Monday, October 26 — The Lion Is Roaring
Most of us don't wonder whether God can speak. We wonder how anybody could hear Him over everything else that's talking.
Amos 3:1-7 — KJV
1 Hear this word that the LORD hath spoken against you, O children of Israel, against the whole family which I brought up from the land of Egypt, saying, 2 You only have I known of all the families of the earth: therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities. 3 Can two walk together, except they be agreed? 4 Will a lion roar in the forest, when he hath no prey? will a young lion cry out of his den, if he have taken nothing? 5 Can a bird fall in a snare upon the earth, where no gin is for him? shall one take up a snare from the earth, and have taken nothing at all? 6 Shall a trumpet be blown in the city, and the people not be afraid? shall there be evil in a city, and the LORD hath not done it? 7 Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.
Amos 3:1-7 — WEB
1 Hear this word that Yahweh has spoken against you, children of Israel, against the whole family which I brought up out of the land of Egypt, saying: 2 “I have only chosen you of all the families of the earth. Therefore I will punish you for all of your sins.” 3 Do two walk together, unless they have agreed? 4 Will a lion roar in the thicket, when he has no prey? Does a young lion cry out of his den, if he has caught nothing? 5 Can a bird fall in a trap on the earth, where no snare is set for him? Does a snare spring up from the ground, when there is nothing to catch? 6 Does the trumpet alarm sound in a city, without the people being afraid? Does evil happen to a city, and Yahweh hasn’t done it? 7 Surely the Lord Yahweh will do nothing, unless he reveals his secret to his servants the prophets.
Explanation
Amos was not a professional preacher. Elsewhere he tells us he was a herdsman and a tender of sycamore figs from Tekoa, a small town in the southern kingdom of Judah. God sent him north to Israel during a stretch of good times. The economy was strong, the borders were quiet, and the worship services were full. That is exactly when nobody wants to hear a farmer with dirt under his fingernails say something is wrong.
Chapter 3 opens with a line that should stop us cold: "You only have I known of all the families of the earth: therefore I will punish you." We would expect "therefore I will spoil you." But closeness to God raises the stakes; it doesn't lower them. Israel thought being chosen meant being exempt. Amos says being chosen means being accountable.
Then he asks a string of questions any country person could answer. Do two people walk together unless they've agreed to meet? Does a lion roar when there's nothing to catch? Does a trap snap shut on empty ground? Does a town hear the warning siren and not get nervous? Every effect has a cause. And so, Amos says, if a prophet is speaking, it is because God has spoken first. Verse 7 brings it home: the Lord GOD does nothing without revealing His secret to His servants the prophets.
That is a word of warning, but it's also a word of mercy. God doesn't ambush His people. He tells them ahead of time. He sends the warning while there is still room to turn around, the way a good doctor sits you down about your bloodwork before the heart attack, not after it.
This week walks toward Sunday's lesson, The Lord Calls Samuel. In Samuel's day, the Bible says, the word of the LORD was rare. God had not stopped caring. His people had stopped listening. So we start the week with the simplest truth we'll carry all the way to Sunday: God is a God who speaks.
Our problem is usually volume. Notifications, headlines, bills, group chats, and our own anxious thoughts at two in the morning. The lion is roaring and we've got our earbuds in. Sometimes God's word reaches us through Scripture, sometimes through a sermon that seems aimed straight at our pew, sometimes through a friend who loves us enough to say, "I'm worried about you." Amos would ask us plainly: when the trumpet sounds, do you even notice anymore?
And here's the hope tucked into verse 3. "Can two walk together, except they be agreed?" The God who warns is the God who wants company on the road. He isn't looking for a reason to punish. He's looking for someone willing to walk with Him.
Thought for the Day
God still speaks. The question is whether we're listening.
Reflection Question
What is the loudest voice in your life right now, and what might God be saying underneath it?
Prayer
Lord, You have never been silent, even when we have been distracted. Turn down the noise in our lives long enough for us to hear You. When You warn us, help us not to argue but to turn around. We want to walk with You today.
This week we walk toward Sunday's lesson: The Lord Calls Samuel.