As Amos the
prophet continued to share about the pending judgment that was to
come upon Israel, he stated that if there “remain ten men in one
house, that they shall die”. In chapter six and verse ten of
his prophesy, Amos shares how the people were no longer allowed to
“make mention of the name of the LORD” where we read:
And
a man's uncle shall take him up, and he that burns him, to bring out
the bones out of the house, and shall say unto him that is
by the sides of the house, Is there
yet any with
you? and he shall say, No. Then shall he say, Hold thy tongue: for we
may not make mention of the name of the LORD.
The
verse begins, “And a man's uncle shall take him up, and
he that burns him, to bring out the bones out of the house,...”
Amos began with the words, “And
a man's uncle” or “the
brother of a man's father” “shall take him up”
which means “carry, take, lift, support and bear him”, “and
he that burns him” or
“cremates him on a pyre”, “to bring out”
which means “to exit, depart and proceed with” “the
bones” which refers to “the
body limbs of the external body” “out of the house”
or “the dwelling, shelter,
habitation and abode”. After the death of a man, the closest
relative (usually and uncle), would burn his body and take his bones
to a burial site.
The
verse goes on to say, “and shall say
unto him that is
by the sides of the house, Is there
yet any with
you? Amos
continued, “and shall say”
or “utter, declare or proclaim” “unto
him that is by the sides”
or “the flanks, extreme parts and recesses ”
“of the house” which
means “the dwelling, habitation, shelter and abode”, “is
there yet any with you”
or to “is anyone else in the house”? Not only would the “uncle”
burn the
body, but he would search for other people who were alive by asking
if there were any more inside the houses.
Finally
the verse says, “and he shall say, No. Then shall he say,
Hold your tongue: for we may not make mention of the name of the
LORD.” Amos added, “and
he shall say” or “utter,
declare or proclaim”, “No”
which means “negative with certainty, end and finality”.
“The shall he say” or
“utter, declare or proclaim”, “Hold your tongue”
which means “hush, be silent
and hold peace”: “for we may not make mention” which
means “we cannot remember, recall or call to mind” “of
the name” or “reputation,
fame and glory” “of the LORD” which
refers to “Yehovah or Jehovah who is the existing one and the
proper name for the one true God”. The answer to the request of
whether there were any more men in the house would be “no”, and
then even “mentioning” the LORD's name would be useless to save
them.
When
we think through these words of Amos, we see how thorough the
judgment of the LORD was to be. There were not to be left “ten
men” in “one
house”, and those who were
“uncles” or close
relatives would prove there were no more people in the houses after
cremating the remains of those who died. This judgment would be final
and there would be no reparations for those who came under it. Jesus
Christ came into the world to save people from their sins, and if
they reject Him, the LORD's judgment shall come upon them and there
will be no remedy for them even if they “mention” His
name.
Next
time we
see Amos shares about how the LORD will, “smite
the great houses with breaches”,
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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