Amos 1-5

[wolfpurplemoon]

Apparently it gives Amos credibility as a true prophet to point out that he was a mere herdsman so therefore must have been talking to God.

Amos' predictions are all about the nations that God wants to destroy being set on fire.

We now have a list of all the terrible things that God has done to Israel and the fact that after each one they still didn't come back to him, well of course not, would you go back to an abusive father/husband?

Comments

[(Anonymous)]

Dude no one wants to hear or read your blasphemy. Stop posting...

The message is there.

[(Anonymous)]

Gods treatment of his creations is an illustration of the implants of obedience. When the bible was written, people were not politically correct, easily offended or in any way "Nancyfied"the way we are now. This was what people needed to here in those days. This book want ment at the time to be written with 21st century metro's and feminists in mind.I have to understand that before you will be able to properly interperate the bible. Unless if course you just want to ignorantly tear it down, which is fine if that's your idea of a good time, or time well spent.

Re: The message is there.

[liedownlovely.livejournal.com]

Oh my god, I've sat here for a good few minutes trying to figure out how to even begin replying to this, but the only thing I get stuck in my head is this image.



Dear anonymous, if you're going to try and convince someone to stop posting or even try to show them your side of an argument, please please please learn to spell when communicating in written form. It's the very least you could do.

I'm just going to go over here and laugh and cry simultaneously.

Don't stop posting, wolfpurplemoon. You have some intelligent commenters of various faiths who are interested in your so-called blasphemy.

Re: The message is there.

[wolfpurplemoon]

Oh don't worry, a little accusation of blasphemy isn't about to stop me, I've come too far now! I love that diagram btw.

[sin-eater.livejournal.com]

I assure you that many people read her and I for one very much enjoy her blasphemy.

Abuse vs Discipline

[(Anonymous)]

I dont think its fair or even correct to compare God to an abusive father or husband. A good father will discipline his child if he misbehaves. If the child still does not obey the father, is he supposed to sit by and let his child act in his own manner? No, a father disciplines his child because he loves him and doesnt want his child to develope a habit of disobeying or acting in an wrong way. Israel is the chosen people of God to love and to use to further his kingdom, so these "bad things" that you see are acts of discipline from a loving God, not the hateful acts of a murderous, hateful god.

[zteccc.livejournal.com]

Amos was a prophet around 750BC. He was a prophet to Israel (the Northern Kingdom) during the reign of Jeroboam II. Professional prophets tended to hang around the court of a king where they would be available to prophecy on any issue when the king needed advice. Amos wasn't one of these, but was instead called to prophecy. His home, Tekoa was in Judah (the Southern Kingdom), so he would have had a pretty long, and probably prohibitively expensive journey to travel to Israel to deliver this prophecy. He let his audience know that he wasn't a professional prophet partly because the professional prophets had a reputation for being sycophants to the king, and partly because he had to explain why he, a shepherd, was suddenly making a trip to Samaria, and where he came from would be part of his explanation.

Amos begins (chapters 1 and 2) with prophecies of judgment on Syria, Philistia, Phoenicia, Edom and Moab, all long time enemies of Israel and Judah, and of the worship of God. He then talks about Judah and Israel as also being punished in exactly the same light. They too have offended God just as much as the neighboring countries. The message is that although the enemies are certainly against God, God's own people, because they have abandoned the covenant, are also standing against God.

Amos asks obvious questions relating to nature and people (two people walking a road together will meet each other, people are frightened when a city alarm is sounded, etc.) to show how God also relates to people through the prophets (when God plans something, he tells the prophets). He says that ordinary people become prophets when God speaks (as Amos did).
Samaria is doomed because it doesn't know how to do right (sort of the feeling that many in the United States have about Washington DC). The Samaritans knew their foundation under God, but refused to acknowledge it.

Chapter 4:4-5 discusses simply the attitude of people in Israel. They would sin all they want and then go through the motions of sacrifices and forgiveness, but they are insincere in their repentance, so their sin still exists.
God has sent signs to the people of God's displeasure. Drought, poor crops, etc. which would have stood in contrast to when the people followed the covenant and there was plenty. Israel's people, however, didn't take the warning.
If someone follows the covenant and times are good, and then turns away from the covenant and times are horrible, doesn't it make sense to follow the covenant and have the good times? Similarly, if a child follows his father's rules and is rewarded, but when the child disobeys his father's rules, and is disciplined, doesn't the child learn that following the father's rules is a better choice?

The message that Amos gives is to turn back to God, return to the covenant, they cannot flee God if they continue on their path of disobedience and outright rebellion against God, but if they turn to God, they will live and be prosperous.
God hates the "religion" of the people because it is insincere, God wants obedience, justice and faith, not just insincere action (5:21-25). Amos 5:27 directly states their fate, that they will be captive of a nation beyond Damascus which occurred when Assyria, which is beyond Damascus from Samaria, did conquer Israel and dragged exiles back.