Amos 9:1-10 They All Fall Dead
God is SO angry He wants to crush ALL of Israel. They all fall dead under His hand; except He softens a little at the end of His rant.
I don’t know what to call God’s words today except a “rant.” You can hear the anger in His voice as He speaks against this people whom He has called out to once again. He pronounces death on EVERYONE in Israel. No matter where they flea, He will find them and kill them. We are not told if this includes Judah but God shows Amos a vision of Himself “standing beside the altar” (verse 1a). Thinking about this a moment more, He may be standing beside the altar made in Bethel. But the description of the building sounds a lot like the Temple Solomon built for the Lord.
God has a right to be angry. The people He took by the hand and led out of Egypt have gone so far astray that He doesn’t even recognize them anymore. They ignore Him and outright disown Him at every turn. The God who fed them physically from His own table every morning. The God who kept even their sandals and clothes from wearing out for 40 YEARS. (Now the child in me who likes new shoes and new clothes is saddened by this, but the adult is awed beyond belief. Not having to worry about the holes in my children’s clothes is wonderful!) The God who gave them victory in every battle when they were walking in His commandments. The God who dwelt with them PERSONALLY through His presence; guiding their every move with visible signs of that presence. The God who gave them His very words to live by; to protect and grow them as His people. And they threw it ALL away for gods who never did ANYTHING for them!
As ANGRY as He is, God STILL can’t bring Himself to completely destroy Israel. He starts out saying He will, but without Amos even saying a word, His heart softens. He remembers the love of David. He remembers the promises He made to him. And He remembers His own plan. Just for a moment He gave FULL voice to His anger.
I was just thinking about how God understands anger. Even Jesus became angry. With His anger, He took the time to create a whip and then cleared the Temple of all the people who were making a mockery of God’s House and festivals. God gets angry but He NEVER lets it completely control His actions. “Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger” (Ephesians 4:26)
God also understands our anger. God watched as Moses struck the rock instead of speaking to it, after the people cried out against God again because of water. He listened to Elijah when he cried out, believing he was the ONLY one left who obeyed God, because Jezebel was after his life. He listened to Jonah after he had shared God’s rebuke with Ninevah and they repented. Jesus healed the high priest’s servant’s ear after Peter lopped it off.
God didn’t let His people wallow in their anger indefinitely. He allowed them to feel and express it. He even allowed some of them to vent it at Him. Then He dealt with it; with its root. Moses was shown the Promised Land but relieved of carrying the burden of leadership for even more years. Elijah was shown God’s physical presence. Jonah was spoken to by God about his attitude. Peter was spoken to and then reminded of His actions and attitude by a rooster’s crow.
I added Moses’ outburst in as an afterthought. The ‘magic’ of computers let me put it in seamlessly, but it started me thinking about his outburst differently. I used to think of Moses not entering the Promised Land as a punishment for his actions. Just now (a few minutes ago anyway), I realized what a relief it must have been for him. Moses was OLD. He was more than likely tired of carrying the burden of leadership of this rebellious people. God had offered to start over with them on at least two occasions, to which, Moses pleaded with Him not to in order to spare His name. Not specifically for the people’s sake but for God’s name’s sake. God listened to his pleas. One day Moses was fed up with the people and gave vent to his frustration. God FULLY understood that frustration and made a way for him out from under that pressure. Not immediately, but in a way that preserved Moses’ ‘reputation’ with the people and relieved him from an unending role of responsibility.
There NEVER would have been a ‘good time’ for Moses to step down on his own. God gave him a good place to ‘bow out’ and let the people go on without him. No longer would Moses be responsible for maintaining the people’s focus on God. He set them up with a FULL refresher on God’s word, then let Joshua take it from there.
I wonder if Moses went through this same realization of what God actually did for him that day. Did he ‘brood’ over not going into the Promised Land for a little while? Did he finally fall to his knees and THANK God for the ‘end date’ he was given? Did he share this relief with Joshua? I don’t see him brooding over it for the rest of his life. If he did, God would not have been able to use him any longer. He too, didn’t let the sun go down on his wrath.
I noticed that each of the ‘anger moments’ (even God’s) was the beginning of something new. ALL those mentioned were allowed to give vent to their anger, but something special happened on the other side of it. God relented and chose a remnant to preserve for His special purpose. Elijah was allowed to go Home to be with God, after he anointed his replacement. Jonah learned another valuable lesson and carried that into the rest of the time he served God as a prophet. (I bet he never ran away from another assignment or got angry when God showed grace again.) Peter became the ‘rock’ Jesus told him He would build His church on.
One final thing about the anger moments I chose to focus on. MOST of these moments were what we would call ‘righteous anger’. The anger was from a moment or events that had the one angered feeling that response justifiably. Jonah’s anger wasn’t ‘righteous’ though. His was selfish. But God allowed him to express it just the same. AND to learn from it.
Yes. There were consequences for the anger outbursts. But God was able to use those outbursts AND consequences for HIS purposes. When we turn to Him in our times of anger, even if they are at Him, He can make something beautiful bloom in its place. He can give us a new understanding. And even when we DON’T understand, He can fill us with peace in the middle of the mess. Don’t hide your anger from Him. Let Him transform it, and you, by sharing it with Him. Only then can He begin to change your heart.
Father God, thank You for showing me a ‘different take’ on the stories of the men You worked through. I don’t even come CLOSE to being in their league. But that doesn’t mean that You can’t use me in some way. Or that You don’t care about my feelings any less. I give You ALL of me; anger included. Create in me a work of Your hands that will be beautiful to You. Create in me a CLEAN heart. One that is transformed by Your Spirit and understands Your words and works a little more each day.
