Amos Hosea The Prophets of God

Amos & Hosea The Prophets of God

Amos and his harsh message • He is from Judah but was called to preach to Israel • Amos is angered by Israel’s disregard for God’s law • Israel has become like other nations: wealth is in the hands of a few, justice has been corrupted, and poor people are oppressed.

The Lion of God • Is known as the prophet who roars like a lion – Because his message is harsh, blunt, and angry – Criticizes harshly the worshipers’ rich attire • Compares the rich women of Samaria to fat cattle – Because they eat lamb, drink wine, and anoint their skins with expensive perfumes at the expense of the poor – Condemns the unjust and their exploitative actions toward the poor and weak and tells them that God will punish them for that

Empty worship • Amos says that the Lord dislikes and abominates processions, sacrifices, and hymn singing that do not come from sincere hearts.

Visions Locusts eating the crops • Israel is helpless to survive the fate it has brought upon itself Fire ravages the land • Israel is being destroyed by the people’s sins The crooked wall • God measured a crooked wall with a plumb line about to collapse • Amos pleads for Israel to God • God responds that Israel has chosen evil and he will leave it to its own destruction

Hosea: God as a betrayed Husband • Hosea is from the North and preaches in the North: Israel • His story begins with his unhappy marriage • He is married to Gomer – He loves her • Gomer deserted Hosea for other lovers • Hosea uses his own experience of betrayal to criticize the unfaithful Israel

Betrayal • When Hosea speaks of himself and Gomer, he is telling Israel a parable of its own betrayal of God • Hosea loves Gomer as God loves Israel • Gomer deserted Hosea for other lovers as Israel has deserted God for the Canaanite god Baal

3 children= 3 messages • Hosea and Gomer have three children to whom Hosea is told to give strange names • The names are symbolic of how God regards the children of the Covenant with Israel • Jezreel (boy) meaning shameful butchery – Implying that God will punish and destroy Israel • Loruhamah (girl) meaning not pitied – God will no longer have pity or forgive Israel for their mistakes • Loammi (boy) meaning not my people – God rejects the Israelites as God’s chosen people.

The Punishment of Gomer • Hosea takes Gomer to court where he testifies to her unfaithfulness and ingratitude • He is angry and his plans for her are harsh • He gave her everything he had: grain, wine, oil, silver, and gold – Hosea will take those gifts away – She has given some of these away to her lovers • He will punish her and take away everything until she returns to him

Reconciliation • Like Hosea desires to be reunited so does God with the Israelites • God will punish them until they repent and come back to God – Punishment in the form of penance for their sins – God will not wipe out the Israelites even though they deserve it • Hosea is the first book to feature the relationship between God and Israel as a marriage and uses the language and images of marriage • To God, infidelity in Israel’s behavior means betrayal of justice, compassion, integrity, and true worship

The first Conquerors • Regardless of the warnings by the Prophets, the Israelites did not listen and were conquered by the Assyrian empire. • The Assyrian emperor forced the many of the Israelites into exile • The Assyrian became the new leaders in the Northern kingdom and within sometime, began to intermarry with the Israelites that were allowed to stay in Israel. • Some of the people of Israel sought refuge in the Judah, Southern Kingdom, hoping that their brothers/sisters in faith might welcome them and understand them.