a Dark Day for Hypocrites
Mighty sins had been committed, and mighty judgments were at hand. The oppression of the poor, Amos 5:11; the erection of elegant dwellings from unrighteous exactions, Amos 5:11; the acceptance of bribes to betray the needy, Amos 5:12 all these must be reckoned with. But if the guilty nation would not seek God and establish judgment in the gate, where magistrates sat to dispense justice, the streets would be filled with wailing, and the husbandmen and vine-dressers would be equally affected by the widespread desolation as the dwellers in the cities.
Moreover, bad as Israel's present condition was, it would become infinitely worse, as though a man fleeing from a lion rushed into the arms of a bear, or, taking refuge in a house, was stung by a serpent that lay hid in a cranny of the wall. Of what avail are religious rites, when the heart is alienated from God, Amos 5:21, etc.? Let us heed well the exhortation of Amos 5:23-24. The martyr Stephen quoted Amos 5:25-27, which accuse the people of carrying about little shrines and pocket-idols, to serve as amulets averting disaster, Acts 7:43. But they might as well have built a bank of sand to arrest an overflowing flood! The one thing which is going to help us is repentance toward God and faith in our Savior Jesus Christ.