CHAP. VII. V.1—3. The Lord, in vision, shewed Amos the judgments that he was about to bring upon’. Israel. He appeared to him as forming grashoppers, or. locusts, in order to send them forth to waste the land.
It’ is probable, that the king was used to take a great part of the first mowing of the meadows, for the provender of his horses; so that the cattle of the people chiefly depended on the second growth, and the failure of that supply would have greatly distressed them.—The prophet seeing in his’ vision this calamity coming on them, and fearing that it would be inflicted in reality ; earnestly inte: for his people, that the Lord would forgive their sin and remit their punishment: for, if he thus proceeded against them, by whom could Jacob, or his church, be recovered from its present enfeebled and desolate condition?
This plea, in which the honour of Ged was so concerned, prevailed; and the Lord remitted, or mitigated, the punishment.— Some suppose this to have been an emblem of the first invasion of the Assyrians, which was not so fatal as might have been expected. After Ahab and his family had re- | duced Israel to the brink of ruin, they began to revive — again under the government of Jehu, his son Joash, and, his grandson Jeroboam: yet desolations awaited’ them from. the Assyrians, which would soon begin; but they would be, restrained, or retarded, in answer to the prayers ef the prophets. (Marg.
Ref.)—It is probable, that Ss made known to the people these visions, in their order, as he received them.
V.i4—6. God next shewed the prophet, that he was preparing to contend with Israe] by frre; either by excessive heat and drought, or lightning, or the breaking forth of subterraneous fires. This appeared to him to waste, not only the rivers, but the waters of the ocean, as well as to consume a part of the people; which implied, that entire ruin was threatened, and was begun to be inflicted. This
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‘7 Thus he shewed me; ‘and, behold, miium si isthe Lorp stood upon-“™ a wall made by xaiyietam.@ Plumb-line, with a plumb-line in his zech. ih a, e, hand, & And the Lorp said unto me, ® Amos, _, zech.v,8. what seest thou? And I said, A plumb- ¢ 82. vie line, Then said the Lord, Behold, I whoo. will set a plumb-line in the midst of my - gf Gen: ai people, Israel: ° I will not again pass by av = them any more. , tin **- g And P the high-places of Isaac shall : sa vai i 33 be desolate, and the sanctuaries of Israel
24. #chr. ‘xii. shall be laid waste; and 41 will rise 1-8. xxix. 6 against the house of Jeroboam with the sword. | fer. sxvis—'s 10 @ Then Amaziah, ' the priest of xa 2. aces, Beth-el, sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, ¢ Gan aan. saying, Amos *hath conspired against hea viet < thee in the midst of the house of Israel : xvii, 1 1.the Jand is’ ‘not able.to bear all his x 9, #.cor, mi. words, “$. Matte xvi. =. 1 For @ thus Amos saith, * Jeroboam y vine 2King shall die by the sword, ” and Israel shall
1b. ° n Jer.” 3. Til—1§
s1 Kings xviii. 17.
induced the prophet to renew his former plea and with similar success ; and the more tremendous effects of the judgment were prevented.—Somé understand this of the savages that Tiglath-pilezer made in the land, which occasioned only temporary and partial calamities, though they threatened entire desolation. (2 Kings xv. 29.)
V.7—g9- The Lord next appeared to Amos upon a wall, that had been formed by a plumb-line: this might represent the church of Israel, as originally formed according to those rules, which God, in infinite wisdom, justice, truth, and goodness, had prescribed by Moses. The plumb-line in his hand implied, that he was examining, with exactness, how far the people had deviated from their rule and original constitution, being about fo judge and punish them according to their sins.
This vision seems to have discouraged the prophet’s intercession: he saw their ido-latries and iniquities to be so many and heinous, and the judgments predicted against them to be so righteous, that he could say nothing to it. But the Lord, having called his strict attention to the vision, shewed him, that he was about to proceed against Israel in exact justice; that the threatened punishment should not be remitted; that the strongholds, cities, and idolatrous temples should be desolated ; and that this would begin in the destruction of the Ry of Jeroboam by the sword of a conspirator. (Marg.
Ref.)
V. 10, 11. Amaziah, the chief priest, or president over the idolatrous worship, at Beth-el, was greatly displeased: with Amos for declaring these visions at that place ; and especially for the last, which he had not prayed to be averted. Probably he feared, lest it should set the pepe against the worship: of the golden calves, undermine his credit and interests, and‘ even alienate them from _ the established government. He therefore sent word to Jero-
CHAPTER VIL.
surely be led away captive out of their, , og... own land.
Is. RXX. 10. i. (2. Matt. viii,. 32 Also Amaziah said utito Amos, 70O°*3;. joke. vit Ts 38. Kili. BL. .
thou seer, * go, flee thee away into the Acts xcsso.
land of Judah, and there » eat bread, °ist't:'tey ait and prophesy there: a ; 13 But ° prophesy not again any more, 1". at Beth-el: ¢ for it 2s the king’s * chapel, 417/85 %. and it is the + King’s court. Of, sanctuary. 14 Then answered Amos, and said to’ iei,2a & Amaziah, I was no prophet, °‘ neither ° aking i's.
7. iv. was I a prophet’s son; but I was fan een. ai. x IX. 2. KX. I.
herdman, and a gatherer of + sycamore- i. 1. Zech. xiii. .
in: hind. a h Go, prophesy unto my people n Seri.y, Ba, ik srael. 6—
16 Now therefore ‘hear thou the word | s9~3e. eek
46-48, Acts i.
of the Lorp; thou sayest, * Prophesy : kings xxi. 19: -
Jer, xxviii, 15——
not against Israel, ‘and drop not thy. k us, Te. XXX. 10s word against the house of Isaac. Mic. il. 6.
i, 17 Therefore thus saith the Lorp; 2% **-46 xxi. —
boam, (who seems to have been then at Samaria,) accusing the prophet of having conspired against him, and of exciting the people to revolt and rebellion: so that the land was not able to bear all his words, and would certainly be greatly injured, unless he were silenced and punished. But he Offered no proof of this conspiracy, except Amos’s predictions of approaching judgments: and in reporting
his words he bare false witness against him; for he had |
not said, that ‘* Jéroboam should die by the sword ;”. but that the. Lord ‘* would rise against his house with the ‘© sword, which took place after Jeroboam’s death; in the murder of his son Zachariah by Shallum who succeeded him. (2 Kings xv. 8—12.)—‘ He traduces the prophet ‘ as a stirrer up of sedition. The same crime was ob- ‘ jected to Jeremiah, to Christ, and to St. Paul.’ (Marg. Ref.) (Lowth.) : |
V. 12, 13. It does not appear that Jeroboam noticed
Amaziah’s information ; either despising the ‘prophet and .
his predictions, or having a more favourable opinion of him than to suspect him of any bad design. But Amaziah was desirous of driving him away by any means, He
therefore ironically called him a@ seer, or a prophets but . intimated that he only meant to get a livelihogd by- that.
employment: and he advised, or charged, him to flée away from Beth-el into the land of Judah, where he would be more welcome, and fare better than in Israel. He must, however, by no means prophesy any more at Beth-el, which was ‘* the king’s chapel,’’ where his established wor. ship was conducted and graced with his presence, and where he had a palace and kept his court. It was therefore indecent for him to revile the king’s religion, and denounce the judgments of God against him and his family and people, in the very place where his chapel and court were.—‘* Thou shalt not add to prophesy.” (fH¢d.)
*16A
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ix, ry : 2 Chr. abi. 10. 0
a iv. 20. Ve 90.
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mis. xiit. 16. 3er-™ Thy wife shall be an harlot in the city, xxix. 92. Lam-and thy sons‘and thy daughters shall fall
v. lt. Hos. iv
13, 4 Zecbhy the sword, and thy land shall be
xiv. 2. mn Ps, Lxxviji. 55.
-V. 15—17. Amos answered Amaziah with great boldness, yet with modesty and propriety. He declared, that he had not formerly been a prophet, nor was his father a prophet ; nor had he been educated in the schools of the prophets. But he had been a herdman, and a gatherer of a fruit, (a wild fig,) which grew on some kind of sycamore-trees, and was used for food by the poor people, or perhaps by the cattle.
In these rural occupations he had been inured to hard Jabour and homely fare: and he had followed them contentedly, till the Lord, by express revelation, commanded him to go and prophesy to his people. Yet Amaziah, in direct opposition to the divine mandate, forbade his proyhesying against Israel, or dropping a word against that people at Beth-el!
The prophet was therefore commissioned to denounce sentence against him; that his wife, either through extreme indigence or licentiousness, should become a harlot in the streets of Beth-el; that his children should be slain by the sword of war or of the murderer; that his estate should be divided by line among. those who seized on it; that he should die in _a heathen land; and that Israel would surely go away Into captivity.
PRACTICAL OBSERVATIONS. V. 1—9. , i
The prayers of pious ministers and believers avert many calamities from churches and nations, which would otherwise overwhelm them.—They, who most faithfully denounce the terrors of the Lord against sinners, should be most earnest in prayers for their repentance and forgiveness. —The low estate of the church, and of any part of it, may be pleaded with God as a reason why he should pardon and spare it; for it is his cause; he would be deprived of his revenue of worship and honour should it be totally ruined ;-and none but he can raise Jacob from his low estate, when he is so weak and hath so many and powerful enemies.—Our gracious God will fora time regard his ’ people’s prayers for their irreligious neighbours and relatives, and defer the execution of deserved punishment ; but he will at length examine the cause of every community and individual, by the line and standard of his word: and then all the unbelieving and impenitent will be condemned ; and even they, who have before most earnestly pleaded im, their behalf, will have no more to say for them.
—_ V. 1017,
No fervent prayers, or self-denying labours, of ministers, can induce proud sinners to bear with their faithful reproofs and warnings. They wilt be accused of wishing for those miseries, which they warxa” men to flee from ; their opposition to established impieties and iniquities will be construed into disaffection, or rebellion against the king or eommonwealth ; and their ministry will often be considered: 1. AMOS.: B.C yb.
divided by lines and thou shalt ° dié in ac 2 Kings xr. 20. polluted land; Pand,[srael shall surely go , 19- Hee. it. into captivity forth of his land. 2 Be dee
as an intolerable grievance. Men in general Gannot bear with their alarming and reproving words; -but mercenary and ambitious priests, the ringleaders of superstition or idolatry, will be the most inveterate and intolerant. Such have commonly been false accusers of the Lord’s servants to princes, and the’ first’ movers of persecution: for their reputation, authority and quiet -enjoyment of their preferments, are endarfgered by the’ prevalence of truth and righteousness.
Sometimes, however, — even irreligious or idolatrous princes have been indisposed to listen to their insinuations, or to adopt their counsels ; and they have been forced to employ menaces against those, . whom they would have more imperiously, silenced, if they could: or they have given them counsel, that savoured” of their own character. Such men will perhaps intimate — where and how ministers are most likely to-obtain preferment, or to escape the cross; but not where good may be done to souls.
They consider it as the extreme of folly, insolence, or rusticity, to declare alarming offensive truths before the great; or where error, impiety, and vice are sanctioned by high authority, long established customs, or eminent examples: as if smooth and soothing heresie¢s alone were fit to be prophesied in the chapels of kings, and soft deceitful words alone would pass current in their palaces]. And as if it were the enviable prerogative of royalty and privilege of nobility, to tread unmolested and unadmo-nished the broad road to everlasting misery!
Indeed nore should intrude themselves into such places and services: - nor are all, who are called to the ministry, qualified to assault iniquity, impiety, infidelity, or superstition, in these strong-holds. But when the Lord has work to do of an extraordinary kind, he will raise up and furnish proper . instruments for it. In doing this, he often deviates from men’s rules, and takes such as have not been regularly educated; but perhaps were engaged in some laborious
occupation, where they were inured to hardship, kept at ai -
distance from the luxuries and indulgences of the ent, and taught indifference to the interests and splendour - of the world. They, however, who are selected to these services, must declare the whole word of God, with» out reserve, or respect of persons, to princes, of people, whatever treatment they may be exposed to: and those, who oppose, or attempt to silence, them, will do it at their peril. We cannot indeed speak too humbly of ourselves and our poor attainments and services, but as ministers we ought to ‘* magnify our office:” and th
we ought not to apply the denunciations or. examples. of God’s word, personally to our opposerss yet we should not hesitate to declare, shat they, who despise the least of those, whom the Lord sends forth to preach his word, are despisers of him; and that all, who injure thm may expect severe rebukes, in their families, pé
and circumstances, and even fatal effects to their seuls,. except they repent. Nor can they. prevent: any of those-judgments, the denunciation of which offends them ; whilst their opposition provokes God to- contend with them‘ ' 10 particular.
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