Lesson Focus:
We are the people of God because of God’s grace and mercy.
We are called to remember who we are as God’s people so that we can live in
covenant faithfulness with God and others.
Lesson Outcomes:
Through this lessons students should:
1. Understand
the historical context for the book of Amos.
2. Understand
that God’s judgment always takes place in the context of a covenant
relationship.
3. Understand
that we are the people of God because of his grace and mercy and so we are
required to live in covenant faithfulness to God and to others.
Catch
up on the story:
We do not get much, in the way of biography,
concerning Amos. Unlike his contemporary, Hosea, we only get a few lines about
the man Amos. We are told, at the beginning, that Amos is a sheepherder or
breeder from the town of Tekoa. The traditional location for Tekoa is about 10
miles south of Judah’s capital city of Jerusalem. This area would have been
ideal for raising and keeping sheep. We are also told that he begins his
ministry during the reign of King Uzziah of Judah and King Jeroboam son of Joash
in Israel. This places his ministry during the 750s BCE. Scholars believe that
his ministry was not long, perhaps 5 years or so.
Unlike Hosea, who we will study in a few short
weeks, Amos is likely not part of the priestly class, nor is he part of the
religious establishment. There has been some discussion regarding the nature of
Amos’ job as a sheepherder or breeder. If he were the owner of a large flock,
or trader of these sheep that he may have owned, then he would have likely
traveled the region in the execution of his business. In this way, he may have
had some personal knowledge of the injustices he reports in the oracles against
the nations later in chapter 1. Amos’ exact job is ultimately unimportant for
his mission as a prophet and mouthpiece of God.
While Amos is a resident of Judah, the southern
kingdom, his ministry is to the northern nation of Israel. You will remember
that, once upon a time, the nation of Israel was a united whole under King
David and Solomon. Unfortunately, after King Solomon’s death around 930 BCE,
Israel split into two nations, Israel in the north and Judah in the south. By
the time of Amos’ writing, Israel is at the height of it’s economic and
political stability. Things are good in Israel. There is relative peace and
stability and profitable trade with its neighbors.
As peace and stability, not to mention economic
fruitfulness, as they often do, caused Israel to become comfortable and forget just
how much the God who brought them up out of Egypt had provided for her. An
elite economic class grew up and with that group came a steady injustice
against those not belonging to this affluent class. Amos is predominately
concerned with these social and economic injustices.
The pronouncements of doom in Amos are almost
always set in the context of God’s covenant relationship with Israel. The judgment
that Amos pronounces is not some willy-nilly decision from God. It is, rather,
the terms of the covenant that Israel agreed to beginning at Mt. Sinai. In the
books of Leviticus and Deuteronomy we find a long list of curses and blessings
that are tied to Israel’s behavior. Israel, for a long time, has engaged in the
type of behavior that would trigger these covenant curses. Now Amos is charged
with bringing God’s case and his pronouncement of judgment to Israel.
The Text:
After the opening introduction that gives us the author of the
book, where he was from and the time he was active, we are given another short inscription
that announces that what will follow is a word from God. This word from God
will be no still small voice. Rather, the words that will issue from God’s
mouth will be more like a lion roaring in the wilderness. This roar will have
devastating effects on the area around it. This opening poem amounts to a curse
announcement. The curses that were laid out in the covenant God made with
Israel and Moses at Sinai will now be enforced. This poem also identifies God’s
earthly dwelling place as Jerusalem, which was often referred to as Zion.[ For
Israel’s part, after the split with Judah, they had set up their own shrines
and places of worship, which led to the infiltration of pagan practices and
rituals. Because of this infiltration, Israel, at this point had lost most of
the idea of what it meant to be God’s chosen people.
Oracles Against
the Nations: Amos 1:3-2:5
After the text establishes that what will follow is a
pronouncement of judgment issuing from God, Amos begins by speaking against cities
and nations that surround Israel. Verse 3 begins with “Thus says the Lord…” This
reinforces the fact that Amos is really just a mouthpiece for what God wants to
say to the nations.
While we won’t take much time with the specific content of each
of these oracles against the nations, it will be important to note a few
things. First, all of these oracles rest on the same theological assumption,
God is the God of all creation and as such, has power over of all creation and
will not tolerate unrighteousness from anyone. This view, that a god could be
the god of all creation is a minority one with Israel’s neighbors. Deities were
supposed to reign over a geographical area. Nations would have their own gods.
With these oracles of judgment for injustice and unrighteousness, God proclaims
that he is not just the God of Israel and Judah, but the God of all creation.
God has an implicit covenant with all people in all places and he expects
obedience to this basic understanding of law and morality. God will enforce
these covenantal sanctions on the nations.[2]
This leads to the second thing, the infractions that are listed
in the oracles against the nations are sins that would be considered wrong to
most people.
The specific accusations in the first six sayings all have to do with
crimes in war. Damascus has treated the people of Gilead with extreme cruelty,
grinding them as a grain is ground on a threshing floor. The Philistines and
the people of Tyre have been involved in large-scale programs of deportation. Tyre
has violated an international treaty, the “covenant of brother-hood.” The Edomites
are accused of pitiless and ongoing cruelty against a “brother” people. The
atrocity of the Ammonites is especially reprehensible: Innocent civilians, pregnant
women, are killed by the sword, taking two live at one blow….The Moabites are
accused of extending their atrocities beyond death, burning human bones to make
consumer products…[3]
These crimes were not isolated incidents. They were part of
repeated patterns of violence and injustice committed by these neighboring
nations. As we will see in just a minute with Judah and Israel, God often
allows us to go a very long way off from his covenantal plans for us before
bringing about the required judgment for our sins. These nations did not just
commit one sin, but have, since at least the time of Solomon’s death, been
engaged in systematic and repeated abuses against other people.
Another thing to note about these sayings against the nations is
that God himself will be the one who brings the judgment and destruction. Notice
in seven of the eight sayings the first person singular “I will bring…” The
destruction will come in the form fire, presumably the fire of war set by
nations who God will use to bring his punishment. None of the countries cited
will be able to stand the upcoming destruction.
Finally, the list of nations creates a circular pattern that
begins to come closer and closer to Israel (see map). Each nation that is
mentioned is or was at some point, enemies with Israel. Some, Edom, Ammon, and
Moab all have historical kinship relations with Israel. The Edomites were considered
descendants of Jacob’s brother Esau (Genesis 36:1), while the citizens of Ammon
and Moab came from Lot’s descendants (Genesis 19:36-38). Finally, of course,
Judah and Israel were once one united country. They were both direct
descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
As Amos rounds out the first six oracles we can
begin to imagine that the crowd who has been listing to him is getting very
excited. After all, God is pronouncing judgment on a good many of Israel’s
neighbors. This is good news for Israel, right? Then things get even better. Amos
moves on to Israel’s closet neighbor, Judah.
Judah’s oracle is much like the previous six in
form and style. It begins with the same formulaic saying as the others have,
“For three transgressions of Judah, and for four, I will not revoke
punishment…” Why will they be punished? They will be punished because they have
not kept the laws and statutes that God had given them. Secondly, Judah has
fallen into the same traps as their ancestors had, following false teaching and
the lies of the religions of surrounding nations.
This would have been music to the Israelite’s
ears as Judah had constantly charged Israel the same kind of infidelities (2
Chron. 13:5-12; 1 Kings 14:22-24; 2 Kings 17:19). With gleeful anticipation Amos’
hearers would have waited for what was next. What would come next, however,
would not bring them joy or excitement!
The
Oracle Against Israel: Amos 2:6-16
This eighth and final oracle begins the same
way as the rest of them have; God unequivocally announces his judgment on
Israel. There will be no relenting; no changing of God’s mind about what will
befall Israel. Her systematic and consistent unfaithfulness, just like the
surrounding nations, has not gone unnoticed and will not go unpunished.
This next section, 2:6-16, follows a similar
yet elongated format to the previous oracles. It can further be split into
three sections. Verses 6-8 detail the crimes that Israel has committed. Verses
9-12 are intended to remind Israel, albeit ever so briefly, what God has done
for them in the past. Finally, verses 13-16 line out the judgment that will
soon transpire in Israel. We will look at each section in turn.
The
Charges: “Thus says the Lord…”
This first section, consisting of verses 6-8,
details the charges that God is bringing against Israel. There are four
distinct charges, which are unlike the charges that have been brought against
the nations. They are specific to the covenant that God has made with Israel. As
such, they are not war crimes, but rather they are transgressions against the
harmonious and peaceful ordering of Israelite communal life.[4] These are issues of socio-economic justice.
The first charges concerns selling an
individual into slavery. Now, slavery was a carefully practiced and regulated
practice among God’s people (Exodus 21:2ff; Leviticus 25:39ff; and Deuteronomy
15:12ff.). Slavery, in the form in which God’s people were allowed to practice
it, was meant to protect the lives and well beings of those who found
themselves in poverty and unable to pay their debts. It was always the ultimate
aim that the person enslaved would return to an independent existence. Amos is
not taking issue with slavery, per se, but with the way it was being practiced in
Israel at the time.
Who is being sold into slavery is the important
part. Amos uses two words, “righteous,” which the NIV translates as “innocent,”
and “needy.” Those who are being sold are those who are up right and who are the most vulnerable segments
of society. They are being sold “for a pair of sandals.” The image that Amos is
seeking to evoke is that of a rich and prosperous person taking advantage of a
very small debt, the worth of a pair of sandals, so that he might sell a living
person into slavery and make a profit. The “needy” in Israel were to be
protected. The normal civil and judicial laws would never have allowed this
kind of injustice. Nevertheless, the guilty have used and abused the legal
system so that might profit personally.
The second charge is oppression of the poor. In
verse 7 we get a further picture of what the injustice rampant in Israel looks
like. The rich and powerful trample on the heads of the poor. The image of trampling a person’s head had
long been a familiar symbol in illustrations that depicted Mesopotamian kings
subjugating their conquered enemies. It is an image of complete dominance. Furthermore,
the “push the afflicted out of the way,” which the NIV better translates as
“deny justice to the oppressed” is less about harmlessly pushing someone out of
your way on the street and more of a violent obstruction of justice through the
bribing of judges.[5] T
he
judges were the elders of the town or village who sat in the gate of the city
to adjudicate disputes in the community. If the judges could not be counted on
to provide justice, then justice would not be had.
The third charge deals with sexual abuse. There
is much ambiguity concerning the nature of this charge. Some argue that the
girl in question is a maid, a young woman who still may be a minor who is in
service to a rich family. On the other hand, some think that the girl in
question is just a young woman in the community. Or, she might be the lover of
the son mentioned in the text. Ultimately, what is at stake in this charge is
the elevation of sexual desires over against the dignity and humanity of a
young woman. “Amos sees before him a society in which sexual desire determines
a person’s actions, desire shamelessly selecting socially dependent persons as
victims.”[6]
The final charge of exploiting debtors, rounds
out the section. Two separate things are happing in this charge. First, Amos
speaks against the misuse of things that have been taken in pledge. The law allowed
for items to be taken from a debtor as collateral until the debt might be paid.
There were certain items and certain situations in which things could not be
taken as pledge. A hand mill or grindstone could not be taken at all
(Deuteronomy 24:6). The cloak, the outer garment, which was used as a covering
during the night, of a poor man, could not be kept over night (Exodus 22:25). A
widow’s cloak or garment could not be taken at all (Deuteronomy 24:17). The
spreading out of the cloak likely alludes to using it as a place to lay on at
night. Or, it could mean that the garment would be used to recline on at a
meal. Either way, it was improper to use the object that way. Secondly, the
accused are getting drunk in God’s house with wine that was bought with fines
levied on people who had offended or harmed them. These fines were a normal
part of the law. They could be imposed on some one who, while fighting with an
advisory accidently hit a pregnant woman so that she miscarried. The fine was
to be restitution for the infraction. Amos, for his part, believes that
exorbitant fines are being levied on the poor for the slightest of infractions.
What is at steak here is not the drunkenness, but the way in which the
drunkenness is achieved, through the oppression of the poor.
While these charges are more specific they are
not comprehensive or exhaustive. A common thread is beginning to emerge. God is
angry at Israel for the injustice that runs rampant because of their
prosperity.
“I
brought you up out of the land of Egypt…”
The “yet” at the beginning of verse 9 provides
a pivot on which the passage turns. The charges against Israel have been laid
out and the verdict will be announced shortly. Before that, however, God sees
fit to remind Israel where she came from. These three verses are important for
us as well. They remind us that Israel’s judgment does not take place in a
vacuum, but rather is based on the many blessings and rich covenant that God
has with Israel. Israel acts in shameful ways despite that fact that God
brought her up out of slavery in Egypt, and in pretty spectacular ways too. God
uprooted the Amorites who were a large and powerful people. They were like
strong trees, but God destroyed their fruit and uprooted them.
Israel was not left to her own devices in this
new land. God raised up for her prophets who would help guide them and correct
them. Some became nazirites who were not to cut their hair or drink wine or
come into contact with the dead. They were to be totally and utterly dedicated
and committed to the service of God. Verse 11 ends with the asking of a
rhetorical question. God wants to know if Israel remembers that God did all
these things for her. But, in Israel’s greed and wickedness she defiled the
nazirites and commanded the prophets to cease speaking. They silenced the ones
who could help them get back on the right track. I imagine that the crowd,
which had likely been rejoicing at the oracles pronounced on the nations, have
now become silent.
“So,
I…”
It is apparent that Israel has forgotten who
they are and who rescued them from slavery to plant them in a land flowing with
milk and honey, a land with houses they did not build and cisterns they did not
hew. “So, I…” begins the final section of the oracle. Once again God will be
the agent of judgment. Israel will be crushed the like grass that finds itself
under the wheel of a fully loaded cart carrying grain. There will be no
escaping it either. Just like the grass has no ability to run away from the
crushing weight of the oncoming cart, so will all ability to flee be removed
from Israel.
The judgment that God visited on the Amorites
in verse 9 will not be the judgment that befalls Israel. “At one time Yahweh
waged holy war on Israel’s behalf against her enemies (2:9). Now Israel has
joined her enemies, becoming likewise a target of Yahweh’s attack. The people
of God has despised the privilege of compassion and has itself thus become
Yahweh’s enemy.”[7]
So What…?
It will be difficult, in the weeks that follow, not to
get bogged down in the rather melancholy and judgmental tone of the book of
Amos. What we must not miss, however, is the message that Amos declares is for
us too. This message, while dark and foreboding, can enlighten us to our own
possible sins and crimes against humanity (personally and corporately). The one
thing that is clear from these oracles, specifically the oracle against Israel,
is that Israel is just as guilty if not more guilty than the others because of
the circumstances from which she rose. It was out of God’s compassion for the
poor, the barren and the oppressed that Israel becomes a nation. It is in an
act of judgment against a people who had mistreated the poor that God carves
out a place for Israel to live. Simply, Israel owes her existence to the grace
and mercy of God.
We, like Israel, are a people who owe our existence to the
grace and mercy of God. It is out of the bondage of sin, out of the oppression
of death that we have been saved and constituted a people. But unlike Israel,
we must not forget how and by whose hand we became a people. If we forget, in
our prosperity we will fall prey to the same temptations as Israel did, the
temptations to use and abuse our neighbor instead of becoming extensions of
God’s grace and mercy. To whom much is given, must is expected.
Critical Discussion
Questions:
- What does God look like in this text/Who is God in
this text/What is God doing in this text?
- God is declaring what kind of world he finds
acceptable, and it is not the kind of world that is marked by violence,
abuse and oppression of the poor and needy innocents. God is the God of
the whole world, not just of Israel, and as such, God is within his
rights to bring judgment on all nations.
- At the same time, however, God does not hold back
judgment on those he loves. Israel, precisely because she was God’s
chosen people, will be held accountable just like the other nations.
- What does holiness/salvation look like in this text?
- Holiness looks like the right and proper treatment of
those who are poor and needy. It looks like seeking peace. It looks like
fair lending practices. It looks like giving grace to enemies. It looks
like seeking just treatment for the victim and the perpetrator. It looks
like constantly remembering the saving actions that God has preformed for
us so that we might live in covenantal faithfulness to God and others.
- How does an encounter with this story shape who we are
and who we should become?
- As a church we have been constituted the people of
God through the self less act of Jesus Christ’s life, death and
resurrection. We are a people through the sheer grace and mercy of God. Through
this we have been given everything. As a people we are called to
continually examine if we are living in covenantal faithfulness to God
and others.
Specific Discussion
Questions:
Read the text aloud. Then, read the text to yourself
quietly. Read it slowly, as if you were very unfamiliar with the story.
1.
Who was Amos and where was he from? Where did he
minister?
2.
Why does Amos use the image of a lion roaring to depict
the way in which God will speak in the following lines?
3.
Who are these nations that Amos speaks against? Where
are they located? How might they be related to the nation of Israel?
4.
What point does Amos make by pronouncing oracles of
judgment on nations other than Israel? How might those hearing Amos’ speech react
to such oracles?
5.
Verses 6-8 of chapter 2 identify 4 charges leveled
against Israel. What are the specific charges and how might they be connected
thematically?
6.
In chapter 2, verses 9-12 detail a little bit of
Israel’s history. Why would it be important for God to remind Israel of where
they came from?
7.
Like Israel, as a church, we have become God’s people
because of his mercy and grace. How might these words to Israel speak to us
today?
8.
Do we remember how we became God’s people? In what way
might be like Israel (personally or corporately) in the way we have treated
others? How might we guard against receiving the same kind of judgment that
Israel eventually receives?
