Amos, the
“herdsman of Tekoa” was called to be a prophet of the Lord
“two years before the earthquake” and during the reigns of
Uzziah, king of Judah, and Jeroboam, the king of Israel. In chapter
one and verse two of his prophesy, Amos declared how “the LORD
will roar from Zion” where we read:
And he
said, The LORD will roar from Zion, and utter his voice from
Jerusalem; and the habitations of the shepherds shall mourn, and the
top of Carmel shall wither.
The
verse begins, “And he said, The LORD will roar from Zion,
and utter his voice from Jerusalem;” Amos
began with the words, “And he said”
or “Amos spoke, declared, proclaimed, uttered and intended”, “The
LORD” which refers to “Yehovah
or Jehovah who is the existing One and the proper name of the one
true God” “will roar”
or “to rumble or moan mightily” “from Zion”
which means “parched place” and is “another name for
Jerusalem”, “and utter”
or “give, bestow, grant, permit, ascribe, employ, devote,
consecrate, dedicate, pay, entrust, deliver and yield up” “his
voice” which means “noise,
thunder and proclamation” “from Jerusalem”
which means “teaching of peace” and was “the chief city of
Palestine and capital of the united kingdom and the nation of Judah
after the split”. God's judgment was to originate from “Jerusalem”,
and there He would make a judicial proclamation.
The
verse continues, “and the habitations of the shepherds
shall mourn, and the top of Carmel shall wither.” Amos
added, “and the habitations”
or “pastures, abodes and meadows” “of the shepherds”
which refers to “herdsmen who tend to, graze and feed cows, sheep,
etc.” “shall mourn”
or “will lament”, “and the top”
which means “head, summit, upper part, chief and height” “of
Carmel” which means
“garden-land” and was “a mountain on the Mediterranean coast of
norther Israel just below Haifa” “shall wither”
or “be made dry up and without moisture”. When “the
LORD” makes His
“proclamation”, the “meadows” of those who tend to and feed
the sheep will “lament”, and the pinnacle of mount “Carmel”
will be without moisture.
When
we meditate upon these words of Amos, we imagine the fierce impact of
“the LORD's” words. Do we understand the power the Creator
of the universe has over all He made? At any time “the LORD's”
“voice” may “sound”, and when He brings
judgment upon people and places, “mourning”, “lamentation”
and “decrease” is certain and assured. Let us remember “today
is the day of Salvation”, and those who align themselves with
Jesus Christ will be free from the LORD's condemnation. However,
those who reject Jesus Christ as Savior and LORD are certain to hear
His judgment fall upon them, and woe be to those who hear that
proclamation.
Next
time Amos
begins a prophesy concerning “Damascus”,
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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