Amos 5:1-15 (NRSV)
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Chapter 5Hear this word that I take up over you in lamentation, O house of Israel: Verse 2Fallen, no more to rise, is maiden Israel; forsaken on her land, with no one to raise her up. Verse 3For thus says the Lord God: The city that marched out a thousand shall have a hundred left, and that which marched out a hundred shall have ten left.
Verse 4For thus says the Lord to the house of Israel: Seek me and live; Verse 5but do not seek Bethel, and do not enter into Gilgal or cross over to Beer-sheba; for Gilgal shall surely go into exile, and Bethel shall come to nothing. Verse 6Seek the Lord and live, or he will break out against the house of Joseph like fire, and it will devour Bethel, with no one to quench it. Verse 7Ah, you that turn justice to wormwood, and bring righteousness to the ground! Verse 8The one who made the Pleiades and Orion, and turns deep darkness into the morning, and darkens the day into night, who calls for the waters of the sea, and pours them out on the surface of the earth, the Lord is his name, Verse 9who makes destruction flash out against the strong, so that destruction comes upon the fortress. Verse 10They hate the one who reproves in the gate, and they abhor the one who speaks the truth. Verse 11Therefore because you trample on the poor and take from them levies of grain, you have built houses of hewn stone, but you shall not live in them; you have planted pleasant vineyards, but you shall not drink their wine. Verse 12For I know how many are your transgressions, and how great are your sins- you who afflict the righteous, who take a bribe, and push aside the needy in the gate. Verse 13Therefore the prudent will keep silent in such a time; for it is an evil time. Verse 14Seek good and not evil, that you may live; and so the Lord, the God of hosts, will be with you, just as you have said. Verse 15Hate evil and love good, and establish justice in the gate; it may be that the Lord, the God of hosts, will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.
Devotion
When others criticize or judge you, even when they are right to do so, how do you feel? The natural human tendency is to defend yourself. Defensiveness is one of the most common of human responses - and also one of the least helpful.
What about when others judge you when you are in the wrong? You may still become defensive – a sign that you are not fully admitting the truth (you may even feel defensive as you read these words). Words that attempt to explain, defend and justify are piled higher and higher, but in the end are only a monument to human failure.
The prophet Amos offers a different option: “Therefore the prudent will keep silent in such a time.” These are wise words for individuals and whole nations. Amos’ time was a moment to take stock, consider both collective and individual injustice, and then change. That is still our task.
Prayer
Lord, help us keep salutary silence, that your words may break into our hearts, changing us for the sake of others. Amen.