If all them that hollers for justice the loudest got it done to them, there’d be a right smart shrinkage in the census returns.”
–William MacLeod Raine (A Texas Ranger)
“You shall not pervert justice; you shall not show partiality, nor take a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the righteous.”
–Deuteronomy 16:19(NKJV)
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“For three transgressions…and for four, I will not turn away its punishment.” (Amos 1:11,13; 2:1)
The dire prophecy now turns to Edom, the descendant of Esau. Though distant relatives there was no love lost between the people. Edom was east of Jordan and south of the Dead Sea. They were a people known for their cruelty. (For more information regarding Edom read Obadiah). From the time of Jacob and Esau there had been trouble. Edom refused Moses passage through the land (Numbers 20:14-21), they were hostile and fought against Israel. Esau may have forgiven Jacob but it is evident that Edom did not accept that forgiveness and continually expressed their wrath against Israel. Lloyd Ogilvie states, “The problem with the rough-hewn, fierce, combative Edomites was not that they had other gods, but that they had no god at all. Without God and any moral accountability, they ‘cast off all pity.'” God didn’t mean anything to them as Esau’s birthright meant little to him.
Amos condemns the Edomites for hating their brother, “because his anger raged continually and his fury flamed unchecked” (1:11, NIV). Instead of helping their brother, “they acted like beasts instead of humans.” (Warren Wiersbe) Known for their dehumanizing cruelty they also committed fratricide; the RSV translates it this way, “his anger tore perpetually, and he kept his wrath forever” (1:11). Anger and hatred and bitterness toward his brother–the result, fire would destroy the two major cities: Teman and Bozrah. “It was to become a desolation, a reproach, a waste, and a curse.” (Albert Garner)
Then Amos turns his gaze to other distant relatives, the Ammonites and Moabites, the descendants of Lot through his incestuous union with his daughters. They were ruthless people who were avowed enemies of the Jews (Wiersbe). Ammon, under the justification that the land belonged to them, would raid the lands of Gilead committing atrocities. They “ripped open the bellies of pregnant women slaughtering both mother and unborn child and thus eliminating part of the next generation. (Craigie) Their deeds were vile and Peter Craigie writes, “They employed their violence against the defenceless and the unborn. And for all the macho bragging with which they must have celebrated their violent deeds, those Ammonites have survived in history as the exemplars of cowardice. Upon those without defence, they raised their bloodthirsty swords.” Amos declares their future would be destroyed for God will judge their atrocities. Their god, Moleck, will be unable to save them.
The prophet now speaks to Moab. A people of implacable hatred toward Israel. We read in Numbers that the king of Moab hired Balaam to curse Israel. They practiced human sacrifice and desecrated that which had been sacred. The crime of Moab would be what we would call sacrilege. There is “total lack of any respect for the lives, feelings and faith of others” (Craigie).
Edom is no more, Ammon is no more, and Moab became the home of nomadic tribes, the nation gone. Even though these people were not part of the covenant of Moses, they were responsible to God for their actions as are all people. “God sees what the nations do, and He judges them accordingly” (Wiersbe). Do not be under the illusion that God is not watching or that He is not involved. It is God who controls the rise and fall of nations. Paul tells us, “And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings, so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us.” (Acts 17:26-27, NKJV)
The eye of the Lord is upon all. Nothing escapes His notice. The Chaldeans and Romans both brought destruction to these people who lost their identities as a separate group. Notice also that these nations were judged by fire. God’s justice is patient, but without repentance there comes a day of reckoning. “For our God is a consuming fire.” (Hebrews 12:29, NKJV)
—————————–
“For three transgressions…and for four, I will not turn away its punishment.” (Amos 1:11,13; 2:1)
The dire prophecy now turns to Edom, the descendant of Esau. Though distant relatives there was no love lost between the people. Edom was east of Jordan and south of the Dead Sea. They were a people known for their cruelty. (For more information regarding Edom read Obadiah). From the time of Jacob and Esau there had been trouble. Edom refused Moses passage through the land (Numbers 20:14-21), they were hostile and fought against Israel. Esau may have forgiven Jacob but it is evident that Edom did not accept that forgiveness and continually expressed their wrath against Israel. Lloyd Ogilvie states, “The problem with the rough-hewn, fierce, combative Edomites was not that they had other gods, but that they had no god at all. Without God and any moral accountability, they ‘cast off all pity.'” God didn’t mean anything to them as Esau’s birthright meant little to him.
Amos condemns the Edomites for hating their brother, “because his anger raged continually and his fury flamed unchecked” (1:11, NIV). Instead of helping their brother, “they acted like beasts instead of humans.” (Warren Wiersbe) Known for their dehumanizing cruelty they also committed fratricide; the RSV translates it this way, “his anger tore perpetually, and he kept his wrath forever” (1:11). Anger and hatred and bitterness toward his brother–the result, fire would destroy the two major cities: Teman and Bozrah. “It was to become a desolation, a reproach, a waste, and a curse.” (Albert Garner)
Then Amos turns his gaze to other distant relatives, the Ammonites and Moabites, the descendants of Lot through his incestuous union with his daughters. They were ruthless people who were avowed enemies of the Jews (Wiersbe). Ammon, under the justification that the land belonged to them, would raid the lands of Gilead committing atrocities. They “ripped open the bellies of pregnant women slaughtering both mother and unborn child and thus eliminating part of the next generation. (Craigie) Their deeds were vile and Peter Craigie writes, “They employed their violence against the defenceless and the unborn. And for all the macho bragging with which they must have celebrated their violent deeds, those Ammonites have survived in history as the exemplars of cowardice. Upon those without defence, they raised their bloodthirsty swords.” Amos declares their future would be destroyed for God will judge their atrocities. Their god, Moleck, will be unable to save them.
The prophet now speaks to Moab. A people of implacable hatred toward Israel. We read in Numbers that the king of Moab hired Balaam to curse Israel. They practiced human sacrifice and desecrated that which had been sacred. The crime of Moab would be what we would call sacrilege. There is “total lack of any respect for the lives, feelings and faith of others” (Craigie).
Edom is no more, Ammon is no more, and Moab became the home of nomadic tribes, the nation gone. Even though these people were not part of the covenant of Moses, they were responsible to God for their actions as are all people. “God sees what the nations do, and He judges them accordingly” (Wiersbe). Do not be under the illusion that God is not watching or that He is not involved. It is God who controls the rise and fall of nations. Paul tells us, “And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings, so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us.” (Acts 17:26-27, NKJV)
The eye of the Lord is upon all. Nothing escapes His notice. The Chaldeans and Romans both brought destruction to these people who lost their identities as a separate group. Notice also that these nations were judged by fire. God’s justice is patient, but without repentance there comes a day of reckoning. “For our God is a consuming fire.” (Hebrews 12:29, NKJV)