God expects His people to seek Him and demonstrate His character. This is a Bible study teaching for “Seek God” on Amos 5 from the “Explore the Bible” series from Lifeway.
In this lesson, we are continuing in the book of Amos in chapter 5. The lesson plan includes only verses 4-15, but we’re going to read the whole chapter. George’s lesson last week gave us the setting of the passage and we discussed the ways what was going on in Israel was similar to what we are seeing today in the U.S.
What I’d like us to focus on today is the fact that Amos is pronouncing this judgment against the people of God. They were people who made sacrifices at the time, who thought they were secure in their position as “God’s chosen people.” They claimed his name, but they didn’t follow his ways. This is the context of the passage. God speaks to and disciplines his own.
So let’s get into the passage.
Listen, you people of Israel! Listen to this funeral song I am singing:
2 “The virgin Israel has fallen,
never to rise again!
She lies abandoned on the ground,
with no one to help her up.”3 The Sovereign Lord says:
“When a city sends a thousand men to battle,
only a hundred will return.
When a town sends a hundred,
only ten will come back alive.”
The Israelites thought they were safe and prosperous, that they didn’t have anything to worry about. But God has already spoken a judgment on the nation, he is telling them that they will be destroyed.
4 Now this is what the Lord says to the family of Israel:
“Come back to me and live!
5 Don’t worship at the pagan altars at Bethel;
don’t go to the shrines at Gilgal or Beersheba.For the people of Gilgal will be dragged off into exile,
and the people of Bethel will be reduced to nothing.”
6 Come back to the Lord and live!
Otherwise, he will roar through Israel like a fire,
devouring you completely.
Your gods in Bethel
won’t be able to quench the flames.
God is giving a warning to Israel, encouraging them to repent and return to him. God always warns before he judges. Amos begins to list their offenses, and the first is that they are worshipping at the “pagan altar” at Bethel, and shrines at Gilgal and Beersheba. These had been set up by Jeroboam when he first became king of Israel because he didn’t want people going to the Temple in Jerusalem to worship.
Gathering at the Temple for the festivals was required, but Jeroboam was afraid that going to worship in the southern kingdom would threaten his hold on the kingdom of Israel. God gave Jeroboam the kingdom, but he thought he needed to manipulate and essentially sell-out in order to keep it. He thought they could worship God in their own way rather than following the guidelines that God set.
7 You twist justice, making it a bitter pill for the oppressed.
You treat the righteous like dirt.
But it wasn’t just that the Israelites didn’t worship God in the way that they were supposed to. Their worship practices were off, as was the way that they treated others. They had no respect for God’s laws, and they had no respect for their fellow citizens. They took advantage where they could.
8 It is the Lord who created the stars,
the Pleiades and Orion.
He turns darkness into morning
and day into night.
He draws up water from the oceans
and pours it down as rain on the land.
The Lord is his name!
9 With blinding speed and power he destroys the strong,
crushing all their defenses.
This section really reminds me of God’s response to Job where God asks him who Job is to question and challenge God. Amos highlights the glory and majesty of God to show the sheer hubris of people who defy his laws.
10 How you hate honest judges!
How you despise people who tell the truth!
I think this is a good observation, people who are doing wrong don’t like those who don’t act in the same way. There is often a big pressure to conform, to get along, to not say anything that will offend someone or make them uncomfortable. If someone is doing wrong or exploiting others … we shouldn’t be someone that they feel comfortable being around. Being one of the gang and the “in group” is not something we should want when the group is doing wrong. A friend of mine once told a story about when he was on a bus, and a man sitting across from him was looking at him intently and said, “Your presence convicts me.” It wasn’t my friend personally, it was the presence of the Holy Spirit that the man was responding to. That is what we should all be like, we are supposed to be living carriers of the Holy Spirit, our presence should be convicting.
11 You trample the poor,
stealing their grain through taxes and unfair rent.
Therefore, though you build beautiful stone houses,
you will never live in them.
Though you plant lush vineyards,
you will never drink wine from them.
Often people who have wealth and influence think that they can do whatever they want and that there won’t be any consequences. They oppress people because they can and think that they won’t be called to account. God is telling them that they are very wrong. That they will be judged and that there will be consequences for what they have done to others.
12 For I know the vast number of your sins
and the depth of your rebellions.
You oppress good people by taking bribes
and deprive the poor of justice in the courts.
13 So those who are smart keep their mouths shut,
for it is an evil time.
Both commerce and the justice system were totally and completely corrupt and no one stood for what was right.
14 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.15 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.
God is telling them to repent. To stop doing wrong and to do good. Words are not enough, we need to act out the words that we claim to believe. Often we will give a pass to things that we know are wrong if people that we know are doing them.[1] We see that in the sex abuse scandal in the SBC.[2] [3] Another example is the cover-up of Ravi Zacharias’ sexual abuse, but it wasn’t just that.[4] Most people didn’t know what he was doing, but they did know that he inflated his credentials, called himself “Dr.”[5] [6] When he didn’t have a doctorate and claimed he taught at Oxford, when he hadn’t. People knew about that for years, but wouldn’t say anything. It took an atheist to keep pushing on these issues before Zacharias’s ministry corrected the information.[7] [8] [9] But that shows that there was a pattern of deception that the people around Zacharias allowed.
My friend Mark that I teach in Pakistan for sometimes wrote a book on stock and commodities training for Christians. In it, he explains how traders in the business will rip you off and not even think that they’re doing wrong, that it’s “just business.” In the book he writes, “A shortage of integrity always expands.” And that is true. It may be more comfortable to not say anything and to let things slide, but in doing so, you are making yourself a party to the wrong as well as helping the wrongdoer further down the wrong path.
It reminds me of the verse in Ephesians where Paul writes, “Have nothing to do with the works of darkness, rather expose them.”
16 Therefore, this is what the Lord, the Lord God of Heaven’s Armies, says:
“There will be crying in all the public squares
and mourning in every street.
Call for the farmers to weep with you,
and summon professional mourners to wail.17 There will be wailing in every vineyard,
for I will destroy them all,”
says the Lord.Warning of Coming Judgment
18 What sorrow awaits you who say,
“If only the day of the Lord were here!”
You have no idea what you are wishing for.
That day will bring darkness, not light.19 In that day you will be like a man who runs from a lion—
only to meet a bear.
Escaping from the bear, he leans his hand against a wall in his house—
and he’s bitten by a snake.20 Yes, the day of the Lord will be dark and hopeless,
without a ray of joy or hope.
Here again is another reference to “the day of the Lord.” We’ve talked a little bit about this before. I found a great article on Biblestudytools.com explaining it.
In the Old Testament the expression “day of the Lord” occurs eighteen times in prophetic literature, most often in the books of Joel and Zephaniah. It is not found in Daniel. A similar expression that stands close to it is “on that day, ” which occurs 208 times in the Old Testament; half the occurrences are in the prophets. In the New Testament, equivalent expressions, such as “day of Jesus Christ, ” are found in 1 Corinthians 1:8; 2 Corinthians 1:14; Philippians 1:6, 10; and 2 Peter 3:10, 12. “Day of the Lord” appears in 2 Thessalonians 2:2.[10]
It is a time which
refers to the time when God will intervene decisively for judgment and/or salvation. Variously formulated as the “day of the Lord” ( Amos 5:18 ), the “day of our Lord Jesus Christ” ( 1 Col 1:8 ; cf. 2 Col 1:14 ), the “day of God” ( 2 Peter 3:12 ; Rev 16:14 ), or “the last day(s), ” the expression highlights the unmistakable appearance of God. God will make visible his rule of righteousness by calling for an accounting by the nations as well as individuals, dispensing punishment for some and ushering in salvation for others.[11]
The Israelites were looking forward to this day, but Amos is telling them that it isn’t going to be the way that they think. That it won’t be good for them. God’s righteousness will be revealed and in force. They have been rejecting that righteousness, so they will be judged.
21 “I hate all your show and pretense—
the hypocrisy of your religious festivals and solemn assemblies.
22 I will not accept your burnt offerings and grain offerings.
I won’t even notice all your choice peace offerings.23 Away with your noisy hymns of praise!
I will not listen to the music of your harps.
24 Instead, I want to see a mighty flood of justice,
an endless river of righteous living.
This is one of my favorite verses and I love the way the NLT phrases verse 24 “Instead, I want to see a mighty flood of justice, an endless river of righteous living.”
I looked the verse in the Hebrew interlinear app that I had to see the actual Hebrew. The most literal translation is “but let run down like water, justice and righteousness like an enduring stream.”
The interesting thing about this is that the word used in the verse is “mishpat,” which can be translated as justice, but also means judgment. There is another word in Hebrew, “tzedek,” that means being just and righteous, but that isn’t the word used here.
The word translated as “river” in the NLT is “nachal.” And it doesn’t refer to a little stream like we would think of, but an overwhelming force of water. The description is (H5158): torrent, torrent, valley, wadi, a stream, especially a winter torrent, a narrow valley.”
As I was reading the description, what came to my mind was the deluge of water that the SJRA let loose on Kingwood, it was like a torpedo of water.[12] [13] [14] That is what this verse is describing, a torrential flow that doesn’t end.
The sense here is that there can be no justice without judgment, and the Lord is desiring that this right discerning and acting comes like an unstoppable and unending flood.
And then Amos end the passage with this:
25 “Was it to me you were bringing sacrifices and offerings during the forty years in the wilderness, Israel? 26 No, you served your pagan gods—Sakkuth your king god and Kaiwan your star god—the images you made for yourselves. 27 So I will send you into exile, to a land east of Damascus,” says the Lord, whose name is the God of Heaven’s Armies.
The Lord is making it clear that the false professions of faith and the dual loyalties don’t fool him. The Israelites are encouraged to repent, to give up the things that they are putting in front of God and to get real about their faith, to truly seek him. The same is true for us today.
As I was studying for this lesson on the book of Amos, I came across a site with Jewish commentary on this passage. We are following a reading plan put together by Lifeway. We have books that everyone is reading for their daily devotions. Jewish congregations follow an annual reading plan. They read from part of the Torah each week, the first 5 books of the Bible, the books of Law. That reading is called the “Torah portion.” Along with that, they also read from a selection from one of the other books of the Hebrew Bible, our Old Testament. That is called the Halftorah portion. They will read through the first five books of the Bible in a year, and bits and pieces from the rest of the Old Testament.
Each weekly reading has its own name and this chapter in Amos is the halftorah portion for a reading titled “Parashat Kedoshim.” This is from that commentary.
It is fitting that part of the book of Amos is read as the Haftarah in the Ashkenazi tradition for Parashat Kedoshim, which contains that pinnacle of Torah ethics, to love both neighbor (Lev 19:18) and stranger (Lev 19:34) as one’s self.
The book of Amos, with its strong ethical demands, presents YHWH calling upon his hearers to דִּרְשׁוּנִי וִחְיוּ “seek me and live” (Amos 5:4, similarly 5:6) and to דִּרְשׁוּ טוֹב וְאַל רָע “seek good and not evil” (Amos 5:14, similarly 5:15).[15]
God promises that when we seek him, we will find him. But we have to be willing to be all in. We can’t try to do it our way
You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. – Jeremiah 29:13
Bible Study Discussion Resources
There was quite a bit of discussion in the class and the in-person teaching didn’t follow what I had written very closely. Resources mentioned in the discussion.
- Memorial and Remonstrance Against Religious Assessments by James Madison: James Madison wrote against religious assessments in public schools.
- On Elections, Faith, and Parties: I mention the 2017 Humble ISD school board election in the discussion.
- Church History in Plain Language: We should learn the importance of the separation of church and state in high school U.S. history classes; however, to understand the deleterious impact on the church when the two are entwined, this book is an overview of the past two thousand years of the church.
There was a long discussion on personhood in the class. The idea of personhood for the Christian is grounded in Genesis 2:7 where it is written that after man was created from matter, that God breathed life into Adam. Adam was “made in God’s image.” This is referred to as the imago Dei. It is this understanding that our U.S. Constitution is founded on in our belief that all are created equal. The question, “what is a human,” is a much bigger question, but a fictional corporation is not a person regardless of what the courts say.
- Roe vs Wade Decision (1973): Contrary to popular belief, Roe vs. Wade did not give one person the right to end the life of another. The question was one of personhood, “when does human life begin?” Not just when there are living cells, but at what stage is there more than cells, created matter, but a human person. The court decided that since doctors, scientists, theologians, and philosophers could not give them an answer, that they as justices could not decide it. We may not yet know that moment precisely, but we have a much narrower window than we did in 1973.
- July 26, 2022: “Because of Texas’ abortion law, her wanted pregnancy became a medical nightmare:” This is the situation that I was referring to in the class. Abortion procedures are now illegal in Texas after the heartbeat can be detected. The law does allow for cases of “medical emergencies,” but medical professionals are hesitant to perform procedures in fear of being held criminally liable. D&C’s have been normal procedures after miscarriages. Now they are waiting until the woman goes into sepsis.
This Bible lesson was originally taught by Carla Alvarez on September 18, 2022 in the Kingdom Citizens Bible study Class at the Second Baptist North campus in Kingwood, Texas.
Endnotes
* Note: This study was originally written to be given in person. I included additional endnotes when I added it to the site in 2025.
[1] Khaleda Rahman, “Matt Chandler Is Latest Fall From Grace in American Evangelicalism – Newsweek.” Newsweek, August 30, 2022. Accessed September 17, 2022, https://www.newsweek.com/matt-chandler-pastor-church-leave-american-evangelicalism-1737923.
[2] Mary C Curtis, “Justice Department Investigating How Southern Baptist Convention Became an Abuse Safe Haven.” Slate Magazine, August 24, 2022. Accessed September 17, 2022 https://slate.com/human-interest/2022/08/southern-baptist-convention-sexual-abuse-investigation-justice-department.html.
[3] Benjamin Hawkins, “Department of Justice Opens Investigation of Southern Baptist Convention • Pathway.” Pathway, August 23, 2022. Accessed September 17, 2022, https://mbcpathway.com/2022/08/23/department-of-justice-investigating-sbc-ec/.
[4] Warren Cole Smith, “Following RZIM’s Money, And What’s Going On At American Bible Society?” Religion Unplugged, September 15, 2022. Accessed September 17, 2022, https://religionunplugged.com/news/2022/9/14/following-rzims-money-and-whats-going-on-at-american-bible-society.
[5] Ct Editors, “Podcast: Ravi Zacharias and the Case of Christian Credential Inflation.” Christianity Today, December 7, 2017. Accessed February 3, 2025. https://www.christianitytoday.com/podcasts/quick-to-listen/ravi-zacharias-case-christian-credential-inflation/.
[6] Warren Throckmorton, “Christianity Today Podcast: John Stackhouse on Ravi Zacharias and Credential Inflation.” Blog. Warren Throckmorton (blog), December 8, 2017. Accessed February 2, 2025, https://wthrockmorton.com/2017/12/08/christianity-today-john-stackhouse-ravi-zacharias/.
Throckmorton highlights this passage from the CT interview with John Stackhouse:
Lee:
John, what do you think with regards to character? So when someone does this and it is revealed that the information in their bio may be exaggerated or may be outright fabrication, is it okay to question their integrity overall?Stackhouse:
Well, when your whole job is to tell the truth as accurately, carefully, rigorously as possible, when what you’re really asking people to do by setting forth your credentials – which literally comes from the same word as creed or credo – why I should be believed, then you really take on a tremendous burden to speak very circumspectly. And if right out of the gate your credentials are suspect, then what are people supposed to do in the audience when he makes certain claims? Are they all supposed to hit their phones, or tablets and start checking everything you say because the stuff they can check isn’t quite true. Isn’t quite true. And I think as soon as we get into the it’s not quite true phase, I think you’re done. I just don’t think you can continue as an apologist if you’re not going to be scrupulous about telling the truth in a way that you can predict your audience will understand. Otherwise, you’re in the wrong game.
[7] Warren Throckmorton, “Fact Checking Claims about Ravi Zacharias’ Credentials: Is Dr. Zacharias in the House?” Blog. Warren Throckmorton (blog), November 27, 2017. February 3, 2025, https://wthrockmorton.com/2017/11/27/fact-checking-claims-ravi-zacharias-credentials-dr-zacharias-house/.
Ravi Zacharias’s credential inflation became a topic of discussion in Christian circles in 2017; however, it was Steve Baughman who first began pressing the point in 2015. Most of those original articles are now unavailable online, but Warren Throckmorton references them in several posts.
[8] Jeffery Jay Lowder, “Press Release: Has Evangelist Ravi Zacharias Misrepresented His Academic Credentials?” The Secular Outpost (Archived), August 28, 2015. February 3, 2025, https://web.archive.org/web/20150828015553/http://www.patheos.com/blogs/secularoutpost/2015/08/24/press-release-has-evangelist-ravi-zacharias-misrepresented-his-academic-credentials/.
[9] Warren Throckmorton, “Another False Credentials Claim: Ravi Zacharias (UPDATED).” Blog. Warren Throckmorton (blog), November 24, 2017. Accessed February 3, 2025, https://wthrockmorton.com/2017/11/24/false-credentials-ravi-zacharias/.
[10] “The Day of the Lord – Scripture Meaning,” Biblestudytools.Com, accessed September 11, 2022, https://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionaries/bakers-evangelical-dictionary/the-day-of-the-lord-god-christ.html.
[11] “The Day of the Lord – Scripture Meaning,” Biblestudytools.Com, accessed September 11, 2022, https://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionaries/bakers-evangelical-dictionary/the-day-of-the-lord-god-christ.html.
[12] Bob Rehak, “What Happened Downstream During Harvey as Lake Conroe Released 79,000 CFS.” Reduce Flooding (blog), June 12, 2020. Accessed February 3, 2025, https://reduceflooding.com/2020/06/11/what-happened-downstream-during-harvey-as-lake-conroe-released-79000-cfs/.
Bob Rehak is a long-time Kingwood resident who started his site, ReduceFlooding.com, to educate local citizens and persuade officials to take action on the factors that caused widespread damage to Kingwood, TX, in post-Harvey flooding. (This is the same “Awesome Bob” that ran for school board in the sketchy election in the 2017 Humble ISD school board election).
The SJRA’s argument is that their release did not cause Kingwood’s flooding. From “What Happened Downstream,”
To recap several key points:
-
The SJRA never did let Lake Conroe rise to its allowable flowage easement. The water level in Lake Conroe peaked at 7 a.m., August 28, 2017, at 206.23 feet. The SJRA’s flowage easement is 207 feet.
-
Outflow exceeded inflow by 8:30 a.m. on the 28th and stayed that way for the duration of the storm. As the lake level declined, the lake had up to 3 available feet of storage capacity.
-
Yet the SJRA kept releasing, on average, 2X – 10X more water than it was taking in. At one point, the ratio exceeded 100:1.
[13] “Responses to Statements Made by Kingwood Officials.” Conroe, TX: San Jacinto River Authority, September 2017. Accessed February 3, 2025, https://www.sjra.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Responses-to-Statements-by-Kingwood-Officials.pdf.
The linked report is an example of gaslighting that came continuously from SJRA officials. There were areas of Kingwood that had never flooded, except for when SJRA did the same thing in 1996 and flooded Kingwood out. The reservoir known as Lake Conroe was built for water retention to hold drinking water for the City of Houston.
It is a public resource; however, the SJRA appears to manage the flow for the convenience of private homeowners who live around the lake, for example, Lt. Governor of Texas, Dan Patrick.
In the years since the Harvey flooding, Lake Conroe residents have continuously protested the lowering of the lake ahead of spring rains that may in any way affect their recreational access to the lake, like not being able to launch a jetski from their backyard dock.
My personal opinion is that the excess flow was because Labor Day weekend was coming up and the Conroe interests on the SJRA wanted to ensure optimal lake levels … so Kingwood lakefront properties were devastated and out of business for years. They did something similar a couple of years later, but not to the same degree, ahead of Easter weekend. Streets in areas across the area south of Conroe were flooded because of the volume of the release.
[14] Bob Rehak, “Appellate Court Dismisses Homeowners’ Claims in SJRA Takings Case.” Reduce Flooding (blog), November 30, 2024. Accessed February 3, 2025, https://reduceflooding.com/2024/11/30/appellate-court-dismisses-homeowners-claims-in-sjra-takings-case/.
Just to finish out the story of Kingwood and the SJRA, an appellate court dismissed homeowners claims based on, as Bob explains, a very questionable report by an “expert.” This just proves the point I would make to my third-grade Sunday school class, just because someone says something, it doesn’t make it true. If an “expert” states something that just doesn’t seem right, maybe that’s because it isn’t right.
Basis for SJRA Speed Estimate Unclear
I have asked SJRA repeatedly how they arrived at 30 hours and never gotten an answer. That made me suspicious. The SJRA claims floodwaters move only1.27 MPH (38 miles in 30 hours). An average person can walk 3-4 miles per hour!
Plus, I’ve measured (with my drone) logs floating downriver in lesser floods at 5-6 MPH.
The speed of floodwaters determine their arrival time downstream. Claiming a 30 hour travel time that easily could have been as brief as five or six hours could cause people to focus on the wrong part of the flooding bell curve. And it appears that may be what happened in this case.
[15] “The Book of Amos: A Retrospect on the Fall of Israel – TheTorah.Com,” accessed September 11, 2022, https://www.thetorah.com/article/the-book-of-amos-a-retrospect-on-the-fall-of-israel.