Luxury PT-3 (Amos 4:1-3)

SPIRIATUAL DIARY FOR 9/11/2015 6:17 PM

My Worship Time                                                                                          Focus:  Luxury PT-3

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Amos 4:1-3

            Message of the verses:  “1 Hear this word, you cows of Bashan who are on the mountain of Samaria, Who oppress the poor, who crush the needy, Who say to your husbands, "Bring now, that we may drink!" 2 The Lord GOD has sworn by His holiness, "Behold, the days are coming upon you When they will take you away with meat hooks, And the last of you with fish hooks. 3 “You will go out through breaches in the walls, Each one straight before her, And you will be cast to Harmon," declares the LORD.”

            We want to try and complete this first main section in our Spiritual Diary for today as we continue to look at these three verses focusing in on verse three as we look at the sub-section “What will happen to them?”

            I believe that as we look at these verses, especially two and three we will not like what it is that will happen to the people in the Northern Kingdom of Israel as we see things like their enemies will use hooks, fish hooks to lead them away and also meat hooks, and history tells us that this is what the Assyrians did to their captives.  Now remember that Amos is a farmer and so he understand what farmers do when they get their cattle fattened up as they lead them away to be slaughtered and this is what Amos is telling these people since they are fattened up with sin and refused to repent that they will be led to the slaughter.  Dr. Wiersbe writes “The Assyria practice was to put hooks in the noses or lower lips of their prisoners, attach ropes, and lead them away like animals, either to captivity or to death.  This is what the enemy would do to the wealthy matrons Amos was addressing in his message.”  Dr. Wiersbe then gives this lengthy endnote:  “The end of verse 3 presents a problem.  The KJV translates it ‘shall cast them out toward [or into] Harmon’  Amos uses the Hebrew word twelve times; its translated ‘palaces’ in the KJV, and except for Amos 4:3, the NIV translates it ‘fortresses.’  The NIV text note gives ‘O mountain of oppression.’  If ‘Harmon’ is a place, we don’t know where it is.  In his excellent commentary on Amos, Jeffrey Niehaus translates the sentence ‘and you will let go dominion.’  These women who were accustomed to giving orders would find themselves taking orders!”

            We must give one more quote and endnote from Dr. Wiersbe to help us understand what is here.  “But note that their posterity would also be involved in this judgment (V. 2).”  “Both the NASB and the NIV translate the Hebrew word ‘the last of you’ meaning ‘nobody will escape,’ but the KJV and the NKJV translate it ‘posterity.’  However the NIV translates the same word as ‘descendants’ in 1 Kings 12:22, Psalm 109:13, and Daniel 11:4).”  I think that we can see similar things going on in our nation today that these women were doing, spending too much money and doing sinful things so that God would be forced because of His Law to bring judgment upon them and in turn would bring judgment on their children as well.  Dr. Wiersbe writes “The wealthy younger generation in Israel had everything money could buy, but they didn’t have the things money can’t buy, the things of the Lord that make life worthwhile.”  Like I stated there are very similar things going on in our nation today.  When I was growing up in the late 1950’s and 1960’s the average household had three or four children with the husband being the only working one in the household.  It is not the same today as most of the time both parents are working and this brings in more money, but usually spent on foolish things and it also causes the children not to be supervised in the way that would be honoring to the Lord.

            We close with two more quotes, the first from Andrew Carnegie who said “Surplus wealth is a sacred trust which its possessor is bound to administer in his lifetime for the good of the community.”  The Apostle Paul writes in 1 Timothy 6:17-19 “17 Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy. 18  Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, 19  storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is life indeed.”  Paul also quotes Jesus in Acts 20:35 who said “It is more blessed to give than to receive.”

9/11/2015 6:45 PM