Lessons from the Prophet Amos
These are my notes from today’s Sunday School lesson and worship service at Caldwell Presbyterian Church in Charlotte, North Carolina on January 21, 2024.
“Praying The Hours” is a Catholic prayer ritual / method one of the members of our Sunday School class uses / follows.
”Take away from me the noise of your songs; to the melody of your harps I will not listen. But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an everflowing stream.“
Amos 5:23-24 RSV
From ChatGPT 4: My prompt: “Tell me background about these Bible verses: ”Take away from me the noise of your songs; to the melody of your harps I will not listen. But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an everflowing stream.“ Amos 5:23-24 RSV”
The verses you’ve quoted, Amos 5:23-24 from the Revised Standard Version (RSV) of the Bible, are part of the Book of Amos, which is one of the books of the Minor Prophets in the Old Testament. Amos, the author, was an early prophet of Israel, active around 750-760 BCE.
These particular verses are part of a larger passage where Amos is delivering a message of judgment and warning from God to the people of Israel. The primary context here is a critique of ritualistic worship that lacks sincerity and justice. Amos is essentially telling the Israelites that God is not interested in their music and worship if they are not also pursuing justice and righteousness in their society.
Verse 23 (“Take away from me the noise of your songs; to the melody of your harps I will not listen”) indicates God’s rejection of worship that is disconnected from ethical living. In verse 24 (“But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an everflowing stream”), the imagery of flowing water symbolizes the continuous and abundant practice of justice and righteousness that God desires.
This passage reflects a common theme in the prophetic books of the Old Testament, where the prophets call for social justice and true, heartfelt worship, as opposed to mere ritualistic practices. It emphasizes that religious ceremonies are meaningless to God if they are not accompanied by moral and ethical behavior, especially towards the less fortunate and marginalized in society.”
Via ChatGPT 4
How are we acting to come out of our places of privilege to:
- Provide access to health care for those who don’t have it?
- Where are we acting ourselves to channel God’s righteousness?
”Then the King will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, O blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see thee hungry and feed thee, or thirsty and give thee drink? And when did we see thee a stranger and welcome thee, or naked and clothe thee? And when did we see thee sick or in prison and visit thee?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.’ Then he will say to those at his left hand, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ Then they also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see thee hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to thee?’ Then he will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it not to one of the least of these, you did it not to me.’ And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”“
Matthew 25:34-46 RSV
I don’t think God calls us to be overwhelmed by the enormity of needs and suffering we see in the world. I think God calls us to do the work in front of us, to do the work he has prepared in advance for us to do. We are called to walk and live in faith, that God calls us to do this work together.
“The mission of Crisis Assistance Ministry is to provide assistance and advocacy for people in financial crisis, helping them move toward self-sufficiency.
Our vision is to inspire our community to justice and generosity as we provide help, hope, and understanding to people struggling with limited financial resources.”
From CrisisAssistance.org
Full Old Testament reading:
”“I hate, I despise your feasts, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies. Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and cereal offerings, I will not accept them, and the peace offerings of your fatted beasts I will not look upon. Take away from me the noise of your songs; to the melody of your harps I will not listen. But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an everflowing stream. “Did you bring to me sacrifices and offerings the forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel? You shall take up Sakkuth your king, and Kaiwan your star-god, your images, which you made for yourselves; therefore I will take you into exile beyond Damascus,” says the Lord, whose name is the God of hosts.“
Amos 5:21-27 RSV
Consider the way Eugene Peterson expressed these ideas and sentiments of the prophet Amos:
”I can’t stand your religious meetings. I’m fed up with your conferences and conventions. I want nothing to do with your religion projects, your pretentious slogans and goals. I’m sick of your fund-raising schemes, your public relations and image making. I’ve had all I can take of your noisy ego-music. When was the last time you sang to me? Do you know what I want? I want justice—oceans of it. I want fairness—rivers of it. That’s what I want. That’s all I want.
Amos 5:21-24 MSG
“Justice begins with God!
Justice requires that everyone shares in the resources of our culture and community.”
by Rev. Dorothy J. Killian
Social Justice = Full participation in society
Only when the lives of all worshippers are congruent with the ideals of God’s justice is God pleased.
