Amos 2:6-7
Thus says the Lord:
“For three transgressions of Israel,
and for four, I will not revoke the punishment;
because they sell the righteous for silver,
and the needy for a pair of shoes — they that trample the head of the poor into the dust of the earth,
and turn aside the way of the afflicted;
a man and his father go in to the same maiden,
so that My holy name is profaned.”
Amos was one of the more outspoken prophets. He had sharp and scathing messages for a whole lot of Israel’s pagan neighbors, excoriating them for their crimes. His poetic rhythm was infectious and drew you in: “For three transgressions of so-and-so, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment.” A comfortable Israelite reader would have really enjoyed his blasts against the crimes of Damascus, Gaze, Tyre, Edom, Ammon, and Moab. But what’s this? He saves his last and most furious blasts for Judah and Israel – the Chosen People? How can that be? It can be because chosenness implies responsibility, not a free ride. The same is true for Christians. Christian sin has a more disastrous effect than any other sin precisely because it is a greater betrayal of our God than any other. Today, repent your sins and ask for the grace to heal the damage. God will give it.
