Amos

Amos 3: God speaks and will punish Israel

Begin in prayer

Before we hear how God speaks through His prophets and will punish Israel for all their sins, please stop and pray. Ask Him to make us willing to listen and to turn our eyes toward Christ.

But when I speak with you, I will open your mouth, and you shall tell them, ‘Thus says the Lord Yahweh.’ He who hears, let him hear; and he who forbears, let him forbear: for they are a rebellious house.”

Ezekiel 3:27

Father in heaven, please open our eyes as we read Your Word. Show us that You speak truth and judge every sin. Help us see Jesus as the only Saviour, and give us humble hearts that listen. Make us more like Jesus. And please bless our family as we worship You together. In Jesus' name, Amen.

See where we're going

God speaks against the whole family He brought out of Egypt, saying that His chosen nation must answer for all its sins. Amos uses a lion’s roar and a trumpet alarm to explain why he must speak when the Lord speaks. God summons witnesses from Ashdod and Egypt to see Samaria’s unrest and oppression. An adversary will overrun the land and plunder its fortresses, while Samaria’s palaces hold plunder and loot. God will cut off Bethel’s altar horns and strike the luxurious houses, leaving devastation like a sheep torn by a lion.

As you read Amos 3, look for the answers:

Reflect together

Key truth

God speaks through His prophets and will punish Israel for all their sins.

God’s choice of Israel brought the nation close to Him, with His word and His gifts. That privilege makes their sins more serious, so verse 2 begins the sentence of punishment with “Therefore”. They cannot use God’s past rescue as permission to disobey Him. Amos’s questions show that familiar events have causes, a trap catches something, and a trumpet announces danger. In the same way, the coming disaster is God’s act, announced through His prophets. The “evil” in verse 6 means calamity, which God sends as judgment. His message uncovers a city whose palaces contain plunder and loot. Even foreign nations are summoned to see its oppression. Hearing God’s word brings responsibility, and His judgment makes the need for Christ’s mercy urgent.

How does Amos 3 show us that God speaks through His prophets and will punish Israel for all their sins?

God will punish the sins of His chosen nation.

The LORD addresses “the whole family” He brought up out of Egypt (verse 1). Their special place among the nations came from His choice. Verse 2 says that He will therefore punish all their sins. Being close to holy things never makes a sinner safe from the holy God. Only Jesus can bring a sinner near to the holy God without fear.

God has spoken, so Amos must speak His message.

A lion’s roar makes people fear, and a trumpet alarm tells a city that danger is near (verses 4 to 6). God has made the coming judgment known to His servants the prophets. Amos cannot treat that word as something he may choose to keep quiet. Amos’s message comes from the LORD, so Israel must hear it.

God will destroy Israel’s altars and great houses.

The palaces hold plunder and loot, so their wealth is evidence against them (verse 10). God will bring an adversary against their strongholds and strike their great houses. Verse 12 compares their rescue to the scraps a shepherd takes from a lion’s mouth. This picture shows devastating loss, giving no comfort to those resting on their cushions.

Memorise

I have only chosen you of all the families of the earth. Therefore I will punish you for all of your sins.

Amos 3:2

Looking to Jesus in my life

Ask yourself in your heart, what warning from God am I ignoring instead of coming to Jesus?

“The Lord Yahweh has spoken. Who can but prophesy?” Amos must prophesy, even when the message brings judgment. Israel’s great houses will end. Even the altar’s horns will fall. Being chosen by God made Israel’s sins weigh more.

Hearing God’s Word at home does not erase our guilt. We have sinned against Him and need a Saviour. On the cross, Christ died for His people and endured God’s judgment in their place. He completed His people’s rescue, and that work is enough. He was raised from death and lives forever. An adversary will plunder Israel’s fortresses, but Christ’s saving work will never fail.

Listen to the call of Jesus. Turn from sin and trust Him alone. Forgiveness belongs to all who believe in Him. You need not hide behind your family or the things you own. Come to the living Saviour, whose word can be trusted.

Parent's note

Tell your children that belonging to Israel did not protect its people from God’s judgment. Please explain the torn sheep in verse 12 as a picture of devastating loss. Please do not tell them they are saved just because they grew up in a Christian home. Call each child to turn from sin and trust Jesus, and pray that God would give them a new heart.

Pray together

Now please close your time together in prayer. Thank God that His word is true, and bring the heart question to Him. Every child can pray, so each one may offer a short prayer if they want to.

For the time has come for judgment to begin with the household of God. If it begins first with us, what will happen to those who don’t obey the Good News of God?

1 Peter 4:17

Lord God, thank You that You speak truth and that Jesus is the living Saviour. Please turn each heart away from sin to trust Him. Help us listen when Your Word corrects us, and keep us from trusting our home or belongings to make us safe. Amen.