disaster and judgment

Good morning friends,
This morning Amos again casts his rebuke to Israel in terms of their special relationship with God. That relationship comes with a greater obligation to live the right way. Then he uses a series of cause and effect illustrations to tell Israel that the disaster they will soon experience comes from God's judgment against them. He also emphasizes again that he as a prophet doesn't speak of his own free will but because God's word demands it.

This passage exemplifies a strong view of God's control in the universe (the theological term is providence). This is a troubling viewpoint for many of us, especially those who have experienced random disaster. This is not the only biblical understanding of suffering, however. Suffering is presented at different times in scripture as sometimes random and other times a result of injustice that makes the righteous suffer. This diversity fits with our experience: sometimes we get in trouble because we do something we shouldn't, other times because someone else does something they shouldn't and sometimes things just go wrong. Amos's message is that sooner or later injustice has a penalty; that's a warning that's always worth keeping in mind.

Blessings,
Sam

Amos 3:1-8
Hear this word that the Lord has spoken against you, O people of Israel, against the whole family that I brought up out of the land of Egypt: 2You only have I known of all the families of the earth; therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities. 3Do two walk together unless they have made an appointment? 4Does a lion roar in the forest, when it has no prey? Does a young lion cry out from its den, if it has caught nothing? 5Does a bird fall into a snare on the earth, when there is no trap for it? Does a snare spring up from the ground, when it has taken nothing? 6Is a trumpet blown in a city, and the people are not afraid? Does disaster befall a city, unless the Lord has done it? 7Surely the Lord God does nothing, without revealing his secret to his servants the prophets. 8The lion has roared; who will not fear? The Lord God has spoken; who can but prophesy?