9:1 Judgment would begin at the altar, the center of the nation’s life, the place where the people expected protection and blessing. This judgment would cover all 12 tribes. Commentators disagree concerning this altar. Some think it was the altar at Bethel; more likely it was the altar in the Temple in Jerusalem. God would destroy their base of security in order to bring them to himself. But in 9:11 he promises to restore his renewed people and their broken world.
9:2-4 In this verse, “hell” means the grave. The grave and Mount Carmel were symbols of inaccessibility. No one can escape God’s judgment. This was good news for the faithful but bad news for the unfaithful. Whether we go to the mountaintops or the bottom of the sea, God will find us and judge us for our deeds. Amos pictured the judgment of the wicked as a sea serpent, relentlessly pursuing the condemned. For God’s faithful followers, however, the judgment brings a new earth of peace and prosperity. Does God’s judgment sound like good news or bad news to you?
9:7 Ethiopia, south of Egypt, was a remote and exotic land to the Israelites. Caphtor is Crete, where the Philistines lived as they migrated to Palestine. God would judge Israel no differently than he judges foreign nations. He is not the God of Israel only; he is God of the universe, and he controls all nations.
9:8 Amos assured the Israelites that God would not “utterly destroy” Israel—in other words, the punishment would not be permanent or total. God wants to redeem, not punish. But when punishment is necessary, he doesn’t withhold it. Like a loving father, God disciplines those he loves in order to correct them. If God disciplines you, accept it as a sign of his love.
9:8, 9 Although Assyria would destroy Israel and take the people into exile, some would be preserved. This exile had been predicted hundreds of years earlier (Deuteronomy 28:63-68). Although the nation would be purified through this invasion and captivity, not one true believer would be eternally lost. Our system of justice is not perfect, but God’s is. Sinners will not get away, and the faithful will not be forgotten. True believers will not be lost.
9:11, 12 In the punishment, the house of David was reduced to a “fallen tabernacle.” God’s covenant with David stated that one of David’s descendants would always sit on his throne (2 Samuel 7:12-16). The Exile made this promise seem impossible. But “in that day” God would raise up and restore the kingdom to its promised glory. This was a promise to both Israel and Judah, not to be fulfilled by an earthly, political ruler, but by the Messiah, who would renew the spiritual Kingdom and rule forever.
James quoted these verses (Acts 15:16, 17), finding the promise fulfilled in Christ’s resurrection and in the presence of both Jews and Gentiles in the church. “Possess the remnant of Edom” envisions the messianic Kingdom, which will be universal and include Gentiles. When God brings in the Gentiles, he is restoring the ruins. After the Gentiles are called together, God will renew and restore the fortunes of the new Israel. All the land that was once under David’s rule will again be part of God’s nation.
9:13 This verse describes a time of such an abundance of crops that the people won’t be able to harvest them all.
9:13-15 The Jews of Amos’s day had lost sight of God’s care and love for them. The rich were carefree and comfortable, refusing to help others in need. They observed their religious rituals in hopes of appeasing God, but they did not truly love him. Amos announced God’s warnings of destruction for their evil ways.
We must not assume that going to church and being good are enough. God expects our belief in him to affect all areas of our conduct and to extend to all people and circumstances. We should let Amos’s words inspire us to live faithfully according to God’s desires.