Our reading may seem a bit obscure at first, so it’s helpful to have a little context. Amos was a prophet living in the time of the more well-known prophet, Isaiah, who was used by God to warn the Israelite people of coming destruction. Amos also brought this warning to the people, and just verses before, he was pleading with the people to repent.
Despite being part of a section warning people of the coming judgment, Amos speaks wisdom to us in support of our theme, “Living as God Desires.” What do we see in that regard? Just a few verses earlier, in verses 14 and 15, Amos says this in his cry to repent: “Do what is good and run from evil so that you may live! Then the Lord God of Heaven’s Armies will be your helper, just as you have claimed. Hate evil and love what is good; turn your courts into true halls of justice. Perhaps even yet the Lord God of Heaven’s Armies will have mercy on the remnant of his people.” Continue reading “Amos 5:21-24 – What Does God Want?”
