A Final Word of Judgement and Hope

Text Amos 9 Time 06 03 22 Place Childs Hill Baptist Church

We come this week to the final chapter of the prophecy of Amos and, as has been the case throughout, the theme is once again judgement. Generally speaking, this is the constant theme of the prophets. They announce a word of judgement. The chapter speaks of thresholds shaking, people being killed with the sword and none escaping; God touching the earth and it melting, mourning and destruction. But then in verse 8 a note is sounded that you also do hear sometimes in the prophets - a note we have hardly had in the book so far, a note of mercy towards God's people. Yet I will not totally destroy the descendants of Jacob, declares the LORD. And the closing verses of the book give hope to God's people, a hope that does not disappoint.

So here is more on judgement but also a great word of hope.

1. Consider this vision of the Lord by the altar, calling for judgement

We have said previously that these final chapters (7-9) are characterised by a series of visions. We have had visions of locusts, of fire, of a plumbline and a basket of summer fruit. The final vision is here at the beginning of Chapter 9. Amos says (1)

I saw the Lord standing by the altar, and he said: Strike the tops of the pillars so that the thresholds shake. Bring them down on the heads of all the people; those who are left I will kill with the sword. Not one will get away, none will escape.

So the scene is the Temple and the LORD is there by the altar, the altar where the sacrifices were made in the courtyard. The Temple is for his glory but God calls for it to be destroyed and tumbling down it comes. The fall of the Temple will not kill everyone but there will also be a sword for those that escape the Temple's fall. He adds Not one will get away, none will escape.

That idea is then driven home in verses 2-4, in a similar way to what we had in Chapter 5 where we have the man who runs from the bear only to be met by a lion and when he tries to hide in a house he puts out his hand and is bitten by a snake.

Here it is a little like Psalm 139 where the psalmist speaks of being unable to escape from God's presence. Here it says

• Though they dig down to the depths below, from there my hand will take them.
• Though they climb up to the heavens above, from there I will bring them down.
• Though they hide themselves on the top of Carmel, there I will hunt them down and seize them.
• Though they hide from my eyes at the bottom of the sea, there I will command the serpent to bite them.
• Though they are driven into exile by their enemies, there I will command the sword to slay them.

In conclusion "I will keep my eye on them for harm and not for good."

The preacher and hymn writer Horatius Bonar once told of two men discussing their religious experience. One had attended church for many years but had not trusted in Jesus Christ for eternal life. The other man had spent many years living an immoral life and had only recently come to trust in Christ.

“So you say you have found Christ, and have peace with God?” the churchgoer asked. “I have indeed,” the other replied. “I've found him, I have peace, and I know it.” “Know it!” the churchgoer snapped. “Do you think that God would give a sinner like you peace, and not give it to me, who have been doing all I can to get it for so many years?” The new Christian answered, “You are such a respectable man that you can get on without peace and pardon, but a wretch like me cannot.”

The churchgoer’s mistake, of course, was to attempt to find peace with God by “doing” all he could. He believed his religious efforts would shield him from the consequences of sin. The people of Israel made the same mistake. Their confidence was based on the outward trappings of religion. The Lord, however, called for the destruction of the very things in which they had placed their trust. He promised to pursue them in judgment, no matter what measures they took to avoid his wrath

Be in no doubt then, there is no escape. This judgement will find you out. Amos is speaking firstly of the coming of the Assyrians and his prophecy proved to be true. Everyone was affected. But beyond that he is speaking about the final judgement, when Jesus comes again in glory and everyone who has ever lived will be judged. There will be no escape on that day. You will not be able to hide. You will have to face the LORD. Yes, you may dig down to the depths below or try and climb up to the heavens above. You may try and hide on a mountain top or think you can hide at the bottom of the sea or in another country but it will not be possible. You will be found. And you will be judged.

2. See the Lord Almighty touching earth so that it melts, all mourning and then the judgement

More is said about this in verses 5-8. First, in verses 5 and 6 we read

The Lord, the LORD Almighty - he touches the earth and it melts, and all who live in it mourn; the whole land rises like the Nile, then sinks like the river of Egypt; he builds his lofty palace in the heavens and sets its foundation on the earth; he calls for the waters of the sea and pours them out over the face of the land - the LORD is his name.

Here is perhaps another burst of praise as we have had before but it may be that Amos is thinking beyond the Assyrian invasion to the final judgement itself when the world will indeed melt and there will be mourning everywhere. The phrase the whole land rises like the Nile, then sinks like the river of Egypt repeats what is also in the previous chapter. We said then that just as the Nile in Egypt would rise and sink year by year so there will be great tumult when the final judgement comes. Here we also have the phrase he builds his lofty palace in the heavens and sets its foundation on the earth which could refer to the present creation but may be points to the time when God's judgement throne will be set up on earth at the end, ready for the judgement.

He calls for the waters of the sea and pours them out over the face of the land - the LORD is his name - this is a reminder of the flood, a great judgement on this world that wiped out nearly everyone and that prefigures the final judgement by fire.

In verse 7 we step back for a moment as we are reminded that God is sovereign. He is in control of all things that happen. And so he says "Are not you Israelites the same to me as the Cushites?" declares the LORD. The Cushites lived in the north east of Africa below Egypt. There is always the temptation to think of ourselves as extra special if God has had dealings with us. The Israelites are warned here not to think like that. God is God too of the Cushites. It goes on "Did I not bring Israel up from Egypt, the Philistines from Caphtor and the Arameans from Kir?" Yes, God did bring the Israelite up out of Egypt with a mighty hand but it is not the only movement of people that he has brought about. He also brought the Philistines from Caphtor or Cyprus to the coast so that they lived in the west of Israel. He also brought Arameans or Syrians up into Kir, in Mesopotamia.

God is in control. And so it says in verse 8 "Surely the eyes of the Sovereign LORD are on the sinful kingdom. I will destroy it from the face of the earth." It does not matter which kingdom it is, if it is a sinful kingdom then God will see it and know it and he will will destroy it from the face of the earth. That includes Israel. They too will be judged. We will all be judged.

And then we have these wonderful words at the end of verse 8 Yet I will not totally destroy the descendants of Jacob, declares the LORD. There is still mercy and so the final verses of the book dwell on this wonderful truth.

There is such a thing as God's mercy and how we need that mercy. However, let's face the fact first that there is going to be a great judgement.

3. Know the future and the fact Israel will return from exile, never to be uprooted again

So from verse 9 to the end, to verse 15, we have these final word, mostly of encouragement and mercy. They are, understandably, very much in Old Testament terms but I am sure we can see beyond that to their fulfilment in these New Testament times.

We can divide the verses into four and say

1. Hear this promise of future sifting

We begin with words that are still about judgement but that contain a word of mercy. The image of grain being shaken in a sieve is used.

"For I will give the command, and I will shake the people of Israel among all the nations as grain is shaken in a sieve, and not a pebble will reach the ground. All the sinners among my people will die by the sword, all those who say, 'Disaster will not overtake or meet us.'"

So there is going to be a terrible time of sifting. All the sinners among God's people will die by the sword. In Amos's day they were very sceptical of such prophecies. They confidently said 'Disaster will not overtake or meet us.' However, when the day of judgement comes - the temporal Assyrian judgement and then the final judgement - they will know that they were wrong. The mercy hidden here is that some will prove to be pebbles. They will not be sifted like the grain - no none of these pebbles will reach the ground but will be preserved by the goodness and kindness of God.

Spurgeon says "The sifting process is going on still. Wherever we go, we are still being winnowed and sifted. In all countries God’s people are being tried “like as corn is sifted in a sieve.” Sometimes the devil holds the sieve and tosses us up and down at a great rate, with the earnest desire to get rid of us forever. Unbelief is not slow to agitate our hearts and minds with its restless fears. The world lends a willing hand at the same process and shakes us to the right and to the left with great vigor. Worst of all, the church, so largely apostate as it is, comes in to give a more furious force to the sifting process.

Well, well! let it go on. Thus is the chaff severed from the wheat. Thus is the wheat delivered from dust and chaff. And how great is the mercy which comes to us in the text, “yet shall not the least grain fall upon the earth.” All shall be preserved that is good, true, gracious. Not one of the least of believers shall be lost; neither shall any believer lose anything worth calling a loss. We shall be so kept in the sifting that it shall be a real gain to us through Christ Jesus."

We have to be sifted. We all suffer. We all have to face death and the judgement. But fear not - not a pebble will reach the ground. God will keep all those who trust in Christ safe forever.

2. Hear this promise of future restoration, repair and rebuilding

Then in verses 11 and 12 we have this "In that day "I will restore David's fallen shelter - I will repair its broken walls and restore its ruins - and will rebuild it as it used to be, so that they may possess the remnant of Edom and all the nations that bear my name," declares the LORD, who will do these things.

So here we look beyond the invasion and to a return from exile. It is pictured as the restoring of David's fallen tent. Jerusalem's broken walls will be rebuilt and its ruins will be restored. God will rebuild it as it was before and beyond that, they will again be a force to be reckoned with and they will possess the remnant of Edom and all the nations that bear my name. All the nations belong to God and they will all come under the rule of David in due time.

When Amos wrote, the Davidic dynasty was struggling and Israel would soon come to an end as a nation but he sees a restoration. He is looking forward to the time when Messiah would be born in Bethlehem and when, through him, the nations would hear the good news of salvation and be saved. These are the days in which we now live. How thankful we should be. How we should be praying that more and more may come under Messiah's rule.

These verses are quoted by James the Lord's brother in Acts 15. He sees them as a sure promise of the gathering in of the Gentiles.

3. Hear this promise of an abundance of wine and other produce and return from exile

The next picture is an agricultural one. It has several element but it climaxes on a vision of wine flowing everywhere.

13, 14 "The days are coming," declares the LORD, "when the reaper will be overtaken by the ploughman and the planter by the one treading grapes. New wine will drip from the mountains and flow from all the hills, and I will bring my people Israel back from exile." The promise is of a return from exile but it is more than that. Wine - emblematic of great joy - will flow.

What glorious days of joy lie ahead for the people of God. In part they are here now so rejoice!

4. Hear this promise of rebuilding and replanting and replenishment

Finally, in verses 14 and 15, we read "They will rebuild the ruined cities and live in them. They will plant vineyards and drink their wine; they will make gardens and eat their fruit. I will plant Israel in their own land, never again to be uprooted from the land I have given them," says the LORD your God. A glorious future pictured then in this world terms - ruined cities rebuilt and re-occupied, vineyard planted and the wine they produce drunk and gardens producing other fruits that are then enjoyed. God is going to plant Israel and it will not be uprooted again - not some Zionist declaration that Jews will have a home land in the middle east but a guarantee that God's kingdom will never come to an end but advance without being destroyed.

That is indeed what we see today and what we must pray for more and more.

So that is the note we end on. Yes, a great day of judgement is coming but before that there are many who are going to be saved by the grace of God. Great blessings flow from his hands and thought ought to encourage us all to trust in him.