Amos 1:2

1 The words of Amos, who was among the ^asheepbreeders of ^bTekoa, which he saw concerning Israel in the days of ^cUzziah king of Judah, and in the days of ^dJeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the ^eearthquake.

2 And he said:
“The Lord ^aroars from Zion,
And utters His voice from Jerusalem;
The pastures of the shepherds mourn,
And the top of ^bCarmel withers.”

Judgment on the Nations

3 Thus says the Lord:
“For three transgressions of ^aDamascus, and for four,
I will not turn away its punishment,
Because they have ^bthreshed Gilead with implements of iron.

4 ^aBut I will send a fire into the house of Hazael,
Which shall devour the palaces of ^bBen-Hadad.

5 I will also break the gate ^abar of Damascus,
And cut off the inhabitant from the Valley of Aven,
And the one who¹ holds the scepter from Beth Eden.
The people of Syria shall go captive to Kir,”
Says the Lord.

Commentaries:

Forerunner Commentary
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What Does Amos 1:2 Mean?

Amos 1:2

In the wild a lion roars just as it is about to pounce on its prey. Symbolically and metaphorically, the roar of a lion or the crack of thunder shows the imminent intervention of God in human affairs (I Samuel 2:10; Isaiah 29:6; 31:4; Hosea 11:9-11; Revelation 16:18).

In the mid-eighth century BC when Amos preached, Israel's economic base was largely in agriculture, but a drought had begun to destabilize that foundation. The pastures had already begun to feel the effects of God's roaring, as had Carmel, the most verdant part of Israel, and incidentally, the supposed stronghold of Baal. Amos proclaims that the drought is the result of God's judgment.

The prophet uses this drought to illustrate that God is not an absentee landlord. He governs His creation (Psalm 104; Matthew 6:26) and knows everything that happens in it (Psalm 139; Matthew 10:29). He has neither abdicated nor delegated these responsibilities. If calamity strikes, God is involved in some way, possibly executing judgment.

John W. Ritenbaugh and Richard T. Ritenbaugh
Prepare to Meet Your God! (Part Three)

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Judgment on the Nations

What Does Amos 1:2 Mean?

Amos 1:2

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