As Amos the
“herdsman” prophet continued to share the punishments of
God that came upon the people of Israel including lack of water and
“blasting and mildew” upon their crops, he declared over
and over how they still had “not returned unto” the LORD.
In chapter four and verse ten of his prophesy, Amos continued his
list of judgments as he included “pestilence after the manner of
Egypt” in his discourse where we read:
I have
sent among you the pestilence after the manner of Egypt: your young
men have I slain with the sword, and have taken away your horses; and
I have made the stink of your camps to come up unto your nostrils:
yet have you not returned unto me, says the LORD.
The
verse begins, “I have sent among you the pestilence after
the manner of Egypt: your young men have I slain with the sword, and
have taken away your horses;” Amos
began with the words, “I have sent among you”
or “God let go, extended and directed” “the
pestilence” which means “the
plague, murrain and cattle-disease” “after the manner”
or “in the same path, journey and course” “of Egypt”
which means “land of the Copts” and was “a country at the
northeastern section of Africa, adjacent to Palestine, and through
which the Nile flows”: “your young men”
or “youthful males” “have I slain”
which means “killed, destroyed, murdered and ruined” “with
the sword” or “with the
knife, dagger and mattocks”, “and have taken away”
which means “made captive and as prisoners” “your
horses” or “swallows and
swift chariot horses”. In addition to their searching for water and
their crops being “blasted”
with wind and covered with “mildew”,
the LORD sent diseases upon the people of Israel, “killed” their
young men, and allowed the capture of their horses.
The
verse goes on to say, “and I have made the stink of your
camps to come up unto your nostrils: yet have you not returned unto
me, says the LORD.” Amos
continued, “and I have made the stink”
which means “God formed and fashioned the stench and foul odor”
“of your camps”
which refers to “Israel's encampments of armies, companies and
bodies of people” “to come up”
or “to rise, ascend and climb” “unto your nostrils”
which means “their noses and faces”: “yet have you
not returned” or “the people
of Israel not turning back and repenting” “unto me”
which refers to “the LORD”,
“says” or “utters,
proclaims and delcares “the LORD”
or “Yehovah or Jehovah who is the existing One and the proper name
for the one true God”. Though the “encampments” of Israel
“stunk” with foul odors from all the death and pestilence, they
still did not turn back to their relationship with the LORD.
When
we think through these words of Amos, we see the LORD's consistent
effort to draw Israel back to Himself. He brought “plagues and
murrain” upon them, and they did not repent. He slew their
“youthful men” with the sword, and they did not repent. He took
away their “horses”, and they did not repent, and He made
their “campsites” to stink so badly it covered their noses with
the smell, and they did not repent. God Almighty is so patient and
persuasive for people to turn to Him through His Son Jesus Christ,
and although many people face serious difficulties one after another
in their lives, they do not repent and turn unto Him. What else must
He do to prove He is a loving, long-suffering and patient God who
willingly receives all who come to Him in repentance? May all who
read these word understand the LORD's passionate desire to be in a
relationship with them.
Next
time Amos refers to how
“God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah”,
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.
No comments:
Post a Comment