Amos Bible Study: Chapter 9 Summary and Questions

 Amos: Chapter 9 Summary and Questions

        Chapter 9 focuses on God's inescapable judgment. God is patient and kind, but he is also just. He will give the sinner many chances to change his ways. There will come a point when the line is crossed, and judgment begins. In Amos's last vision, he saw the Lord standing at the altar, overseeing the sentence pronounced against Israel. The doorpost is the structurally most substantial part of a house; when it is broken, the house will collapse. They could run, but they could not escape the judgment. They could dig into hell and climb to heaven. Go to the top of Carmel, or hide in the depths of the sea. Judgment would find them no matter where they went. "I will set my eyes on them for harm and not for good" (Amos 9: 4b).

        It is important to remember who God is, what He has done, and what He will do. Verses 5-6 bring to mind who He is. He touches the earth, and it melts. He causes the rivers to swell and subside. He founded His strata in the earth. He calls the waters of the seas and pours them out on the earth. "The Lord is His name." God makes a list of sinful nations and places Israel on an even lower level. They are a wicked nation. The nations he names did not have the privileges of knowing God, but Israel was His chosen people, and they had turned their back on Him and went after other gods. They were without excuse. How horrifying to be called a sinful nation. He will destroy them from the face of the earth by allowing them to be spread throughout the nations, but only the sinners will die by the sword. He gave them chance upon chance to humble themselves and repent. They will be sifted, and the grain will be saved. Some still had not bowed a knee to Baal and would be saved. There is always a remnant. He will purify them and save the grain.   

        They were in covenant with God. Read Deuteronomy  28:15 and 63. This lays down the conditions of the covenant, which was serious. When we receive Christ as our Savior, we are also in covenant with God. We have access to God that did not exist in the Old Testament. The new covenant brings together all of God's work through history so that all have access to his saving power. "For God so loved the world He gave His only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life" (John 3:16). Through Christ's death and resurrection, we are completely forgiven of our sins. It was a sacrifice freely given. We have but to reach out and receive it. Romans 8:31b says, "If God is for us, who can stand against us?" Read Romans 8:31-39. 

        The transition from verse 10 to verse 11 is startling. It goes from judgment to restoration. God's heart is always set on salvation and restoration. David's Tabernacle was restored through Christ, and Edom and the Gentiles were included. "That they may possess the remnant of Edom, and the Gentiles that are called by my name, says the Lord who does this thing" (Amos 9: 12). The Northern Kingdom had rejected David's house and had chosen a leader who had led them into idolatry. The Messiah was the only hope of restoration. God would raise up the ruins and rebuild them. "Therefore, If anyone is in Christ , he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new" ( 2 Corinthians 5:17). Israel and the Gentiles were brought in under Christ. 

        Verses 13-15 paint a picture of God's blessing. It is a picture of prosperity. God blesses beyond measure. The blessings overflow. God is a generous giver of blessings. He always outgives us, but we must continue to sow and reap when we walk through the valley as his church. We must be about the Father's work in good times and bad. 

Questions:

1. Why is it appropriate for Israel's judgment to be made at the altar?

2. How does God proclaim His ability to carry out judgment in verses 2-4?

3. What does "I will set my eyes on them for harm and not for good" tell us about the issue God had with them? Look at Deut. 28.

4. How is God described in verses 5-6?

5. Who is the sinful nation in verse 8? What hope is given?

6. What will be done to the nation of Israel? Who will die by the sword?

7. What would be restored, and who would be added during the restoration?

8. How is the restoration described in verses 13-14?

9. What promise is given in verse 14?

10. How can Christians today apply the concepts in Amos 9 to life on a personal and international level?

        

Amos Bible Study: Chapter 8: Summary and Questions

Amos Chapter 8 Summary 

        God showed Amos a basket of summer fruit and asked Amos what he saw. He told God that he saw a basket of summer fruit. The fruit was ripe and would not keep. The Hebrew plays with the words summer and end, which is difficult to show in English. The visual that is being given is more potent in Hebrew. Judgment is being pronounced on them. Like the rotten fruit, Israel would be tossed out. God says, "I will not pass by them anymore" ( Amos 8: 2b). There would be no joyful songs but wailing for the dead. 

        Amos once again picks up the theme of justice. They had treated the poor and those who were vulnerable unjustly for profit. Israel kept the New Moon and the Sabbath, but it was not done with a spirit of worship. It was done for appearance, and they wanted it completed so they could continue to sell and make a profit. 2 Timothy 3:5-7 speaks of "having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof," Their minds and hearts are corrupted. "They neither feared God nor regarded man," as Luke 18:2 says of the unjust judge. They were dishonest in their business dealings. They were falsifying the scales. They made slaves of the poor. Indentured service was to be for a limited time and a humane way of doing things within Israel's communities, but the rich oppressed the poor for wealth. God cares for the poor, the widowed, and the orphan and will punish those who oppress them. God takes our actions towards our fellow man personally as though the action is done against him. 

        God swears an oath by the excellency of Jacob. One never wants to be in a position where God swears an oath against you. It will be carried out. God is patient and longsuffering, so to go far enough to anger God is a bad idea. They abused His presence with them and the favor He had shown them. He will not forget their transgressions against Him and against their fellow man. It says, "The land will tremble," which may be referring to earthquakes but probably to the physical and emotional trembling and mourning that comes with national disasters. The people tremble and mourn over judgment. It will be like a flood overtaking them. They will run with no place to hide. "All of it shall swell like a river, heave and subside like the River in Egypt" (Amos 8:8). Time does not erase sin; only God's redemption will do that.

        The Lord speaks through Amos. When the Lord speaks, the earth and its inhabitants quake. He describes the depth of the grief. They will no longer see the sun because darkness will cover their spirit. They will mourn as one who has lost their firstborn. Lamentations will fall from their lips. The bitterness will saturate them. Amos attempts to give a visual of the depth of their grief.

         We are very fortunate. We live in a country where the word of God is abundantly available. We take this for granted, but at the rate this country is going, we may know the lack of the word. A lack of bread or water to quench our physical desires is horrible. The lack of the word to quench our spiritual needs is even worse. It is an eternal issue. If you turn a deaf ear to God's word, there may come a day when the spirit no longer woes you to bring you to the Father. The heart becomes so hardened it no longer hears the call of the Spirit of God. We should hunger and thirst after God's word. Let it fill our spirits. When we are open to receive, the word flows through us, and He is there for us. If we refuse to listen, then we will eventually not hear God's word speaking to us. They swear by the sin of Samaria, which was idolatry. An idol made by the hand of man does not even have the power of man. They give praise and honor that belongs to The Almighty God to an idol. This is their sin. They and their gods will fall and never rise again.  

Questions:

1. What did God show Amos in verses1-2? What did God say to Amos in verse 2?

2. What does the image of the basket of summer fruit symbolize?

3. What corrupt and unjust things had Israel done to lead to this judgement?

4. In verses 3-6, what description is given by God of their treatment of the poor and the needy?

5. What is their response to the Sabbath?

6. How is the harshness of the coming judgment portrayed? (vs 3) What does this tell us about the result of sin?

7. Will God forget any of their works?

8. How is the judgment described in verse 10?

9. What famine is described in verse 11?

10. How does this chapter mirror our country's spiritual and moral condition today?

11. How does the thought of a famine of hearing the Word of God affect you?

Book of Amos: Chapter7 Summary and Questions:

 Book of  Amos: Chapter 7 Summary and Questions:

        Chapter Seven has three visions that Amos saw and responded to. The first was of locust, then fire, and a plumb line. God showed Amos what he intended. Locusts will eat up every green plant as they move through an area. The scene that Amos is shown is of the last harvest, the harvest that sustained the people's lives. The king took the first harvest as taxes paid. It would be a devastating blow economically for the people. Starvation would be the result of this devastation. Israel would have been destroyed if God had carried out this degree against Jacob. Amos intercedes for them. Intercession is very important even today. We should never underestimate the power of prayer. Israel saw themselves as strong, but they were small and weak. Amos was their intercessor as a prophet and asked God to reconsider so they were not destroyed. God listened to Amos and stayed the degree against Israel. 

        God calls for conflict by fire, which means he is putting them on trial for their sins. The source of their issue was their sin against God. To eliminate the source would mean they needed forgiveness for their sins. " The prayers of a righteous man availeth much" (James 5:16).  Amos will once again pray for their relief. Israel was to be both tried by fire and punished by fire. It would be an all-consuming fire that would destroy Israel. Amos reminds God of Israel's frailty. The way this is written, we see that Israel would have been lost without Amos to pray. Prayer is our access to God to intervene for those around us and our nation. God relented because of Amos's prayer. 

        The next vision is of the Lord standing on a wall with a plumbline, which is used to give a true vertical line. God asks Amos what he sees, and he tells him he sees a plumbline. The plumbline represents God's holy law that Israel had failed to live by. Their lives were crooked. The plumbline was set in their midst to show their crookedness and disregard for his laws. Amos was not allowed to intercede. Judgment was determined. Isaac represented the Northern Kingdom in Amos' day and is used here instead of Jacob. Jeroboam was the first to set up the worship of pagan Gods in the Northern Kingdom, which may be why he is mentioned. They had broken their covenant with God, and he would pass that way no more. There would be desolation and waste, and a sword would come against them. 

        Amaziah was a wicked man. He was a priest of Baal. Jeroboam had set up the worship of Baal at the beginning of his reign to keep the people from going to Jerusalem to worship. It was a political move that succeeded in keeping the people in tow, but it led them into idolatry, which would end in judgment. This is where Amos came in as a prophet of God to warn the people. Amaziah sent to the king to inform him of Amos' conspiracy against him. He told him that "the land is not able to hold all his words."He then tells Amos to leave Bethel and return to Judah to prophesy. Amos points out that he is there at the command of God. He is not a professional prophet but a sheepherder. The Lord then speaks through Amos against Amaziah. He is told that his wife will be a harlot and his sons and daughters will die by the sword. The land will be defiled, and Israel will be taken into captivity. These were difficult words for Amos to speak, and they were difficult to hear, but Amos was obedient to God and spoke them. He was faithful to his calling even though it was hard.

Questions:

1. What is the difference between divine judgment and mercy as defined in chapter 7?

2. Amos is allowed to intercede for Israel twice. How does this describe his role as a prophet?

3. What does the plumbline symbolize?

4. What was Amaziah's response to Amos' prophesy?

5. Who was Amaziah?

6. How does Amos defend himself against Amaziah's attack? 

7. Can you apply this chapter to the affairs in our world today?

8. What do we learn from this chapter about disobedience to God? 

9. What does this chapter teach us about intercession?

10. What does Amos' courage teach us about the Christian walk?

Book of Amos: Chapter 6 Summary and Questions

        " Woe to them who are at ease in Zion, and trust in the mountain of Samaria..." (Amos 6:1a). The people no longer trusted in God, but in Mount Samaria and the indulgence of luxury. They had carnal ease. They had an indifference to God. The lust of the flesh was their desire; in other words, they wanted to sin. The desire for godliness was not there, but the desire to yield themselves to all that corrupts the spirit was allowed to reign. Galatians 5 is an excellent chapter to read to understand the full extent of the sin of Israel at this time and also to see what joy and peace come from walking in the Spirit. It might well bring home the sin this country has been slowly slipping into, but there is hope if we turn to God. "The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God." ( NIV: Galatians 5: 19-21). Amos speaks to comfortable people because they have hardened their hearts to their God and have gone after idols. They put off the evil day somewhere in the future that is of no concern to them, but it was closer than they thought. They were cruel to the poor, but even among the poor were those who did not glorify God. 

       God asked them if they were better than the pagan nation. God was rebuking Israel to open her eyes to the judgment that would come if they did not return to Him. They would be the first to be taken captive. Amos prophesied during a time of prosperity, and people comfortable with their lives are not ready to hear criticism. They enjoyed their self-indulgence and cared not for the affliction of Joseph. This reminds us of the sin of the sons of Jacob as they sold their brother into slavery and cared not for his life. They would suffer his lot and be taken into captivity. 

     God could swear by no greater, so he swears by himself. God hates pride, and how frightful to have the God of all creation swear to your ruin. The siege would cause disease and death, and instead of anointing the bodies with fragrant oils and spices, they would be burned, and the fear of God would be on them so much so that they dare not speak his name lest something worse come upon them.

    Amos uses two impossible situations to get their attention. Horses running on rocks or oxen plowing rocks is highly unlikely, but they had perverted justice and turned it to gall. Israel was proud of their military strength and did not give God the glory for their successes. This would be their downfall. Their real power was in God, who fought for them, but now he would not fight for them, and their defeat was assured. Lo Debar and Karnaim were cities taken when the Assyrians had weakened Damascus. They felt they had done it in their own strength. We can learn lessons from their arrogance. We do all things through Christ. To God be the glory.

 Questions:

1. In verse one, whom does Zion refer to? 

2. Who do they put their trust in?

3. What was Israel to learn from observing these places?

4. In verses 4-6, what luxuries did they indulge in?

5. At the end of verse six, what does it say did not grieve them?

6. What is the result of this in verse 7?

7. Who did God swear by, and why is this significant?

8. What happens with those left in the house, and what is the significance of not mentioning God's name?

9. In verse 11, what happens to the houses?

10. What rhetorical questions are asked in verse 12, and what is their significance?

11. Had the people really done great things in their own strength? 

12. Because of their pride in their accomplishments, what will God do in verse 13?

Amos Bible Study: Chapter 5 Summary and Questions

Summary:

    Chapter 4 ends with verse 12 telling the people to  "prepare to meet their God". Verse 13 describes the power of God. It ends by reminding the people  "The Lord God of hosts is His name."  This leads into the opening of chapter 5. God speaks through Amos to say, with a vehemence that there is lamentation facing the house of Israel. There will be wailing, weeping, grieving, and mourning. Amos portrays Israel as a young woman who has fallen. She is cast aside and has succumbed to the wicked around her. The land had been given to the people of Israel by God, and their faithlessness had turned it into a burial ground. The armies of Israel would go forth to battle and be annihilated. Those that returned from war would be war-ravaged. Only a small percentage would return, and they would be so beaten down that they would easily be defeated in battle. 

    The key to survival was to seek the Lord and live, but this would mean letting go of Bethel, Gilgal, and Beersheba. It was in these places they had defiled their worship of Jehovah, and corrupted judgment, These places had once been connected to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. We can go back to  Jeroboam who created places for the worship of the Egyptian gods to prevent the people from going to Jerusalem to worship. (look back at chapter 3).  They had buried any righteousness that existed. They walked in their own selfish, self-centered way doing what felt good. They prospered off the backs of the poor. "Seek God and live" is repeated. He gives them the solution to their survival. They must return to their God.; 

    Amos reiterates that judgment will be their end if they do not seek God. The all-powerful God who created the constellations and holds them in place. The God that is the All Mighty. "The Lord is His name." He is the God that is powerful enough to save, but He is also powerful enough to bring judgment. Choose life! Amos told them judgment was coming. He told them why it was coming and what they could do to stop the judgment. He also showed them what their judgment would be, but they turned a deaf ear and continued to walk in their sin. All that they had gained through their oppression of the poor, and through corrupt judgments would be lost to them. "Seek good and not evil, that you may live; So the Lord God of hosts will be with you." They needed to establish justice. 

    The Lord speaks giving a dire prediction. There will be wailing and mourning as the Lord passes through. Their religion was not true worship but had become ritualistic. They mixed their worship of God with that of false gods. The day of the Lord for them would be darkness. and judgment. The illustration Amos gives is devastating. "It is as though a man fled from a lion, and a bear met him."

    There was no spirituality in their worship. It had become the form and their hearts were far from him. They oppressed the poor and there was no justice or righteousness. God desires worship that comes from a heart. "Let justice run down like water, and righteousness like a mighty stream." Justice needed to flow naturally through their society and righteousness should be like a mighty stream that sweeps their lives into alignment with God's will which is always for justice and righteousness in our lives. 

    They clung to their false gods. They made them with their own hands and worshipped them. They carried them out of Egypt and continued their worship of them mixing it with their worship of Jehovah. God is a jealous God and He alone must be worshipped. Their oppression and injustice to the poor, their lack of righteousness, and their worship of false gods would cause judgment to rain down on them. Extreme sin brings on extreme judgment, and they would be carried into captivity. 

Questions: 

1. What word does Amos take up against Israel and what does it mean?

2. In verse 2 what word is used to describe Israel? Why do you think this word is used?

3. How is the destruction described in verse 3?

4. In verse 4 what are they told to do to live?

5. Why are they told not to seek Bethel and Gilgal? (Think about the actions of Jeroboam in chapter 3 of the summary).

6. In verse 7 what sins had they committed?

7. What other scriptures in the Bible speak of the importance of justice?

8. In verses 8 and 9 list the things God has the power to do.

9. Why do you think it is stressed that "The Lord is His name"?

10. What does verse 11 say they had done and what would be the result of this?

11. What are their sins in verse 12?

12. How do prudent people in verse 13 respond to this, and is it an appropriate response?

13. What are the people to seek in verses 14-15? What are they to establish?

14. What happens in verses 16-17?

15. Why should they not desire "the day of the Lord" in verses 18-20?

16. In verses21-23 what does God hate, and why do you think he feels so strongly about these things?

17. What should this teach us about our worship and service to God?

18. Verse 24 is quoted often. What does this mean to the people then and to us now?

19. What question does God ask in verse25, and why do you think he asked it?

20, According to verse 26 what had the people done? Where is this quoted in the New Testament?

21. What will be the consequences of their actions

22. What does he say His name is? Why do you think it differs from verse 8?

   

        

Amos Bible Study: Chapter 4 Summary and Questions

    Amos addresses the ungodly women of Israel as the cows of Bashan. No woman wants to be referred to as a cow, but Amos, being a herder, probably knew all about the cattle raised in that area. That area is called the Golan Heights today. It was a prime grassland known for its wonderful cattle. They were sleek, fat. healthy and desirable for the market.  The women of Israel had become pleasure-seeking, pressuring their husbands to oppress and crush the impoverished. The way it is stated in the Scripture it would appear that they also oppressed the impoverished and were being looked on as guilty by God for the action taken against the poor by their husbands.  Their desire for more affluence escalated the injustice inflicted on the poor and needy. 

    The Lord swears by His Holiness and this is a serious oath. God's holiness will not allow sin to go unpunished. When a statement like this is made the punishment is definitive. God was warning them of what was to come. The Assyrians would come in and take them captive. They would be led through the broken walls of their conquered city with fishhooks in their lips attached to the one ahead of them with string. The Assyrians were cruel and showed no mercy. They would take their captives away and relocate them to Assyria. The area taken would then be repopulated. 

    In chapter one we discussed the actions of Jeroboam to maintain political control of the Northern Kingdom. He convinced the people that they could worship the golden calf as their ancestors had done, and he set up a place of worship in Bethel and Gilgal. He convinced them that traveling to Jerusalem was unnecessary and inconvenient. 2 Kings 17: 21-23 tells us that the people walked in all the sins of Jeroboam. They tried to maintain the worship of Jehovah while also worshiping other Gods. The worship was not done in obedience to the laws set down by God. Their worship was hypocrisy. It was for outward show and they loved their gathering and their feasts. They were done for their pleasure not in obedience to God. They put leaven in their sacrifices which was a sin and made their sacrifice an abomination to God. Their worship was done for outward show not with heartfelt love and worship, to their God Yahweh. 

    Their idolatry brought consequences and yet they refused to return to their God. They felt his corrective power and refused to return to him. There was a lack of food and the rain came here and there and they would have to go to whatever cities were receiving rain to have water. The events showed that they were the act of God, but they would not return to him. He started with a small amount of discipline which showed great restraint and love. The discipline became incrementally more severe to try to bring them back, but they refused to change their ways as rebellious children. 

    God states his intentions and they are told to "Prepare to meet your God." That is a statement that we should all take seriously because we do not know when the moment will come when we will meet our God and hopefully we have received Him as our Savior. He tells them who He is. He created the mountains and the winds, and He knows the thoughts of man and sees his intentions. There is no hiding from God. " The Lord God of hosts is His name." We have free will and have to make the choice of who we will serve. But be assured that you will stand before him and be called into account for your choices, so choose wisely.  

 Questions:

1. Who is Amos calling the cows of Bashan, and what is their sin?

2. What was Bashan known for?

3. What does the Scripture tell us is the danger of desiring wealth and pleasure? (Matt. 13:22; Luke 8:14: Proverbs 11:28)

4. How does the Word teach the poor are to be treated? (Leviticus 19:9-10; Deuteronomy 15:7-8; 1 John 3:17-18; Matthew 25:34-36)

5. What did the " Lord God swear by His holiness"? 

6. Describe the punishment God laid out in verses 2-3?

7. What was God's opinion of their worship?

8. Where were they worshipping?  

9. Where were they supposed to worship? Why was this important?

10. Why was it important to use unleavened bread for the sacrifice?

11. Verses 6-11 gives a list of the punishments for their transgressions. What were they?

12. What is God attempting to teach the people?

13. In verse 12 what is Israel told to prepare for?

14. How is God characterized in verse 13?

15. What is His name?

16. What lessons can we take away from this chapter?

 

 

     

Amos Bible Study: Chapter 3 Summary and Questions

 

            God speaks to all the tribes who were brought up out of Egypt in chapter 3. Their relationship with God had begun with Abraham. It was Jacob’s sons that would make up the twelve tribes of Israel. Jacob’s name was changed to Israel by God. They are God’s chosen people, called by His name. There are five covenants that were made between God and man. The Noahic, Abrahamic, Mosaic, Priestly, and the Davidic covenant. There is also the covenant that was given in the New Testament. When a person receives Christ as his or her savior he is then in covenant with God.  A covenant is a binding agreement between two or more parties and is taken very seriously even today. It has responsibilities and promises on both sides. They were in covenant with God, and they had broken that covenant. He is going to punish them for all their iniquities. The people of Israel were chosen for special blessings, and God had cared for them and blessed them. He had revealed himself to them in a special way. He was their Father and had lovingly tended to their every need. He had given them a land flowing with milk and honey, they had been provided for richly, but as children that rebel against their parents they had turned their backs on Him and worshipped other gods, and had walked in their own ways disregarding Him, and now there is no turning back. He has given them many chances, but they chose to go forward in their disobedience. The die is cast. God is a just and equitable judge, and he will move forward with the punishment.

            Verses 3-8 asked rhetorical questions. The effect is dramatic. Amos gives us cause and effect. God sent his prophets to the people and the people disregarded what they said. They turned a deaf ear to the word of God. Amos’s prophesy was given during a prosperous time. They were comfortable and Amos’s words were hard to hear. “Shall a trumpet be blown in the city, and the people not be afraid? Shall there be misfortune in the city, and the Lord has not done it?” The sound of the trumpet meant war and brought fear. The punishment of God would come upon the people, but not before the prophets had warned them to turn from their evil ways. Not before they were given a chance to repent and reverse the punishment and gain blessing. “The lion hath roared, who will not fear? The Lord God has spoken, who can but prophesy”(Amos 3:8)?  They needed to ask themselves these questions and discuss the answers among themselves. This would bring them to the same conclusion that God had come too.  Matthew Henry says it clearly, “The distinguishing favors of God to us, if they do not serve to restrain us from sin, shall not serve to exempt us from punishment; nay, the nearer any are to God in profession, and the kinder notice he has taken of them, the more surely, the more quickly, and the more severe will he reckon with them.”[1] 1 Peter 4:17 tells us, “For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begins at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?” They had dishonored God among the nations. It was their own sin that was bringing this judgment upon them and it would continue until it had finished its work. God was faithful in his care of Israel. They were his chosen people, and their relationship with Him was personal and committed on God’s side of the covenant, but they did mouth service to Him, but their hearts were far off. Their godliness was just a form and they worshipped other gods and trampled the poor and righteous.

            In verses, 9-10 God calls Philistia, which was where Ashdod was located, and Egypt to witness His judgment of Israel. It is a sad state when the ungodly are more righteous than God’s people. They had not been given a revelation of God, but Israel who had a personal relationship with Him had repeatedly violated that relationship. “Let them see how black the charge is, and how well proved. Let them observe the behavior of the inhabitants of Samaria; let them look from the adjacent hills, and they may see how rude and boisterous they are and hear how loud the cry of their sin is, as was that of Sodom.” [2] God calls the nations to judge between Him and His people. Their sin was so blatant and open that the other nations could see the equity of God’s judgment.

            Verses 11-13 begin the sentencing of Israel. The godless nations have been called to witness this and to see that God is justified in his judgment of His people. The Assyrians literally sapped the strength of Israel and completed the destruction in 722 BC. Samaria was a beautiful place where the Ivory palaces of Ahab and Jezebel were built. They could look over the land and enjoy the beauty. Today it is laid waste, and people visit the ruins. The destruction of a sheep by a lion was the way Israel would be destroyed. There would be nothing left but small pieces to prove their existence. A shepherd that cared for a flock had to prove the lion had destroyed it with a bone or ear or some small part. The destruction of the Northern Kingdom would be complete. God calls them to hear and to testify against the house of Jacob. By using the house of Jacob he includes all 12 tribes. Jacob whose name had been changed to Israel bore the sons that would be the 12 tribes of Israel.

            Verses 14-15 begin with a reference to Bethel. Jeroboam had built idols in both Bethel and Dan to keep the people from traveling to Jerusalem and possibly losing their political allegiance to the house of Rehoboam who was heir to the throne through Solomon, his father, and David his grandfather. This was discussed in chapter 1. Horns represent strength and to cut them off would be to destroy the strength of their false worship. “Some make the horns of the altar to signify all those things which they flee to for refuge, and trust in, and which they make their sanctuary: they shall all be cut off, so they have nothing to take hold of.”[3] Verse 15 discusses the destruction of all of the houses that represent power and wealth which were obtained off the backs of the poor and the righteous. They gained their wealth through dishonesty and misuse of the justice system. There was no honor left and judgment was coming.

 I want to once again stress the influence a government has over its people. We need to be vigilant especially today. As a nation, we need to be conscious of the relationship that we have with God. “In God we trust” is written on our money, but maybe it should be written in our hearts. It is concerning that we as a country are piling up sin upon sin.

 

Questions: Chapter 3

1.      Who is God speaking to in chapter 3?

2.      What does verse 1-2 tell us about the relationship between God and Israel? What had God done for Israel?

3.      What are the issues with this relationship?

4.      Verses 3-6 are a list of rhetorical questions. What is God’s purpose in asking these questions? What lesson can be learned?

5.      Why would they blow a trumpet in the city? What would be the people’s response to it in verse 6?

6.       How would the prophet’s message be similar to the trumpet being blown in the city?

7.      What are the duties of a prophet according to the Scriptures? What other prophets can you think of and what works did they do?

8.      What is the assurance in verses 7-8?

9.      What were the differences between Ashdod and Egypt and Israel?

10.  What is the message that is to be proclaimed, and why in Ashdod and Egypt? What is their significance?

11.  In verse 10 what reason is given for Samaria’s punishment?

12.  The Lord speaks in verse 11 and what is to be the punishment brought against them?

13.  In verse 12 the Lord speaks again. What conclusion can be drawn from this illustration?

14.  What is to be testified against the house of Jacob (Israel)?

15.  What is the significance of the horns of the altar at Bethel?

16.  Why are the houses of verse 15 mentioned?

 

           

           

 

 

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[1] Ibid., 970.

[2] Ibid., 972.

[3] Ibid., 973