Amos 6:8 says, The Lord GOD hath sworn by himself, saith the LORD the God of hosts, I abhor the excellency of Jacob, and hate his palaces: therefore will I deliver up the city with all that is therein.  When we take an oath, it  normally ends with so help me God.  We swear by God's name that we are going to tell the truth.  If a person doesn't really believe in God, then this really has no meaning.  Here, God says that He swears by Himself, and what He says is thereby true.  It doesn't matter if we believe in God or not.  What God says will always be the truth.  God said He abhorred the way those who were His people were living.  They thought it was in excellency, but God hated the way they were living.  We need to ask how God views our worship today as followers of Christ.  Verse nine says, And it shall come to pass, if there remain ten men in one house, that they shall die.  Those who had escaped the war would find no safety in their homes.  They would die also.  We may think that having survived some great catastrophe that we are safe, but if we do not have Christ as our Savior and Lord, then we will still die spiritually lost.  We cannot escape God's judgment, even if we hide in His sanctuary.  Verse ten says, And a man’s uncle shall take him up, and he that burneth him, to bring out the bones out of the house, and shall say unto him that is by the sides of the house, Is there yet any with thee? and he shall say, No. Then shall he say, Hold thy tongue: for we may not make mention of the name of the LORD.  Those who came to bury the dead would find none left alive.  The whole family name would be cut off.  They were proud of their heritage, but forgot God Who gave them that heritage.  Those who were there would say that they could not even speak God's name, possibly for fear that God would strike them down as well.  When we find ourselves in trouble, then that is when we most need to call on God.  God will always welcome repentant sinners with open arms.  Verse eleven says, For, behold, the LORD commandeth, and he will smite the great house with breaches, and the little house with clefts.  I believe that this was just a warning that God's judgment would encompass everything.  When God does come in judgment of sin, His judgment is all encompassing.  Verse twelve states, Shall horses run upon the rock? will one plow there with oxen? for ye have turned judgment into gall, and the fruit of righteousness into hemlock:  I believe that this was a warning that the ground would become like rock to them, useless for growing crops.  This was to be a direct result of their poisonous attitude toward justice and righteousness.  When we begin to pervert justice, we should not be surprised if God brings His judgment on us.  Verse thirteen states, Ye which rejoice in a thing of nought, which say, Have we not taken to us horns by our own strength?  The people of Israel had become vain about their own abilities.  They were no longer giving God the credit for their success.  If we begin to feel, especially we who are followers of Christ, that all our success in the world is due totally to our own ability, then we are setting ourselves up for a fall.  We must always acknowledge that God is the source of all good in life.  Verse fourteen says, But, behold, I will raise up against you a nation, O house of Israel, saith the LORD the God of hosts; and they shall afflict you from the entering in of Hemath unto the river of the wilderness.  Israel felt that they were secure in their success, but God said, "But behold."  It was time for Israel to look to God again, and they would not like what He was showing them.  There was coming a great defeat.  When we get away from God's guidance in our lives, we can listen for this same warning.  We need to look to God again, and if we have been far from His will, we may not like what He is showing us.  If so, then we must repent and return to following God's leadership.

Amos 6:1 says, Woe to them that are at ease in Zion, and trust in the mountain of Samaria, which are named chief of the nations, to whom the house of Israel came!  The people of Israel were at ease in Zion, feeling that simply being close to the holy mountain of God would keep them safe.  We today may be at ease thinking that our claim to be God's people will keep us safe, but for us to really be safe in the world today, we need a real relationship with Christ.  I believe that when we begin to proclaim that all we have to do is claim what we want and God will give it to us, we have begun to believe that God wants us to find peace through the things of this world.  We should never feel that the things of this world will bring us peace and security.  Verse two advises, Pass ye unto Calneh, and see; and from thence go ye to Hamath the great: then go down to Gath of the Philistines: be they better than these kingdoms? or their border greater than your border?  These were great cities that were now in ruins.  The people there had felt safe, but found that there was no security simply in the things of this world.  God asked if Israel was better than these cities.  Based on their own strength, the answer was that they were not.  When the people of Israel became at ease because of who they were, instead of whom God is, they were just as powerless as these other cities.  If we begin to believe that God has to bless us because of where we were born, or what family we were born into, then we should be ready for a fall.  Verse three declares, Ye that put far away the evil day, and cause the seat of violence to come near;  As the nation of Israel was at ease, they did not worry about the coming day of judgment.  I believe that we can say that God's judgment is not just something that will one day occur, but that God judges people every day.  We may escape the penalty of His judgment through faith in Christ, but that does not mean that we can live however we want to until Christ returns.  Verse four states, That lie upon beds of ivory, and stretch themselves upon their couches, and eat the lambs out of the flock, and the calves out of the midst of the stall;  The people of Israel had become content with the riches of the world and had forgotten the God Who gave them those riches.  We hear the call for God to bless America again, as though we by right of birth deserve more blessings than people in other countries.  If we want God to bless us, we must first bless God with all that we have.  Verse five states, That chant to the sound of the viol, and invent to themselves instruments of musick, like David; Then verse six says, That drink wine in bowls, and anoint themselves with the chief ointments: but they are not grieved for the affliction of Joseph.  These two verses basically say that the people were going through religious ceremonies without there being any real meaning to them.  They had no real concern for the affliction of those around them.  I believe that as long as we go about living enjoying all that God blesses us with but with no compassion for others, then we are not living as God would have His people live.  Verse seven declares, Therefore now shall they go captive with the first that go captive, and the banquet of them that stretched themselves shall be removed.  Those who were most concerned with themselves and their own pleasure would be some of the first to go into captivity, and all those things that they celebrated for their own pleasure in the name of worshipping God would be removed.  God never takes empty worship lightly.

Amos 5:21 says, I hate, I despise your feast days, and I will not smell in your solemn assemblies.  Amos warned the people of Israel that during this time of spiritual darkness that God would despise their feast days and would not smell their burnt offerings.  This warning still applies today. We are advised or commanded in Hebrews to not forsake the assembling of ourselves together, but if we are only assembling out of ritualistic habit and not truly worshipping God, then God is going to despise our assembly.  We cannot gather together to worship God and hate our neighbor and live for material success above all else and still worship God.  Verse twenty-two says, Though ye offer me burnt offerings and your meat offerings, I will not accept them: neither will I regard the peace offerings of your fat beasts.  While the people of Israel lived in spiritual darkness, they may have felt that offering sacrifices to God would buy His favor, but God said it was not so.  A person may faithfully attend church and give their tithe or more, but this alone does not make them right with God.  If we are simply doing these things for self satisfaction, or thinking that we will buy God's favor by doing them, then God will not accept them.  We must first be right with God before we assemble together and give our tithes and offerings.  Verse twenty-three says, Take thou away from me the noise of thy songs; for I will not hear the melody of thy viols.  Music might have been a part of their worship, but that did not mean God had to hear it.  We today may sing praises to God, but if the words have no real meaning to us, then they are no more than any other song that someone may sing.  Verse twenty-four states, But let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream.  God told the people of Israel what He wanted from them instead of empty worship.  God wants righteousness to rain down.  We, as followers of Christ, must be righteous in our relationship to everyone.  This does not apply to just our fellow believers, but to all people that we have dealings with.  Verse twenty-five asks, Have ye offered unto me sacrifices and offerings in the wilderness forty years, O house of Israel?  God asked if during their wilderness wanderings if the people of Israel had offered Him sacrifices.  The answer was no, and yet God was still with them.  God's presence in the lives of His people was based on a relationship and not a ritual, and it still is today.  Verse twenty-six declares, But ye have borne the tabernacle of your Moloch and Chiun your images, the star of your god, which ye made to yourselves.  Though the people of Israel had not been required to offer sacrifices to God in the wilderness, they now carried the tabernacle of false gods with them.  Anything that we allow to come between God and us becomes a false god to us, because it takes priority over our relationship with God.  Verse twenty-seven states, Therefore will I cause you to go into captivity beyond Damascus, saith the LORD, whose name is The God of hosts.  God pronounced His  judgment on the people of Israel.  They were to be taken away captive.  If we do not have a personal relationship with God today through faith in Christ, then we will be taken away captive to sin.

Amos 5:10 says, They hate him that rebuketh in the gate, and they abhor him that speaketh uprightly.  Amos was speaking to Israel at that time, but we can see where a lot of this applies to the world today.  Of course, Israel was God's chosen people, but we know that there are more people in the world today who ignore God than there are those who obey Him.  We just need to insure that we, as followers of Christ, are not among those who refuse to listen to God's teachings.  If we begin to abhor, or hate, those who speak God's word and walk uprightly, then we are no better than the lost world.  We must remember that morality matters in all things.  Verse eleven says, Forasmuch therefore as your treading is upon the poor, and ye take from him burdens of wheat: ye have built houses of hewn stone, but ye shall not dwell in them; ye have planted pleasant vineyards, but ye shall not drink wine of them.  God's written word, the Bible, is filled throughout with warnings about mistreating the poor.  The people of Israel were warned about growing rich and building big houses on the backs of, or at the expense of, the poor.  This warning has not changed.  Verse twelve says, For I know your manifold transgressions and your mighty sins: they afflict the just, they take a bribe, and they turn aside the poor in the gate from their right.  There is a list of the sins of God's people.  We need to remember that it was God's chosen people who were being addressed at this time.  It was those who called themselves God's people.  If we as followers of Christ today are guilty of some of the same actions, then what can we expect from the lost people of the world.  Verse thirteen states, Therefore the prudent shall keep silence in that time; for it is an evil time.  Since the justice system was corrupt, then there was no reason to appeal for justice.  We hear a lot today that those with money or power can buy justice, so there is no way to win against them.  Still, I believe that God expects His people to cry out for justice.  Of course, if those who call themselves His people are corrupt, then where will we find justice?  Verse fourteen declares, Seek good, and not evil, that ye may live: and so the LORD, the God of hosts, shall be with you, as ye have spoken.  This is the answer.  We are to seek good and not evil that God will be with us. Then verse fifteen says, Hate the evil, and love the good, and establish judgment in the gate: it may be that the LORD God of hosts will be gracious unto the remnant of Joseph.  If we are to be successful followers of Christ, this is what God expects from us today.

Amos 5:1 says, Hear ye this word which I take up against you, even a lamentation, O house of Israel.  When God speaks, everyone should listen, especially those who are God's people.  When we don't, God may have a lamentation against us.  To lament is to regret the actions of or to be disappointed in.  At the time Amos was prophesying to Israel, God was very upset with them.  Verse two states, The virgin of Israel is fallen; she shall no more rise: she is forsaken upon her land; there is none to raise her up.  When Israel became unfaithful to God, there was no one who could lift them up.  When we fail in our relationship to God, there will be no one who can lift us up except God Himself.  This can only occur through repentance and a return to following God's will.  Verse three says, For thus saith the Lord GOD; The city that went out by a thousand shall leave an hundred, and that which went forth by an hundred shall leave ten, to the house of Israel.  Disobedience to God results in a loss of His protection.  When they were obedient to God, the nation of Israel was powerful, but it was never because of their own strength.  This is still true today.  Verse four declares, For thus saith the LORD unto the house of Israel, Seek ye me, and ye shall live:  God's people were called on to seek God and live.  If we want to avoid God's lamentation against us, we must seek His will in all that we do.  Verse five states, But seek not Bethel, nor enter into Gilgal, and pass not to Beersheba: for Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Bethel shall come to nought.  Without the presence of God in the places of worship, they were of no value.  We may gather in the church today, but if we are not being obedient to God's will, it does us no good.  There must be a personal relationship with God for worship to have any meaning.  Verse six advises, Seek the LORD, and ye shall live; lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and devour it, and there be none to quench it in Bethel.  Amos gave the people of Israel, and people today also, the advice to seek God first.  We often think of this in terms of when we are in trouble, but if we seek God, or His will for us, first in all things we should never find ourselves in trouble of our own making.  The people of Israel were in trouble because they ceased to follow God's will.  Verse seven states, Ye who turn judgment to wormwood, and leave off righteousness in the earth,  This is an indictment against Israel.  They were not righteous and just in their relationship with God and other people.  Verse eight declares, Seek him that maketh the seven stars and Orion, and turneth the shadow of death into the morning, and maketh the day dark with night: that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth: The LORD is his name:  The people of Israel were advised to seek God once more.  They may have been known as God's people, but they had no real relationship with Him.  We must be more than God's people in name only, but we must follow His guidance in all that we do.  Verse nine states, That strengtheneth the spoiled against the strong, so that the spoiled shall come against the fortress.  When we follow God, He will provide our strength.

Amos 4:6 says, And I also have given you cleanness of teeth in all your cities, and want of bread in all your places: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.  Since God had removed His blessing due to the sins of Israel, they were now going hungry.  This does not mean that all sinners, those who do not acknowledge God, will go hungry in this world, but even if they prosper, they will one day suffer when God's ultimate judgment comes.  Even when God allowed Israel to suffer, they did not return to Him.  Verse seven says, And also I have withholden the rain from you, when there were yet three months to the harvest: and I caused it to rain upon one city, and caused it not to rain upon another city: one piece was rained upon, and the piece whereupon it rained not withered.  God's people should recognize that God is in control of the universe.  God can indeed withhold or send the rain when it is needed.  This does not mean that all natural disasters are caused by God though.  God may allow it, as He did with Job, without being the cause.  Verse eight states, So two or three cities wandered unto one city, to drink water; but they were not satisfied: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.  God's chosen people, who were His in name only,  instead of returning to Him, went into other cities looking for water, but they were not satisfied.  If we are God's people in name only, we are never going to have our spiritual thirst satisfied, no matter where we look for that satisfaction.  Verse nine declares, I have smitten you with blasting and mildew: when your gardens and your vineyards and your fig trees and your olive trees increased, the palmerworm devoured them: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.  The people of Israel should have been able to see what was happening and know that God was not happy with them.  If we do not honestly rely on God, then all the things that we depend on will ultimately fail us.  Even if we die rich in the eyes of the world, and we are not saved by faith in Christ, then we die spiritually destitute.  Verse ten says, I have sent among you the pestilence after the manner of Egypt: your young men have I slain with the sword, and have taken away your horses; and I have made the stink of your camps to come up unto your notrils: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.  We can read this as God actually doing it, or as His taking away His protection or blessing.  I believe that at times God does indeed send pestilence to attempt to bring His people back to a true relationship with Him, but not all pestilence is a direct result of God's actions.  I believe this was especially true in the Old Testament.  Today, as followers of Christ, we have the Holy Spirit to keep us attuned to God.  Not all natural disasters, which would be a pestilence, are an act of punishment on the part of God.  Verse eleven says, I have overthrown some of you, as God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah, and ye were as a firebrand plucked out of the burning: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.  All of these bad things that were happening were done to bring those who professed to be God's people back to Him.  If we as God's people are suffering today because we have allowed sin back into our lives, it is to bring us back to God.  Verse twelve warns, Therefore thus will I do unto thee, O Israel: and because I will do this unto thee, prepare to meet thy God, O Israel.  Israel, the nation known to be God's people, were warned to be ready to meet their God.  One day, when Christ returns, all will meet God.  We, as followers of Christ, God's people today, should not need this warning, because we already know Him.  Verse thirteen states, For, lo, he that formeth the mountains, and createth the wind, and declareth unto man what is his thought, that maketh the morning darkness, and treadeth upon the high places of the earth, The LORD, The God of hosts, is his name.  There can be no doubt that there is but one God, the Creator and Sustainer of the universe, Who desires a personal relationship with every one.  Still, in all His power, God will never force a person into that personal relationship with Him.

Amos 4:1 says, Hear this word, ye kine of Bashan, that are in the mountain of Samaria, which oppress the poor, which crush the needy, which say to their masters, Bring, and let us drink.  Amos brings some of God's specific charges against Israel here.  They were in their nice houses, as stated in the last chapter, while taking advantage of the poor.  I do not believe that God ever expects His people to grow more and more rich in the things of this world and feel that these riches are all for their own benefit.  God's word, the Bible, has a lot to say about taking care of the poor and needy around us.  We cannot, as God's people, look down on the poor as if they deserve to be poor because of their own actions.  Even if we can somehow look down on what we see as their sin, we must still love the sinner.  Verse two declares, The Lord GOD hath sworn by his holiness, that, lo, the days shall come upon you, that he will take you away with hooks, and your posterity with fishhooks.  God's people, who were His in name only, were to be taken away captive, and their prosperity taken away with them.  Professing to be a child of God without any real relationship with Him through Christ will only bring an ultimate destruction of all that a person is so proud of.  God's gives us freedom over sin through our faith in Christ, but if we do not have a personal relationship with Christ, all the riches in the world mean nothing.  Verse three states,  And ye shall go out at the breaches, every cow at that which is before her; and ye shall cast them into the palace, saith the LORD.  God had provided Israel with a good land, but like cattle in a good pasture, they were not satisfied.  Now, since they had looked to the world for satisfaction, they were going to be removed from that land.  When we are not satisfied with God's blessings and begin to look to the world for satisfaction, then we are in danger of losing God's material blessings.  Verse four states, Come to Bethel, and transgress; at Gilgal multiply transgression; and bring your sacrifices every morning, and your tithes after three years: I believe that this is just a warning against empty, ritualistic worship without a relationship with God.  We may be in church faithfully and give above a tithe, but if there is no relationship with Christ as Savior and Lord, then we are wasting our time and money.  Verse five says, And offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving with leaven, and proclaim and publish the free offerings: for this liketh you, O ye children of Israel, saith the Lord GOD.  This is a continuation of the warning against empty worship.  It is done for our benefit, and not for God's glory.