Affluence and Arrogance

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Opening Prayer

Lord God, as this day unfolds, may it not be focused on my desires, but on my willingness to be Your voice, hands and feet.

Read Amos 6:1-14

^[1] Woe to you who are complacent in Zion, and to you who feel secure on Mount Samaria, you notable men of the foremost nation, to whom the people of Israel come! ^[2] Go to Kalneh and look at it; go from there to great Hamath, and then go down to Gath in Philistia. Are they better off than your two kingdoms? Is their land larger than yours? ^[3] You put off the day of disaster and bring near a reign of terror. ^[4] You lie on beds adorned with ivory and lounge on your couches. You dine on choice lambs and fattened calves. ^[5] You strum away on your harps like David and improvise on musical instruments. ^[6] You drink wine by the bowlful and use the finest lotions, but you do not grieve over the ruin of Joseph. ^[7] Therefore you will be among the first to go into exile; your feasting and lounging will end. ^[8] The Sovereign LORD has sworn by himself-the LORD God Almighty declares: “I abhor the pride of Jacob and detest his fortresses; I will deliver up the city and everything in it.” ^[9] If ten people are left in one house, they too will die. ^[10] And if the relative who comes to carry the bodies out of the house to burn them asks anyone who might be hiding there, “Is anyone else with you?” and he says, “No,” then he will go on to say, “Hush! We must not mention the name of the LORD.” ^[11] For the LORD has given the command, and he will smash the great house into pieces and the small house into bits. ^[12] Do horses run on the rocky crags? Does one plow the sea with oxen? But you have turned justice into poison and the fruit of righteousness into bitterness- ^[13] you who rejoice in the conquest of Lo Debar and say, “Did we not take Karnaim by our own strength?” ^[14] For the LORD God Almighty declares, “I will stir up a nation against you, Israel, that will oppress you all the way from Lebo Hamath to the valley of the Arabah.”

Meditate

“There is a blind spot in American Christianity. We often fail to realize we are an affluent people living in an impoverished world. We must spend our lives and our money on that which is most important to the heart of God” (David Platt).

Think Further

Amos targets the leaders of the nation. As in chapter 2, he includes Judah in his condemnation. The NIV changes around the pronouns (yours/theirs) at the end of verse 2. It is better to keep to the Hebrew text and read verses 1 and 2 as Amos ironically quoting the leaders’ view of themselves and their boasting that Israel and Judah are bigger and wealthier than these kingdoms. Their material prosperity has made them self-indulgent and indifferent to the injustices that are leading the nation into ruin. Amos warns that disaster–military defeat–awaits them.

Prosperity has also made them arrogant, trusting in the security of their wealth and the strongholds they have built for themselves. The meaning of verses 9 and 10 is unclear. In the light of what follows they probably expand on the warning of military disaster. This will come as judgment because they have “turned justice into poison and the fruit of righteousness into bitterness” (literally “wormwood,” the bitterest substance known) (12). There is ironic wordplay in verse 13 as Amos quotes the leaders’ pride in recent conquests. They rejoice in conquering a place named “Nothing” and boast of their strength in taking a city called “Two Horns” (the horn being a symbol of strength). In their arrogance there is no thought of need to depend on God. Things will be different when the Almighty God stirs up a nation against them!

Two of Jesus’ parables illustrate the relevance of Amos’s message for today: the rich fool, and the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 12:13-21; 16:19-31). Both warn that a measure of prosperity can bring a false sense of security based on our achievements and wealth rather than on trust in God. It can also lead to indifference towards the plight of those less well off than ourselves instead of compassionate concern for them.

Apply

From where does your deepest sense of security in life come? What changes do you need to make?

Closing prayer

Lord, help me not to be arrogant or to trust in material wealth, but to trust you and your provision for me (1 Tim. 6:17).

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