Amos 5:1 Hear ye this word which I take up against you, even a lamentation, O house of Israel.
The prophet is calling for the people to pay attention to what he is saying even though it is not good news; it is a lamentation, a dirge, a message of judgment.
Amos 5:2 The virgin of Israel is fallen; she shall no more rise: she is forsaken upon her land; there is none to raise her up.
Amos 5:3 For thus saith the Lord GOD; The city that went out by a thousand shall leave an hundred, and that which went forth by an hundred shall leave ten, to the house of Israel.
“virgin” = feminine passive participle of an unused root meaning to separate; a virgin…sometimes…a bride; also (figuratively) a city or state
The use of “virgin” to describe Israel seems to picture her as a helpless beautiful bride. Verse two declares that she is going to suffer a serious fall--one from which she will not be lifted up. This brought to my mind how their history reflects a repetitive cycle.
Falling into sin.
God allowing them to be conquered by their enemies.
They call out to God in repentance.
God sends a deliverer from among their people to rescue them.
Amos is declaring God’s message that there will be no deliverer this time. Verse 3 pictures the cities sending many out to battle in their defense, but very few returning home from battle.
Amos 5:4 For thus saith the LORD unto the house of Israel, Seek ye me, and ye shall live:
Amos 5:5 But seek not Bethel, nor enter into Gilgal, and pass not to Beersheba: for Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Bethel shall come to nought.
Amos 5:6 Seek the LORD, and ye shall live; lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and devour it, and there be none to quench it in Bethel.
As He always does, the LORD declares that forgiveness is available; they just need to seek Him in faith and repentance. He makes the point that their sincerity will be noted by coming to Him on His terms—not at Bethel, Gilgal or Beersheba. The implication—Jerusalem was the place where God had chosen to place His name and receive the sacrifices of His people. These other cities had been established as worship centers in defiance of God’s instructions and had become centers of idol worship. The coming judgment of these cities is certain.
The warning in verse 6—If you don’t turn back to me in faith and repentance, the house of Joseph (another reference to the Northern Kingdom of Israel) will be completely devoured and no one will be able to prevent it. I think this is again in reference to their impotent idols. The call is for the people as individuals to repent of their sin and turn back to God in faith and obedience.
It always intrigues me how we humans think we have the right to expect our Creator, The God of the universe, to accept us on our terms instead of His. So many today are convinced that if their good deeds outweigh their bad, they’ll get to go to heaven. With that statement they are conceding there is a heaven and, in turn, a God in heaven who determines who is qualified to enter. He has clearly explained in scripture that the only qualification He will accept is faith in His Son Jesus as the sacrifice for our sin and Lord of our life. Still, many refuse to believe that He really means what He says. What an arrogant stance to take before Almighty God; and, sadly, how many are going to suffer an eternity outside His presence because they refuse to believe Him!
Amos 5:7 Ye who turn judgment to wormwood, and leave off righteousness in the earth,
I think the NLT clearly expressed the meaning of this verse: “You wicked people! You twist justice, making it a bitter pill for the poor and oppressed. Righteousness and fair play are meaningless fictions to you.”
Amos 5:8 Seek him that maketh the seven stars and Orion, and turneth the shadow of death into the morning, and maketh the day dark with night: that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth: The LORD is his name:
Amos 5:9 That strengtheneth the spoiled against the strong, so that the spoiled shall come against the fortress.
It is to be noted that the words “Seek Him” have been added by the translators. That the invitation is valid is confirmed by verse 6. At this point, however, the prophet is making a vivid contrast between the wicked people of Israel (as described in verse 7) and the God they are rejecting. It is YHWH, the Creator of heaven and earth. He created the seven stars (the Pleiades, also known as the “seven sisters”) and Orion; both are well known and easily identified star groups in the skies. He established night and day using the sun and moon and rotation of the earth. He is the source of all the waters of the seas and the rain from heaven.
Constable: “Since Yahweh made the Pleiades and Orion, constellations of stars, He could bring His will to pass on earth too. The rising of the Pleiades before daybreak heralded the arrival of spring, and the rising of Orion after sunset signaled the onset of winter. [Note: Sunukjian, p1439] Since Yahweh brings light out of darkness in the morning and darkens the day at night, He could change the fate of Israel from prosperity to adversity. Since He calls the waters of the sea to form clouds and then empties them on the land, He can pour out judgment on the land as well. Yahweh is the name of this God, the covenant God of Israel.”
Amos 5:9 That strengtheneth the spoiled against the strong, so that the spoiled shall come against the fortress.
Amos 5:10 They hate him that rebuketh in the gate, and they abhor him that speaketh uprightly.
He is the One with the ability to destroy those that would mistreat others no matter how strong they may think they are or be perceived to be. These are the people who reject the message of those who dare to judge righteously and speak the truth.
I couldn’t help but think of the general trend in America as I read verse 10. Our justice system is based more on personal agendas and/or the ability to pay for the best manipulators of the evidence. The judges don’t know how to make righteous judgments any more because they have rejected God, the One whose instruction provides the only acceptable foundation for moral discernment. It’s the very same problem that permeated the Northern Kingdom of Israel.
Amos 5:11 Forasmuch therefore as your treading is upon the poor, and ye take from him burdens of wheat: ye have built houses of hewn stone, but ye shall not dwell in them; ye have planted pleasant vineyards, but ye shall not drink wine of them.
Amos 5:12 For I know your manifold transgressions and your mighty sins: they afflict the just, they take a bribe, and they turn aside the poor in the gate from their right.
I thought the CJB translation was a bit clearer: “Therefore, because you trample on the poor and extort from them levies of grain; although you have built houses of cut stone, you will not live in them; and though you have planted pleasant vineyards, you will not drink their wine. For I know how numerous are your crimes and how outrageous your sins — bullying the innocent, extorting ransoms pushing the poor aside at the gate.”
The “gate” is a reference to where the people went to seek justice in matters that needed legal judgment. Scripture is full of statements regarding God’s awareness of the mistreatment of the righteous, the poor, and widows and orphans and His intent to avenge them.
Psalm 9:17-18 “The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God. For the needy shall not alway be forgotten: the expectation of the poor shall not perish for ever.”
Psalm 1:6 “For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.”
Amos 5:13 Therefore the prudent shall keep silence in that time; for it is an evil time.
When evil and wicked men are in authority, those who are wise will keep silent to avoid unjust and/or cruel treatment.
This is a word of practical advice for the righteous. It does not, however, override God’s direction to speak out in the manner of the prophets and apostles according to His leading. We should never refrain from sharing the gospel message out of fear; however, neither should we step out foolishly without God’s leading. If we act outside of His leading, we not only chance dangerous repercussions but will also accomplish nothing vs. waiting on His timing and accomplishing His purpose. Missionaries in Muslim countries are well aware of this truth.
Amos 5:14 Seek good, and not evil, that ye may live: and so the LORD, the God of hosts, shall be with you, as ye have spoken.
Amos 5:15 Hate the evil, and love the good, and establish judgment in the gate: it may be that the LORD God of hosts will be gracious unto the remnant of Joseph.
Many are the verses in scripture encouraging us to “seek” and “love” what is good and to avoid or “hate” what is evil.
Psalm 34:14 “Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it.”
Psalm 37:27 “Depart from evil, and do good; and dwell for evermore.”
Romans 12:9 “Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good.”
1Peter 3:10-11 “For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile: Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it.”
3John 11 “Beloved, follow not that which is evil, but that which is good.”
When you have God’s mindset toward good and evil, you will practice righteous discernment in judgment. Again, the Lord offers hope. If you choose to hate evil and love good, maybe God will bless a remnant even as He destroys the nation (the Northern Kingdom).
We do know from scripture that during the days of Rehoboam there were those from the Northern Kingdom who escaped to the Southern Kingdom because they wanted to serve YHWH.
2Chronicles 11:16 “And after them out of all the tribes of Israel such as set their hearts to seek the LORD God of Israel came to Jerusalem, to sacrifice unto the LORD God of their fathers.”
I think it is probably reasonable to assume that some out of the Northern Kingdom would again respond to God’s invitation. We know that He is preserving a remnant from all the tribes, since He will appoint 12,000 witnesses from each tribe to preach His message during the 70th week of Daniel, the seven years we normally refer to as the tribulation. (See Revelation 7.)
Amos 5:16 Therefore the LORD, the God of hosts, the Lord, saith thus; Wailing shall be in all streets; and they shall say in all the highways, Alas! alas! and they shall call the husbandman to mourning, and such as are skilful of lamentation to wailing.
Amos 5:17 And in all vineyards shall be wailing: for I will pass through thee, saith the LORD.
These verses are an exclamation point on the fact that Israel is going to face judgment—“for I will pass through thee, saith the LORD.” In light of that fact, Amos tells them that they might as well go ahead and hire mourners to wail and give voice to your sorrow. Implied is that there will be a need for so many that they will have to turn to farmers to fill the need.
MacArthur: “At the Exodus, the Lord ‘passed over’ Israel; here, He ‘passes through,’ much like He did to the Egyptians in Moses’ day.”
Amos 5:18 Woe unto you that desire the day of the LORD! to what end is it for you? the day of the LORD is darkness, and not light.
Amos 5:19 As if a man did flee from a lion, and a bear met him; or went into the house, and leaned his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him.
Amos 5:20 Shall not the day of the LORD be darkness, and not light? even very dark, and no brightness in it?
We know that both Amos and Isaiah prophesied in the days of Uzziah the king, and both use the phrase “the day of the Lord” to describe a time of God’s judgment. Both prophets also declare this time to be a terrible time of darkness. As the enemy began to threaten the Northern Kingdom, they evidently began hoping for the day of the Lord to come with the expectation that it would be a time when God would intervene to destroy their enemies. They did not understand that the coming day of judgment was to be against them—not their enemies. Scripture is clear that the day of the Lord is descriptive of God’s judgment against His enemies—and the Northern Kingdom had positioned itself as an enemy of God. They would seek safety, but would only meet with more danger. This day would be very dark; no light of deliverance would show up on their behalf.
Constable: “This prophecy found fulfillment when the Assyrians overran Israel and took most of the people into exile in722 B.C. The later Tribulation period for Israel, which will precede her millennial day of blessing, will be similar to what Amos predicted here….”
Amos 5:21 I hate, I despise your feast days, and I will not smell in your solemn assemblies.
Amos 5:22 Though ye offer me burnt offerings and your meat offerings, I will not accept them: neither will I regard the peace offerings of your fat beasts.
Amos 5:23 Take thou away from me the noise of thy songs; for I will not hear the melody of thy viols.
In these verses the prophet is trying to get them to understand that they are now enemies of God. He takes absolutely no pleasure in their empty religious gatherings and rituals. He sees through to their hearts. There is absolutely nothing He sees that qualifies as obedience or worship from a heart of love and faith. They are going through the motions and thinking that their faithless works are pleasing to God. The prophet Samuel proclaimed this same message.
1Samuel 15:22 “And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.”
I am so afraid that there are many in the “church” today that have that same erroneous thinking.
Amos 5:24 But let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream.
What God wants to see in His people are actions that evidence their love for Him and their desire to please Him. He wants to see justice and righteousness as the identifying traits of His people.
Amos 5:25 Have ye offered unto me sacrifices and offerings in the wilderness forty years, O house of Israel?
Amos 5:26 But ye have borne the tabernacle of your Moloch and Chiun your images, the star of your god, which ye made to yourselves.
Amos 5:27 Therefore will I cause you to go into captivity beyond Damascus, saith the LORD, whose name is The God of hosts.
We know that the answer to the question in verse 25 is yes, but now Amos tells us more that God revealed to him. It would seem that even though they were following Moses and giving the appearance of obeying God, many had actually continued worshipping self-made idols they brought with them from Egypt as well—Moloch and Chiun. It is from that root that the continued worship of false gods among the people of Israel continued to grow. Since His people insisted on continuing to worship false gods, the LORD determined to send them into captivity among the heathen that worship these false gods. There are many places in scripture that illustrate the truth that God will eventually give one over to their desires if they continue to reject Him. This is true of both individuals and nations.
Emphasis is given to the fact that the LORD, YHWH, is The God of hosts. In other words, He is the one and only all-powerful living God.
Note: Stephen quoted verses 25-26 in delivering his defense and detailing the history of the Jewish people, revealing their worship of these false gods.
Acts 7:42–43 “…as it is written in the book of the prophets, O ye house of Israel, have ye offered to me slain beasts and sacrifices by the space of forty years in the wilderness? Yea, ye took up the tabernacle of Moloch, and the star of your god Remphan, figures which ye made to worship them….”
Amos 6:1 Woe to them that are at ease in Zion, and trust in the mountain of Samaria, which are named chief of the nations, to whom the house of Israel came!
As the prophet continues his message, he gives warning to those in Zion (the true capital of the whole nation of Israel) who have erringly placed their trust in those entrusted with preserving the security of their nation, their military. In Hebrew, Samaria is defined as a watch-station against approaching enemies and was the capital of the Northern Kingdom.
Spurgeon: “It is not the assurance of one who is on the rock, but the ease of a senseless drunkard, whose house is tottering from its sandy foundations, and yet he riots at full speed; it is not the calm of soul at peace with God, but the ease of a madman, who, because he has hidden his sin from his own eyes, thinks he has concealed it from God.”
Wiersbe: “Complacency is an insidious sin because it’s based on lies, motivated by pride, and leads to trusting something other than God. Like the people in the church of Laodicea, complacent people consider themselves rich and in need of nothing. In reality, however, they have lost everything important in the spiritual life.”
Revelation 3:17 “Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked….”
Amos 6:2 Pass ye unto Calneh, and see; and from thence go ye to Hamath the great: then go down to Gath of the Philistines: be they better than these kingdoms? or their border greater than your border?
He then poses some questions to direct their thinking. Calneh was a prominent Assyrian city, Hamath was a Syrian capital that bordered Israel in the north, and Gath was one of the main Philistine cities. The question—Are the cities of Israel any greater than these? Is your kingdom any better than theirs?
Evidently, these cities had all been conquered by enemy forces. The implication is that they too had been proud and confident in their defenses, but that confidence didn’t prove to be well placed. I couldn’t help but think of a verse from Proverbs as I typed that sentence.
Proverbs 16:18 “Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.”
Amos 6:3 Ye that put far away the evil day, and cause the seat of violence to come near;
Amos 6:4 That lie upon beds of ivory, and stretch themselves upon their couches, and eat the lambs out of the flock, and the calves out of the midst of the stall;
Amos 6:5 That chant to the sound of the viol, and invent to themselves instruments of musick, like David;
Amos 6:6 That drink wine in bowls, and anoint themselves with the chief ointments: but they are not grieved for the affliction of Joseph.
The leaders and the elite of the Northern Kingdom refused to believe that they were vulnerable. They seemed to consider their affluence an indication of their power as one of the elite among the nations. They are pictured as living in the lap of luxury, dining on fine food and wine and pampering their bodies with fine lotions. They appreciated good music and took pride in their musical compositions. They even considered their music to be on par with the compositions of King David—highly regarded as the psalmist of Israel. They had no concern for the plight of the poor and unjustly treated of their people. Their focus was clearly on self.
As is often the case as I go through these books of the prophets, I can’t help but make comparisons with God’s rebellious people and America today. The description of these last few verses could easily be from a modern day prophet to America. The leaders of our nation seem to think we are invulnerable, and certainly in comparison to most nations on earth we live in the lap of luxury. We take great pleasure in various forms of entertainment that are totally secular and spend little if any time on the things of the LORD. Still, we seem to think our good works to be comparable to those of our forefathers. How deluded we are! When attention is given to the poor and downtrodden, it is usually a result of personal motivation for personal, political or financial considerations.
Amos 6:7 Therefore now shall they go captive with the first that go captive, and the banquet of them that stretched themselves shall be removed.
This is God’s declaration that those exhibiting the most pride and disbelief of the prophets’ messages would be the first to be taken captive when judgment fell. Their luxurious lifestyle would come to a sudden end.
Amos 6:8 The Lord GOD hath sworn by himself, saith the LORD the God of hosts, I abhor the excellency of Jacob, and hate his palaces: therefore will I deliver up the city with all that is therein.
This verse begins with the prophet’s declaration that he is proclaiming truth from the mouth of YHWH, truth that the LORD affirms by swearing by Himself (since there is no greater authority by which to swear).
Hebrews 6:13 “For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he sware by himself….”
Excellency is a reference to pride, and scripture is very clear that God hates pride.
Proverbs 6:16-17 “These six things doth the LORD hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him: A proud look….”
Proverbs 16:5 “Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the LORD….”
James 4:6 “...God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.”
God is very clear in identifying pride as the root cause of Jacob’s (referencing Israel) coming judgment.
Amos 6:9 And it shall come to pass, if there remain ten men in one house, that they shall die.
Amos 6:10 And a man’s uncle shall take him up, and he that burneth him, to bring out the bones out of the house, and shall say unto him that is by the sides of the house, Is there yet any with thee? and he shall say, No. Then shall he say, Hold thy tongue: for we may not make mention of the name of the LORD.
These verses are very confusing. I can see that they picture great destruction as a result of the coming judgment. They also indicate that there will be few survivors. These survivors are afraid to even mention the name of the LORD.
JFB added some insight. Whereas the name of God had always been one representative of great blessing and protection to the Jew, it had now become a name to invoke terror. It seems to be picturing a scenario in which they are afraid to draw God’s attention by mentioning His name, because they were sure that would result in death.
Amos 6:11 For, behold, the LORD commandeth, and he will smite the great house with breaches, and the little house with clefts.
I think this verse is basically reiterating that what the LORD declares will come to pass and that judgment will fall on rich and poor alike.
JFB made a different application. They understood the “great house” and the “little house” to be referencing the Northern Kingdom of Israel and the Southern Kingdom of Judah respectively. In retrospect, we know this to be a valid application.
Amos 6:12 Shall horses run upon the rock? will one plow there with oxen? for ye have turned judgment into gall, and the fruit of righteousness into hemlock:
Amos 6:13 Ye which rejoice in a thing of nought, which say, Have we not taken to us horns by our own strength?
Again, the prophet employs the use of questions to direct the thinking of his audience. The obvious answer to both questions is, “No.” The comparison--Why can’t you see the obvious danger of making a mockery of justice and righteousness? You have essentially treated true judgment and righteousness as poison—things to avoid at all cost. You take great pleasure in things with no eternal value and take great pride in your own accomplishments in the flesh—accomplishments of temporary worth at best.
Guzik: “You can’t expect a good result if you run a horse over rough rocks, because the horse will be injured. In the same way, Israel could not expect a good result when they turned justice into gall, and the fruit of righteousness into wormwood.”
Amos 6:14 But, behold, I will raise up against you a nation, O house of Israel, saith the LORD the God of hosts; and they shall afflict you from the entering in of Hemath unto the river of the wilderness.
The fearful warning from the LORD—I am going to judge you at the hands of a heathen nation. You will suffer from one end of the nation to the other—from Hamath on the northern border (as described in verse 2) to the southern border.