For those who may wish to ‘study’ this chapter, the following simple resources are provided for you. Each passage has a four-Part approach to help you take in and think further about what you have read.

Amos 1:1-8

1 The words of Amos, one of the shepherds of Tekoa—the vision he saw concerning Israel two years before the earthquake, when Uzziah was king of Judah and Jeroboam son of Jehoash was king of Israel.

2 He said:

“The Lord roars from Zion
    and thunders from Jerusalem;
the pastures of the shepherds dry up,
    and the top of Carmel withers.”

3 This is what the Lord says:

“For three sins of Damascus,
    even for four, I will not relent.
Because she threshed Gilead
    with sledges having iron teeth,
4 I will send fire on the house of Hazael
    that will consume the fortresses of Ben-Hadad.
5 I will break down the gate of Damascus;
    I will destroy the king who is in the Valley of Aven
and the one who holds the scepter in Beth Eden.
    The people of Aram will go into exile to Kir,”
says the Lord.

6 This is what the Lord says:

“For three sins of Gaza,
    even for four, I will not relent.
Because she took captive whole communities
    and sold them to Edom,
7 I will send fire on the walls of Gaza
    that will consume her fortresses.
8 I will destroy the king of Ashdod
    and the one who holds the scepter in Ashkelon.
I will turn my hand against Ekron,
    till the last of the Philistines are dead,”
says the Sovereign Lord.

A. Find Out

1. When did Amos prophesy? v.1
2. Who does what and with what effect? v.2
3. What had Damascus done? v.3
4. So what was the Lord going to do? v.4,5
5. What had Gaza done? v.6
6. So what was the Lord going to do? v.7,8

B. Think:

1. So who has Amos got in his sights?
2. What is the nature of the complaints against them?
3. What is the common form of judgment being signalled?

C. Comment:

Now in one sense be prepared for this to not be the most exciting of prophecies but whatever else we might say of what he brings, in the first two chapters, there is at least consistency, almost a rhythm. In the first chapter he eyeballs five different people groups, and will continue on with another three in the next.

Before he gets under way, he pictures the Lord as a lion roaring from Jerusalem at the surrounding peoples, and it would appear there has been a drought causing the pasturelands to wither, and perhaps this is what provokes this shepherd to become alert so the Lord gives him these visions (perhaps seen as a single vision – v.1a).

So he launches out against Damascus, (v.3a) the capital of Syria in the north, and each time he uses a formular that we might interpret as, “for three sins I might not bother, but for four, you have my attention!” Yet in each case there are not this number of sins so we might change it to, “It doesn’t matter how many sins you commit, one is enough and often there are far more!” He condemns them for attacking eastern Israel (v.3), so the Lord will bring destruction by fire on them (v.4) and send the people into exile (v.5).

The same sort of word then comes to Gaza in the south (Philistia) (v.6) for similar attacks on Israel so the Lord will similarly send fire (v.7) and destruction on them (v.8).

D. Application:

1. God’s concerned for  Israel’s neighbours and will act accordingly.
2. God will act for His people, right up today, prophecy indicates.

Amos 1:9-15

9 This is what the Lord says:

“For three sins of Tyre,
    even for four, I will not relent.
Because she sold whole communities of captives to Edom,
    disregarding a treaty of brotherhood,
10 I will send fire on the walls of Tyre
    that will consume her fortresses.”

11 This is what the Lord says:

“For three sins of Edom,
    even for four, I will not relent.
Because he pursued his brother with a sword
    and slaughtered the women of the land,
because his anger raged continually
    and his fury flamed unchecked,
12 I will send fire on Teman
    that will consume the fortresses of Bozrah.”

13 This is what the Lord says:

“For three sins of Ammon,
    even for four, I will not relent.
Because he ripped open the pregnant women of Gilead
    in order to extend his borders,
14 I will set fire to the walls of Rabbah
    that will consume her fortresses
amid war cries on the day of battle,
    amid violent winds on a stormy day.
15 Her king will go into exile,
    he and his officials together,”
says the Lord.

A. Find Out

1. What had Tyre done? v.9
2. So what will the Lord do? v.10
3. What had Edom done? v.11
4. So what will the Lord do? v.12
5. What had  Ammon done? v.13
6. So what will the Lord do? v.14,15

B. Think:

1. How are these next three peoples similar to those covered previously?
2. What were the sins of each?
3. How were their judgments similar and different?

C. Comment:

The same pattern continues in the second half of the chapter as found in the first half. Tyre in the far north (v.9), a major trading city that had become very powerful, is next to come in his sights. They had obviously invaded and sold into slavery whole communities, and so the Lord will send destruction by fire on them (v.10).

They are followed by Edom (mentioned in the previous verses as recipients of slaves – probably from Israel under the hand of the men of Tyre (a people to the south and east of the Jordan) (v.11) who had invaded (almost certainly Israel) rampaging and killing, so the Lord will send fire on them (v.12), destroying some of their cities.

The fifth of this first chapter to come under the Lord’s spotlight is Ammon, (v.13a) another people to the east of the Jordan, and  north of Moab and Edom. They had attacked the part of Israel to the east of the Jordan, to their north, named Gilead (v.13b), so the Lord will send fire on their capital (v.14) and her king will go into exile (taken later by the Assyrians (v.15).

Talk of ‘fire’ coming on a city is usually the outworking of war when an invading army seeks to break the power of a nation by burning down its main strongholds.  Virtually all of these places named in this chapter are relatively small compared to the might of the various empires that arose in the north – Syrians, Assyrians and eventually the Babylonians,

D. Application:

1. Often God allows one sinful nation to discipline another sinful nation.
2. God’s disciplines are often left in the hands of men. Watch.