Year 3, Day 229: Amos 7

Locust and Fire

The locust plague was one of the worst plagues that could set upon a community in the ancient world.  Truth be told, it isn’t looked upon much more highly in our modern world, either!  Here’s the problem with locusts: they eat the crops.  That might sound simple, but it’s really more complex.  Without crops, hunger sets in.  Immune systems diminish.  People are weak and they get sick.  Some die.  Now you have a weakened community not only fighting off illness and disease but also struggling against pollution coming from dead and decaying bodies.  Famine, pestilence, and disease are all natural consequences when the locusts come.

In that perspective, take seriously the opening words on this chapter.  The Lord formed the locust plague Himself.  This was an intentional act.  But look to when the Lord formed the plague.  It came after the first growth.

Let’s look at why this is important.  You see, the first growth was the king’s share.  So the fields were gleaned and all of it was given to the king.  When the second growth came, it was for all the people.  It was this gleaning that the locusts from the Lord would strip bare.

Amos cried out to the Lord that He might relent, and the Lord did!  That’s the amazing part of this scripture.  This is the only time that Amos asks the Lord to forgive.  And the Lord relents.  In fact, the Lord doesn’t just relent with the locusts but also with the sweeping destructive fire as well!  The judgment of the people will still come, but not in such a horrific time as a locust swarm.

What does this teach us?  First, the Lord is merciful.  Is He just in His judgment?  Absolutely.  Does the Lord know that it would have brought incredible suffering and thus is merciful when asked to be merciful?  Absolutely.  Second, it teaches us the power of a faithful witness.  God doesn’t have to listen, but He does listen to the faithful.  He doesn’t have to relent, but He does relent when Amos asks.  Yes, there is judgment to come that the people of Israel will not escape.  But the prayers of the faithful make that judgment as palatable as possible.

In fact, that is actually the point of the following vision of the plumb line.  You see, God had built the nation “true to plumb.”  The Law and the covenants had been plumb.  God even sent prophets among the Hebrew people to help them regain plumb when they got out of sort.  But now they are beyond repair.  God is making the point to Amos that the people need to be judged.  Perhaps the locusts and the devouring fire would be too much.  But a people this out of plumb would need to find consequences or else they would continue to go askew.

Thankfulness of the Ruling Elite

I’m going to speak a bit from the omniscient point of view.  We know that the Hebrew people were living licentiously in the midst of the desires of their hearts.  They chose wrong over right.  They chose oppression over justice.  They chose themselves over the poor.  That was absolutely their choice.

However, we also know that this upset God.  So God sent the prophets to try and talk sense into the people.  In Israel, the rulers did not listen.  That’s where we pick up the second half of Amos 7.

Amaziah, a priest at Bethel, went to the king and told him what Amos is saying.  Of course, the priest isn’t willing to listen to Amos.  This implies that the king isn’t willing to listen to Amos, either.  They don’t like the fact that Amos is denouncing their lifestyle and they like even less that he is predicting their destruction.  So, they do what people in power do when opposed.  They get rid of the opposition.  They tell Amos to leave as he is no longer welcome.

This is where the story gets good.  Amos looks to them and tells them that he was just a shepherd when all this started.  He wasn’t a professional prophet.  He was out tending his flocks and his trees when the Lord called him to leave his hometown and come give this message.  Amos explains to them that God was doing them a favor by sending a warning into their midst.  So if they desire to ignore the warning, then they will face judgment.

How’s that for a response to the guy who just single-handedly saved the country from plagues of locusts and fire?  Rather than a thank-you, he gets shoved out the door.  Unfortunately, this is often – though not always – the case with people in charge.  When they are confronted with their sinfulness they don’t want to hear it.  So they use their power to get rid of the very people sent to help them.  My prayer is that we are all smart enough to realize help when it comes from the Lord.

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