a) Describe the circumstances which brought Amos face to face with Amaziah, the priest of Bethel. (b) Give two reasons why those who oppose God should be co...

Answer Details

(a) The circumstances that brought Amos face to face with Amaziah, the priest of Bethel (Amos 7:10-17)

Amos, a herdsman and dresser of sycamore trees from Tekoa in Judah, had been sent by God to prophesy against the northern kingdom of Israel. He proclaimed God's judgment boldly, declaring in a series of visions that God would rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword and that Israel would go into exile away from their land.

Amaziah, the priest of Bethel, was disturbed by these words. He sent a report to Jeroboam, king of Israel, accusing Amos of conspiring against the king in the midst of the house of Israel, and claiming that the land could not bear all his words, for Amos had said that Jeroboam would die by the sword and Israel would go into exile.

Amaziah then confronted Amos directly and ordered him to leave. He said, "O seer, go, flee away to the land of Judah, and eat bread there, and prophesy there; but never again prophesy at Bethel, for it is the king's sanctuary and it is a temple of the kingdom." He accused Amos of prophesying merely to earn a living and wanted him silenced.

Amos replied that he was no professional prophet, nor a prophet's son, but a herdsman and a dresser of sycamore trees, and that the Lord had taken him from following the flock and commanded him, "Go, prophesy to my people Israel." He therefore refused to be silenced. He then pronounced God's judgment upon Amaziah himself: his wife would become a harlot in the city, his sons and daughters would fall by the sword, his land would be divided by measuring line, he himself would die in an unclean (foreign) land, and Israel would surely go into exile away from its land.

(b) Two reasons why those who oppose God should be condemned

• They obstruct the will and message of God: Like Amaziah, they try to silence the truth and hinder God's messengers from delivering His word, thereby fighting against God Himself.
• They mislead the people and defend injustice: By opposing God's word, they encourage the people to continue in sin and wrongdoing, protect corrupt authority, and lead others to destruction; therefore they deserve God's judgment.