Comments on Amos 8

v1-3  The fourth vision.  Israel will be harvested like summer
fruit and consumed by her enemies (v. 1).  She is ripe in
iniquity, and the Lord will not tolerate it anymore (v. 2).  The
rejoicing in the palace (apparently referring to the festivals
cited in v. 5, 10) will cease, and silence will reign as the
people lament over the slain (v. 3).

v4-6  The people are not keeping the religious festivals
spiritually, but rather are doing it as a matter of rote eager to
have it over with so they can go about their secular business of
ripping people off.  This addresses the same accusation as that
appearing in Micah 6:11, see my comments in LDSS v. 2 no. 33. 
See also Isa. 1:11-15.

v7-10  Because of the wickedness of the people, referred to in v.
4-6, the Lord will not forget their actions (v. 7).  Rather, He
will cause upheaval in the land, as destructive as the flooding
of the Nile (v. 8).  In that day, darkness and gloom will cover
the whole land (v. 9).  And all of the festivals and singing will
turn into misery and lamentation, and everyone will humbled on 
that bitter day (v. 10).

v11-14  The time is coming when the Lord will completely deprive
Isreal of the hearing of His word (v. 11).  No matter how hard or
where they look, they will not be able to find the Truth (v. 12). 
The few virgins and pure young men of Israel will therefore be
deprived of the word of God (v. 13).  But, where they will faint,
the wicked who swear false oaths will be slain (v. 14).

     These verses have reference to the Lord depriving Israel of
prophets.  In ch. 3, the Lord sends prophet to warn the people,
and they are summarily rejected, as is the case in ch. 7 with
Amaziah.  As such, the Lord will deprive the nation of prophets
when they are sent into exile.

     The passage can certainly have eschatological application as
well, as whenever people stop listening to the Lord and His
prophets, they stop speaking to them.

v14 "Dan...Beersheba", Dan (a.k.a., Laish) was at the northern
boundary of Israel's territory and Beersheba was at the southern
extreme of their territory, cp. Judges 20:1, 2 Sam. 24:2, 1 Ki. 
4:25.  Thus, the reference is intended to include all of Israel.  
Dan is also where Jeroboam established one of his golden calves,
cf. 1 Ki. 29:30.



Copyright © 2002 by S. Kurt Neumiller <kurtn@cybcon.com>.  All rights 
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