After announcing a general warning against Israel, Amos turns to announce the first six prophetic oracles against the Gentile nations that surround Israel. Like a whirlwind or a cyclone, Amos accuses one nation after the next until by chapter 2 his indictment zeroes in on Judah and Israel, which is in the ‘eye of the storm’ of his prophecy.
Why should the Christian pay attention to the transgression of the world? Should we not expect the pagan to act like a pagan? In this age of individualism, we too often narrowly think of Christianity as it relates to personal faith, piety and ethics, but Amos reveals that God has genuine care that nations not commit atrocities, not persecute God’s people, not break treaties, and not even desecrate the bones of a heathen king. Since man is created in the image of God, Christians must take care to love our neighbor as ourselves, by taking a genuine interest in and action against national atrocities against man. It is the church’s prophetic task to declare the mind of God as revealed in Scripture on social, national, and international issues. This is not a ‘social gospel,’ but rather the social and ethical fruit of the gospel.
