Pray:
Father, You are a God of promise and I hope in You. Thank You for mercy that triumphs over judgment.
Read:
Amos 9:11-15
Reflect:
From what did Jesus set you free?
Amos was the first prophet to announce the judgment of exile. Even for those who had ears to hear, and who sought after God, it cannot have been easy listening. Yet within 40 years, the judgment prophesied had come upon Israel (2 Kings 17:3-6).
Even within such a hard Word there are hints of mercy to come. Amos 3:12 has a portion being saved, like the remains recovered from a lion's kill. Amos 7 talks of the Lord relenting from bringing calamity, and Amos 9:8 decrees that the destruction will not be total. These shafts of light leaven the terrible darkness of the news Amos has to bring.
Those hints of mercy here burst forth in a symphony of promises. There is a divine purpose beyond judgment and exile, and it's one of restoration and great blessing (11,15). Favor and fruitfulness will be renewed, the land becoming so fertile that both sowing and reaping happen together, with the hills so filled with grapes that they drip new wine (13).
Apply:
Journal about promises that God has made to you. Thank him that his grace breaks through darkness.
Pray:
Lord, I trust that You are working toward my very best, and I long to understand Your heart and walk in step with You.
