Bible Version: New International Version (NIV)
Application Notes: Life Application Study Bible (NIV)
AMOS 9
Israel to Be Destroyed
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.
2 Though they dig down to the depths below,
from there my hand will take them.
Though they climb up to the heavens above,
from there I will bring them down.
3 Though they hide themselves on the top of Carmel,
there I will hunt them down and seize them.
Though they hide from my eyes at the bottom of the sea,
there I will command the serpent to bite them.
4 Though they are driven into exile by their enemies,
there I will command the sword to slay them.
“I will keep my eye on them
for harm and not for good.”
5 The Lord, the Lord Almighty—
he touches the earth and it melts,
and all who live in it mourn;
the whole land rises like the Nile,
then sinks like the river of Egypt;
6 he builds his lofty palace in the heavens
and sets its foundation on the earth;
he calls for the waters of the sea
and pours them out over the face of the land—
the Lord is his name.
7 “Are not you Israelites
the same to me as the Cushites?”
declares the Lord.
“Did I not bring Israel up from Egypt,
the Philistines from Caphtor
and the Arameans from Kir?
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 descendants of Jacob,”
declares the Lord.
9 “For I will give the command,
and I will shake the people of Israel
among all the nations
as grain is shaken in a sieve,
and not a pebble will reach the ground.
10 All the sinners among my people
will die by the sword,
all those who say,
‘Disaster will not overtake or meet us.’
Israel’s Restoration
11 “In that day
“I will restore David’s fallen shelter—
I will repair its broken walls
and restore its ruins—
and will rebuild it as it used to be,
12 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.
13 “The days are coming,” declares the Lord,
“when the reaper will be overtaken by the plowman
and the planter by the one treading grapes.
New wine will drip from the mountains
and flow from all the hills,
14 and I will bring my people Israel back from exile.
“They will rebuild the ruined cities and live in them.
They will plant vineyards and drink their wine;
they will make gardens and eat their fruit.
15 I will plant Israel in their own land,
never again to be uprooted
from the land I have given them,”
says the Lord your God.
Application Notes
9:1 Judgment would begin at the altar, the center of the nation's life, the place where the people expected protection and blessing. This judgment would cover all 12 tribes. Commentators disagree concerning this altar—some think it was the altar at Bethel where false worship began under Jeroboam I. It could also be the altar at the temple in Jerusalem. God would destroy the people's base of security in order to bring them to himself. But he would also restore his renewed people and their broken world (9:11).
9:2-4 The “depths below” was the place of the dead. Mount Carmel is a tall mountain. Both were symbols of inaccessibility. No one can escape God's judgment. This news was good for the faithful but bad for the unfaithful. Whether we go to the top of a mountain or the bottom of the sea, God will find us and hold us accountable for our deeds. Amos pictured the judgment of the wicked as a sea serpent, relentlessly pursuing the condemned to the bottom of the sea. For God's faithful followers, however, the judgment brings hope for a new earth where peace and prosperity reign.
9:7 Cush, south of Egypt, was a remote and exotic land to the Israelites. Caphtor, the island of Crete, was a place where the Philistines lived before they migrated to Canaan. God would judge Israel no differently than he judges foreign nations. He is not the God of Israel only; he rules the universe and controls all nations.
9:8-9 Although Assyria would destroy Israel and take the people into exile, some would be preserved. This exile had been predicted hundreds of years earlier (Deuteronomy 28:63-68). Although the nation would be purified through this invasion and captivity, not one true believer would be eternally lost. Our system of justice is not perfect, but God's is. Evil will be judged, and the faithful will not be forgotten. Not a single true believer will be lost forever.
9:8 Amos assured the Israelites that God would not “totally destroy” Israel—in other words, the punishment would not be permanent or total. God wants to redeem, not punish. But when punishment is necessary, he doesn't withhold it. Like a loving father, God disciplines those he loves in order to correct them. If God disciplines you, accept it as a sign of his love.
9:11-12 God's covenant with David stated that one of David's descendants would always sit on his throne (2 Samuel 7:12-16). The Exile made this promise seem impossible. But “in that day” God would raise up and restore David's kingdom (here referred to as a “fallen shelter”) to its promised glory. This was a promise to both Israel and Judah, not to be fulfilled by an earthly political ruler, but by the Messiah, who descended from David and who would renew the spiritual kingdom and rule forever.
James quoted these verses (Acts 15:16-17), finding the promise fulfilled in Christ's resurrection and in the presence of both Jews and Gentiles in the church. To “possess the remnant of Edom” envisions the messianic kingdom, which will be universal and include Gentiles. When God brings in the Gentiles, he is restoring the ruins. After the Gentiles are called together, God will renew and restore the fortunes of the new Israel. All the land that was once under David's rule will again be part of God's nation.
9:13-15 These verses describe a time of such abundant crops that the people won't be able to harvest them all.
9:13-15 The Israelites of Amos's day had lost sight of God's care and love for them. The rich were carefree and comfortable, refusing to help others in need. They observed their religious rituals in hopes of appeasing God, but they did not truly love and follow him. Amos announced God's warnings of destruction for their evil ways.
We must not assume that just going to church or being involved in ministry activities is enough. God expects our belief in him to penetrate all areas of our lives, including the way we interact with other people and deal with life's circumstances. We should let Amos's words inspire us to live faithfully according to God's desires.
Taken from Life Application Study Bible - Third Edition - (NIV)