Judgment: before and after

Amos 6 contains another prediction of judgment:

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.” …For behold, the LORD commands, and the great house shall be struck down into fragments, and the little house into bits. (Amos 6.8, 11, ESV)

Why?

…you have turned justice into poison and the fruit of righteousness into wormwood— (Amos 6.12, ESV)

No justice. No righteousness. Judgment will come. “The city will be delivered up. The houses shall be destroyed.”

And the scary part of chapter 6 is what life looks like before:

“Woe to those who

  • are at ease in Zion, and to those who
  • feel secure on the mountain of Samaria…
  • 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, who
  • sing idle songs to the sound of the harp and
  • like David invent for themselves instruments of music, who
  • drink wine in bowls and
  • anoint themselves with the finest oils,

but are not grieved over the ruin of Joseph! (Amos 6.1, 4 – 6, ESV)

In other words, the life of the wealthy…like us.

For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. (Matthew 24.37 – 39, ESV)

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *