Study Audio Download

The Book of Amos – Chapter 8:1-14 –

The Coming Day of Bitter Mourning

[Aired January 25,2025]

Chapter 6 ended with Amaziah [‘am-ats-yaw’], the priest of Bethel, distancing himself from Amos and the Lord’s dire prophesies warning Israel, led by Jeroboam, about her impending exile. Both Amaziah and Jeroboam, detesting Amos’s delivery, sarcastically advised him to go to Egypt and teach a people who might welcome him. (and would probably fearfully listen in lieu of what the Lord did to Egypt many years previously).

Amaziah and Jeroboam’s response is typical of our like responses to the Lord’s prophesies against our old man, valiantly trying to hold on to his imaginary precious flesh, fearing what our family and friends could ridicule for what this little Church pompously taught of rulership, instigated by Isaac in Genesis 27 and repeated by Joseph to his alarmed parents and brothers-“Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth?” (Gen 37:10).

What Amaziah, Jeroboam and we didn’t realise by rejecting the Lord’s word was that we fulfil Amos 7:9, stating, “And the high places of Isaac shall be desolate, and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste; and I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword“. We typically hide from hearing the Lord’s still, small voice and seeing our mind’s visions behind us so that we can excuse ourselves when knowing full well that we are repeating a lust without humiliatingly and repeatedly asking forgiveness, semi-consciously knowing that we are a double-minded man. Israel and we become desolate of understanding scripture whenever we, the priests of spiritual Israel, repeatedly refuse to hear and walk in Christ’s commands; it is the equivalence of going back to Babylon’s vomit.

The Bride of Christ hears the prophecies of Amos and the sum of God’s word; thus, we hear Amos’s prophesies are not against us, the spiritual Israel of God and the house of Issac fulfilling Amos 7:16, Now therefore hear thou the word of the LORD: Thou sayest, Prophesy not against Israel, and drop not thy word against the house of Isaac. 

Remembering that Amos is a herdsman and a gatherer of sycamore figs, indicative of being a shepherd of the Lord’s flock and a gatherer of only luscious ripe figs, discarding the ‘naughty’ (Jer 24:1-10). Consequently, the Lord’s Elect are forewarned and far more accepting of “the coming day of bitter mourning” and relish the rich summer gleanings emblematic of the approaching peak of the spiritual richness for the Lord’s harvest from us leading to co-rulership with him.

Significations

The Coming Day of Bitter Mourning

Amo 8:1  Thus hath the Lord GOD shewed unto me: and behold a basket of summer fruit.
Amo 8:2  And he said, Amos, what seest thou? And I said, A basket of summer fruit. Then said the LORD unto me, The end is come upon my people of Israel; I will not again pass by them any more. 

The term “summer fruit” appears in scripture only once besides the Book of Amos. It is mentioned when Ziba (tsee-baw), the servant of Mephibosheth (mef-ee-bo’-sheth = [wryly meaning… ] exterminating the idol) in 2 Sam 16:1-4 sought David and his loyal men as they were hiding from Saul’s wrath in the wilderness. Ziba brought them indispensable food supplies for their much-needed sustenance. The saga in 2 Sam 16:1-4 and Amos 8 blend for a double witness against Saul, our disappearing old man of flesh for the new kingdom typified by David, spiritually within. Notice that David is referred to as the King, even though he is the king-elect in waiting, as are the Lord’s Elect referred to as royalty before the coronation (1Pe 2:9).

2Sa 16:1  And when David was a little past the top of the hill, behold, Ziba the servant of Mephibosheth met him, with a couple [a yoke; team – since David had more than two men in his company] of asses saddled, and upon them two hundred loaves of bread, and an hundred bunches of raisins, and an hundred of summer fruits, and a bottle of wine.
2Sa 16:2  And the king said unto Ziba, What meanest thou by these? And Ziba said, The asses be for the king’s household to ride on; and the bread and summer fruit for the young men to eat; and the wine, that such as be faint in the wilderness may drink.
2Sa 16:3  And the king said, And where is thy master’s [Saul’s] son? [possibly David’s dearest friend, Jonathan] And Ziba said unto the king, Behold, he abideth at Jerusalem: for he said, To day shall the house of Israel restore me the kingdom of my father.
2Sa 16:4  Then said the king to Ziba, Behold, thine are all that pertained unto Mephibosheth. And Ziba said, I humbly beseech thee that I may find Grace in thy sight, my Lord, O king.

Ziba – tsee-baw’- Definition: Ziba = statue 1. a servant of Saul whom David made steward of Jonathan’s son Mephibosheth.

The narrative linking 2 Sam 16:1-4 with Amos 8 symbolises the transition from the old kingdom to the new. Saul, aware of his impending replacement by David, sought to kill David, similar to Herod’s attempt to kill the infant Christ, symbolising the new King replacing the old. Like Cain, Herod and Saul, we detest the insult that our works are not acceptable to God, once again valiantly trying to sustain our position on God’s throne.

As Amos prophesied, “The end is come[ing] upon my people of Israel; I will not again pass by them any more”, embodying the Elect’s transition in this generation since the cross. Nonetheless…

Deu 31:8  The LORD Himself goes before you; He will be with you. He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid or discouraged.” (BSB).

Amo 8:3  And the songs of the temple shall be howlings in that day, saith the Lord GOD: there shall be many dead bodies in every place; they shall cast them forth with silence. 

Verse 3 outwardly illustrates the inevitable result of our years of warning and chastisements from our Lord’s prophesies to which we paid scant attention, let alone sincerely acknowledging our sins. If our dispassion continues thumbing our noses at the Lord, our howlings will culminate too late for the First Resurrection, dawning resurrection to Judgment on the Eighth day, the Lake of Fire, where initially, there certainly will be much-anguished howling.

Mat 13:41  The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity;
Mat 13:42  And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.

Just as winter is anticipated by autumn, so, too, is the last of the summer fruit of peak richness of God’s word in our lives, whereby if we haven’t laid up our Lord’s wisdom, knowledge and understanding, we, too will as are the last summer fruit on a tree, are not as plump as the first fruit, and are often blemished and mouldy and wither, cast forth; disapproved in silence. Nonetheless, the Lord’s Elect spiritually, even though raised in judgment to much howling, will gradually see that God all along had a gloriously bright future for them, as too will the Bride’s children following the Lake of Fire and gratefully bow in honour of the God-head.

1Jn 2:19  They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us.

1Th 4:13  But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.
1Th 4:14  For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.

One of the most potent examples of experiencing dreadful silence will be an Elect who has not on a wedding garment.

Mat 22:11  And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment: 
Mat 22:12  And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless.
Mat 22:13  Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Mat 22:14  For many are called, but few are chosen.

Amo 8:4  Hear this, O ye that swallow up the needy, even to make the poor of the land to fail, 
Amo 8:5  Saying, When will the new moon be gone, that we may sell corn? and the sabbath, that we may set forth wheat, making the ephah small, and the shekel great, and falsifying the balances by deceit? 
Amo 8:6  That we may buy the poor for silver, and the needy for a pair of shoes; yea, and sell the refuse of the wheat? 

The New Moon (the church) is when it is between the Earth and the Sun on its orbital path. Since it does not have an atmosphere that will present an aura of light identifying its location, it is temporarily not observable. Hence, only its side facing the sun is illuminated and not observable by the Earth. However, it only takes a couple of days before a cresent sliver of New Moon becomes visual. That illustration perfectly portrays our mostly former devious ways of avoiding feeding hungry and thirsty souls. Our double-mindedness of being in the full light of the sun on one side yet utterly dark on the other side facilitates underhanded transactions of businesses on great waters of the deep for personal gain, establishing an occasion for the Lord to bring an occasion against the Philistines within.

Jdg 14:4  But his [Sampson’s] father and his mother knew not that it was of the LORD, that he sought an occasion against the Philistines: for at that time the Philistines had dominion over Israel.

Understanding the term, ‘Making the ephah small’ is broadly explained as “Falsifying the balances by deceit”. Selling grain in the dark of the New Moon denotes a falsified measure of wheat by volume compared to a legally registered ephah of liquid that would weigh a good sight more for the same volume if that scale measured the sale of wheat (‘wet’ volume is weightier than dry). It spiritually is the practice of magic arts, charms distorting the Lord’s word for the unwary, hungry soul innocently seeking a just deal in truth and not getting quality grain for the fee charged. Our Lord strongly commands us to burn such falsifications with the fire of his word. Upon Paul’s powerful witness, many people believed, and Acts 19 expresses their indignation for the likened “refuse of the wheat” bought by deception. The scraping of grain left in the bottom of a bin in ancient times would have wheat chaff and even dirt in the presentation-maybe even a desiccated mouse and weevils.

Act 19:19  And a number of those who had practiced magic arts brought their books and burned them in front of everyone. When the value of the books was calculated, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas [Grace through faith in chastisement].
Act 19:20  So the word of the Lord powerfully continued to spread and prevail.

Therefore, considering that silver represents the word of God stolen in false dealing from the laity, we, in Babylon, as the Priests of God, furnish ourselves with deceptively shiny shoes (Amos 8:6), ostentatiously presenting our walk as righteousness for the Church to glorify.

Mat 15:14  Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch. 

Mat 23:5  All their deeds are done for men to see. They broaden their phylacteries and lengthen their tassels.
Mat 23:6  They love the places of honor at banquets, the chief seats in the synagogues,
Mat 23:7  the greetings in the marketplaces, and the title of ‘Rabbi’ by which they are addressed.

Amo 8:7  The LORD hath sworn by the excellency of Jacob, Surely I will never forget any of their works. 

Our Lord is our adversary while we are sinning. When we are inflated with our righteousness, he will never leave us in that state of filthy works, not letting a jot or tittle of deception leaven his Body, the Church.

Num 32:23 [If we do not subdue the land by casting out the giants…] But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the LORD: and be sure your sin will find you out. 

Mat 5:25  Reconcile quickly with your adversary [Christ] while you are still on the way to court. Otherwise, he may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison.
Mat 5:26  Truly I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.

Amo 8:8  Shall not the land tremble for this, and every one mourn that dwelleth therein? and it shall rise up wholly as a flood; and it shall be cast out and drowned, as by the flood of Egypt. 
Amo 8:9  And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord GOD, that I will cause the sun to go down at noon, and I will darken the earth in the clear day: 

Ancient dwellers on Earth, forever searching for unknown gods, were easily spooked by unusual events in nature and the heavens deemed vital for worship to appease ill favour. The flood described represents the entirety of the event, just as the sun setting at noon signifies a solar eclipse, especially if a New Moon completely obscures the sun and casts total darkness and foreboding upon men in its path across the Earth.

Deu 4:19  And lest thou lift up thine eyes unto heaven, and when thou seest the sun, and the moon, and the stars, even all the host of heaven, shouldest be driven to worship them, and serve them, which the LORD thy God hath divided unto all nations under the whole heaven.

A respected Elder in the Body who was recently taken from the Church during a significant moment in his spiritual journey symbolises the sun setting at noon, leaving him in complete darkness, while those left remained spiritually enlighted from the noonday sun on a clear day.

Mat 25:29  For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath. 
Mat 25:30  And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Jer 15:9  She that hath borne seven languisheth [complete whoredom and resulting desolation]: she hath given up the ghost; her sun is gone down while it was yet day: she hath been ashamed and confounded: and the residue of them will I deliver to the sword before their enemies, saith the LORD.

The Lord’s very Elect, the “residue”, is glad that the sword of God’s word consumes their enemies within.

Amo 8:10  And I will turn your feasts into mourning, and all your songs into lamentation; and I will bring up sackcloth upon all loins, and baldness upon every head; and I will make it as the mourning of an only son, and the end thereof as a bitter day.

One of the most significant biblically ‘mourning for an only son’ was when Joseph was Jacob’s only direct heir from Rachel, whereby Joseph’s shifty brothers feigned his bloody death by a wild beast. For Jacob and the Father, for Christ’s death, it was a ‘bitter day’. Nonetheless, and for both occasions, as with a mother following a difficult birth, their mournings turn into joy.

Gen 45:25  And they went up out of Egypt, and came into the land of Canaan unto Jacob their father,
Gen 45:26  And told him, saying, Joseph is yet alive, and he is governor over all the land of Egypt. And Jacob’s heart fainted, for he believed them not.
Gen 45:27  And they told him all the words of Joseph, which he had said unto them: and when he saw the wagons which Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of Jacob their father revived:
Gen 45:28  And Israel said, It is enough; Joseph my son is yet alive: I will go and see him before I die.

Amo 8:11  Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD: 
Amo 8:12  And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, and shall not find it. 

The Lord’s Body is highly conversant with famine’s meaning and spelt out in those classic verses 11 and 12. Its effect is a result of us glorifying ourselves, having unwittingly seized our Lord’s throne and his very seat-it is the nature of the Great Whore, unrecognisably to the world, idolising herself in plain sight (Rev 18:7). Having rejected our Husband’s word, the repercussion is salvation at our hands; and good luck with that! It is by hearing and keeping those things written that we, conflictingly for the unspiritual mind, save ourselves.

1Ti 4:16  Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.

Amo 8:13  In that day shall the fair virgins and young men faint for thirst. 
Amo 8:14  They that swear by the sin of Samaria, and say, Thy God, O Dan, liveth; and, The manner of Beersheba liveth; even they shall fall, and never rise up again. 

It is in the immaturity of our youth depicted as fair virgins and young men that we fail to establish a foundation of righteous living by our Lord’s every commanda perpetually wretched condition of man since Adam. It is only the Lord’s Elect since the cross that is given in this age to understand the mysteries of the Kingdom and be spiritually strengthened.

Luk 8:9  And his disciples asked him, saying, What might this parable be?
Luk 8:10  And he said, Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God: but to others in parables; that seeing they might not see, and hearing they might not understand.

We, upon our deadly wound being healed, having ‘found God’ and rapturously, yet deludedly lauding that we are saved, are swearing by the sin of Samaria by smugly pointing to ‘that evil sinner over there, a tax collector’ (Luk 18:9-14) in Dan and Beersheba within, atrocities that we self-righteously claim we would never do. Yet, unless our righteousness exceeds the works of the Law, we remain in our filth equal with Old Jerusalem and Babylon.

Mat 5:19  Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
Mat 5:20  For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.

Rom 7:14  For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin.
Rom 7:15  For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I.
Rom 7:16  If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good.
Rom 7:17  Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. 
Rom 7:18  For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.
Rom 7:19  For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.
Rom 7:20  Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
Rom 7:21  I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me.
Rom 7:22  For I delight in the law of God after the inward man:
Rom 7:23  But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.
Rom 7:24  O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?
Rom 7:25  I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind [the Lord’s spirit within] I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin. 

Jer 51:62  Then shalt thou say, O LORD, thou hast spoken against this place, to cut it off, that none shall remain in it, neither man nor beast, but that it shall be desolate for ever.
Jer 51:63  And it shall be, when thou hast made an end of reading this book, that thou shalt bind a stone to it, and cast it into the midst of Euphrates:
Jer 51:64  And thou shalt say, Thus shall Babylon sink, and shall not rise from the evil that I will bring upon her: and they shall be weary. Thus far are the words of Jeremiah.

Next week, always Lord willing, Christ, through Amos, wraps up the Book summarising our destruction and not leaving us in despair, but blesses us with recreation, in unity with him and the Father.