Amos 5:16-9:15

But let justice roll down like waters,
and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.

Amos 5:24

Sound familiar? I’d like to think that we know this verse because we all read our Bibles all the time. But I suspect that our familiarity with this verse may come more from Martin Luther King, Jr.’s quoting of it in his “I Have a Dream” speech. Just a hunch…

Note that this verse starts with “but”, setting it in contrast with the preceding verses:

I hate, I despise your feasts,
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 peace offerings of your fattened animals,
I will not look upon them.
Take away from me the noise of your songs;
to the melody of your harps I will not listen.

Amos 5:21-23

All of that goes to say that no amount of religiosity, no amount of sacrifice, or tithing, or liturgy, or music or any other outward form of “worship” can substitute for true justice and righteousness. If our Sunday morning worship isn’t coupled with right relationship with others — in justice and righteousness — then we’re fooling ourselves.

But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.

Amos 1-5:15

Before we do anything else, let’s note the historical context of Amos’s ministry:

The words of Amos, who was among the shepherds of Tekoa, which he saw concerning Israel in the days of Uzziah king of Judah and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the earthquake.

Amos 1:1

It seems to me that we have jumped into Amos a bit prematurely. That is, although we met this Jeroboam (i.e., Jeroboam II of Israel, not the Jeroboam that was the first king of the Northern Kingdom) in II Kings 14:23-29, we have not yet met Uzziah of Judah (aka Azariah in II Kings 15:1). Oh well. At least Uzziah/Azariah is not otherwise specifically mentioned in the rest of Amos, so I guess that’s OK.

Amos himself is a shepherd, not a professional prophet. (See also Amos 7:14.) He is from Tekoa, south of Jerusalem, which goes to say that he is from the Southern Kingdom of Judah, but he prophesies primarily to the Northern Kingdom of Israel — where Elijah and Elisha previously operated. But Amos does not speak only to the Northern Kingdom. He addresses the surrounding nations and Judah, too.

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Most of what Amos has to say is a strong indictment of the evil practices he sees all around him: brutality, injustice, oppression, idolatry. But today’s reading ends with a remedy:

Seek good, and not evil,
that you may live;
and so the LORD, the God of hosts, will be with you,
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.

Amos 5:14-15

Will the people of Israel heed all the warnings and pursue the remedy?

Will we?

As we begin to read the prophets, it will be helpful to bear in mind the following:

• “Israel” and “Jacob” are synonymous
• “Israel” (or “Jacob”) may refer to the entirety of the Hebrew people (i.e., all 12 tribes) or may indicate only (or primarily) the Northern Kingdom
• Although “Ephraim” may refer to that specific tribe, it usually means the Northern Kingdom as a whole (i.e., synonymous with “Israel”)
• “Joseph” (being the father of Ephraim) is likewise often synonymous with the Northern Kingdom
• “Judah” generally means the Southern Kingdom
• Israel and Judah have a long history of (mostly) adversarial relationships with surrounding nations:
  • Edom (= Esau = Seir)
  • Ammon
  • Moab
  • Syria
  • Philistia (Ashdod, Ashkelon, Ekron, Gath, Gaza)
  • Phoenicia (Tyre and Sidon)
• Capital cities are often used as synonyms for their respective nations:
  • Samaria = the Northern Kingdom of Israel
  • Jerusalem (or Zion) = the Southern Kingdom of Judah
  • Damascus = Syria
  • Nineveh = Assyria
  • Etc.
• The cities of Bethel and Dan are corrupt centers of worship, homes of Jeroboam’s golden calves that are falsely worshipped as “the LORD”

More importantly, we should recognize that the prophets each preach into their own historical and geographical context. Reading these prophets chronologically, together with the corresponding historical narratives, should help us understand that context and thus gain a better appreciation for their message. But we should not then think that their message is limited to their immediate context. We, too, have much to learn from them.

Oftentimes the prophets preach a message of God’s judgment and wrath, which we may be tempted to hear simply as condemnation. But that misses the point. These messages should instead be seen as warnings and as calls to repentance. For those who heed that call, there is also hope — hope of redemption, of restoration, of grace, and of mercy. God is — always has been and always will be — a God of steadfast love. Were it not for God’s love and mercy, we would get no such warnings through the prophets, no such pleading to turn back to God.

So let’s receive what the prophets have to say to us. Let’s heed their call.

Jonah 1-4

I’m guessing we all have at least a passing familiarity with the story of Jonah and the whale (or fish). But what about Jonah and the worm? Though the worm may not seem as spectacular as the whale, it is every bit as much a part of the story, and every bit as much God’s instrument.

So what is going on in this book? The LORD calls Jonah to go to Nineveh, the capital city of the Assyrian empire, an enemy of Israel. But Jonah rebels against this call, not out of a fear of failure, but out of a fear of success. That is, Jonah knows that the LORD is a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster (Jonah 4:2), and that rubs Jonah the wrong way. He’d rather see the Ninevites destroyed as punishment for their brutality. So when Nineveh repents and the LORD relents of the disaster He would have brought upon them, Jonah sulks. The LORD then uses a plant — and a worm — to illustrate to Jonah how utterly out of step Jonah is with the LORD. His priorities are all out of whack. Jonah has more concern for a plant destroyed by a worm than he does for 120,000 people.

Let’s not maintain Jonah’s bad attitude. Jesus tells us that we are to love our enemies, which goes entirely against our nature. Loving our enemies does not mean that we support the evil that they do, but it does mean that we should hope and pray for their repentance, that they, too, might experience the grace and mercy of God.

II Kings 14; II Chronicles 25

Imagine this… Your favorite NFL team wins the Super Bowl. Hoorah! The team owner then immediately trades the entire team — coaching staff, star quarterback, everybody — for the team with the worst record in the league. Sports commentators go nuts. Everyone jeers. Boo! Hiss! But against all better counsel the owner persists and seals the deal. Predictably, the Super Bowl Champions drop to the bottom of the league the next season. Who could be so stupid?

Apparently, Amaziah, king of Judah, is:

After Amaziah came from striking down the Edomites, he brought the gods of the men of Seir and set them up as his gods and worshiped them, making offerings to them. Therefore the LORD was angry with Amaziah and sent to him a prophet, who said to him, “Why have you sought the gods of a people who did not deliver their own people from your hand?”

II Chronicles 25:14-15

Just as with our imagined football team, things do not go well for Amaziah after that, especially when he picks a fight with big brother Israel. But this is no game. It is deadly serious.

Unfortunately, Amaziah is not alone. Our choices may not present themselves quite so obviously to us as our silly football example or Amaziah’s idolatry. But which of us can say we haven’t made similarly bad choices in one way or another? We know that money, for example, cannot buy happiness, yet we pursue it as if it could. We know that status and prestige do not really satisfy, yet we pursue those, too. We know that our true identity and worth is in Christ, yet we look for identity everywhere else. We know that physical beauty is only skin deep, yet we spend enormous resources on apparel, make up, hair care, cosmetic surgery, etc., bowing down to our own vanity. We look for approval from our fellow humans, and we neglect to please the only One Who really matters.

Surely Amaziah has plenty of company.

II Chronicles 22:10-24:27; II Kings 13

“Treason! Treason!” (II Ch. 23:13)

So screams Athaliah, who herself treasonously stole the throne of Judah — how familiar that sounds! — when Jehoiada the priest reveals Joash/Jehoash as the rightful king of Judah. Joash, rescued as a baby by Jehosheba/Jehoshabeath, Jehoiada’s wife and Joash’s aunt, grows up hidden away in the Temple. Under Jehoiada’s protection, Joash comes to his throne at the age of seven. The first order of business is the execution of Athaliah, so for her fans it may indeed look like treason, but in reality it is restoration — restoration of the Davidic line to the throne, as well as restoration of the worship of the LORD. (II Ch. 23:16-21)

Growing up under Jehoiada’s godly tutelage, Joash does well, making repairs to the Temple, replacing utensils and vessels of gold and silver, and otherwise practicing the proper sacrifices to the LORD. (II Ch. 24:14) But when Jehoiada dies, Joash falls away into idolatry. He even kills Jehoiada’s son, Zechariah, in the Temple courts. (II Ch. 24:17-22) Again we see a good beginning — but a poor ending.

So what about us? Am I living someone else’s faith and convictions? Am I going through the motions of Christianity to please my parents or my spouse or my pastor/priest or anybody else? Am I just doing what someone else is guiding me to do? Or is my faith truly my own? Am I convinced within my own heart of God’s love? Do I, myself, truly believe in the Resurrection? No one else’s faith will do.

II Chronicles 21-22:9; II Kings 11-12

Today we get a closer look at the horrible consequences of Jehoshaphat’s alliance with Ahab. At the center of that alliance is Ahab’s daughter, Athaliah, who leads her husband, Joram/Jehoram of Judah away from the LORD and into Baal worship. He, in turn, leads Judah astray, but that is not all: Joram proceeds to kill all his brothers and some cousins. (II Ch. 21:4)

Clearly, Joram of Judah is a vile character, and Elijah (who evidently has not yet been taken up to heaven — so much for reading things in chronological order!) sends him a letter, condemning Joram’s actions and declaring that he will suffer a most unpleasant disease. (II Ch. 21:12-15) Unrepentant, Joram does indeed eventually die of this nasty disease. And he departed with no one’s regret. (II Ch. 21:20) What a commentary on a life ill-lived!

So Joram’s son, Ahaziah, becomes king of Judah, but he learns nothing from his father’s demise. He remains under the wicked counsel of his mother, Athaliah, and continues in evil. By providence, Joram is caught in Jehu’s purge of the House of Ahab and dies after reigning only one year. (II Ch. 22:7-9)

What with Joram’s killing of his brothers and with Ahaziah’s dying young, there is a power vacuum in Judah, and Athaliah herself seizes the throne. She immediately sets to work killing off those who remain of David’s royal line. But she misses one baby boy: Joash (aka Jehoash). (We’ll consider him tomorrow…)

All this disaster arises from Jehoshaphat’s foolish alliance with Ahab. So again I urge us all to evaluate our relationships. Given that our readings lately are centered so much on political leadership, perhaps political alliances warrant a particular focus. I am not here to endorse one party over the other. (There’s plenty of bad behavior in each, and Jesus Himself isn’t generally on the ballot.) But I hope that we can each surrender whatever political biases we developed growing up, or whatever political stances we’ve held for years, and seriously submit them all afresh to the Lord. Allow the Holy Spirit to speak to your heart. Are you, in fact, voting with the Lord — or against Him?

II Kings 8:16-10:36

Remember how good King Jehoshaphat of Judah made an alliance with wicked King Ahab of Israel that almost got him killed in battle? And remember how I said there were more serious consequences to come? Well, today we begin to see those consequences. The alliance between Jehoshaphat and Ahab is one of marriage, with Ahab’s daughter, Athaliah, marrying Jehoshaphat’s son, Joram/Jehoram of Judah. (Yes, confusingly, we also simultaneously have a different King Joram/Jehoram in Israel.) Surprise, surprise, Athaliah leads Joram/Jehoram of Judah to follow in the ways of Ahab, which goes to say that he worships Baal, not the LORD. (II Kings 8:18) Then their son, Ahaziah, does likewise. (II Kings 8:27) Let that be a warning to all those who think “missionary dating” is a good idea!

Meanwhile, the LORD anoints Jehu to be king over Israel. Jehu swiftly and efficiently executes God’s judgment on the House of Ahab. He eradicates the entire royal family, its friends and supporters, including Jezebel. Jehu also kills Judah’s King Ahaziah (II Kings 9:27) as well as 42 other members of Judah’s royal family who are friendly to the House of Ahab. (II Kings 10:12-14) Then Jehu wipes out the prophets of Baal and demolishes the temple of Baal, turning it into a latrine. It is all a nasty, bloody business, but make no mistake: it is all utterly necessary for Israel to recover any semblance of spiritual health.

Although the LORD commends Jehu for executing His judgment upon Ahab and promises him a four-generation dynasty, Jehu falls short of full obedience. He continues Jeroboam’s idolatry with the golden calves in Dan and Bethel. Yes, Jehu is clearly a significant improvement over Ahab and his Baal worship, but initial zeal for the LORD does not constitute total devotion.

We should take note. 51% devotion is not 100%. 80% is not 100%. 95% is not 100%. When Jesus says, “If anyone would come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me,” (Mt. 16:24; Mk. 8:34; Lk. 9:23) He is not talking about wearing a cross necklace and being polite. He is looking for total commitment. When He says, “Whoever loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me,” (Mt. 10:37) He is looking for total commitment. Jesus gives 100% for us. We owe 100% in return.

I want to be very clear here. We can do nothing to earn our salvation, but the result of our salvation is a relationship with God in which we respond to what He says and does. That response should reflect an ever-deepening devotion to Him. So, again, look at Jehu. The LORD initiates the relationship. The LORD anoints Jehu. Jehu does nothing to earn that anointing. The LORD empowers Jehu, enabling him to carry out the (preordained) judgment on the House of Ahab and on Baalism. But Jehu is not just a robot, nor is he passive. He has choices to make, and he chooses to zealously do everything it takes to establish himself as king. And then he chooses to stop short. We likewise receive the life of Christ as a free gift that we do not earn. And the Lord empowers our life in Christ by His Holy Spirit. Yet in this life we have choices to make. We can press into our relationship with Christ in total devotion. Or we can stop short. What will it be?

II Kings 5-8:15

When the Syrian siege of Samaria results in such severe famine that mothers resort to eating their own children, what does the king of Israel do? Does he turn to the LORD, pleading for mercy? Does he lead the people in a prayer of confession and repentance for their decades of sin since the days of Jeroboam? Does he seek godly advice from the LORD’s prophet, Elisha? Nope. Instead he blames Elisha and seeks to murder him. (II Kings 6:30-31)

Blame shifting: what a well-worn path! Adam blames Eve (or even God — “The woman whom You gave to be with me…” — Gen. 3:12). Eve blames the serpent (“The serpent deceived me…” — Gen. 3:13). Ahab blames Elijah (“Is it you, you troubler of Israel?” — I Kings 18:17). Here Joram/Jehoram of Israel blames Elisha. But God knows better. The LORD sees through it all — both then and now.