 3:2 “I have chosen you alone from all the clans of the earth. Therefore I will punish you for all your sins.”
3:3 Do two walk together without having met?
3:4 Does a lion roar in the woods if he has not cornered his prey?
Does a young lion bellow from his den if he has not caught something?
3:5 Does a bird swoop down into a trap on the ground if there is no bait?
Does a trap spring up from the ground unless it has surely caught something?
3:6 If an alarm sounds in a city, do people not fear?
If disaster overtakes a city, is the Lord not responsible?
3:7 Certainly the sovereign Lord does nothing without first revealing his plan to his servants the prophets.
3:8 A lion has roared! Who is not afraid?
The sovereign Lord has spoken! Who can refuse to prophesy?
Samaria Will Fall
3:9 Make this announcement in the fortresses of Ashdod
and in the fortresses in the land of Egypt.
Say this:
“Gather on the hills around Samaria!
Observe the many acts of violence taking place within the city,
the oppressive deeds occurring in it.”
3:10 “They do not know how to do what is right.” (The Lord is speaking.)
“They store up the spoils of destructive violence in their fortresses.
3:11 Therefore,” says the sovereign Lord, “an enemy will encircle the land.
He will take away your power;
your fortresses will be looted.”
3:12 This is what the Lord says:
“Just as a shepherd salvages from the lion’s mouth a couple of leg bones or a piece of an ear,
so the Israelites who live in Samaria will be salvaged.
They will be left with just a corner of a bed,
and a part of a couch.”
3:13 Listen and warn the family of Jacob!
The sovereign Lord, the God who commands armies, is speaking!
3:14 “Certainly when I punish Israel for their covenant transgressions,
I will destroy Bethel’s altars.
The horns of the altar will be cut off and fall to the ground.
3:15 I will destroy both the winter and summer houses.
The houses filled with ivory will be ruined,
the great houses will be swept away.”
The Lord is speaking!
4:1 Listen to this message, you cows of Bashan who live on Mount Samaria!
You oppress the poor;
you crush the needy.
You say to your husbands,
“Bring us more to drink!”
4:2 The sovereign Lord confirms this oath by his own holy character:
“Certainly the time is approaching
when you will be carried away in baskets,
every last one of you in fishermen’s pots.
4:3 Each of you will go straight through the gaps in the walls;
you will be thrown out toward Harmon.”
The Lord is speaking!
Israel has an Appointment with God
4:4 “Go to Bethel and rebel!
At Gilgal rebel some more!
Bring your sacrifices in the morning,
your tithes on the third day!
4:5 Burn a thank offering of bread made with yeast!
Make a public display of your voluntary offerings!
For you love to do this, you Israelites.”
The sovereign Lord is speaking!
4:6 “But surely I gave you no food to eat in any of your cities;
you lacked food everywhere you live.
Still you did not come back to me.”
The Lord is speaking!
4:7 “I withheld rain from you three months before the harvest.
I gave rain to one city, but not to another.
One field would get rain, but the field that received no rain dried up.
4:8 People from two or three cities staggered into one city to get water,
but remained thirsty.
Still you did not come back to me.”
The Lord is speaking!
4:9 “I destroyed your crops with blight and disease.
Locusts kept devouring your orchards, vineyards, fig trees, and olive trees.
Still you did not come back to me.”
The Lord is speaking!
4:10 “I sent against you a plague like one of the Egyptian plagues.
I killed your young men with the sword,
along with the horses you had captured.
I made the stench from the corpses rise up into your nostrils.
Still you did not come back to me.”
The Lord is speaking!
4:11 “I overthrew some of you the way God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.
You were like a burning stick snatched from the flames.
Still you did not come back to me.”
The Lord is speaking!
4:12 “Therefore this is what I will do to you, Israel.
Because I will do this to you,
prepare to meet your God, Israel!
4:13 For here he is!
He formed the mountains and created the wind.
He reveals his plans to men.
He turns the dawn into darkness
and marches on the heights of the earth.
The Lord, the God who commands armies, is his name!”
