Zephaniah 1:1

Zephaniah 1:1 says, The word of the LORD which came unto Zephaniah the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hizkiah, in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah.  Matthew Henry says that Zephaniah was the last prophet before the captivity of the people of Judah and Jerusalem by the Chaldeans, and Jeremiah was the first prophet during their captivity.  Zephaniah said that the word of the LORD came to him in the days of Joash, king of Judah.  What Zephaniah was going to tell them was God's word, and what we as followers of Christ today must share with the world is God's word.  Verse two adds, I will utterly consume all things from off the land, saith the LORD.  Zephaniah said that God had said that He was going to destroy everything in the  land of Judah.  This was not to be just an arbitrary act on the part of God, but was due to the sins of the people of Judah.  Verse three continues, I will consume man and beast; I will consume the fowls of the heaven, and the fishes of the sea, and the stumblingblocks with the wicked; and I will cut off man from off the land, saith the LORD.  God said this was to be a complete destruction of the land, of the people, the animals, the fish and the fowl of the air.  This is a figurative statement of complete destruction.  Since the people of Judah had perverted the use of the animals that God had provided for them, He was going to take them away.  If we begin to misuse the things that God blesses us with, we should not be surprised if He takes them away.  Verse four declares, I will also stretch out mine hand upon Judah, and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place, and the name of the Chemarims with the priests;  God said that He was going to cut off all the worship of Baal and other false gods, and the priests who proclaimed their word.  One day, God is likewise going to cut off all the false gods of today and the people who follow them.  Verse five adds, And them that worship the host of heaven upon the housetops; and them that worship and that swear by the LORD, and that swear by Malcham;  God said He would also cut off those who worshipped the heavens claiming to worship God.  There is no room for the worship of any of God's creation as well as any man-made idol in our relationship with God.  Verse six continues, And them that are turned back from the LORD; and those that have not sought the LORD, nor inquired for him.  Zephaniah was specific in who God said was going to be destroyed and why.  The had turned their back on God and no longer sought Him.  These were God's chosen people, but they had rejected Him.  The only way to salvation is through the acceptance of Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, and yet too many people have turned their back on Him and refuse to seek His will in their life.  Verse seven states, Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord GOD: for the day of the LORD is at hand: for the LORD hath prepared a sacrifice, he hath bid his guests.  God called on the people of Judah to be prepared, because He was coming in judgment.  Those who had offered up false sacrifices would themselves become a sacrifice to God.  If we worship false gods, then when God's judgment comes,we will be given up to everlasting punishment or sacrificed by God to the penalty for our sins.  Verse eight adds, And it shall come to pass in the day of the LORD’s sacrifice, that I will punish the princes, and the king’s children, and all such as are clothed with strange apparel.  God said those in power would be punished for their sins.  These were the people who were supposed to be leading Judah and Jerusalem to God, but instead they were leading them away from Him.  Verse nine concludes, In the same day also will I punish all those that leap on the threshold, which fill their masters’ houses with violence and deceit.  God said that no one who had turned away from Him would escape His coming punishment.  Matthew Henry says that leap upon the threshold likely meant entering a neighbor's home to steal from them.  It doesn't matter if we are rich or poor, if we are guilty of sin in our life, God will punish it.  Our only hope is to accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, since He has already paid the penalty for our sins.

Amos Review

 We will review what we learned from Amos.  First, we see that God calls ordinary people to proclaim or preach His word.  Amos was not a priest or an educated man, nor was he the son of one.  He was a herdsman.  We should look more at whether God called someone to preach today than we do at their education or family history.  Of course, if we are a Christian, then we are also called to share the gospel with others.  Next, we see that God uses ordinary things to reveal His word and accomplish His purpose.  God does not need a great army to defeat His enemies, but can do it with something as lowly as a grasshopper.  We also learned that we should be interceding with God on behalf of the lost.  Ultimately, it is their choice whether or not to accept Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord, but we need to be praying that they will do so before it is too late.  We then see that God punishes those who stand against Him and His people.  I believe that God will one day punish all those who refuse to accept His salvation plan, and that He will especially punish those who harm His prophets, or I believe we could say preachers today.  Yet, we also see that God will punish those who profess to be His people, but who instead worship idols, or the things of this world.   Simply claiming to be a part of God's family and not giving up the worship of the things of this world is not enough.  We must truly put our faith in Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord in order to be saved, and then we must put God's will first in all that we do.  Finally, we learned that God will preserve or protect those who are truly His.  God said that He would protect the remnant of the people of Israel who were still true to Him and return them to the land that He had given them.  God will always protect those who are really His, and one day He will bring us home to Heaven, our everlasting home.  Next, we are going to look at the book of Zephaniah. 

Amos 9:9

 Amos 9:9 says, For, lo, I will command, and I will sift the house of Israel among all nations, like as corn is sifted in a sieve, yet shall not the least grain fall upon the earth.  God told Amos that He was going to sift Isreal like corn.  The purpose of sifting is to separate the good grain from the bad, and God said that none of the good would fall upon the earth.  The people of Israel were going to be shaken, but those who were faithful to God would still be protected by God.  Even if we as followers of Christ today are shaken by the things going on around us, God will always keep us from falling as long as we remain faithful to Him.  Verse ten adds, All the sinners of my people shall die by the sword, which say, The evil shall not overtake nor prevent us.  God said that the sinners of His people, those who were His in name only, would die by the sword. These were the people of Israel who thought that nothing bad could happen in the because they felt that simply by being born into the nation of Israel meant that God would always have to protect them, even if they were allowing themselves to worship other gods.  We cannot expect God to protect us from the evil in the world today if we only accept Him as our protector and do not acknowledge Him as the only God that there is.  Verse eleven states, In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof; and I will raise up his ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old:  God said that there was coming a day when He would restore the tabernacle of David, close the breaches, and raise it up from the ruins.  This was not just a physical restoration that God was speaking of, but was the promise of the coming Messiah, Jesus Christ.  God does not call us to a physical relationship with promises of great wealth, but to a spiritual relationship with a cross to take up daily.  Verse twelve adds, That they may possess the remnant of Edom, and of all the heathen, which are called by my name, saith the LORD that doeth this.  Through faith in Jesus Christ, God's kingdom was and is going to expand not just in Israel, but to the uttermost parts of the world.  If America, or Israel, or any nation is special to God today, it is not because the people of that nation are more deserving of God's blessings, but it is because the people are obedient to God through their relationship with Jesus Christ.  Because of that relationship, God will use them to reach out to all lost people everywhere.  Verse thirteen declares, Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed; and the mountains shall drop sweet wine, and all the hills shall melt.  God said that the people of Israel, who had remained true to Him, would be blessed with an abundance that would never run out.  We as followers of Christ are blessed by an abundance of God's grace that will never run out.  This does not mean a material abundance, but a spiritual one.  I believe that we should never attempt to make Christianity about material wealth or blessings.   Anything that we gain in this world will one day be done away with, except for our relationship to Jesus Christ and the things that we do to advance His kingdom and to glorify our heavenly Father.  Verse fourteen adds, And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel, and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; they shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them.  God said that His restored kingdom would be well populated.  Though most people may never accept Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord, many people will, and they will be the ones populating God's kingdom, which is a heavenly kingdom.  Verse fifteen concludes, And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, saith the LORD thy God.  When we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, we will be planted forever in God's kingdom.  Nothing can pull us out of that kingdom, because we are secured by the power of God. 

Amos 9:1

 Amos 9:1 says, I saw the Lord standing upon the altar: and he said, Smite the lintel of the door, that the posts may shake: and cut them in the head, all of them; and I will slay the last of them with the sword: he that fleeth of them shall not flee away, and he that escapeth of them shall not be delivered.  Amos said he saw the Lord, or God, standing on the altar.  We should not be surprised to find God at the altar, but we should also hope that we find Him there because we are meeting Him in sincere worship.  Matthew Henry said this was to show the people that His controversy with them was their idolatry.  God told Amos to smite the lintel so that it would cut the people who came in to the altar on the head, and then God was going to destroy the place and all that went in and out.  Verse two adds, Though they dig into hell, thence shall mine hand take them; though they climb up to heaven, thence will I bring them down:  God told Amos that there was no place between hell and heaven that they could escape.  In hell, we cannot escape God, nor can we escape His judgment by attempting to get to heaven by our own power.  Verse three continues, And though they hide themselves in the top of Carmel, I will search and take them out thence; and though they be hid from my sight in the bottom of the sea, thence will I command the serpent, and he shall bite them:  God also told Amos that there was no place on earth, from the top of the mountain to the bottom of the sea where they could escape His punishment.  There is still no place to escape God's judgment today except by faith in Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord.  We may call ourselves God's people, but if we do not have that personal relationship with Jesus Christ, then there will be no place to hide from God when His judgment comes.  Verse four states, And though they go into captivity before their enemies, thence will I command the sword, and it shall slay them: and I will set mine eyes upon them for evil, and not for good.  God said that even if the people of Israel were captured by the enemy that they would still face His judgment.  They might have thought that God would rescue them from captivity, but He said that He would still send His judgment on them.  The people of Israel were to be punished for their idolatry, and so will everyone who puts their faith in idols today, even if they proclaim to be Christians.  Verse five adds, And the Lord GOD of hosts is he that toucheth the land, and it shall melt, and all that dwell therein shall mourn: and it shall rise up wholly like a flood; and shall be drowned, as by the flood of Egypt.  God told Amos to let the people know that it was God Who was behind their punishment.  As followers of Christ, we may suffer at the hands of the world today, but we should never be in a position where God has to send His punishment on us.  If we allow the things of this world to come between God and us, then we should not expect Him to protect us from the world.  Verse six declares,  It is he that buildeth his stories in the heaven, and hath founded his troop in the earth; he that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth: The LORD is his name.  God left no doubt about Who He is.  He is the Creator of it all.  If we begin to place too much importance on the things of this world, then we need to remember Whom they belong to.  It is all God's and always will be.  Verse seven asks, Are ye not as children of the Ethiopians unto me, O children of Israel? saith the LORD. Have not I brought up Israel out of the land of Egypt? and the Philistines from Caphtor, and the Syrians from Kir?  God asked if the people of Israel thought they were more valuable to God than people of other nations simply because of where they were born.  We may sometimes act as though we as Christians are better than other people and feel that because we profess to be God's people that this makes God love us more and have to protect us, but we are all just sinners saved by grace.  We are not followers of Christ because we are special, but we are special because we are followers of Christ.  Verse eight declares, Behold, the eyes of the Lord GOD are upon the sinful kingdom, and I will destroy it from off the face of the earth; saving that I will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob, saith the LORD.  God said that His eye was on them and He saw that they were a sinful kingdom.  He then said that He was going to destroy them, except for that remnant that was still faithful to Him.  God will always distinguish between those who are truly His by faith and those who are His by word alone.  If we are truly followers of Christ, then no matter what happens in this world, we are safe in the arms of God. 

Amos 8:9

 Amos 8:9 says, And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord GOD, that I will cause the sun to go down at noon, and I will darken the earth in the clear day:  God said that the people of Isreal might look out and think that they had plenty of daylight left to do what they wanted to do, but that He would cause the sun to go down in the middle of the day and darkness to come over the earth.  I believe that God was saying that He was in charge of when judgment was coming on them, and they only had the time He gave them to repent and return to Him.  We today may feel that we have plenty of time left to make things right with God, but time may run out for us any second.   Verse ten adds, And I will turn your feasts into mourning, and all your songs into lamentation; and I will bring up sackcloth upon all loins, and baldness upon every head; and I will make it as the mourning of an only son, and the end thereof as a bitter day.  God said when He sent His judgment on them, that all their feasts would become times of mourning and their songs would become songs of lamentation.  He also said that they would go through the acts of repentance, but it would be too late.  God said that their mourning would be like that of the death of an only son.  When God's judgment comes, no matter how much people may mourn, if they have not accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord, it will be too late.  Verse eleven declares, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD:  God said that He was going to send a famine on the land, not of food and water, but a famine for hearing the word of God.  Matthew Henry says this means that there was coming a time when there would be few true prophets proclaiming God's word.  I don't believe that this means that God was deliberately withholding His word, but that there would be very few who were willing to proclaim His word.  We need preachers today who proclaim the truth of God's word, but more and more people are living in spiritual starvation.  They do not hunger and thirst after God's word.  Verse twelve adds, And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, and shall not find it.  God said in that day that people would run everywhere seeking His word, but they would not find it.  I believe that this means that they would be looking for God's word everywhere but in a personal relationship with Him.  We may search everywhere in the world for an understanding of God's word, but until we come to Him through faith in Jesus Christ, we will not find it.  Verse thirteen states, In that day shall the fair virgins and young men faint for thirst.  God said that when His judgment came upon them that the young people, those who should be the strongest, would faint from thirst.  I believe this means that they would faint not from physical thirst, but from the spiritual thirst that God had just spoken of.  No matter how strong we may be physically, if we are not hungering and thirsting after God's word, we will faint spiritually, and our spiritual relationship to God is all that really matters.  Verse fourteen adds, They that swear by the sin of Samaria, and say, Thy god, O Dan, liveth; and, The manner of Beersheba liveth; even they shall fall, and never rise up again.  God said that those who swore by, or put their faith in, false gods would fall and never rise again.  If a person puts their faith in anything but God, allowing it to be their god instead of faith in Jesus Christ as their God, when God's judgment comes, they will fall into the punishment of sin, never to rise again out of it.  This is true not only for those when judgment comes, but also for anyone who dies between now and the day of God's coming judgment.  If we reject Jesus Christ in this life, then He will reject us when God's final judgment comes. 

Amos 8:1

Amos 8:1 says, Thus hath the Lord GOD shewed unto me: and behold a basket of summer fruit.  God showed Amos another vision, this time a basket of summer fruit.   None of the things that God showed Amos were anything out of the ordinary, but God used them to reveal His message.   We may not need to look for extraordinary things today to find God's truth, but instead may simply need to look for His truth in the ordinary things of life as we live under the leadership of the Holy Spirit.  Verse two adds, And he said, Amos, what seest thou? And I said, A basket of summer fruit. Then said the LORD unto me, The end is come upon my people of Israel; I will not again pass by them any more. Amos said God asked him what he saw, and he said a basket of summer fruit.  Amos did not see anything special about the basket of summer fruit, and Matthew Henry says we may not always immediately understand a vision that God may give to us.  The basket of summer fruit only gained significance when God revealed its meaning to Amos.   It signified that the time for the judgment of Israel was at hand.  We are told of many signs that will occur before the return of Christ, but we must interpret them with God's guidance to really understand how relevant they are to the second coming.  Verse three continues, And the songs of the temple shall be howlings in that day, saith the Lord GOD: there shall be many dead bodies in every place; they shall cast them forth with silence.  God told Amos that instead of being a place of safety that the temple would be a place of howling, and it would be full of dead bodies.  The people of Israel had perverted the temple of God, and the idols that they had filled it with could not protect them from the judgment of God and the death that was coming.  Church buildings, especially if they are filled with man made idols, cannot protect us from spiritual death, but only a real relationship with Jesus Christ can.  Verse four declares, Hear this, O ye that swallow up the needy, even to make the poor of the land to fail,  Once more, God called on those who mistreated the poor and needy to listen to Him.  God always has a concern for the poor and needy, and we need to ask what He thinks of our treatment of them today.  Verse five adds, Saying, When will the new moon be gone, that we may sell corn? and the sabbath, that we may set forth wheat, making the ephah small, and the shekel great, and falsifying the balances by deceit?  God said that the only concern of the people of Israel was making more money, even by dishonest means.  They did not see holy days as a time to rest and worship, but only as a time that they were impatient to have pass so they could get back to making money.  We need to ask how we view the sabbath, ot in our case the Lord’s day today.   Are our thoughts on God and worshipping Him, or are we still filled with thoughts and concerns about what we are going to do tomorrow?  Verse six continues, That we may buy the poor for silver, and the needy for a pair of shoes; yea, and sell the refuse of the wheat?  God said that their thoughts were always centered on how to get the most of the things of this world at the expense of the poor and needy.  I believe that God expects us to have compassion on the poor and needy of the world today, and also to be honest in our dealings with everyone.  Gaining more material wealth should not be our primary focus in life, but obedience to God should be.  Verse seven states, The LORD hath sworn by the excellency of Jacob, Surely I will never forget any of their works.  God swore by the excellency of Jacob, or by Jacob's relationship with Him, that He would not forget any of their deceitful works.  Unless we accept salvation through faith in Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, God will hold us accountable for our sins when Jesus Christ returns in judgment.  All the false worship in the world will not save us,but we will be judged by that relationship alone.  Verse eight asks, Shall not the land tremble for this, and every one mourn that dwelleth therein? and it shall rise up wholly as a flood; and it shall be cast out and drowned, as by the flood of Egypt.  God asked if the land of Israel would not tremble at this coming judgment.  God said that those who were called His people but who had turned away from Him would be cast out or the promised land.  Simply calling ourselves followers of Christ without a personal relationship with Him will cause us to be cast out of the promised land of Heaven when God's judgment comes.

Amos 7:10

 Amos 7:10 says, Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, Amos hath conspired against thee in the midst of the house of Israel: the land is not able to bear all his words.  Amos had shown nothing but good will toward the people of Israel, making Intercession to God for them when he revealed His plan to bring destruction on them.  Instead of being grateful, Amaziah the priest of Bethel went to the king accusing Amos of conspiring against the king.  Matthew Henry said this was because Amos prophesied without license from Amaziah and also prophesied against him.  Some so called religious leaders today become very upset if someone speaks out against what they are preaching and teaching because it is not consistent with what God's word teaches.   Verse eleven adds, For thus Amos saith, Jeroboam shall die by the sword, and Israel shall surely be led away captive out of their own land.  Amaziah said that Amos was prophesying that Jeroboam would be killed by the sword and Israel would be taken away captive.  He did not say that Amos said that this was because of their sins and that they needed to repent and return to God to possibly avoid this.  Some people will always be more concerned about their position in the world than they are about their relationship to God.  Verse twelve declares, Also Amaziah said unto Amos, O thou seer, go, flee thee away into the land of Judah, and there eat bread, and prophesy there:  Amaziah tried to send Amos away to the land of Judah to prophesy.  He had been unsuccessful in getting the king to take action against Amos, so he tried his own method to get rid of him, by telling him that he was in the wrong place to prophesy.  We as Christians must go where God sends us and proclaim the word that He gives us, whether people want to listen to us or not.  Verse thirteen adds, But prophesy not again any more at Bethel: for it is the king’s chapel, and it is the king’s court.  Amaziah told Amos to no longer prophesy in Bethel, because it was the king’s chapel and court.  He was wrong though, because it was God's chapel and court, even if it had been corrupted by the religious leaders.  We should never begin to believe that the things of God belong to us to do with as we please.  Verse fourteen declares, Then answered Amos, and said to Amaziah, I was no prophet, neither was I a prophet’s son; but I was an herdman, and a gatherer of sycomore fruit:  Amos answered Amaziah by saving that he had not been a prophet nor a prophet’s son.  We are not born into a calling from God, but we are called from wherever we are and from whatever we are doing.  Verse fifteen adds, And the LORD took me as I followed the flock, and the LORD said unto me, Go, prophesy unto my people Israel.  Amos said that as he was following the flock that God took him and told him to go and prophesy.  When we go to proclaim God's word today, it must be because the Holy Spirit has taken us and sent us.  We can never just go under our own power or by our own calling.  Verse sixteen proclaims, Now therefore hear thou the word of the LORD: Thou sayest, Prophesy not against Israel, and drop not thy word against the house of Isaac.  Amos called on Amaziah to hear the word of God that He had for Amaziah because he had told Amos not to prophesy in Israel.  Verse seventeen adds, Therefore thus saith the LORD; Thy wife shall be an harlot in the city, and thy sons and thy daughters shall fall by the sword, and thy land shall be divided by line; and thou shalt die in a polluted land: and Israel shall surely go into captivity forth of his land.  God said that Amaziah's family was going to be destroyed and that Amaziah would die in  polluted land,because they would not listen to God.  No matter who may oppose us today when we proclaim the gospel and teach God's law, we can never change our message.