Prayers from Amos

Amos 1:1-8

 The words of Amos, one of the shepherds of Tekoa—the vision he saw concerning Israel two years before the earthquake, when Uzziah was king of Judah and Jeroboam son of Jehoash^[a] was king of Israel.

² He said:

“The Lord roars from Zion
    and thunders from Jerusalem;
the pastures of the shepherds dry up,
    and the top of Carmel withers.

³ This is what the Lord says:

“For three sins of Damascus,
    even for four, I will not relent.
Because she threshed Gilead
    with sledges having iron teeth,
⁴ I will send fire on the house of Hazael
    that will consume the fortresses of Ben-Hadad.
⁵ I will break down the gate of Damascus;
    I will destroy the king who is in^[b] the Valley of Aven^[c]
and the one who holds the scepter in Beth Eden.
    The people of Aram will go into exile to Kir,”
says the Lord.

⁶ This is what the Lord says:

“For three sins of Gaza,
    even for four, I will not relent.
Because she took captive whole communities
    and sold them to Edom,
⁷ I will send fire on the walls of Gaza
    that will consume her fortresses.
⁸ I will destroy the king^[d] of Ashdod
    and the one who holds the scepter in Ashkelon.
I will turn my hand against Ekron,
    till the last of the Philistines are dead,”
says the Sovereign Lord.

Amos begins by speaks God’s word of judgement on those nations that surrounds Israel. Israel may well be cheering Amos on at this point as they hear how God’s wrath will be brought down on their enemies for sinning time and again, hence the phrase pattern he uses of ‘for three sins…even four’. We struggle with the words that vengeance is God’s right alone. It can feel like He doesn’t notice, He doesn’t respond. Let these words be a reminder that He does see and let them bring us to our knees with thankfulness that He is in fact slow to anger, for His wrath is mighty.

It should bring us to our knees in seeking His mercy rather than His wrath on others, it should make us look upon the cross with renewed thankfulness and awe, for in Christ we will not know the wrath our sin deserves.

Father in heaven, who sees further and deeper than we can; humble us that we may kneel at Your feet and stop. May we see with Your eyes, Your heart, Your understanding. May we lift up Your name and receive Your forgiveness and mercy in our own lives and in doing so may those actions melt our own desires of wrath and anger toward others. In Jesus name we pray.