Amos the
“herdsman” prophet was called upon by “the LORD”
to relay His messages of judgment upon the enemies of “Israel and
Judah”. He also pronounced judgment upon “Israel” itself
for “four transgressions” which were committed against God. In
chapter two and verse eight of his prophesy, Amos continued to share
more of the “transgressions of Israel” where we read:
And they
lay themselves down
upon clothes laid to pledge by every altar,
and they
drink the wine of the condemned in
the house of their god.
The
verse begins, “And they lay
themselves
down upon clothes laid to pledge by every altar,...” Amos
began with the words, “and they lay
themselves down”
or “stretch out, extend, spread out,
pitch, turn, pervert, incline, bend and bow”
“upon clothes”
which refers to “garments of treachery and deceit” “laid
to pledge”
or “bind as to wind tightly like a rope” “by
every altar”
which means “beside, near, joining and in proximity to every bench
and holy place of offering and sacrifice”. Amos referred to the way
these abusers of the poor would take their “outer garments”,
which were according to the law to be returned to a poor man by
sunset, and used them to recline upon while they worshipped idols in
their temples.
The
verse goes on to say, “...and
they drink the wine of the condemned in
the house of their god.” Amos continued,
“and they drink”
which means “imbibe” “the wine”
or “bubbling up and fermenting clusters” “of
the condemned” which means “the amerced,
punished and mulcted” “in the house”
or “dwelling, habitation and abode” “of
their god” which refers to “rulers,
judges, angels, gods and goddesses”. Not only did they abuse the
poor by taking their clothing, but they also used the poor's money to
buy their wine for their idolatrous worship.
When we think through
these words of Amos, we see how the people of “Israel”
involved themselves not only in
pagan idolatrous worship, but used the poor's articles and money to
advance their worship celebrations. They forgot one thing – God was
watching, and now because they were so evil and wicked toward the
poor, “the LORD”
was to bring judgment upon them. The apostle Peter shared in his
second letter in chapter two and verse nine how “the
LORD” “is not
willing that any should perish, but that all should come to
repentance”, and He gave Jesus Christ to make that possible.
However, should a person reject God's offer of His Son to pay the
penalty for their sins, judgment shall come upon them. Though they
appear to be advancing their own directives and causes, they shall
soon face the judgment of Almighty God, and woe be to those who do
not yield to Him and abuse His poor.
Next
time we see
how God “destroyed the
Ammonite”
before Israel,
so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until tomorrow…there is more…
Look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, and the new devotional “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
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