Amos 6-9

“Hear this, you who trample on the needy …” (8:4).  Amos’s prophecies centered on God’s anger over how the Israelites idolized wealth and mistreated the poor in their land.  They waited impatiently for holy days to be over so they could go back to making money.  “When will the new moon be over, that we may sell grain? And the Sabbath, that we may offer wheat for sale?” (8:5-6).  Rather than taking care of the vulnerable, they plotted to “buy the poor for silver and the needy for a pair of sandals” (8:6). 

God calls His people to be different, to imitate His own love, generosity, and mercy in the world.  Then His glory will shine among “all the nations” (9:12).