Prophecies against Israel: No Escape from God’s Judgment - Part 2 (6)

Introduction:

We continue our trek through this very timely Old Testament prophetic book of Amos, and remember last week in Part 1 in this fourth sermon of Amos’s prophecies against Israel, that there is no escape from God’s judgment because of their unrelenting rebellion against Him. We saw how Israel presumed that if they worshipped God as he prescribed, though their worship was heartless and syncretized with paganism, that God would somehow be pleased and his judgment would not fall.

This morning, in Part 2, we are taken into the minutia of how unrelenting their rebellion truly is, as we see another strategy used by the well-to-do nobility while they engaged in their luxuries, they pretended and became oblivious to the reality of the judgment that is looming so closely on their horizon. Somehow believing that if they convinced themselves that it’s not there, it won’t happen. So with that as are introduction, let’s turn together to Amos 6, and look at Part 2 of the Prophesies against Israel, and the reality that there is presently No Escape from God’s Judgment.

Text: Amos 6

Amos 6 ESV

1 “Woe to those who are at ease in Zion, and to those who feel secure on the mountain of Samaria, the notable men of the first of the nations, to whom the house of Israel comes! 2 Pass over to Calneh, and see, and from there go to Hamath the great; then go down to Gath of the Philistines. Are you better than these kingdoms? Or is their territory greater than your territory, 3 O you who put far away the day of disaster and bring near the seat of violence? 4 “Woe to those who lie on beds of ivory and stretch themselves out on their couches, and eat lambs from the flock and calves from the midst of the stall, 5 who sing idle songs to the sound of the harp and like David invent for themselves instruments of music, 6 who drink wine in bowls and anoint themselves with the finest oils, but are not grieved over the ruin of Joseph! 7 Therefore they shall now be the first of those who go into exile, and the revelry of those who stretch themselves out shall pass away.” 8 The Lord God has sworn by himself, declares the Lord, the God of hosts: “I abhor the pride of Jacob and hate his strongholds, and I will deliver up the city and all that is in it.” 9 And if ten men remain in one house, they shall die. 10 And when one’s relative, the one who anoints him for burial, shall take him up to bring the bones out of the house, and shall say to him who is in the innermost parts of the house, “Is there still anyone with you?” he shall say, “No”; and he shall say, “Silence! We must not mention the name of the Lord.” 11 For behold, the Lord commands, and the great house shall be struck down into fragments, and the little house into bits. 12 Do horses run on rocks? Does one plow there with oxen? But you have turned justice into poison and the fruit of righteousness into wormwood— 13 you who rejoice in Lo-debar, who say, “Have we not by our own strength captured Karnaim for ourselves?” 14 “For behold, I will raise up against you a nation, O house of Israel,” declares the Lord, the God of hosts; “and they shall oppress you from Lebo-hamath to the Brook of the Arabah.”

Main Idea: Although God is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and plenteous in steadfast love, presumptuous complacency will not stay God’s hand of Judgment on Sin.

I. Call to the Complacent (1-3)

A. Pride and Self-Confidence (1)

(1) “Woe to those who are at ease in Zion, and to those who feel secure on the mountain of Samaria, the notable men of the first of the nations, to whom the house of Israel comes!

Woe to those - or cursed be those

who are at ease in Zion, and to those who feel secure on the mountain of Samaria - Amos is pronouncing this woe on both Judah in the South and Israel in the north.

As a reminder that at the time of Amos’s prophecy, both the North under Jereboam II, and the South under Uzziah were experiencing a great time of prosperity, and were not looking at judgment happening any time soon.

This prosperity had their heads turned from reality.

the notable men of the first of the nations, to whom the house of Israel comes!

the notable men of the first of the nations first of the nations. The same ironic Hb. phrase occurs in Num. 24:20 (referring to Amalek). Israel has become powerful and prosperous under Jeroboam II, and might fancy herself the first among the nations. These pampered notable leaders consider themselves unstoppable.

to whom the house of Israel comes - all Israel used them for advice and as an example of how to live.

God, however, through Amos gives them some…

B. Examples of God’s Judgment (2-3)

All these nations used in God’s examples once stood where Israel is now standing…

(2) Pass over to Calneh, and see, and from there go to Hamath the great; then go down to Gath of the Philistines. Are you better than these kingdoms? Or is their territory greater than your territory,

Stronger cities than either Jerusalem or Samaria had already fallen.

Calneh, in south-central Mesopotamia (see Gen. 10:10; Isa. 10:9);

Hamath, in Syria to the north of Israel;

Gath, the chief city of the Philistines, in southern Palestine, and southwest of Jerusalem. The home of Goliath whom David killed.

Since the three locations reflect the entire extent of the so-called “Fertile Crescent,” they may have been chosen for their representative value. No city in the whole region, Amos is saying, could claim immunity to destruction.

(3) O you who put far away the day of disaster and bring near the seat of violence?

put far away the day of disaster - put the reality of the coming judgment out of their minds and far from their priorities

seat of violence. Israel has enthroned violence, such as extortion and abuse of the poor, as a way of life, while also denying that the day of judgment is coming.

Israel focus had been changed to seek…

II. Pleasure Instead of Mourning (4-7)

Amos shows us to what extent these complacent, pleasure seeking leaders have gone.

A. Finest Food, Drink, and Song (4-6)

(4) “Woe to those who lie on beds of ivory and stretch themselves out on their couches, and eat lambs from the flock and calves from the midst of the stall,

ivory was then, as now, a luxury. These people indulged in tender lamb and calves (veal), not the tougher mutton and beef.

calves ... stall. Choice calves are kept in stalls and fattened for special occasions. Such is the normal fare for the wealthy of Samaria.

(5) who sing idle songs to the sound of the harp and like David invent for themselves instruments of music,

Although the Israelite elite emulated David in making music, and perhaps congratulated themselves on that, it is clear that they had no real awareness of the deep meaning of the Hebrew psalms with their passion for God and his ways.

like David. An ironic comparison with David’s musical interests. Unlike the Israelites, who pursue frivolous musical endeavors, David composed many psalms to the glory of the Lord (2 Sam. 23:1).

(6) who drink wine in bowls and anoint themselves with the finest oils, but are not grieved over the ruin of Joseph!

Wine in bowls and finest oils are further indications that any trace of moderation or restraint was gone from this complacent upper echelon of society. They cared extravagantly for their own bodies but cared nothing for the needs of others. The two main tribes in Israel were Ephraim and Manasseh, descended from Joseph.

B. Pleasure Brings First Judgment (7)

(7) Therefore they shall now be the first of those who go into exile, and the revelry of those who stretch themselves out shall pass away.”

first of those who go into exile. This phrase is a Hb. wordplay on the earlier phrase, “first of the nations” (v. 1). Israel fancies herself the first among the nations, but will find herself leading the exiles.

the revelry of those who stretch themselves out shall pass away.

the revelry of those who stretch themselves out - those who are lost in their extravagance

shall pass away - Hebrew word means, to change direction, to desist from. A bit ironic, instead of a change in direction from sin (repentance), God changes their direction through judgment. As a result, it is very clear that…

III. Israel Helpless Before God’s Judgment (8-14)

Israel can pretend all the want, but reality will win!

A. God’s Self-Covenant of Judgment (8-10)

(8) The Lord God has sworn by himself, declares the Lord, the God of hosts: “I abhor the pride of Jacob and hate his strongholds, and I will deliver up the city and all that is in it.” - there are three important names for God used in this passage to help us understand how emphatic is his covenant of judgment…

The Lord God has sworn by himself, declares the Lord, the God of hosts

Lord (adonay - the master, the one with authority) God (Yahweh - the self existing God who is, and therefore keeps without opposition, his covenant promises) - these two names for God establish that God is the unrivaled, unopposed, ultimate authority of all things who declares and brings it to pass. Thus, this gives meaning to the next phrase…

has sworn by himself, - as Adonay Yahweh, there is nothing or no one higher to which to appeal or swear!

declares the Lord (Yahweh), the God (Elohim - the God of ultimate power; the omnipotent one; the God of Genesis 1&2, who creates by the Word of his power, and maintains his creation) of hosts (angelic armies)

therefore, with that reality of God, as the exclusive authority, with his unchanging covenant, and ultimate power over all things, specifically the hosts of heaven, one does not want God to get to the point where he says…

“I abhor the pride of Jacob and hate his strongholds, and I will deliver up the city and all that is in it.” - and further more…

(9) And if ten men remain in one house, they shall die.

ten men ... one house. The meaning seems to be that small remnants hoping to escape will be found and killed.

(10) And when one’s relative, the one who anoints him for burial, shall take him up to bring the bones out of the house, and shall say to him who is in the innermost parts of the house, “Is there still anyone with you?” he shall say, “No”; and he shall say, “Silence! We must not mention the name of the Lord.”

relative ... one who anoints. Lit. “a man’s kinsman and his burner,” probably one and the same individual. Fear of epidemics may require cremation instead of burial in this era. Or, the burning could be a fire in honor of the dead (Jer. 34:5).

“Silence! We must not mention the name of the Lord.” - Previously, one might mention or invoke the Lord’s name for help, since He is the God of Israel’s covenant. But on the day of judgment one may not do this because the God of the covenant is coming in judgment (cf. Is. 48:1).

B. Futility of Israel’s Perverted Justice (11-13)

The ultimate absurdity is when one does the same wrong thing over and over again and somehow expects different results.

(11) For behold, the Lord commands, and the great house shall be struck down into fragments, and the little house into bits.

For behold, the LORD commands. “Behold” frequently introduces noteworthy events. Here it signals the pronouncement that the Lord is rousing Assyria, His instrument of judgment, to come against Israel (cf. Is. 10:5, 6).

great house ... little house. Both the great houses of the wealthy and the small houses of the poor will be shattered by the coming judgment. Which demonstrates a total judgment. Here, as it often does in Hebrew, the word for “house” can also mean “household” or “family.”

(12) Do horses run on rocks? Does one plow there with oxen? But you have turned justice into poison and the fruit of righteousness into wormwood—

Do horses run on rocks? Does one plow there with oxen? - Obviously not; no one runs a horse on such treacherous footing. Neither will one plow on rocks. But Israel’s injustice is just as absurd.

Even the least-educated farmer understands that there are laws of nature that must be obeyed if life and health are to be preserved. But Israel’s leaders have no such understanding. Perverting justice and righteousness is ultimately as destructive as trying to get a crop from a rock pile.

fruit of righteousness into wormwood - as we learned last week, their justice system is poisonous.

(13) you who rejoice in Lo-debar, who say, “Have we not by our own strength captured Karnaim for ourselves?”

Lo-debar ... Karnaim. Lo-debar (“nothing”) is a border town in Gilead, Karnaim (“horns”) a city on the plain of Bashan on the way to Damascus. They are both on the east side of the Jordan River. Both were apparently retaken from Hazael by Jehoash (2 Kin. 10:32, 33; 13:25), but later conquered by Assyria (2 Kin. 15:29).

who say, “Have we not by our own strength captured Karnaim for ourselves?” - A wordplay is intended, by which Amos says that Israel rejoices in the conquest of nothing (the conquest of Lo-debar, soon to be taken by Assyria, is short-lived), and boasts of having taken horns (symbolic of military strength in the ancient Near East) by their own strength. Their conquests amount to nothing, and their strength will melt away before the Lord’s judgment.

C. Surety of God’s Oppression of Israel (14)

(14) “For behold, I will raise up against you a nation, O house of Israel,” declares the Lord, the God of hosts; “and they shall oppress you from Lebo-hamath to the Brook of the Arabah.”

For behold, I will raise up against you…declares the Lord, the God of hosts - this conquering nation will be the work and will of God alone.

a nation. Assyria.

Amos says the little victories of the previous verse will be nothing compared to the destruction that is to come. Lebo-hamath was in the far north, in the valley between the Lebanon and the Anti-Lebanon Mountains. The Brook of the Arabah is in the valley in the far south between the Dead Sea and the Gulf of Aqaba. The Assyrian conquest and oppression would cover the whole land, not just a few isolated cities.

So What?

Do we take seriously God’s call to holiness or do we think we have time to sow our wild oats?

Is our time spent more on how to make our lives comfortable or how to live holy?

God has called his covenant people to a great work; to make disciples; to let our lights shine and be vulnerable, so the world will know that our God is God exclusively!

Do we take seriously who God is?

A small view of God breeds a life of complacency.

God is creator, sustainer, judge of all things, and is to be taken seriously when he speaks.