“Listen! This is your doom! It is spoken by the Lord against both Israel and Judah – against the entire family I brought from Egypt:” (Verse 1). After listing all the other nations surrounding them, who were pagan, why is God yelling at them?
“Of all the peoples of the earth, I have chosen you alone. That is why I must punish you the more for all your sins. For how can we walk together with your sins between us? (Verse 2). Just imagine if you did everything possible to help a friend in need become highly successful in his career and he turned his back on you after he reached the top. That would be bad enough, but these nations sinned against a holy God.
In verse 7, God said, “But always, first of all, I warn you through My prophets. This I now have done.” Amos repeats the message of verses 4-6 in his own words. “The Lord has roared – tremble in fear. The Lord has sounded your doom – I dare not refuse to proclaim it.” (Verse 8).
Verses 9-15 told the Israelis exactly what God said He would do. The earthquake in 760 BCE was probably the “roar” God referred to. Israel had another 35 years before the Assyrians invaded their land, and it took another 3 years to capture and destroy the capitol, Samaria. God illustrated the outcome with the example of a lion, a sheep, and a shepherd. The picture God presented to the people, especially the rich, was of utter destruction.