King James Bible Study – [And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. – Mark 8:34]
Date: Thursday, July 09, 2026
Chapters: Amos 1-4
Lesson: Amos: God’s Judgment Call
Hello My Friend,
Yesterday we learned how the Assyrians seized Samaria and had taken captive most of the people. Today, we learn of God’s reaction. The Book of Amos contains nine chapters, and was written by Amos to all of Israel as well as the their enemies. The timeline is approximately 776-763 BC. The purpose of the book was to call Israel back to God. What we are to learn from the book is that God calls all nations to prepare for the day they will meet Him for judgment, [Amos 4:13 For, lo, he that formeth the mountains, and createth the wind, and declareth unto man what is his thought, that maketh the morning darkness, and treadeth upon the high places of the earth, The LORD, The God of hosts, is his name.]
Amos received this prophecy roughly fifty years earlier, at the beginning of Uzziah’s reign in Judah. As the father of the prophet Isaiah and a shepherd by trade, Amos was sent not only to Judah and Israel to warn them of God’s coming judgment, but also to the surrounding nations who exploited Israel during the judgment God placed on them. This is God’s message to all of them.
[Amos 1:1-4 The words of Amos, who was among the herdmen of Tekoa, which he saw concerning Israel in the days of Uzziah king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash king of Israel, two years before the earthquake. 2 And he said, The LORD will roar from Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the habitations of the shepherds shall mourn, and the top of Carmel shall wither. 3 Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Damascus, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they have threshed Gilead with threshing instruments of iron: 4 But I will send a fire into the house of Hazael, which shall devour the palaces of Ben-hadad.]
Damascus, was the capital of Syria and Gilead was where the half tribe of Manasseh lived. When Hazael was king of Syria, he barbarously had the people executed, many being tortured to death, [II Kings 8:12 And Hazael said, Why weepeth my lord? And he answered, Because I know the evil that thou wilt do unto the children of Israel: their strong holds wilt thou set on fire, and their young men wilt thou slay with the sword, and wilt dash their children, and rip up their women with child.]
Although some of these judgments have already taken place, many more are still to come. And if you believe the conflicts we are witnessing today involving Israel are unrelated to what occurred during that period, think again. We are beginning to understand how the fights against Israel started, including Gaza.
[Amos 1:6-9 Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Gaza, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they carried away captive the whole captivity, to deliver them up to Edom: 7 But I will send a fire on the wall of Gaza, which shall devour the palaces thereof: 8 And I will cut off the inhabitant from Ashdod, and him that holdeth the sceptre from Ashkelon, and I will turn mine hand against Ekron: and the remnant of the Philistines shall perish, saith the Lord GOD. 9 Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Tyrus, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they delivered up the whole captivity to Edom, and remembered not the brotherly covenant:]
Israel, has been fighting with Gaza for centuries, Gaza, was a city of the Philistines, and now the metropolis of that country. They were guilty of not only promoting idolatry, they took captive the people of Israel for Edom, who were sworn enemies to the people of God. Tyrus, we know today as Palestine, was guilty of that as well, who was supposed to allies with Israel. Notice that God was hitting their posterity, the judgments were placed on the very strength of their nations. Now, God goes on to warn of the judgment Edom, as well as Ammon.
[Amos 1:11-14 Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Edom, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because he did pursue his brother with the sword, and did cast off all pity, and his anger did tear perpetually, and he kept his wrath for ever: 12 But I will send a fire upon Teman, which shall devour the palaces of Bozrah. 13 Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of the children of Ammon, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they have ripped up the women with child of Gilead, that they might enlarge their border: 14 But I will kindle a fire in the wall of Rabbah, and it shall devour the palaces thereof, with shouting in the day of battle, with a tempest in the day of the whirlwind:]
Notice what God is using for judgment, He is destroying their nations with fire. Teman (Ma’an), Bozrah (Buseira), and Rabbah (Amman), are all cities of modern day Jordan. God, in all His mercy and grace, promised to never destroy the entire earth with a flood ever again, but did promise that the next judgment would be with fire, []
Edom, never possessed the strength or courage to confront Israel in an open battle, yet whenever another enemy attacked Judah or Israel, Edom was there to take advantage of the situation. God’s judgment toward Ammon would come suddenly, without warning, with a great force. While some of God’s judgments are quick others do tend to linger unless some repentance is involved, but none of them come without any warning ahead of time. Amos, gave this warning to them two years before the Assyrians came into Samaria and took most of them captive. And He will also tell you why He places judgment, and the next nation on the list is Moab.
[Amos 2:1-3 Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Moab, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because he burned the bones of the king of Edom into lime: 2 But I will send a fire upon Moab, and it shall devour the palaces of Kerioth: and Moab shall die with tumult, with shouting, and with the sound of the trumpet: 3 And I will cut off the judge from the midst thereof, and will slay all the princes thereof with him, saith the LORD.]
Moab, is also a city in modern day Jordan. If we thought that God hated Edom for their transgressions, what Moab did was unthinkable. They not only burned the bones of the king by fire into ashes, he used his ashes instead of lime to plaster the walls and roofs of his palace. As harsh as we may think God’s judgments are, they are nothing compared to the cruelty that humans inflict on one another. Those that deal with cruelty, will be dealt with cruelty. God, was not done, now, He is warning His people of the judgment coming to them, first Judah, then the rest of Israel.
[Amos 2:4-6,9 Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Judah, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they have despised the law of the LORD, and have not kept his commandments, and their lies caused them to err, after the which their fathers have walked: 5 But I will send a fire upon Judah, and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem. 6 Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Israel, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they sold the righteous for silver, and the poor for a pair of shoes; 9 Yet destroyed I the Amorite before them, whose height was like the height of the cedars, and he was strong as the oaks; yet I destroyed his fruit from above, and his roots from beneath.]
God, was giving Judah ample time to repent before judgment fell. But for the rest of Israel, their window had already closed. God, had been calling them to repent ever since Jeroboam crafted those calves and led the nation away from Him. And notice the nature of their transgressions. People were willing to sell themselves out for something as trivial as a pair of shoes. They tried to shift blame, onto circumstances or other people. but the truth is that their choices were their own. Do you know what the best way to bring a nation back to God is? Weaken them. God, goes on to let Israel know that He has taken away their strength.
[Amos 2:13-16 Behold, I am pressed under you, as a cart is pressed that is full of sheaves. 14 Therefore the flight shall perish from the swift, and the strong shall not strengthen his force, neither shall the mighty deliver himself: 15 Neither shall he stand that handleth the bow; and he that is swift of foot shall not deliver himself: neither shall he that rideth the horse deliver himself. 16 And he that is courageous among the mighty shall flee away naked in that day, saith the LORD.]
Keep in mind that although we are living in the New Testament age, every time a religion or an individual selects only portions of the Word of God to believe and obey, while rejecting the rest, that person is despising the Law of God. We do not have the authority to choose what we want to believe. If we choose God, then we commit ourselves to believe and follow all of His Word. This is exactly what God was communicating to Israel.
[Amos 3:1-3,6-7 Hear this word that the LORD hath spoken against you, O children of Israel, against the whole family which I brought up from the land of Egypt, saying, 2 You only have I known of all the families of the earth: therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities. 3 Can two walk together, except they be agreed? 6 Shall a trumpet be blown in the city, and the people not be afraid? shall there be evil in a city, and the LORD hath not done it? 7 Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.]
It is time for every saved, born again Christian to open their ears because the lion of Judah, Jesus Christ Himself is roaring and it is time that we come out of hiding and start telling preaching the Gospel because the world does not know any better and neither does religion.
[Amos 3:9-14 Publish in the palaces at Ashdod, and in the palaces in the land of Egypt, and say, Assemble yourselves upon the mountains of Samaria, and behold the great tumults in the midst thereof, and the oppressed in the midst thereof. 10 For they know not to do right, saith the LORD, who store up violence and robbery in their palaces. 11 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; An adversary there shall be even round about the land; and he shall bring down thy strength from thee, and thy palaces shall be spoiled. 13 Hear ye, and testify in the house of Jacob, saith the Lord GOD, the God of hosts, 14 That in the day that I shall visit the transgressions of Israel upon him I will also visit the altars of Beth-el: and the horns of the altar shall be cut off, and fall to the ground.]
What God is saying here is that the reason these other nations follow their false gods is because they do not know any better, but we on the other hand who know God ought to know better. This is the same with us today in regards to our faith in Christ. The New Testament says this, [James 4:15-17 For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that. 16 But now ye rejoice in your boastings: all such rejoicing is evil. 17 Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.]
Do you know how many religions claim to know God, and Christ for that matter, but certainly do not walk together with God? They walk around in their pride as though they know God or are God, oblivious to the fact that they know not what they do,
[Amos 4:1-3 Hear this word, ye kine of Bashan, that are in the mountain of Samaria, which oppress the poor, which crush the needy, which say to their masters, Bring, and let us drink. 2 The Lord GOD hath sworn by his holiness, that, lo, the days shall come upon you, that he will take you away with hooks, and your posterity with fishhooks. 3 And ye shall go out at the breaches, every cow at that which is before her; and ye shall cast them into the palace, saith the LORD.]
Do you know how many religions claim to know God, and Christ for that matter, yet do not walk with God at all? They carry themselves with the pride of their religion, as though they truly know Him or belong to Him, completely unaware that He does not know them. The kine of Bashan, are strong, well-fed cattle of the pasture country east of Jordan, in the mountain of Samaria and were an illustration of the luxurious life that the kings of Samaria lived while they oppressed the people, turning to the entire nation to idolatry. God, goes on to point out that the remnant of Israel were drawn to the bribes like fish caught on a hook.
[Amos 4:4-6 Come to Beth-el, and transgress; at Gilgal multiply transgression; and bring your sacrifices every morning, and your tithes after three years: 5 And offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving with leaven, and proclaim and publish the free offerings: for this liketh you, O ye children of Israel, saith the Lord GOD. 6 And I also have given you cleanness of teeth in all your cities, and want of bread in all your places: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.]
God, is speaking sarcastically here, even if they should offer burnt offerings every morning and tithes every three days it would only increase their guilt before Him even more. The more zeal the hypocrites show in imitating the outward worship of the true believers, the more guilt they heap upon themselves in the sight of God. To the religious world, Christ, is a nuisance who exposes them for the frauds they are, but to the world, He is a mystery because God chose to reveal Himself only to the true believers, [I Corinthians 2:6-7 Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought: 7 But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory:]
There is a difference between a true believer and someone pretending to be, and it is God who knows the difference. No matter what God does to show them that He is true, and serious about His judgment, they continue to reject the warnings, digging their own graves. God, goes on to describe the judgments He sent on Israel in His attempt to get them to repent.
[Amos 4:7-9 And also I have withholden the rain from you, when there were yet three months to the harvest: and I caused it to rain upon one city, and caused it not to rain upon another city: one piece was rained upon, and the piece whereupon it rained not withered. 8 So two or three cities wandered unto one city, to drink water; but they were not satisfied: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD. 9 I have smitten you with blasting and mildew: when your gardens and your vineyards and your fig trees and your olive trees increased, the palmerworm devoured them: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.]
Listen to what God is saying and you can hear His grief and feel His sorrow in their rejection. He even goes on to point out that He has dealt with some of them in the same manner that He dealt with Sodom and Gomorrah, and yet they still refuse to return to Him. And because of this they will continue to be judged until they repent.
[Amos 4:11-13 I have overthrown some of you, as God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah, and ye were as a firebrand plucked out of the burning: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD. 12 Therefore thus will I do unto thee, O Israel: and because I will do this unto thee, prepare to meet thy God, O Israel. 13 For, lo, he that formeth the mountains, and createth the wind, and declareth unto man what is his thought, that maketh the morning darkness, and treadeth upon the high places of the earth, The LORD, The God of hosts, is his name.]
All the judgments that we see in Israel today still stem from their rejection of Him. Keep in mind that these are people who are fully aware that God is real, yet they choose their own man‑made gods over Him. God loves Israel, just as He loves all of His creation, but He will not share Himself with other gods. His mercy endures, but there does come a time when enough is enough and mercy reaches its limit.
[John 3:16-19 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. 18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.]
Today’s Prayer: Jesus, You are the LORD, God of hosts, Lion of Judah, that is Your name. You are also, the Almighty and only living God, who has an abundance of mercy on all who call upon You. Thank You, for loving us so much to warn us repeatedly of Your judgment so that all have the opportunity to find You, and live. Thank You, for showing us the right way, and what we need to do to live peacefully in this dark world. Lord, keep us faithful and growing as we walk with You. Open the hearts of those whom have not returned to You. Give us Your power and strength to reach whomever You place before us with the Gospel. Keep us humble, and let us be the Godly example You need us to be in a world that does not know You. I ask these things in Your name, Jesus. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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