Amos 5:18-24 - A Lament for Sin
Amos 5:18) Woe to you who desire the day of the Lord! Why do you want the day of the Lord? It is darkness, not light, 19) as if someone fled from a lion and was met by a bear or went into the house and rested a hand against the wall and was bitten by a snake. 20) Is not the day of the Lord darkness, not light, and gloom with no brightness in it? 21) I hate, I despise your festivals, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies. 22) Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them, and the offerings of well-being of your fatted animals I will not look upon. 23) Take away from me the noise of your songs; I will not listen to the melody of your harps. 24) But let justice roll down like water and righteousness like an ever flowing stream.
Background to Amos: Historically, scholars believe that Amos is the earliest of the prophetic books in the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament.) He was the first prophetic preacher whose inspired insight was collected and preserved for us and his message marks a distinct turning point in our biblical faith. Dr. Bruce C. Birch, Old Testament professor at Wesley Theological Seminary, points out “Amos, as a representative of God’s word, announces that the nation of Israel has been judged for its failure to be obedient to God’s will and must perish as a consequence.” Amos had no predecessors in that message. Later prophets take up this theme, but Amos alone seems to see no way around what is coming. In his view, the covenant is broken and the consequences of that are inevitable. There is little in Amos that offers a shred of hope. It’s value to us today, on the other side of the cross of Jesus, is its stark and poignant look into both the will and anguish of God.
About Amos: We have little information about the man Amos except that he was a preacher during the reign of King Uzziah in the Southern Kingdom of Judah (783-742 BCE) and King Jeroboam II in Samaria the capital of the Northern Kingdom, Israel. Amos was born in Tekoa in Judah but, as far as we know, did all of his preaching in the Northern Kingdom of Israel, mostly in Bethel where the royal sanctuary was located. The worship experience of that area is the background to today’s passage. Amos was a herdsman and a dresser of sycamore trees and has often been portrayed as a humble rustic figure. Modern scholarship disputes that interpretation suggesting that he was probably a respected business man who received the call from God to leave his worldly profession and speak full time for God. His preaching makes clear that he was knowledgeable about current events and the inner workings of Israel’s elite.
Prior to Today’s Passage: Amos tells us that Israel is God’s elect and beloved people. Even so, election demands moral responsibility and a life lived according the God’s will expressed in the Law. Israel has failed to do so. Instead, the life of God’s people has been marked by sin, particularly that of superficial manipulative worship and flagrant injustice. One of the amazing claims God makes through Amos is that Israel has no exclusive claim to God’s grace. God is at work bringing justice and non-hypocritical worship of God in all nations and all peoples. His indictment of Israel also includes the sins of surrounding nations.
The Day of the Lord: Amos gives us the earliest mention of the complex concept of the Day of the Lord. In short it refers to a time in Israel’s history when God will vanquish those who oppose the divine will in the world. It was believed to be a great day of national victory. Amos, however, turns the people’s expectations upside down.
Justice and Righteousness: These are key concepts in Amos. Justice refers particularly to fairness, honesty and equity in the judicial system. The word for justice in Hebrew refers to the claim of all persons to full and equitable participation in the structures and dealings of the community. A fair and unbiased judiciary is crucial to any understanding of how biblical justice works itself out in community. Righteousness is not the fulfilling of some proscribed set of rules or standards. Righteousness is a relational term. “It refers to the expectation in relationships that persons will, in their intentions and actions, seek the wholeness of the partner in that relationship.” (Birch, Hosea, Joel, and Amos, Westminster Bible Companion, WJK, p.216)
Word Study
The major concepts of Day of the Lord, Justice and Righteousness are explained above. A few other words may be of interest.
Vs. 18 darkness and not light – In Amos day, light was associated with God’s victory and the revealing of God’s power. Darkness is associated with the enemies God will vanquish. What is so astounding here is that the prophet declares that Israel will number among the enemies God rises to oppose. SHOCKING! The following images of escalating danger reinforce this shocking image.
Vs. 21 – hate – this word implies total rejection and opposition
Despise – includes revulsion and disgust
Take no delight – literally in Hebrew “I do not like the smell of…”
Solemn assemblies – these are associated with pilgrimages and feast like Unleavened Bread, Booths, Weeks, etc.
Vs. 22 – I will not accept, …will not look, ...will not listen – Taken together they give a picture of the closing off of divine senses. This would have carried the sense of God becoming numb to Israel’s efforts to acquire God’s positive regard.
Burnt offerings, grain offerings, and offerings of well-being (peace offerings) – refer to all the aspects of worship that were customary and designed to get a desired action from God such as forgiveness, prosperity or peace.
Vs. 23 – noise of your songs – this refers to the songs of praise to God in worship. The long and short is that traditional offerings of worship do not impress God when they do not result in changed lives bent toward justice.
Vs. 24 – roll down – this is the language for a mighty torrent that takes away everything else in its path
Ever flowing – this means enduring no matter what.
Questions for Personal Reflection
- When you read this text, how do you feel? Do you think of it as applying more to others or to yourself?
- One of the things Amos implies is that when we are not obedient, especially in the work of justice, that God becomes numb to our attempts to please God or get God’s help. That is astounding! Mercifully on the other side of the cross we have a remedy for that, but sit for a moment with Amos’ truth. Can you think of ways that you and your community have ignored the work of justice, or perhaps approached it in a superficial way? Have you noticed any consequences for that?
- Amos here deals with the problem of superficial manipulative worship that has descended into a feel good exercise that does not lead to real growth and change. How would you respond to that critique?
- In our day some Christians divide into camps of ‘evangelical’ and ‘justice’ Christians, labeling each other as unrighteous in the process. In what ways do you see outreach in faith and work for justice working together? It has been said praise without justice is hollow and justice without praise is rootless. How do you respond to that?