Amos is Threatened

By Mary Vee
Amos 7

From the Journals of Amaziah, Prophet of Israel

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I am the priest of Israel. I must admit that I am quite upset about the news I've heard. There is a shepherd living near Bethlehem named Amos who is causing trouble.

I and the other priests of Israel have set up the ceremonies and ways for our people to worship God. We had everything under control with the people doing everything we asked.

Now this man, Amos claims the people are not really worshipping God. Hah! What does he know? 

I cannot allow his words to stop what the other priests and I have set up. I drafted a message to Jeroboam, king of Israel. "Amos is raising a conspiracy against you in the very heart of Israel. The land cannot bear all his words. This is what he is saying:

Jeroboam will die by the sword and Israel will surely go into exile, away from their native land.

I immediate took my cloak, journeyed to Bethel, and searched for Amos. Maybe I can talk him into putting a stop to his crazy messages that he claims are coming from God.

I found him in a pasture and called out. "Amos. I need to speak with you."

Amos turned to my voice and stepped toward me. "What have you to say, Amaziah?"

I raised my walking stick toward him, "Get out, you seer! Go back to the land of Judah. Earn your bread there and do your prophesying there. Don't prophesy anymore at Bethel, because this is the king's sanctuary and the temple of the kingdom."

Amos didn't look threatened by my words. He remained standing tall and said, "I was neither a prophet nor a prophet's son, but I was a shepherd, and I also took care of sycamore-fig trees. But the Lord took me from tending the flock and told me to 'Go prophesy to my people Israel.' 

"Now, Amaziah, listen to the word of the Lord. You say to me, 'Do not prophesy against Israel, and stop preaching against the house of Isaac.' 

"Therefore this is what the Lord says: 'Your wife will leave you and your sons and daughters will fall by the sword. Your land will be measured and divided up, and Israel will certainly go into exile, away from their native land."

I turned and walked away. Not willing to listen to Amos. I am the one in charge, not him.

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1. Who was Amaziah?
2. Why was Amaziah angry?
3. Who did Amaziah go to see and what did he tell him?
4. Did Amos feel threatened by Amaziah?
5. Did Amos back down with his message from the Lord when Amaziah visited?
6. What will happen to Israel?

Amos-Worship with an Empty Heart

By Mary Vee
Amos 5-9

From the Journals of Amos

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As a shepherd, I spend a lot of time with my sheep. I hear the sounds of nature around me. I see the stars and sun in the sky. My main job, though is to care for my sheep.

Last time I wrote to you about the message God had given me to tell His people. There is more to tell.

The Lord, God of Israel is angered with the people for coming to the temple, saying they are worshipping God by offering their sacrifices and then return home without having really listened or worshipped with their heart. 

Since God looks at the heart and not what man does, He knows the people only come to impress each other, to say they have gone to the temple, to brag about what they have given. In their heart they have no repentance, no sorrow for their sins. They sing songs to make noise and not to declare their love for Him.

Once the people have left the temple they go and sacrifice to other gods as well. Don't they realize God sees them?

They live in prosperity, having much to eat and drink, yet take no time to worship Him, the one who has given them all that they have. They lay around and do no work, expecting their prosperity to continue.

The Sovereign Lord said He is preparing swarms of locust to eat the crops. I asked Him to forgive Israel. How can we survive?

The Sovereign Lord said He is calling for judgement by fire. I asked Him to forgive Israel. How can we survive?

The Sovereign Lord showed me a plumb line and a basket of fruit. He said, I will not spare the people any longer. The foreign gods will be destroyed and the songs in the temple will be silenced.

The Israelites don't even care. The sellers cheat their customers, sell the needy as slaves, look only for a profit. The Sovereign Lord said He will send a famine in the land--not a famine of food, but a one of hearing any words from the Lord.

In that day, the Sovereign Lord says He will restore Israel. He will repair the broken places, and build it as it used to be, so that they may possess what is left and all the nations that bear His name.

The Sovereign Lord says He will bring back His exiled people, Israel. They will rebuild the ruined cities and live in them. They will plant vineyards, they will make gardens and eat their fruit. 

The Sovereign Lord says He will plant Israel in their own land, never again to be uprooted from the place He has given them.

This ends the message God gave me to tell the people.

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1. What did the people of Israel do wrong?
2. Who did the people of Israel think of mostly?
3. In the end, God says what He really wants to do for Israel. What is it?

Amos-A Lowly Shepherd Called to be a Prophet

By Mary Vee
Amos 1-4

From the Journals of Amos

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I have been a shepherd watching my sheep near Bethlehem in Judah for quite some time.

One day as I looked out at the pastureland, the great God of Israel spoke to me, telling me to take His message to the people.

The messages needed to be delivered right away because God wanted the people to know He saw their evil deeds.

First, the Lord said He will destroy the house of Ben-Hadad in Syria for attacking Gilead.

Second, the Lord said He will destroy the Philistines for taking whole communities of His people and selling them as slaves in Edom. 

Third, the Lord said He will destroy the great city of Tyre for taking whole communities of His people and selling them as slaves to Edom--disregarding the treaty of brotherhood.

Fourth, the Lord said He will destroy the fortress of Bozrah in Edom for continuing to attack His people. Edom's rage overwhelmed the country so much there was no compassion at all.

Fifth, the Lord said He will destroy Rabbah in Ammon for killing the women of His people just to make their cities bigger.

Sixth, the Lord said He will destroy Kerioth in Moab for disrespecting the burial place of Edom's king.

Seventh, the Lord said He will send fire on Jerusalem in Judah for worshipping false gods.

Eighth, the Lord said He will destroy Israel because in their time of prosperity the people have not worship Him. They are filled with greed, selfishness, and immoral deeds. They harm the poor and have no justice in the courts.

The Israelites have witnessed God stopping the Amorites, they knew He was the one who rescued the nation from Egypt, led them through the desert for forty years, and gave them a new land. He even provided prophets to instruct them. Yet they have commanded the prophets not to give their messages.

Because the Lord has chosen, Israel, as His own, He will punish them for their sins. All they had to do was turn to Him to avoid these troubles.

All the Lord asks is that you seek Him instead of the false gods. Then you will live.

Again I say, seek good and not evil, that you may live. Then the Lord God Almighty will be with you. Hate evil, love good; be fair to all people. 

Perhaps the Lord God Almighty will have mercy on the remnant of Joseph, Israel.

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1. What did God say He would do first? ___________
2. What did God say He would do second? ____________
3. What did God say He would do third? _______________
4. What did God say He would do fourth? _______________
5. What did God say He would do fifth? _______________
6. What did God say He would do sixth? _______________
7. What did God say He would do seventh?_________________
8. Why did God say He would destroy Israel? ___________________
9. What did God really want from the people? _____________________