Tyndale Open Study NotesAmos 5

Amos delivers three prophetic messages to Israel, criticizing their mistaken belief about being God's chosen people. The messages show a progression toward judgment.

The charges against Israel had already been presented (Amos 3:1–2; 4:1–3). Now the time for judgment had come. To make this clear, Amos sang a funeral song for Israel. He spoke as if the nation were already dead.

lamentation: A lamentation (or lament) is a song or poem of sorrow. It often uses the form of a funeral song, even when it mourns a nation or a people rather than a single death.

The Hebrew word qinah describes a special rhythm used for funeral songs. This rhythm has three beats followed by two beats (3 + 2). Most of the book of Lamentations is written in this qinah rhythm.

This rhythm clearly showed something terrible. Israel was spoken of as if it had already died and was now waiting to be buried.

In political terms, virgin means a state that has not been conquered by a foreign power. For example:

• Babylon (Isaiah 47:1)

• Jerusalem (Lamentations 2:13; compare Lamentations 1:1)

This verse is a reversal of the promises made in Leviticus 26:8.

Seek Me and live implies a condition: To live, Israel must seek the Lord (also in Amos 5:6). Otherwise, the funeral song (Amos 5:1–2) will become Israel’s death sentence.

• Beersheba was another site (see study note on Amos 4:4) with connections to the patriarchal era (for example, Abraham, Genesis 21:33; 22:19). It had become a shrine.

• Gilgal … exile: This phrase uses wordplay based on alliteration (the repetition of similar sounds). In Hebrew, the words hagilgal galoh yigleh sound alike. Together, they connect the place name Gilgal with the idea of going into exile.

The northern kingdom of Israel, also known as the house of Joseph, was mainly controlled by the tribes of Joseph’s sons, Ephraim and Manasseh (see study note on Amos 5:15; see Hosea 5:3, 5).

• Amos quotes another hymn fragment (see Amos 4:13; 9:5–6). The prophet highlights the difference between the cosmic God and local gods.

• Stars, celestial bodies, and constellations like Pleiades and Orion were seen as gods in ancient times. Amos says this is not true; the Lord created them and placed them in the sky.

• waters: People in ancient times observed a process they did not understand, such as evaporation and condensation (when water turns into vapor and then back into liquid). However, the Lord understands and controls these natural processes, even when they seem mysterious to humans.

Amos continues the idea started in Amos 5:7. Wealthy people controlled Israel's courts, which relied on corrupt judges and paid witnesses. They ignored the truth and focused only on what benefited them (Amos 5:12).

stone houses: Amos criticizes the wealthy again. Peasants lived in mud brick houses. Cut stone, made by hand, was very costly.

Witnesses insisted they saw and heard nothing. Being truthful had become risky (Amos 5:10) and could put the speaker in danger.

Amos clarifies his earlier hints (Amos 5:4, 6). Israel must do what is good and right in order to survive.

the remnant of Joseph: The phrase the remnant of Joseph comes from the Hebrew text to refer to the northern kingdom. They remained God's people despite their rebellion and idol worship.

wailing … mourn … wailing: People would grieve because of the widespread and certain destruction ahead (Amos 5:1–2).

The farmer … and the mourners: This expression vividly describes widespread grief. It means that everyone would mourn, from ordinary workers like farmers to people whose job was to mourn at funerals.

The pronouncements of sorrow in this section develop two main themes:

1. Israel’s apostasy (turning away from God) would make the day of the Lord a day of judgment, not salvation; and

2. Judah’s spiritual complacency (feeling satisfied and unconcerned about faithfulness to God) would also bring judgment.

• Amos again challenges the Israelites' mistaken belief about their chosen status (see Amos 3:2).

• The phrase What will the Day of the LORD be for you indicates despair from a great tragedy.

• In the Old Testament, the day of the Lord (see Isaiah 13:6, 9) was when God would intervene to fix what was wrong. God's intervention would mean vindication for the righteous and judgment for the wicked. Israel believed that on that day (see also Amos 8:3, 9, 13; 9:11), God would save them.

  However, because the Israelites had been wicked, the day of the Lord would bring darkness, not light. Assyria conquered the northern kingdom in 722 BC (2 Kings 17:7–23), fulfilling this prophecy.

Amos again confronts the religious hypocrisy and spiritual unfaithfulness of the Israelites. They practiced worship outwardly, but their lives did not match faithfulness to God (see Amos 4:4–5; Isaiah 1:10–20).

God would not accept the Israelites’ offerings. These offerings were attempts to control God through ritual actions, rather than true signs of repentance and faith (see Leviticus 1–6).

• This is the second of the major thematic verses in Amos (see Amos 4:12).

• ever-flowing stream: The streams or gullies (wadis) in Israel's dry areas held water only during rainy seasons. However, God desired constant, not just seasonal, justice.

The people of Israel claimed that God had to bless them because of the Sinai covenant (the agreement God made with them at Mount Sinai). However, Amos showed that from the very beginning of this covenant, they had continued to follow pagan practices rather than remain faithful to God.

• Israel’s relationship with God was based on true devotion, which led to obedience (1 Samuel 15:22–23). Sacrifices symbolizing repentance and faith could mend a break caused by sin, but they could not replace living according to God’s word.

• Israel wandered for 40 years in the wilderness after the rebellion at Kadesh-barnea (see Numbers 14:32–35).

The names in Amos 5:26 have led to several explanations. However, many interpreters think these names refer to pagan gods whose identities are no longer clear. The “king god” may be Molech, the god worshiped by the Ammonites (see Amos 1:15). The word translated as taken along might mean "you will lift up." In this case, the prophet contrasts Israel or Judah, who carried their idols, with God, who carries his people (see Isaiah 46:1–7).