NEITHER PROPHET NOR PROPHET’S SON
#112 NEITHER PROPHET NOR PROPHET’S SON
AMOS
Tekoah - 12m south Jerusalem
· Only Amos in OT
· Name means "burden" or "with aburden" see 2:13
· Prophet - see 7:10
Words
· "pledge" 2:8 Lev. 25:35-45 see see 2:6
· "known" 3:2 consider Clinton
Outline
· 1:1-2 intro 1:3-2:5
· The demands of justice (8 burdens) Damascus/Gaza/Tyre ///Edom/Ammon/Moab
· Judah 2:6-16 Israel
· 3:1-5:27 words of the Lord v27 into captivity
· 6:1-14 day of reckoning
· 7:1-9:10 Visions
· 9:11-15 "I will bring again the captivity of my people".
1. Sin is worse in contrast with grace.
2. Mere ritual is offensive to God. 4:4,5;5:21f 3. Prosperity offers greater peril than poverty. 4. Abuse of the poor is contemptible to God 2:6;4:1;5:11,6:6
5. God's dealings are for men's discipline, not doom.
6. Discipline unheeded hastens doom. 6:3-7
Scripture Amos 7:10-17, NIV
Orig. 7/29/1964 (2/1976)
Rewr. 5/29/1989
Passage: 10 Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent a message to Jeroboam king of Israel: “Amos is raising a conspiracy against you in the very heart of Israel. The land cannot bear all his words. 11 For this is what Amos is saying:
“‘Jeroboam will die by the sword, and Israel will surely go into exile, away from their native land.’”
12 Then Amaziah said to Amos, “Get out, you seer! Go back to the land of Judah. Earn your bread there and do your prophesying there. 13 Don’t prophesy anymore at Bethel, because this is the king’s sanctuary and the temple of the kingdom.” 14 Amos answered Amaziah, “I was neither a prophet nor the son of a prophet, but I was a shepherd, and I also took care of sycamore-fig trees. 15 But the Lord took me from tending the flock and said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to my people Israel.’ 16 Now then, hear the word of the Lord. You say, “‘Do not prophesy against Israel, and stop preaching against the descendants of Isaac.’
17 “Therefore this is what the Lord says:
“‘Your wife will become a prostitute in the city, and your sons and daughters will fall by the sword. Your land will be measured and divided up, and you yourself will die in a pagan[a] country. And Israel will surely go into exile,
away from their native land.’”
Purpose: Continuing a series from the Prophets, here sharing the first of two parts on Amos as the voice of God’s judgment.
Keywords: Bible Study Judgment
Series, Old Testament Prophecy Series, Book Study
Timeline/Series: Sequential
Introduction
An overview is all we have time for tonight. Amos is our prophet of note. In his confrontation here with Amaziah, “the priest of Bethel,” he makes the point that he has come into Samaria at the behest of God only. He had no prior experience as a prophet nor was his father a prophet. Judah, you remember, was said (II Kings 14:25) to be a prophet who was the son of a prophet.
In fact, some scholars perceive that these chapters supply the sum of Amos’ ministry. He seemed to have been called out of the fields of Tekoa to come to Samaria to speak only this message. His entire stance as a prophet lasted only a few days. We do know where he came from. We do not know where he went after this time.
We do know that he lived during the reign of Jeroboam (7:9). Uzziah was on the throne in Judah. He was contemporary with Joel. Isaiah was a young man, being groomed for a later day in the courts and temple in Jerusalem, [and] in reasonable proximity to the time that Jonah would be heaved upon the beach leading to Nineveh.
Following Jehu’s stormy reign came Jehoahaz and Jehoash. Samaria suffered severely from the Syrians. Jeroboam brought strength. Fred Wood (Bib. Illus. Sp85) says that he was “the strongest king of any who sat on the throne of Israel during her stormy history.”
His reign, however, was devoid of moral uprightness and spiritual significance. There was injustice, oppression, and violence. Amos, himself, tells us how the people were exploited, “Panting after the dust of the earth on the heads of the poor,” (2:7).
I. First, There are the Eight Burdens of Amos. 1:3, “Thus saith the Lord, for three transgressions of Damascus, and for four, I will not turn away . . . because. . . .”
Seven times this is similarly stated. 1:3 (Damascus), 1:6 (Gaza), 1:9 (Tyre), 1:11 (Edom), 1:13 (Amon), 2:1 (Moab), 2:4-6 [(Judah and Israel)].
In every instance he uses the same format. It was a word from God. It certified their guilt. 1/N, 2,3/W, 4,5/E, 6/S. God is sovereign over all. Jeremiah 12:14, “Thus saith the Lord against all mine evil neighbors, that touch the inheritance which I have caused my people Israel to inherit.” It forewarned them of judgment. It leaves no [opportunity to revoke].
The sin pictured is past that which offers prospect of repentance. Every believer should see any sin as with potential to break the spirit. Every believer unbeliever should ask at what point repentance is no longer possible. [James] Moffatt1 captures the spirit of this by translating “for crime upon crime.” “Transgression” is not a strong enough word. The idea is rebellion. Leviticus 26 describes punishment. Five times “If ye will not yet.” Each time punishment is extended. Leviticus 26:41, “If their uncircumcised hearts be humbled . . . then will I remember my. . . [covenant]. . . .”
In every case except one, the symbol of this impending judgment is fire. Fire can purify or putrefy. Later they will be forewarned (5:6) of “like fire . . . devouring . . . and none to quench it in Bethel.”
Fire is often used to describe God.
· Exodus 3:2, symbol of God’s presence
· Deuteronomy 4:24, “For the Lord thy God is a consuming fire.”
· Isaiah 33:14, “Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire?”
· Jeremiah 23:29, “Is not my word like as a fire? saith the Lord.”
Destruction of Israel will take another form.
II. Next, Come Five Short Messages from Amos. 3:1, “Hear this word that the Lord has spoken.”
He speaks of a nation chosen. Their relationship is affirmed. V2, “You only have I known.” It is to know intimately. Their responsibility is adjudged. V2, “Therefore will I punish you for all your iniquities.” Different from transgressions (rebel). Perverseness, guilt.
He speaks of a nation covenanted. Chapter 3:3-15; v3, “Can two walk together except they be agreed?” Again, relationship affirmed. God reaches out to His people through His servant, the prophet. God works so diligently with Jonah. He takes a southern prophet to speak to the northern tribes. The individual must be moldable to God’s plan. Again, responsibility is adjudged. They are to prepare themselves for eventualities of God’s design. They will be surrounded, held captive, exiled. Amos is the first to prophesy exile: 4:12. 3:14, “The horns of (Bethel’s) altar shall be lopped off.”
Next, he speaks of a nation chastened, Chapter 4. Still again, the relationship is affirmed. He speaks of Bethel, Gilgal, places of spiritual significance—Amos 3:14, 4:4, 5:5; Hosea 4:15, 5:8, 10:5,15 (Beth Aven). And, responsibility is adjudged. God announces expectation—what He will do to them—five times: 4:6,8,9,10,11. He says, “Ye have not returned to me.” There is an ultimate warning. V12, “. . . Prepare to meet thy God, O Israel.”
Then, he speaks of a nation charged. Chapter 5, even here the relationship is affirmed. V4,6, “Seek the Lord, and ye shall live.” Not Bethel, Gilgal, Beersheba. The judgment is clear and settled. Justice will prevail: They have lived in [a] fine house, feasted from fine vineyards—both will stand idle. Judgment is announced.
· Fire, not mentioned in 2:6f, is mentioned in 5:6.
· Darkness is announced in terms of the “day of the Lord,” v20.
· Judgment upon their feast days: feast days are not at fault, abuse of them is problem.
· Captivity is pronounced.
Finally, he speaks of a nation confronted. There is little talk of relationship. There is much of affliction (sheber). 28 of 45 Old Testament uses are in prophets of impending political disaster.
III. The Book Concludes with Five Visions from the Lord.
Four of these begin similarly: 7:1,4,7; 8:1. “Thus hath the Lord showed.”
· A vision of locusts, 7:1-3—destruction, v1; a cry for forgiveness, v2; destruction averted, v3.
· The vision of fire, 7:4-6—judgment, v4; an appeal for restraint, v5; the appeal granted, v6.
· The vision of the plumb line, 7:7-9—truth brought to bear, v7; no intercession; judgment is determined, v9.
· Vision of summer fruit, 8:11-14—judgment is imminent; it will affect them where they will be the most hurt, v11. (The prophet’s voice will be stilled.)
There is a parenthetical confrontation with the “priest of Bethel” (7:10-17). The false spokesmen have much to lose.
A final vision of Jehovah, 9:10-17. Judgment will be executed, v1-10. A remnant will be spared and restored in time, v11-15. V11, “I will raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen.”
_______________
LINKS/REFERENCES
1https://www.britannica.com/search?query=james+moffatt
THE WRATH OF GOD
#678 THE WRATH OF GOD
(According to the Prophet Amos)
Scripture Amos 3:2, NIV
Orig. 11/1/1964
Rewr. 10/5/1977
Passage: “You only have I chosen of all the families of the earth; therefore I will punish you for all your sins.”
Introduction
William Blake, the English poet, has a classic statement dealing with anger, and how to handle it. “I was angry with my friend, I told my friend, my wrath did end. I was angry with my foe, I told it not, my wrath did grow.”
In those supple lines, this 18th Century poet sees into the very heart of God, as He determines that His people shall know when they suffer under His hot displeasure. It is in the knowing that proper steps can be taken to correct our errors.
Not much bitterness could survive if we went as quickly to those with whom we are angry, for nothing dissipates so quickly as anger not fed on resentment.
Even so, the Lord calls upon His prophet to be a spokesman to His people in their rebelliousness. Who the prophet is, is unimportant. The message of judgment and redemption is of utmost importance.
In our first lesson the various words for “prophet” were considered. Ro’eh—to see; chozeh—seer. Navi (9 of 10)—to announce. Specific meaning to specific people escapes us. I Samuel 9:9, “He who is now called the prophet (navi)was formerly called the seer.” Jeremiah 28:28, “Let the prophet (navi) who has a dream tell his dream, but he who has my word, let him proclaim it faithfully.”
I. God’s Wrath is Made Perfectly Clear through Human Instrumentality. 1:1,2, Amos identifies his prophetic calling. 3:7, Surely, the Lord will do nothing without revealing it to His servant the prophets.
· Adam forewarned that as there was a tree of life, even so a tree of death.
· Noah discovered in ample time to make the necessary provisions that there would be a flood.
· Both Abraham and Lot learned of the impending judgment upon Sodom.
· Moses delivered God’s message of the blood-atonement that would ward off the death angel in Egypt.
· Jonah was even sent to forewarn the Ninevites of their danger.
· Amos also was sent from Judah to Israel less than ½ century before fall of Samaria. Only Hosea would follow him.
II. God’s Wrath is Universal in Scope. Chapters 1 & 2 define this with absolute certainty.
· Damascus—to the northeast of Israel
· Gaza—to the west of Judah
· Tyre—to the north of Israel
· Edom—to the south of Judah (the descendants of Esau)
· Ammon—to the east of Israel
· Moab—to the east of Judah
· Judah
· Israel
Some observations about the impending judgments.
· They sinned with impunity until no escape.
· The judgment would be one of fire (Israel--Genesis 15:17; Exodus 3:2; Deuteronomy 4:24; Isaiah 33:14; Malachi 3:2).
· The rebuke is at the point of cruelties to other people.
III. The Wrath of God has as its Primary Target, God’s Own People. 3:2, Key verse, You only have I known of all the families of the earth, therefore I will punish you for your iniquities.
I Peter 4:17, For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God, and if it begins first with us, what shall be the end of them that obey not the gospel of God?
IV. The Ultimate Source of God’s Wrath is Found in the Idolatry of His People. 4:4, Come to Bethel and transgress; at Gilgal multiply transgression. (Bethel—House of God.)
· Genesis 28:17-18, Jacob’s ladder—How dreadful is this place? This is none other but the house of God, . . . the gate of heaven.
· Judges 4:5, Deborah judged Israel from near Bethel.
· I Samuel 7:16, Samuel’s circuit—Bethel, Gilgal, Mizpah.
· I Kings 12:29-30, And he (Jeroboam) set one in Bethel. . . . And this thing became a sin.
· I Kings 13, Prophet from Judah rebukes Jeroboam and curses his altar at Bethel.
· II Kings 2:2, Elisha follows Elijah to Bethel.
· II Kings 23:15, Reforms of Josiah begin with Bethel.
V. God’s Wrath is Directed Toward the Restoration of Righteousness. 3:12, As the shepherd rescues out of the mouth of the lion two legs, or a piece of an ear, so shall the children of Israel who dwell in Samaria be rescued.
9:14, And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel, and they shall build the waste cities and inhabit them. . . .
Conclusion
Julia Ward Howe’s moving “Battle Hymn of the Republic”:
Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord.
He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored,
He hath loosed the fateful lightning of His terrible swift sword,
His truth is marching on.
He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall never sound retreat,
He is sifting out the hearts of men before His judgment seat.
O, be swift my soul to answer Him, be jubilant, my feet:
Our God is marching on.
CARDINAL PRINCIPLES OF A COMMITTED PROPHET
#353 CARDINAL PRINCIPLES OF A COMMITTED PROPHET
Scripture Amos 3:2, NIV
Orig. 1/22/1967 (10/1981)
Rewr. 11/7/1986
Passage: “You only have I chosen of all the families of the earth; therefore I will punish you for all your sins.”
Purpose: Following revival, to give my people opportunity for serious soul-searching to determine the working of grace in their own lives.
Keywords: Forgiveness Responsibility
Grace Revival
Introduction
What is the link between faith and the way we live? Are acquaintances able to read by our actions and our words that being a Christian brings some pronounced changes in our lives?
The story is told of two [men] who were riding a train together. One punched his friend, pointed toward a man sleeping a few seats from them, and said, “Isn’t that the evangelist that preached that arbor revival last summer?” The other looked as carefully as he could and replied, “Well, it does look like him, but I don’t believe it is ‘cause he don’t have on one of those loud coats.”
Well, they got into an argument. One was sure it was. The other was sure it wasn’t. Finally, one who raised the question pushed it further, “I bet you $50 that that is Rev. Ambusher.” After getting his friend’s consent he went up to the sleeping man, awakened him, and asked if he were the reverend. The awakened man lit into the questioner. He was angry because he had been awakened, and told the man in no uncertain terms how he felt. In fact, he called the man by some very unpopular names.
The one who initiated this scene sheepishly returned to his seat. He declared to his friend. “The bet’s off! He wouldn’t tell me his name! I don’t know if he’s Ambusher or not!”
It is a sad day indeed, when one cannot substantiate differences in the lives of so-called believers from those around them.
I. The First Principle is that Grace is Extended. “You only have I known of all the families of the earth.”
Grace is extended through election. Deuteronomy 7:7, “The Lord did not set His love upon you and choose you because you were more in number than any people, for you were the fewest, . . . but because the Lord loved you.”
Do our rich gifts mandate a worthiness? Am I worthy of health when tens of thousands face lingering deaths? Do I deserve the pleasures of family when so many are alone? Were there no others who would have been more receptive of the miracle of forgiveness than I?
By so many important considerations, we are recipients of undeserved grace. Little boy on Today Show, born without arms, stubs for legs, but this glorious attitude about life. Veteran who lost legs to land mine; in Boston marathon, took five days to finish, born-again Christian—“First step is hard, afterward you’re on your way home” (Bob Wieland).
Some home types we have known.
It was a grace that was to be reflected in human righteousness. Psalm 23:3, “He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.” Proverbs 14:34, “Righteousness exalteth a nation. Sin is a reproach to any people.” Matthew 5:10, “Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.”
It was to be reflected in worship and praise of God. Some think that non-tongues speakers can “praise” God. Isaiah 60:18, “Thou shalt call thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise.”
It was to be a reflected grace in terms of social justice. Amos 5:15, “Hate the evil and love the good, and establish judgment in the gate.” 5:24, “Let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream.”
II. The Second Principle is When Grace is Extended, Responsibility is Demanded. “. . . Therefore, I will punish you for all your iniquities.”
It is the requirement of His sovereignty to punish sins. But understand punishment in God’s use of the concept. We think of punishment for the drugged rapist, or the child abuser. Whatever it takes to protect. (Little interest in reforming.) With God, punishment is redemptive: Meted out to effect human good—ultimately on the back of Jesus, “With His stripes we are healed”; meted out to change society.
Yet, how ready we are to prevent this redemptive punishment. Jesus worked closer and closer with the disciples. They were more and more included in Jesus’ life and works. Yet, when told of His approaching death, the ready response was, “Master, this shall not be.”
Such punishment is the only thing that will bring the human ego to the point of spiritual awareness. Most of us wax soft on capital punishment—biblically sound; rationale the criminal mind understands; to punish by taking human life is inhumane.
But there is no doubt that such pending punishment keeps us spiritually aware. Edmund Burke, Reflections on the Revolution in France, “He that wrestles with us strengthens our nerves and sharpens our skill. Our antagonist is our helper.”
III. The Final Principle is that God’s Judgment is Rendered in Mercy.”
Listen to a further word of the prophet.
· 5:1, “Hear ye this word of Lamentation.”
· 5:18, “Woe to you that desire the day of the Lord.”
· 7:8, “Behold, I will set a plumbline in the midst of my people Israel.”
· 8:3, “. . . The songs of the temple shall be howlings in that day.”
But listen as the book is concluded. 9:11-15, “11 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:
12 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. 13 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed. . . . 14 And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel, and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit them . . . . 15 And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up. . . .”
The highest of principles illustrates
· First, God’s judgment, meted out in the person of His only son Jesus: John 10:11, “The good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep”; I Peter 3:18, “For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God.”
· And second, in the midst of moral perversity, [that] God’s redemptive judgment is at work.
Conclusion
The quality of mercy is not strained;
It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven
Upon the place beneath. It is twice blest;
It blesseth him that gives and him that takes:
'T is mightiest in the mightiest; it becomes
The throned monarch better than his crown:
. . . It is enthronèd in the hearts of kings,
It is an attribute to God himself;
And earthly power doth then show likest God's
When mercy seasons justice.
. . . in the course of justice, none of us
Should see salvation: we do pray for mercy;
And that same prayer doth teach us all to render
The deeds of mercy.
Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice, Act IV Scene I
JOEL’S CALL FOR REPENTANCE
#675 JOEL’S CALL FOR REPENTANCE
Scripture Joel 2:12-18, NIV
Orig. 9/7/1977
Passage: Blow the trumpet in Zion; sound the alarm on my holy hill. Let all who live in the land tremble, for the day of the Lord is coming.
It is close at hand—2a day of darkness and gloom,
a day of clouds and blackness. Like dawn spreading across the mountains a large and mighty army comes,
such as never was in ancient times nor ever will be in ages to come.
3 Before them fire devours, behind them a flame blazes.
Before them the land is like the garden of Eden, behind them, a desert waste—nothing escapes them. 4 They have the appearance of horses; they gallop along like cavalry.
5 With a noise like that of chariots they leap over the mountaintops, like a crackling fire consuming stubble,
like a mighty army drawn up for battle. 6 At the sight of them, nations are in anguish; every face turns pale. 7 They charge like warriors; they scale walls like soldiers.
They all march in line, not swerving from their course.
8 They do not jostle each other; each marches straight ahead. They plunge through defenses without breaking ranks. 9 They rush upon the city; they run along the wall.
They climb into the houses; like thieves they enter through the windows. 10 Before them the earth shakes, the heavens tremble, the sun and moon are darkened, and the stars no longer shine. 11 The Lord thunders at the head of his army; his forces are beyond number, and mighty is the army that obeys his command. The day of the Lord is great; it is dreadful. Who can endure it?
Rend Your Heart
12 “Even now,” declares the Lord, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning.” 13 Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity. 14 Who knows? He may turn and relent and leave behind a blessing—grain offerings and drink offerings for the Lord your God.
15 Blow the trumpet in Zion, declare a holy fast, call a sacred assembly. 16 Gather the people, consecrate the assembly; bring together the elders, gather the children, those nursing at the breast. Let the bridegroom leave his room and the bride her chamber.
17 Let the priests, who minister before the Lord, weep between the portico and the altar. Let them say, “Spare your people, Lord. Do not make your inheritance an object of scorn, a byword among the nations. Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?’”
The Lord’s Answer
18 Then the Lord was jealous for his land
and took pity on his people.
Introduction
Joel, like Elijah and Elisha before him, enters the scene of history and destiny with no letters of credit. They lived in the two generations just prior to him, and served in Israel while Joel’s ministry was undoubtedly to Judah. Other dates besides the 8th Century are offered for him, but only that date satisfies all of the internal evidence. He is called Jo’el, meaning “Jehovah is God,” and is identified as the “son of Pethu’el.”
He was doubtless a deeply spiritual man. His knowledge of Jerusalem and the Temple mark him as a man who knew what was going on around him and who was gravely concerned about what this was doing to the people. The contemporary enemies are identified. They are the nations of Phoenicia, Philistia, Edom, and Egypt. After establishing what is happening, and the part Israel’s sin has in this, Joel gives a spiritual object lesson using the invasion of locusts as a metaphor of what their enemies are doing.
Finally, he calls attention to the ultimate judgment the peoples of the earth must face in the will of God, and that it is now His purpose for them to be delivered through repentance to the abundant blessing which He has ever been holding out to His people.
I. The Plague of Locusts. 1:1-2:27.
There are successive plagues and droughts that bring some unparalleled devastation. Some say the vastness of locusts prove that this is apocalyptic.
· “Locust” burner of the land.
· Reported to have caused the death of 80,000 in North Africa. W.M. Thomson1, “The Land and the Book”—“took four days to pass . . . consuming every green thing in their path.”
The debilitating effect will be to all kinds and classes of people. V5, The drunkard without his drink; v8, the new bride bereft of her husband; v9, the priest denied the offerings of ministry and livelihood; v11, the farmer watching crops wither.
The prophet calls upon the people in their dark hour to repent. Vv 12-14. (The event seems to be II Chronicles 2/II Kings 8.) Under Jehoram, Edom revolted.
Next come spiritual application of literal events, 2:1-27. The “day of the Lord” is no longer imminent, it is there. 2:1 and 2:11. The “day of the Lord” is expressed in terms of the locust invasion. The people are called to repent. “Rend your heart and not your garments, and turn to the Lord your God.”
The effect of change in them will have the appearance of God changing. God will work to bless rather than to bring to repentance. Then will be seen God’s ability to redeem and restore. 2:18-27.
· Material blessing—v19, I am sending you; v20, I will remove; v23, and He will cause to come down for you the rain; v25, I will restore the years; v27, I am the Lord your God.
· Spiritual blessing.
II. The Blessing and Judgment of God, 2:28-3:21.
· Sidelight from the Hebrew, 2:28-32 seen as 3:1-5.
· The Messianic Prophecy, read 2:28-32.
· Fulfillment in Acts, read 2:16f.
· Joel tells what is yet to be, 3:1-21. Judah and Jerusalem will be avenged, vv1-8; v2, in the valley of Jehosaphat, II Chronicles 20:26; v3, cast lots for my people; v8, what you did will be done to you.
· War and Judgment upon the Nations, vv9-16; we supply our best, v9; God will supply the rest, v11.
· God’s everlasting Blessing upon His people, vv8-21.
References
________________________
1Thomson, W.M. (2019, January 30). The Land and the Book. https://archive.org/details/39020001828188-thelandandthebo
THE LORD’S CONTROVERSY
#287 THE LORD’S CONTROVERSY
Scripture Micah 6:1-8, NIV
Orig. 9/3/1964
Passage: Listen to what the Lord says:
“Stand up, plead my case before the mountains;
let the hills hear what you have to say.
2 “Hear, you mountains, the Lord’s accusation;
listen, you everlasting foundations of the earth.
For the Lord has a case against his people;
he is lodging a charge against Israel.
3 “My people, what have I done to you?
How have I burdened you? Answer me.
4 I brought you up out of Egypt
and redeemed you from the land of slavery.
I sent Moses to lead you,
also Aaron and Miriam.
5 My people, remember
what Balak king of Moab plotted
and what Balaam son of Beor answered.
Remember your journey from Shittim to Gilgal,
that you may know the righteous acts of the Lord.”
6 “With what shall I come before the Lord
and bow down before the exalted God?
Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,
with calves a year old?
7 Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams,
with ten thousand rivers of olive oil?
Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression,
the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
8 He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.
And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly[a] with your God.”
Purpose: Continuing a series from the prophets, here addressing the message of Micah.
Keywords: Bible Study God, Controversy
Timeline: Sequential
Series: Micah
Introduction
Micah was contemporary with Hosea and Isaiah. Little is known about him that he, himself, does not tell us. There is a brief confirmation in the prophecy of Jeremiah of this time and circumstance.
Jeremiah 26:18, “Micah the Moreshite prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah, and spake to all the people of Judah, saying, ‘Thus saith the Lord of hosts: Zion shall be plowed like a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house as the high places of the forest.’”
Micah has considerately supplied answers to many of our questions. The opening verse runs the gamut of prophetic i.d. He gives us his authority, “The word of the Lord.” He tells us who he is, “Micah the Moresheth.” We know who his contemporaries were, “Jothan, Ahaz, Hezekiah, kings of Judah.” He names the people who are his audience, “concerning Samaria and Jerusalem.” He makes it plain from this opening verse that his message is one of judgment.
I. The Controversy Stated. “Let the Lord be witness against you, the Lord from his holy temple.”
The central focus of the problem is in the religious chapters. V5, “Is it not Samaria? . . . Are they not Jerusalem?”
Three sins are noted in these opening chapters: Idolatry—1:7, graven images, idols; social injustice—2:3, devise iniquity in the night, covet field, take by violence, oppress weaker men; hypocrisy—3:11, judges, priests, prophets do what they do for what is in their own best interests.
That, for which there is no deliverance for Samaria, marches toward Jerusalem. V12, “Evil came down from the Lord to the gate of Jerusalem.” The Assyrians were then in power. The captivity of Israel was near at hand. Israel/Syria lay siege before Jerusalem, II Kings 16:5 (Ahaz). Ahaz sends for Assyria (Tiglath-Pileser) but it was a sell-out. Five years after Ahaz dies, Samaria falls (II Kings 17:6).
A day of contrasts:
· There is abject selfishness: (See Micah 2:1-3.) Compare Isaiah 5:8, “Woe to them that join house to house, that lay field to field, till there be no place.” Some of this very thing is happening is Palestine. Arabs are working at menial jobs providing services in Jewish towns not available in their own towns.
· There is injustice: False prophets. Micah 2:7, “O thou that art name the house of Jacob, is the Spirit of the Lord straitened? Are these His doings? Do not my words do good to Him that walketh uprightly?”
· God has already planned the restoration. Micah 2:12, “I will surely assemble O Jacob, all of thee; I will surely gather the remnant of Israel.”
II. The Controversy Must Next Be Substantiated. 3:1, “Hear, I pray you O head of Jacob, and ye princes of the house of Israel.”
Micah has nothing to protect. No sin will go unexposed. The princes are charged with violence and oppression, 3:1f. The prophets are accused, 3:5f.
The message of truth is the message empowered by the Holy Spirit. Compare 2:7, “Is the Spirit straitened?” 3:8, “I am full of power by the Spirit of the Lord.” To what degree do we heed the Holy Spirit? Restrict his influence?
III. The Controversy Must Be Secured.
Chapter four is the great “kingdom” chapter.
· 4:1 The future kingdom supreme
· v2 The future kingdom universal
· v3 The future kingdom peaceful
· vs 4-5 The future kingdom prosperous
· vs 6-8 Reigned over by Christ
· vs 9-13 Jewish and Gentile
The coming kingdom: Combined size of Judea/Israel no larger than Louisiana. Compare with Isaiah: Micah 4:1-3 with Isaiah 2:2-4. V9 questions, “Is there no king?” Isaiah 9:6, “Unto us a child is born.” V10 forecasts Babylon. (They are a full hundred years from ascendancy.)
What is a kingdom unless there is a king? Micah 5:2, Bethlehem—birthplace of the coming Messiah. Genesis 49:10, “The scepter shall not depart from Judah till Shiloh come, and unto him shall the gathering of the people be.” Shiloh/tranquil. Shalom/peace.
Micah shows us the kind of man he was. Back to the Bible (3:8), “to declare unto Jacob his transgression.” Back to Messianic hope (4:1-3), “in the last days.” Back to Bethlehem (5:2), “But thou, Bethlehem Ephratha”; the messianic hope takes on personality. Back to ethical righteousness (6:8), “He hath shown thee, O man. . . .”
IV. A Concluding Review.
The book is divided in the following way.
· Judgment 1-3
· Salvation 6-7
The book contains a deeply spiritual, and at the same time simple, message. It is of sin and corruption. It bleeds with the sighing and agony of people caught in the net of misrule of men in authority, 6:1. It insists upon return to God, 1:2, 3:1.
The final two chapters implore the divine character. The mountains (1,2) are called to be witness of the confrontation. God pleads (3-5) for remembrance. Micah 5:4 attests the redemption of the Lord; 5:5 declares the righteousness of the Lord.
The climactic Old Testament spiritual concept, 6:8. Some interpreters see v8 as the mountains (v1,2) answering in witness.
The final chapter concludes:
· Lament, vv1-6
· Intercession, vv7-10
· Promise, vv11-20
One final word on [Micah 6]: V4, Redemption; v5, righteousness; v8, revelation (“He hath shown thee”) and requirement (“What hath the Lord required of thee?”)
A PROPHET RE-SIGNS
#415 A PROPHET RE-SIGNS
Scripture Jonah 3:1-4:11, NIV
Orig. 9/16/1962
Rewr. 9/1977, 5/23/1989
Passage: Jonah Goes to Nineveh 3 Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time: 2 “Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message I give you.” 3 Jonah obeyed the word of the Lord and went to Nineveh. Now Nineveh was a very large city; it took three days to go through it. 4 Jonah began by going a day’s journey into the city, proclaiming, “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.” 5 The Ninevites believed God. A fast was proclaimed, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth.
6 When Jonah’s warning reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took off his royal robes, covered himself with sackcloth and sat down in the dust. 7 This is the proclamation he issued in Nineveh: “By the decree of the king and his nobles: Do not let people or animals, herds or flocks, taste anything; do not let them eat or drink. 8 But let people and animals be covered with sackcloth. Let everyone call urgently on God. Let them give up their evil ways and their violence. 9 Who knows? God may yet relent and with compassion turn from his fierce anger so that we will not perish.” 10 When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened.
Jonah’s Anger at the Lord’s Compassion
4 But to Jonah this seemed very wrong, and he became angry. 2 He prayed to the Lord, “Isn’t this what I said, Lord, when I was still at home? That is what I tried to forestall by fleeing to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity. 3 Now, Lord, take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live.” 4 But the Lord replied, “Is it right for you to be angry?”
5 Jonah had gone out and sat down at a place east of the city. There he made himself a shelter, sat in its shade and waited to see what would happen to the city. 6 Then the Lord God provided a leafy plant[a] and made it grow up over Jonah to give shade for his head to ease his discomfort, and Jonah was very happy about the plant. 7 But at dawn the next day God provided a worm, which chewed the plant so that it withered. 8 When the sun rose, God provided a scorching east wind, and the sun blazed on Jonah’s head so that he grew faint. He wanted to die, and said, “It would be better for me to die than to live.”
9 But God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry about the plant?” “It is,” he said. “And I’m so angry I wish I were dead.” 10 But the Lord said, “You have been concerned about this plant, though you did not tend it or make it grow. It sprang up overnight and died overnight. 11 And should I not have concern for the great city of Nineveh, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left—and also many animals?”
Purpose: A follow-up message dealing with the miraculous revival in Nineveh and the following days for Jonah.
Keywords: Bible Study Missions Self-Will
Timeline: Biographical
Series: Minor Prophets
Introduction
Chronologically, Jonah is the second of the minor prophets. He was of the northern kingdom, Israel; and had come on the scene shortly after Elisha, and just before Isaiah. There was no contemporary in Judah. The people of the southern kingdom were holding firmly to their faith while Amaziah and Uzziah were on the throne.
But in Jonah’s own northern kingdom, things were not going well. Materially, politically, they were surviving. Jeroboam II had come to the throne in Samaria. Israel was proud and vain and money-mad, and perceived of themselves as the apple-of-God’s-eye. The king was the worst of the lot.
Jonah is identified as the son of Amattai, the prophet, of Gath-Hepher (II Kings 14:25). Jonah’s name means “dove.” His father’s, “my truth.” Dr. Matthew Henry suggest that God’s prophets should be “sons of truth” and “harmless as doves.”
His is a prophecy of extremes. There are only forty-eight verses. It is a simply-written testimonial of Jonah’s “great refusal.” There is also found the story of a “great fish,” “a great city” (Nineveh), a “great message” (that God forgives sin), a “great jealousy” (he was jealous for the gourd, envious of Nineveh), and, finally, of the “great God” (who prepares a fish to deliver Jonah from rebellion, and a worm to deliver him from pride).
The lesson last week opened under the title, “A Prophet Resigns.” We may consider the lesson this evening as “A Prophet Re-Signs.” Although there is still an attitude problem, the needs of Nineveh outweigh Jonah’s disdain for these people.
I. Delivered from Rebelliousness. 3:1, “And the word of the Lord came unto Jonah the second time saying, Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach.”
We acknowledge a God-called man: Called to preach; called to preach to Nineveh; called to preach the word; called to preach without equivocation—not opposed to being God’s prophet, not opposed to be a foreign missionary, did not cotton to offering these Ninevites a second chance.
We acknowledge a man in the throes of God’s leading. Running from Nineveh leads to Joppa where a ship is waiting. The whale takes him to a seacoast where Nineveh is waiting. Nineveh surrenders him to the wilderness where God’s truth is waiting.
We acknowledge a God-taught man. The message of God’s bidding, 3:2. It must still be so for us all. I Corinthians 15:3f, “For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scripture.”
We must also acknowledge that he was a self-willed man. Nineveh was not a candidate for repentance. Nineveh deserved judgment. The miracle here is not whale, or worm, but man detached from the will of God. The miracle is God’s will to redeem.
II. Delivered from National Self-Interest. V4, And Jonah . . . cried, and said, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.”
He has come to the great city, sixty miles in circumference; walls 100 feet high, chariots could roll three abreast; 1500 towers as much as 200’ high; 350 square miles, almost the size of Lincoln Parish.
Jonah is showing some of the marks of his upbringing. He had to preach. He did not have to hope for deliverance—Imagine a doctor performing the necessary and radical surgery and then hoping that the patient will die.
Let us be reminded that God is on the side of right, whoever is graced by it. First, the Ninevites needed reviving. Second, the people of the northern kingdom had much to gain from their revival.
Could it be that the person who could make the greatest difference for God in Bernice over the next twenty years is outside the fold? Are you willing to be the one to lead him, her to the Lord? What if it is someone we find distasteful? Could it be someone who let you down years ago? To what degree do you even pray for the ones who are lost around us?
III. Delivered to a Life of Understanding. 4:11, “Should not I spare Nineveh, that great city, wherein are six score thousand persons that cannot discern between their right hand and their left hand?”
Understand that God is more concerned with repentance than with judgment. Jeremiah 18:8, “If that nation, against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them.” Ezekiel 18:23, “ Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked? declares the Sovereign Lord. Rather, am I not pleased when they turn from their ways and live?” Repent—nacham—change of heart/shuv is normal word expressing man’s repentance.
[Understand] that God can and does use extreme measures in accomplishing His will. The rabbis taught that the Ninevites heard of Jonah’s fish story, thus they believed.
[Understand] that the Lord is God of all nations. Romans 2:28,29. V29, “He is a Jew which is one inwardly, . . . circumcision is that of the heart.”
[Understand] that God is concerned with the welfare of all mankind. Jonah is in reality a book of missionary enterprise. God’s will is for the lost to be saved.
Conclusion
George Adam Smith, “The truth which we find in the Book of Jonah is as full a revelation of God’s will as prophecy anywhere achieves. That God has granted to the Gentiles also, repentance unto life, is nowhere else in the Old Testament so vividly illustrated. This lifts the teaching of the book to equal rank with the second part of Isaiah, and the nearest of our twelve to the New Testament.”
A MISSIONARY IN HIDING
#512 A MISSIONARY IN HIDING
Scripture Jonah 1:1-3; 3:1-3, NIV
Orig. 8/11/1968
Rewr. 12/7/1990
Passage: 1:1The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: 2"Go to the great city of Nineveh and
preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me." 3But Jonah ran away from the Lord and
headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord.
3:1Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time: 2"Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message I give you." 3Jonah obeyed the word of the Lord and went to Nineveh. Now Nineveh was a very important city—a visit required three days.
Purpose: To share a message with my people during a major mission emphasis of our perceived concern for our mission responsibility.
Keywords: Commitment Missions Revelation Disobedience
Timeline/Series: Mission Promotion
Introduction Pro 2-90p23
On May 20, 1987, a strange item was read in our newspapers. A West German youth had leased an American-built Cessna airplane and started the first leg of an unbelievable journey. Extra gas tanks were placed in the rear, and he flew first to Helsinki where he filed a final and fictitious flight plan. He wasn’t going where he said he was going.
In fact, he wound up a few hours later looking literally down the barrels of the armor of Soviet warplanes. With fool-hardy abandon, he flew his little craft toward the most heavily guarded city in the world.
He flew on to the city of Moscow with a bevy of these Russian fighters following his every move. He located Red Square, and literally flew around the Kremlin, the seat of government. Unbelievably, he then landed the Cessna on the cobblestone pavement of Red Square.
Surprisingly, he was not fired upon. He left the airplane, waved to the surprised crowd, and as he was arrested and taken away, he explained that he just wanted to talk to the Soviet people. I am not sure what he wanted to say. Perhaps just “Hello! How are you?”
Jonah had something he didn’t want to say. It was a message of great importance, urgency even, but he thought better of it. Instead of dangerously running into the face of the enemy, he just as dangerously went the other way. God called him to a task, and his inclination was to get by, callously hiding his missionary credentials.
I. First, There is a Clear Mandate from God. V5, “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me.”
A mandate to a chosen messenger. God effects a sovereign choice. Jonah can be easily perceived as a mistake, a malcontent, a rebel. But then, others whom God has chosen were not that different. Moses: reared in luxury, accepted responsibility, ran from it, married a Gentile, made all those excuses. David: of huge ego, proud, became immoral, enamored of himself. Simon: bold, brazen, little patience, no culture.
He is still choosing His messengers. Either, He has saved you or in the attempt you spurned it. We’re still enamored of ourselves. We use the same stale excuses.
Not only was the messenger chosen, the message was made clear. The West German youth just wanted to be chummy, to say, “Hallo!” Jonah was to tell Nineveh that their sins stank, but, more importantly, that God loved them and wanted to forgive them.
People get caught up in the whale. Did he/didn’t he? Could he/couldn’t he? When we make our peace with God, and His love, such things as whales are neither intellectual nor emotional ___. You see, for the believer, the whale becomes an instrument for deliverance.
But if this exacting message was to get through, a committed messenger would be required. Somewhat more is required than belief. Jonah clearly believed. He believed so strongly that God would forgive that he went elsewhere. He presumed wrongly that he could keep it from happening.
With belief is the need for conciliation. God’s judgments are just. The best investment that I can make in my life is to yield to His will.
II. Next, Is a Missionary in Hiding. V3, “But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the Lord.”
At the outset, it is simply a refusal to comply with this mandate to serve. Jonah was the sovereign choice of God for the redemption of Nineveh. The Hebrew people lost sight of the intermediary posture of being “chosen.” Through them God had chosen the way that He would affect world-wide reconciliation.
Many are yet like Isaac, taken as he was with Abraham to Mt. Moriah: Helping to prepare the altar, he asked, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” Most of us are no more willing than Isaac “to be offered up.”
Missionaries tell of methodology of the church in India. The convert being baptized is required to place his own hands on his head saying, “Woe unto me if I preach not the gospel,” I Corinthians 9:16.
There are various ways that we accommodate such seclusion in our lives:
· Refusal to give up hidden sins of the flesh—Not something that we struggle with without effect; a recognized indiscretion that we refuse to part with.
· One of the works of the Holy Spirit is to convict of sin—To deny Him right of reproof is to willfully exclude God.
· To refuse opportunities for growth as Christians is to hide our witness—List the avenues in your life that are directly related to your faith; list the things that go on in your church of which you have no part. Do you want your community to perceive of you as Christian? Other?
The most obvious now is to deny stewardship opportunity. Is regular financial support an integral part of my faith? Am I doing what I can? Should?
How seriously do I take the idea of participation in Jesus’ birthday? Lottie Moon goal is $86 million. Participation at 20-25%. What could we do if our best? Do you remember who Lottie Moon was? After 40 years, perceived her Chinese friends starving, began to go without food until [she] fell seriously ill, put on a boat to USA. Died at sea.
III. The Final Note Is One of Ministry. 3:3, “So Jonah arose and went unto Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord.”
There are social responsibilities that are not to be denied. We are to feed and clothe the destitute. We are to protest injustice. We are to champion unpopular but righteous causes.
The responsibility to share the gospel creatively is just as demanding. Jesus championed social causes. He died for the sin of men and women,
Jesus left a message through John that we deliberately downplay. Religious leaders reacted negatively to His claim to be “the living bread.” Those who “ate His flesh and drank His blood” had eternal life. John 6:66, “From that time many of His disciples went back and walked no more with Him.”
He, of course, did not literally mean to cannibalize Him, but to be at one with Him in life and death.
Are you “at one” today with Jesus? Or, are you a believer taking the easy road to faith?
You believe the gospel, but you don’t want it to cost you anything? You didn’t place your hands on your head and say “Woe unto me if. . .”?
It’s easier being “a missionary in hiding,” or is it?
Conclusion
During WW2, workmen were building a cathedral in a city on the coast of England. The city was bombed again and again. “Why do you continue to build when the next bomb may destroy all?”
“Everytime those bombers come this way, we want them to see the spires of this cathedral, and to know that we still have faith in eternal things.”
Give us, O God, the strength to build
that city that hath stood
Too long a dream, whose laws are love,
Whose crown is servanthood.
Already in the mind of God
That city riseth fair
Yea, bids us seize the whole of life
And build that city there.1
1 https://hymnary.org/hymn/EH1982/583
1 Public domain: Bowie, WR. O Holy City, Seen of John. (1910). In HYMNS OF THE CHRISTIAN LIFE, Harper & Row.
A PROPHET RESIGNS
#101 A PROPHET RESIGNS
Scripture Jonah 1:1-2:10, NIV
Orig. 7/1/1964
Rewr. 5/17/1989
Passage: 1 The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: 2 “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.”
3 But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord.
4 Then the Lord sent a great wind on the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship threatened to break up. 5 All the sailors were afraid and each cried out to his own god. And they threw the cargo into the sea to lighten the ship. But Jonah had gone below deck, where he lay down and fell into a deep sleep.
6 The captain went to him and said, “How can you sleep? Get up and call on your god! Maybe he will take notice of us so that we will not perish.” 7 Then the sailors said to each other, “Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity.” They cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah. 8 So they asked him, “Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us? What kind of work do you do? Where do you come from? What is your country? From what people are you?”
9 He answered, “I am a Hebrew and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.”
10 This terrified them and they asked, “What have you done?” (They knew he was running away from the Lord, because he had already told them so.)
Purpose: Beginning a two-part series on Jonah, here telling the story of a prophet who resigns his commission.
Keywords: Bible Study Disobedience
Series: Old Testament Prophets
Introduction
The story contained here is relatively simple. God calls a man by the name of Jonah to go to a place called Nineveh to denounce her wickedness. Nineveh was a real place, Jonah was a real prophet. But instead of occupying himself with what God has called him to do, Jonah, for reasons of his own, chooses to disobey. In fact, he acts upon the call by going in the opposite direction.
His reasoning does not reflect deep spiritual insight, but it certainly does reflect the posture of man who believed in God’s power to redeem. It was potential to success that drove him to other considerations.
On board that ship, they encounter a storm. Jonah is thrown overboard as a compensation to Jehovah, and is at once swallowed by a “great fish.” Three days later he was disgorged back near where he boarded the ship. The three days had given him time to re-think his position, and when the call came to him again to go to Nineveh, he concurred. True to God’s original expectation, when Jonah preached, the Ninevites repented.
Jonah left Nineveh in a huff, found a place to observe what would happen, and angrily waited. He wanted God to give them what they deserved. A small plant grew up and shaded the prophet. Then the plant died, and Jonah again became angry. He then had to face up to the principle teaching of the book that God, unlike Jonah, was more interested in the needs of the people, than he was for the tenure of a worthless plant.
I. There are Background Questions to Consider. V1, “Now the word of the Lord came unto Jonah, the son of Amittai, saying. . . .”
We need to authenticate Jonah. II Kings 14:25, “According to the word of the Lord God of Israel, which he spoke by the hand of his servant Jonah, the son of Amittai, the prophet, which was of Gath-hepher.”
Amaziah is dead, Uzziah comes to the throne. Jeroboam II in the northern kingdom. Thus, we learn he is a real person, that his home was in Galilee, and that he lived about 800 B.C. He comes from a devoted family. Jeroboam’s reign was one of material success. In fact, it seems to have been Jeroboam II who kept Assyria at bay.
We do not need to prove that Jonah wrote the book. It doesn’t contain oracles or visions. It contains life episodes told in the third person. Could have been written immediately after Jonah’s time, or 200 or more years later.
The book has a strong historical following: The book of Tobit (14th Century, BC); Josephus; Philo (1st Century Jewish philosopher). The early church accepted it. Christ quoted it (Matthew 12:38f—“no sign except”).
It is important to deal with the book as a possible allegory. Those who say it is spurious, a fake, we will ignore. There is spiritual truth given on occasion through allegory. There is no other Biblical event where a historical figure was used in allegory, telling a story figuratively or symbolically. Jonah stands for Israel/Has been commissioned to make Yahweh known to Gentiles/Refuses/Is swallowed up in exile/Repents/Given a 2nd chance.
Where the grumps have a problem, of course, is with the fish. Most refer to it as a “whale” though the text indicates “great fish” (special). Baxter calls it a “prepared” fish. Greek of Jesus refers to sea-monster which indicates Jesus’ belief. There are stories of whales taken in which were human remains. One seaman, James Bartley, disgorged stated he could have lived to starve.
We need to think through his possible reasons for refusal to go to Nineveh.
· A natural fear of another culture. Their inhumanity was well-attested.
· People, then and now, have a deep protestation against other religions.
· The prophet wanted to be among the known of Israel, not wasted in Assyria.
· Believing God to be a redeeming God, he would not be the instrument of delivery.
· To escape God, “flee from the presence of the Lord,” v3. Psalm 139:8, “If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there; if I make my bed in sheol, behold, thou art there.” At home, reminders are everywhere. At Tarshish (?)
· Simply, he did not want Nineveh spared. 4:2, “I fled . . . for I knew that thou art a gracious God.”
We can piece together what Jonah’s rationale must have been.
· Prophesied during Jeroboam’s reign.
· Jeroboam II’s son Zechariah reigned six months.
· Assassinated by Shallum (1 month).
· Assassinated by Menahem (10 years).
· But early on, Assyria is mentioned.
· Later prophets will point to struggles with Assyria.
· There is an earlier struggle with Syria. See II Kings 13:5f. See Bib. Illus. Sp83p82.
· Apparently, Jonah reacted against what would be a nation of power.
HOSEA—PROPHET OF GRAPHIC INTROSPECTION
#682 HOSEA—PROPHET OF GRAPHIC INTROSPECTION
Scripture Hosea 2:1-23, NIV
Orig. 10/26/1977
Passage: [a]“Say of your brothers, ‘My people,’ and of your sisters, ‘My loved one.’
Israel Punished and Restored
2 “Rebuke your mother, rebuke her,
for she is not my wife,
and I am not her husband.
Let her remove the adulterous look from her face
and the unfaithfulness from between her breasts.
3 Otherwise I will strip her naked
and make her as bare as on the day she was born;
I will make her like a desert,
turn her into a parched land,
and slay her with thirst.
4 I will not show my love to her children,
because they are the children of adultery.
5 Their mother has been unfaithful
and has conceived them in disgrace.
She said, ‘I will go after my lovers,
who give me my food and my water,
my wool and my linen, my olive oil and my drink.’
6 Therefore I will block her path with thornbushes;
I will wall her in so that she cannot find her way.
7 She will chase after her lovers but not catch them;
she will look for them but not find them.
Then she will say,
‘I will go back to my husband as at first,
for then I was better off than now.’
8 She has not acknowledged that I was the one
who gave her the grain, the new wine and oil,
who lavished on her the silver and gold—
which they used for Baal.
9 “Therefore I will take away my grain when it ripens,
and my new wine when it is ready.
I will take back my wool and my linen,
intended to cover her naked body.
10 So now I will expose her lewdness
before the eyes of her lovers;
no one will take her out of my hands.
11 I will stop all her celebrations:
her yearly festivals, her New Moons,
her Sabbath days—all her appointed festivals.
12 I will ruin her vines and her fig trees,
which she said were her pay from her lovers;
I will make them a thicket,
and wild animals will devour them.
13 I will punish her for the days
she burned incense to the Baals;
she decked herself with rings and jewelry,
and went after her lovers,
but me she forgot,”
declares the Lord.
14 “Therefore I am now going to allure her;
I will lead her into the wilderness
and speak tenderly to her.
15 There I will give her back her vineyards,
and will make the Valley of Achor[b] a door of hope.
There she will respond[c] as in the days of her youth,
as in the day she came up out of Egypt.
16 “In that day,” declares the Lord,
“you will call me ‘my husband’;
you will no longer call me ‘my master.[d]’
17 I will remove the names of the Baals from her lips;
no longer will their names be invoked.
18 In that day I will make a covenant for them
with the beasts of the field, the birds in the sky
and the creatures that move along the ground.
Bow and sword and battle
I will abolish from the land,
so that all may lie down in safety.
19 I will betroth you to me forever;
I will betroth you in[e] righteousness and justice,
in[f] love and compassion.
20 I will betroth you in[g] faithfulness,
and you will acknowledge the Lord.
21 “In that day I will respond,”
declares the Lord—
“I will respond to the skies,
and they will respond to the earth;
22 and the earth will respond to the grain,
the new wine and the olive oil,
and they will respond to Jezreel.[h]
23 I will plant her for myself in the land;
I will show my love to the one I called ‘Not my loved one.[i]’
I will say to those called ‘Not my people,[j]’ ‘You are my people’;
and they will say, ‘You are my God.’”
Introduction
Approximately half a life-time would pass between the death of Jeroboam II and the Assyrian invasion that would spell the end of the northern kingdom. Hosea, then, probably reached adulthood soon before the death of that king. He was sensitive enough to know what was going on among the people. Little could he imagine, however, that he would be called upon to be the prophet of graphic introspection. Hosea would be called upon to do things for the purpose of spiritual introspection for the nation.
Because they [would be] unfaithful brides, Hosea would be called upon to wed a woman of harlotry. Because God’s spiritual children were being directed to the gods of the nations, the prophet’s children, at least the children of the prophet’s wife, would be given names by which Hosea would call them, that proved that they were not his children. Because the nation had chased off after other lovers, Hosea would stand by helplessly as his wife left him to return to his lovers of the past. It would be commonly accepted knowledge the wife of the prophet was unfaithful to him and publicly flaunted it.
Finally, because God was in the business of bringing His people to repentance, and because He would willingly receive them back to Himself again, the prophet would willingly open his life again to this woman without virtue who comes back to him only when she has nowhere else to go. And Hosea would do it all gladly, so that the people would understand the love of God.
I. Hosea’s Marriage: The Symbol of Crisis, Chapters 1-3.
Hosea’s character is questioned. Gomer was his chosen bride. Her harlotry could have preceded. It could have followed her marriage.
The children of the union [were] Jezreel (“God shall sow”), Lo-ruhamah (“not loved” [or] “no mercy”), and Loammi (“not my people”).
The names of the two children are called back to our attention in chapter 2. “Say to your brothers, ‘My people’; to your sisters, ‘Objects of my mercy.’” 2:22f, “The fruit of the earth shall answer for Jezreel. Israel shall be my new sowing in the land, and I will show love to Lo-ruhamah, and say to Loammi, ‘You are my people,’ and he will say, ‘Thou art my God’” (NEB). And in 14:3, “Neither will we say any more to the work of our hands, ‘Ye are our gods’; for in Thee the fatherless find mercy.”
No way this could be an allegory. Certainly much can be made of the symbolic names. No symbolism in using "Gomer.” A prophet was chosen in whose life and experience the sin of the nation could be revealed.
Dealing with sin realistically: Gomer has sinned and she must pay. The nation likewise. Only after proper restitution is paid will restoration be made. The offended party goes in search of the offending one. Love finds a way.
Jeremiah 3 has an interesting parallel.
II. Israel’s Sin—The Indictment of Evidence, Chapters 4-7.
Hosea 4:1, The Lord has a controversy with the people of the land because there is no truth, mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land. Religious leaders—“Like people, like priest” (4:9). Princes—“Give ear, O house of the king” (5:1). People—“They sacrifice on the top of the mountains, and make offerings upon the hills, under oak, poplar, and terebinth because their shade is good” (4:13). Their foreign policy—“Ephraim is like a silly dove. . . . They call to Egypt, they go to Assyria” (7:11).
II Kings 15:19, Menahem; 17:1, Hoshea; 18:13-15, kings of Judah (Hezekiah).
III. Israel’s Punishment—The Judgment of Compromise, Chapters 8-10.
The judgment upon Samaria’s false religion, Hosea 8:6. The calf of Samaria shall be broken in pieces. Jeroboam I had arranged to keep them away from the temple.
Judgment upon their lifestyle, Hosea 9:6. Nettles shall possess their precious things of silver; thorns shall be in their tents. Hosea 10:1, Israel is a luxuriant (empty) vine that yields its fruit. The more his fruit increased, the more altars he built.
IV. Israel’s Restoration—The Yearning of Covenant Love, Chapters 11-14.
The love of the father for his child. Hosea 11:1, When Israel was a child, I loved him.
Love of the husband for his wife. Hosea 11:4, How shall I give thee up?
Love of the parent in the regret of necessary punishment. Hosea 12:9, I that am the Lord thy God from the Land of Egypt will yet make thee to dwell in tabernacles.
It is the Love of One who has chanced all on the outcome of love and has won. Hosea 14:8, Ephraim shall say, what have I to do any more with idols? I have heard him and observed him: I am like a green fir tree, from me is thy fruit found.
AS THE HEBREW WORLD TURNED
#681 AS THE HEBREW WORLD TURNED
Scripture Hosea
Recapitulation, 10/19/1977
Introduction
With the coming of Hosea upon the scene, we approach the end of an era. It was pointed out last week that Hosea would be the last prophet to the people of the Northern Kingdom, called Israel or Samaria (the capital). Before we conclude the history of the prophets as related to the ten northern tribes, an overview of the contemporary scene is in order. We need to understand, before Israel is phased out, what was happening in the world of the Hebrew complex.
Our study will move into a neutral gear at this point: The contemporary Hebrew complex tonight; the prophet Hosea next Wednesday, the Lord willing; and a review of the structure as related to the prophets the week after that. We may well be taking a break at that point. Wednesday nights during November and December have a preliminary priority. There will be an extra business night, a mission emphasis, Thanksgiving, some Christmas music, etc. We will probably continue after the first of the year, and Isaiah will be our first subject. I will be happy to have the extra time to capsulize such a prophet as he.
Let me encourage you to read ahead. Hosea for next Wednesday. (Pass out outlines.) Start Isaiah for completion in December. If the interest is sustained, we will continue with the other eleven prophets.
I. The Political Scene: From Stability to Chaos.
Following the great years of the united kingdoms under David and Solomon, came division, 922BC. Next, a century and a half of deterioration. In 786BC, Jeroboam II became Israel’s king. 783BC, Uzziah became Judah’s king. These two men would reverse the trend.
It was a time of peace and prosperity. No foreign nation strong enough. The only warfare of the period was Israel and Judah in expansion rumblings. Prosperous trade agreements. Forward reaching agricultural progress. 2 Chronicles 26:10 Uzziah—towers, wells. Amos “winter and summer house.” External peace and prosperity overshadowed internal spiritual sickness.
It would do the Western nations much good to consider their own plight. Amos: For 3 transgressions and for 4. Amos 3:2, You only have I known, therefore I will punish you.
Hosea 4-7, Israel’s sin. 4:1, Hear the Word of the Lord ye children of Israel: for the Lord hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land.
II. A Pinpoint of Political Upheaval.
You can mark down the year, 746BC. As long as even the corrupt Jeroboam lived, there was stability. In twenty-six years—six kings total, unrelated—most assassinated. Each with his own foreign policy (Hosea 5:13 / 7:11 / 12:1). Religious inequities undermined (Hosea 4 / 8:13 / 13:1-3).
But don’t overlook what happened outside. 745BC Tiglath-Pileser III (Pul) seized the Assyrian throne. Within two years he was secure and ready to conquer the world. Pact between Syria-Rezin and Israel-Pekah (2 Kings 15:29-16:10 / 2 Chronicles 28 / Isaiah 7). Ahaz-Judah appeals to Tiglath-Pileser. Assyrian record indicates Hoshea who was assassin.
Pekah was in fact appointed by Tiglath-Pileser. He was a proper vassal king until Tiglath-Pileser’s death. He tried to pull away (II Kings 17:1f).
Shalmaneser summoned and imprisoned Hoshea and marched on Samaria [in] 724BC. Late in 722BC, Samaria fell. Records indicate 27,290 leaders [were] deported. Captives from Babylon, Hamath came in. Hosea 5:7 [shows] dealt treacherously.
Conclusion
The circumstances of these years caused the prophets to wear heavily the judgment of God. Moral corruption, social injustice, religious ritualism demand the prophetic message. Israel’s sin is intolerable—God is Holy. Israel’s sin shall be punished—God is just. Israel shall be restored—God is Love.
The ten tribes will be definitive no more. The Northern Kingdom will cease. The remnant will survive.
· Amos 3:12, “As a shepherd rescues from the lion’s [mouth only two leg bones or a piece of an ear, so will the Israelites living in Samaria be rescued].”
· Hosea 13:8, “Devour like a lion.”
· Hosea 14:4, “I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely: for mine anger is turned away from him.”
· Hosea 14:7, “They that dwell under his shadow shall return.”—God, Messiah, but probably is a reference to the kingdom promise of covenant. The repentant of any age and clime and circumstance can believe that God will restore the penitent.