Amos 9

v.1 "I saw the Lord standing by the altar, and he said:
'Strike the tops of the pillars
so that the thresholds shake.
Bring them down on the heads of all the people;
those who are left I will kill with the sword
Not one will get away,
none will escape.
Though they are driven into exile by their enemies,
there I will command the sword to slay them.
I will fix my eyes upon them
for evil and not for good.'

v. 8 'Surely the eyes of the Sovereign Lord
are on the sinful kingdom.
I will destroy it
from the face of the earth -
yet I will not totally destroy
the house of Jacob.'

v. 11 'In that day I will restore
David's fallen tent.
I will repair its broken places,
restore its ruins,
and build it as it used to be,
so that they may possess the remnant of Edom
and all the nations that bear my name,'
declares the Lord, who will do these things.

'The days are coming,' declares the Lord,
v. 15 'I will plant Israel in their own land,
never again to be uprooted
from the land I have given them."

In Summary

(from my commentary)

The Jews of Amos's day had lost sight of God's care and love for them.

The rich were care-free and comfortable,

refusing to help others in need.

They observed their religious rituals in hopes of appeasing God,

but they did not truly love him.

Amos announced God's warnings of destruction for their evil ways.

Yet in v. 11-15 he explains that the Messiah

would renew the spiritual kingdom and rule forever.

We must not assume that going to church and being good is enough.

God expects our belief in him to penetrate all areas of our conduct

and to extend to all people and circumstances.

We should let Amos's words inspire us to

live faithfully according to God's word.

p.s. reread v. 9:11

Does it remind you of an event in NYC in 2001??