Amos: Let Justice Roll

The Message of Amos: It is a call for justice and a warning of judgments. Amos addresses Israel’s two primary sins: (1) an absence of true worship and (2) a lack of justice. The sins of both nations (Israel & Judah) were eroding the religious and moral fiber of the people.

Attacking the social evils of the people as well as their paganized worship, Amos issued an urgent call to repentance as the only escape from imminent judgment.

Key Verse

But let justice roll down like waters And righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.
Amos 5:24 (NASB)

Available Lessons

Content Outline

Setting and Timeline

“Politically, it was a time of prosperity for Israel under the long and secure reign of
Jeroboam II who, following the example of his father Joash(2 Kin. 13:25),
significantly restored the territory of Israel (2 Kin. 14:25).

It was also a time of peace with both Judah(cf. 5.5) and her more distant neighbors; the ever-present menace of Assyria was subdued, possibly because of Nineveh’s repentance at the preaching of Jonah (Jon. 3:10).

Spiritually, however, it was a time of rampant corruption
and moral decay (4:1; 5:10-13; 2 Kin. 14:24).”
Dr. John MacArthur

“Amos declared God’s judgment not only on the Gentile nations but also on Israel and Judah.
It was a call to repent of ‘ritual religion’ and seek the Lord sincerely.

He warned the aristocrats that God would judge them for the way they were abusing the poor.

In spite of the nations’ peace and prosperity, Amos saw the end coming and warned the people to prepare to meet their God.”
Dr. Warren Wiersbe

“… this was a period of unusual prosperity in the northern kingdom of Israel. Jeroboam used this period profitably, effecting conquests that restored the older, Solomonic boundaries for the one and
only time since the great king’s death (cf. 2 Kings 14:23-29).

The only difficulty was that the blessings for which the rich were thanking God had come at the expense of the poor and, as a consequence, the religion was not true religion but a sham.”
Dr. James Montgomery Boice

“The book of Amos is a collection of sermons condemning the nations– including Judah and Samaria– for the absence of true worship and the presence of true injustice.

Amos tells us God despises the exercise of empty religious ritual. Our conduct must always grow from an authentic desire to love others and please Him, and our lives should always produce a true harvest of justice and righteousness.”
Dr. David Jeremiah

About the Author

References

The Minor Prophets Volume 1 (Hosea – Jonah): An Expositional Commentary by James Montgomery Boice
Be Concerned: an OT Commentary on the Minor Prophets by Warren W. Wiersbe
The MacArthur Bible Commentary: by John MacArthur
The Bible Project: Amos