The Lord Roars
Amos 1:1-2; 5:14-15, 21-24

What criteria does God use to evaluate a nation’s standing before God? Is the nation aligned with God’s values and purposes or has the nation adopted different values and cross-purposes? These are critically important questions for any nation because God has the power to lift up and to cast down, to exalt a nation and to humble it.

The first criterion that might come to mind is the nation’s worship practices and religious beliefs. The scriptures repeatedly warn against idolatry and false doctrine, worshipping false gods, and espousing erroneous beliefs. By these standards practically all the nations of the world, when weighed in the balance, would be found wanting. But what if right-religion was not the most important priority in God’s sight?

This seems to have been the case in the northern kingdom of Israel. Remember that the united kingdom of Israel under Solomon fractured into two nations following his death. The southern kingdom was called Judah, and its capital was in Jerusalem. The northern kingdom was called Israel, and its capital was in Damascus.

The Book of Amos is addressed to the citizens of the northern kingdom. The northern kingdom was enjoying relative peace and prosperity under the rule of Jeroboam II. The year was around 760 B.C. At the same time religion flourished in the nation. The population thronged the shrines at festival times to practice elaborate sacrificial rituals (Amos 4:4ff; 5:5ff). Yahweh was trusted and patronized by the populace.

Surprisingly, Israel’s religious zeal was not pleasing in God’s sight. God through Amos declared, “I hate, I despise your festivals, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies. Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them; and the offerings of well-being of your fatted animals I will not look upon. Take away from me the noise of your songs; I will not listen to the melody of your harps” (5:21-23).

What was missing? What was lacking? What was absent in their religious observance? The LORD sent Amos to answer these questions. Amos was a person of modest means. He was a shepherd with flocks and also may have owned an orchard of fig trees (Amos 7:14). What is most interesting is that Amos was from the southern kingdom of Judah. Tekoa was a village outside of Bethlehem.

In Chapter 1, verse 2, the LORD is depicted as a roaring lion. “And he said: The Lord roars from Zion and utters his voice from Jerusalem; the pastures of the shepherds wither, and the top of Carmel dries up” (1:2). God’s voice thundered from Zion and Jerusalem (in the southern kingdom), and the effects of God’s speaking were felt all the way north to Mount Carmel in Israel, the northern kingdom. In fact, God’s speech is described as withering the pastures and drying up the mountain tops. This means Amos’ prophetic ministry was doubly difficult because he was an outsider, a foreign voice.

Nonetheless, the LORD used Amos to declare what was missing from the northern kingdom. Listen again to Chapter 5, verses 14-15 and verse 24. “Seek good and not evil, that you may live; and so, the Lord, the God of hosts, will be with you, just as you have said. Hate evil and love good and establish justice in the gate; it may be that the Lord, the God of hosts, will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph. But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.”

What was absent from Israel’s society? Worship? No! They had plenty of worship. The problem was that evil had crept into their society, taken up residence, and made itself comfortable. Evil is a relational term. It denotes the manner in which people treat each other.

Archeological excavations in the northern kingdom reveal the occurrence of a social revolution. Houses from the tenth century B.C. were of uniform size indicating that wealth and privilege were roughly equally distributed among the citizens. In contrast, the houses from the eighth century B.C., when Amos was prophesying, reveal a sharp distinction in wealth and privilege. Dr. James Mays in his commentary on Amos notes, “There was a quarter of large, expensive houses, and one of small, huddled structures. The result was the stark contrast between the luxury of the rich and the misery of the poor. The rich enjoyed an indolent, indulgent existence in winter and summer houses. The poor often became the targets of legal and economic exploitation.”

Amos’ message was, “Seek good and not evil. Hate evil and love good. Establish justice in the gate. Let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.”

The psalmist asks, “If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?” (Ps. 11:3). The foundation of society is loving the good and hating the evil. Loving and hating are strong emotional terms. As one commentator observes, “Loving and hating mean bringing into force all the resources and powers of feeling, will, and thought in devotion to or rejection of a person or a value.”

Justice, in contrast to loving and hating, has to do with law. Ancient Israel held court in the space between the outer gate of the city and its inner gate. Citizens with complaints could bring their case before the city’s elders to settle a dispute. From the rest of the Book of Amos we can deduce that the courts were not working. Bribes were common, and the poor and powerless suffered with no recourse. The words of the Prophet Isaiah come to mind. “Ah, you who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter! Ah, you who are wise in your own eyes, and shrewd in your own sight! Ah, you who are heroes in drinking wine and valiant at mixing drink, who acquit the guilty for a bribe, and deprive the innocent of their rights!” (Isa. 5:20-23). The LORD’s searing message to Israel was, “Right these injustices. Lift the right side up and push the wrong side down. Love good. Hate evil. Do justice. Seek righteousness.”

One cannot hear the message of Amos and not think of the times we are living in. Our politicians, corporations, the media, and big tech companies are constantly pitting American against American along political, racial, and economic lines. These are weighty matters that deserve our attention, but the current cultural climate is a barrier to honest dialog and meaningful solutions. In some ways, our constant infighting keeps us from focusing on the tectonic fiscal shifts that are happening in our society. As we fight amongst each other, the super-rich, the permanent political class, the entrenched Washington bureaucracy, and media giants are amassing greater and greater wealth and power. The rapid acceleration of income inequality between the “haves” and the “have nots” is akin to the social conditions in eighth-century Israel.

Furthermore, it appears that our system of justice is being compromised. Equal justice under the law seems to be eroding as the blindfold of Lady Justice is lifted and she peeks out to see who is standing before her. It depends on where you live in our country, but if your political views, social standing, and economic position match the ethos of the region, you may receive leniency, but if your politics, class, and economics are out of sync with those who are in power, you may receive retribution.

And our popular culture has substituted evil for good. It struck me recently that most of what passes for entertainment these days is comprised of things God hates: violence, murder, theft, sexual immorality, vulgarity, and corruption. The recent tragedy in Houston, Texas, at the Rap concert held at Astroworld is a prime example. The symbolism of the stage was clearly demonic. We might note that this is nothing new. Rock and Roll bands have used similar imagery for decades at their concerts, but more importantly, in both Rap and Rock and Roll, the vast majority of the lyrics are godless. Woe to you who call good evil and evil good.

Could it be that the LORD is roaring at us through the words of Amos? God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. God says to us in our time, “Love good. Hate evil. Do justice. Embody righteousness. Let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.”

Let us as Christian people heed God’s call. Let us not forget the words of the Apostle James. “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained from the world” (James 1:27). Let us not forget that we are the light of the world. We are the salt of the earth. We are the good leaven that leavens the whole lump. Let us let our lights shine before others so that they may see our good works of justice and righteousness and goodness and give glory to our Father in heaven (Mt. 5:16).

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.