Does The Book Of Amos Justify Today s Entitlement Programs?

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1 U.S. CAPITOL Does The Book Of Amos Justify Today s Entitlement Programs? DECEMBER 30, 2013 A s 2014 arrives I sense the Holy Spirit nudging me this week to emphasize the truths found in the Old Testament Book of Amos. Amos was a shepherd and fruit grower, until God made him a Prophet and instructed him to remind the people of Israel that God was aware of their sins. What he declares to God s people was, and is alarming, arresting, sobering and applicable. Of all the wrongdoing exclaimed by Amos, as important as those are, the sin most emphasized (mentioned eight times in its nine chapters) is that of the nation s leaders arrogantly exploiting the poor in order to sustain their materially luxurious lifestyle. As heinous as this sin is, when leaders corrupt justice and righteousness for personal aggrandizement, it does not follow that all wealthy people are corrupt: Witness the owners of Chic-Fil-A, Hobby Lobby or Walmart. It is therefore exegetically erroneous to conclude that Amos is a denunciation of personal wealth; Amos is no more a theological treatise in support of Communism than is the Torah with all of its passages pertaining to personal property rights. Read through Amos and then this study my friend! Weekly Bible Study During Session Wednesday Mornings 8:00 AM Sharp. Capitol Building Family Room H324 Hot Breakfast Served. Robert Aderholt, Alabama Michele Bachmann, Minnesota Spencer Bachus, Alabama Marsha Blackburn, Tennessee Jim Bridenstine, Oklahoma Paul Broun, Georgia John Campbell, California Tony Cardenas, California John Carter, Texas Bill Cassidy, Louisiana Howard Coble, North Carolina Michael Conaway, Texas Kevin Cramer, North Dakota Rick Crawford, Arkansas Steven Daines, Montana Jeff Denham, California John Duncan Jr., Tennessee Mary Fallin (Gov.), Oklahoma John Fleming, Louisiana Bill Flores, Texas Randy Forbes, Virginia Trent Franks, Arizona Scott Garrett, New Jersey Louie Gohmert, Texas Tom Graves, Georgia Tim Griffin, Arkansas Ralph Hall, Texas Gregg Harper, Mississippi George Holding, North Carolina Bill Huizenga, Michigan Randy Hultgren, Illinois Bill Johnson, Ohio Jim Jordan, Ohio Steve King, Iowa John Kline, Minnesota Doug LaMalfa, California Doug Lamborn, Colorado James Lankford, Oklahoma Cynthia Lummis, Wyoming Mike McIntyre, North Carolina Mark Meadows, North Carolina Gary Miller, California Jeff Miller, Florida Randy Neugebauer, Texas Allen Nunnelee, Mississippi Steve Pearce, New Mexico Mike Pence (Gov.), Indiana Robert Pittenger, North Carolina Mike Pompeo, Kansas Bill Posey, Florida Tom Price, Georgia Reid Ribble, Wisconsin Cathy McMorris Rogers, Washington Austin Scott, Georgia Tim Scott, South Carolina Lamar Smith, Texas Steve Southerland, Florida Steve Stockman, Texas Marlin Stutzman, Indiana Glenn Thompson, Pennsylvania Scott Tipton, Colorado Tim Walberg, Michigan Randy Weber, Texas Daniel Webster, Florida Lynn Westmorland, Georgia Roger Williams, Texas Joe Wilson, South Carolina Rob Wittman, Virginia Steve Womack, Arkansas Rob Woodall, Georgia Ted Yoho, Florida

2 I. INTRODUCTION Today there are those who, with undoubtedly sincere motives of compassion for the poor, misuse the Book of Amos as a pretext for arguing that Civil Government must take care of the poor; too often the book is served up as a basis for maintaining, if not increasing, entitlement programs. To the contrary, Amos never chastises Civil Government for failing to meet the needs of the poor. Important to glean from Amos is this: God chastises the governmental leaders of Israel and Judah not for institutional neglect but for personal exploitation of the poor. This observation is critical, lest lawmakers conclude based on a faulty understanding of the Book of Amos that they are somehow sinning for not maintaining or increasing entitlements for those less fortunate. As we will see from Scripture. GOD HAS A MUCH, MUCH MORE COMPASSIONATE PLAN FOR MEETING THE NEEDS OF THE POOR! Amos amounts to a diatribe of God s wrath relative to political leaders who exploit and abuse the poor for the sake of personal gain. This is illustrated both sarcastically and summarily in Amos in 6:1. Woe to those who are at ease in Zion and to those who feel secure in the mountain of Samaria. The distinguished men in the foremost of nations, to whom the house of Israel comes. Zion and Samaria were the capital cities of the northern and southern tribes of God s people, Judah and Israel respectively. The political leadership had become totally corrupt and more than deserving of God s judgment after much patience. Given the precise focus of this passage, God pronouncing a woe (a term announcing His judgment) on distinguished men, meaning dire consequences will follow, what were the sins of the leaders that evoked such a response by God? May we not today commit those same sins and experience God s extreme wrath! In surveying the book with that question in mind, the predominant sin that is mentioned time and time again is the exploitation of the poor for the unjust gain of the wealthy. Amos heralds this sin no less than eight times in the book. The other leading sins that led to God s judgment of Israel were (in the order of the number of times they are mentioned): Idolatry (four times); Rejecting God s Law and Voice (four times); Religiosity and Astrology (both mentioned twice); and Sexual Abuse (mentioned once). God detests all of these things; they stir His wrath and precipitate His punishment: In Israel s case this meant being taken into exile by the neighboring pagan and corrupt Assyrians. That would be similar to America being taken captive by an Islamic country today. Can you imagine the shame and pain? II. THE PRIMARY SIN FOUND IN AMOS: EXPLOITING FOR PERSONAL GAIN In addition to the crucial passage found in Amos 6:1, which summarizes the leaders exploitation of the poor for personal gain, notice these additional selected passages (from the eight), which serve to underscore the centrality and gravity of this serious sin again, egregious attitudes and practices that evoked that wrath of God on a whole nation! A. AMOS 2:6-7 Thus says the LORD, "For three transgressions of Israel and for four I will not revoke its punishment, because they sell the righteous for money and the needy for a pair of sandals. "These who pant after the very dust of the earth on the head of the helpless also turn aside the way of the humble; Rather than care for the poor, whose care God charges every person with, the greed and misuse of 2

3 power by the political leaders of Israel was evidenced by their diabolical sale of needy persons to repay insignificant debts (cf. Mt.18: 23-25). B. AMOS 3:15-4:2 "I will also smite the winter house together with the summer house; the houses of ivory will also perish and the great houses will come to an end," Declares the LORD. Hear this word, you cows of Bashan who are on the mountain of Samaria, Who oppress the poor, who crush the needy, Who say to your husbands, "Bring now, that we may drink!" The Lord GOD has sworn by His holiness, "Behold, the days are coming upon you when they will take you away with meat hooks, and the last of you with fish hooks. Bashan was a fertile region below Mount Hermon east of the Jordan River. The phrase, you cows of Bashan represents Amos s unflattering identification of the wives of the corrupt political leaders of Israel who demanded luxuriant lifestyles on the backs of the poor. As will be seen, these women serve as contrasting counterparts to those described in Proverbs 31! C. AMOS 5:10-12 They hate him who reproves in the gate, And they abhor him who speaks with integrity. Therefore because you impose heavy rent on the poor And exact a tribute of grain from them, Though you have built houses of well- hewn stone, Yet you will not live in them; You have planted pleasant vineyards, yet you will not drink their wine. For I know your transgressions are many and your sins are great, You who distress the righteous and accept bribes And turn aside the poor in the gate. The gate represented the seat of, and place where justice was administered (cf. Deut. 21:19; Josh. 20:4). Rather than see to it that there was justice for all, the political leaders allowed the poor to be exploited both in both an adjudicative and material sense. God s primary purpose for government and governmental leaders (as we will review shortly from the NT) was and is for the proper execution of justice. D. AMOS 8:4-6 Hear this, you who trample the needy, to do away with the humble of the land, saying, "When will the new moon be over, So that we may sell grain, And the Sabbath, that we may open the wheat market, To make the bushel smaller and the shekel bigger, And to cheat with dishonest scales, so as to buy the helpless for money and the needy for a pair of sandals, And that we may sell the refuse of the wheat?" The new moon was a festival day, and as on the Sabbath, no work was to be conducted (cf. 2Kings 4:23; Ezek. 46:3). The narrative serves to underscore greed the want to make money by cheating and exploiting the needy. This time and again mention of the sin of exploitation, combined with the others mentioned in the book, led to God s unavoidable judgment, which began with the political leaders in the capital cities of Zion and Samaria! States 9:1 in this regard. I saw the Lord standing beside the altar, and He said, "Smite the capitals so that the thresholds will shake, and break them on the heads of them all! Then I will slay the rest of them with the sword; they will 3

4 not have a fugitive who will flee, or a refugee who will escape. God s judgment began where the sin was most predominant the capitals of Samaria and Zion. The exploitation of the poor by the leaders of Civil Government is woefully unacceptable to Yahweh! MAKE SURE AS A PUBLIC SERVANT YOU DO NOT UNJUSTLY BENEFIT IN ANY WAY FROM YOUR POSITION Sensitive to the abuse of our increasing power, during our 10 national championship run in college basketball, Coach Wooden continually admonished his student athletes, do not in any way desire, expect or receive special treatment. Make no mistake in application here: exploiting your power as a public servant not only counts against you personally, but unlike arrogant athletes and coaches, your corruption will evoke the wrath of God nationally! You are playing with fire! These aforementioned passages (only a half of them that are found in Amos) serve to illuminate the profound consequences of the abuse of power. Now, before developing this specific theme any further, let us gain a broader background and understanding of this book and its author. III. BACKGROUND Amos was an unlikely Prophet. It is not as though he went to Prophet school and was seen as up and coming in his profession. He was not of priestly or noble descent. Rather, God drafted for His purposes a humble grower of sycamore figs (7:4) who was also a sheepherder (1:1; cf. 2Kings 3:4) meaning he was a agricultural businessman of standing. Ag guys usually have a greater sensitivity for the things of God more so than other kinds of businessmen because they are ultimately dependent on His favor for weather patterns. Amos (his name meaning burden bearer ) was from Tekoa, a tiny village 10 miles south of Jerusalem. He prophesied during the mid eight-century B.C. when Uzziah was the king of Judah and Jeroboam the king of Israel. This was a time of prosperity and there is no imminent threat from Assyria due to their national, King-led repentance (which didn t last long) subsequent to the preaching ministry of Jonah. But this very sense of security and material prosperity had bred rampant internal corruption and moral decay, which are too often the fruits of prosperous times in a fallen, pride-filled world. As humble Amos prophesies, arrogant Israel continually rejects his message. This is best illustrated by the five time recurrent phrase yet you have not returned to me found throughout Amos, chapter 4 (cf. 4:6, 8, 9, 10 & 11) wherein he tightly summarizes in sound bite fashion an ongoing sowing of sin and the consequential reaping of wrath. The nation was blinded by pride; boneheaded and recalcitrant, they just didn t get it! Both illustrating Israel s apostasy and patterned proclivity for evil, on several occasions King Jeroboam tells Amos in essence to shut your mouth and get out of town (cf. 2:12; 7:10-13)! Why? The political leader did not like the Prophet s message (which BTW reminds me of my 12 years of ministry in the California capitol). Intertwined in all of that was Amaziah the Priest s betrayal of Amos. Amaziah positioned Amos message as one of disloyalty to the King when he went behind his back and tattled on him to Jeroboam. Supposedly on the same team, Amaziah was a snake! But the fig grower-turned-prophet was undaunted because He was called and empowered by Yahweh, not self! Secure in his identity, he persevered in his tenacity (cf. 7:14-17); when Jeroboam tried to intimidate Amos, throwing inside pitches to deck him, Amos stood steadfast in the batter s box. In turn He prophesied even harsher judgments on the King and his family (cf. 7:10-17). Amos is therefore a model of bold courage, one who unabashedly heralds God s truth in and to an intolerant nation and its corrupt leadership! Amos my friend is nothing less than a stud, a great role model for those in leadership who today too are called to 4

5 stand for God and proclaim His Holy Writ! Whenever we speak Scripture in correction of culture and the evil of its leaders, we too take on the role of a Prophet, as we boldly proclaim that which Yahweh has previously breathed forth in His Word (cf. 2Tim. 3:16-17). Do not shirk from your prophetic role my friend: as it was for Amos then, so it is for you today: God s ultimate approval is what matters! He is your strength and sustenance! IV. THEOCRACY VS. NON-THEOCRACY In order to make a proper application of Amos for today, we must first consider the context in which the book is written. After the secular nation admonitions made in chapters one and two, the bulk of the prophecy is aimed at the sins of political leaders in a theocratic construct. When Amos was written, God s called-out people and the institution of the State were one and the same. Today in America it is not like that; God s called out people, the Church, and the State are different institutions. The biblical correctness of this institutional separation for today (unlike for instance the reformed countries of England or Germany) is borne out by many NT passages. Note this here. A. MATTHEW 22:21: JESUS AND THE INSTITUTIONAL SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE They said to Him, "Caesar's." Then He said to them, "Then render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's; and to God the things that are God's." B. ROMANS 13:1 & 4: PAUL AND THE INSTITUTIONAL SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God. for it [government] is a minister of God to you for good. But if you do what is evil, be afraid; for it does not bear the sword for nothing; for it is a minister of God, an avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil. C. 1PETER 2:13-14: PETER AND THE INSTITUTIONAL SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE Submit yourselves for the Lord's sake to every human institution, whether to a king as the one in authority, or to governors as sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right. Each of these passages makes it clear that God intends for these institutions and their leaders to be differentiated from one another today. HOW THEN DO THE CRITICAL ADMONITIONS LEVELED BY AMOS IN RELATION TO THEOCRATIC ISRAEL AND JUDAH RESPECTIVELY APPLY TODAY? The answer is found in the aforementioned passages that speak of justice, which would include justice for the poor, being the responsibility of the State, whereas creating a social safety net relative to the meeting the needs of the poor inures to the Church. This is evidenced in ITimothy 5:3-16 (as stated in previous studies in greater detail) wherein God elaborates on a hierarchical social safety net (in this case specifically related to bereft widows) that He intends for the poor. The responsibility of caring for the poor lands first on family members and heads of households, if blood relatives do not exist or are unresponsive to the needs of their less fortunate family members, the Church (with certain qualifications) is to then step up. Importantly, there is no mention of the State being a part of the fabric for the construction of a social safety net relative to the needy (in this passage nor in others). 5

6 Summarily, in order to properly apply Amos for today, this theological clarification and refinement of theocracy must be taken into consideration: It seems to me that when there is rampant injustice to the poor, God s judgment will be aimed more so at the State and its leaders, and when there is a rampant neglect of care for the poor, God s judgment will be aimed more so at the Church and its leaders. Such is in keeping with the theocratic versus non-theocratic context and respective subsequent application of the Book of Amos. Not only is this theocratic distinction necessary to properly apply the Book of Amos for today, but so is a broader, biblical understanding of the poor. V. GAINING A BETTER THEOLOGICAL UNDERSTANDING OF THE POOR The context of the OT Book of Proverbs specifically relates to a King preparing his son for political leadership. With that in view, Proverbs is an obvious place for the Holy Spirit, via the human author, Solomon, to have previously made mention of the need for political leaders to make sure that their Theocracy as an institution takes care to meet the needs of the poor. In fact, Proverbs makes no mention of that! It should therefore come as no surprise that later in the Book of Amos, a record of one of God s Prophets speaking for God, that Amos chastises neither the northern or southern tribes of Israel, nor the six secular nations that surround them (found at the beginning of the book) for being negligent in meeting the needs of the poor. In fact, what we see in both Proverbs and Amos are strong admonitions concerning the exploitation of the poor by the politically powerful. This is not a minor distinction; it is an important exegetical distinction. With this in mind, notice the following passages that highlight what Solomon has to say regarding the poor. Stay with me now. All of Amos, Proverbs, and other OT passages indicate that care for the poor is extremely important to God, but that the responsibility for that care falls to individuals and families; importantly, no mention is made anywhere in Scripture of the State caring for the poor! This is evidenced in particular by the use of the first person singular subject pronouns used in and throughout the passages on the poor found in the Book of Proverbs: they all say He who. They don t say the State that. Notice this distinction in the Proverbs that follow. A. PROVERBS 14:31 He who despises his neighbor sins, But happy is he who is gracious to the poor. The poor will always be a part of society. This matter of fact is evidenced both in ancient Israel (Deut. 15:11) and in the time of Christ. Jesus said in Matthew 26:11 respectively. For the poor will never cease to be in the land; therefore I command you, saying, 'You shall freely open your hand to your brother, to your needy and poor in your land. For you always have the poor with you; but you do not always have Me. This truth too is inferred in Proverbs 22:2, which states in a matter of fact tone. The rich and the poor have a common bond, The LORD is the maker of them all. There will always be poor people in a fallen, sinladen world even if there are additional governmental programs to eradicate the needs of the needy! No one wishes for this to be the case just like no Republican, Democrat or Independent wishes that diseases continue to exist in the world. The reality of the continual existence of the poor is perhaps best realized by considering a simple illustration: If one were to place 100 people in a new town and give each the same amount of 6

7 money, it would only be a matter of time until some were wealthy and others poor due to many factors. Again, this is an unfortunate aspect of life in a fallen world; There is no such thing as, nor will there ever be prior to Christ s return, economic equality. Eradicating poverty is therefore an untenable objective; there is no prescription to eradicate poverty via Government entitlements to be found anywhere in Scripture. Alternatively, God s remedy for poverty as revealed in this Proverb and throughout Scripture is something else: The more fortunate are to foster personal graciousness toward the less fortunate a quality I should add that is more prevalent in America than anywhere else in the world. But the fact that there are still needy people in America due to no fault of their own is reason for increased personal graciousness even though we know the eradication of poverty will never be total. B. PROVERBS 21:13 He who shuts his ear to the cry of the poor Will also cry himself and not be answered. Given the economy God has set forth relative to individuals and families meeting the needs of the poor, it follows that those who lack personal graciousness toward them are disobedient to God in this area. We are to not shut our ears to them. Proverbs 17:5 escalates the idea of callousness. He who mocks the poor taunts his Maker; He who rejoices at calamity will not go unpunished. Solomon is saying that increased callousness, to the point of mocking the poor, as was the case in Israel when Amos prophesied, is to taunt one s Maker! Such a person, like the individual leaders in Israel at the time of Amos, will not go unpunished. The Book of Amos serves as a vivid illustration of this Proverb! C. PROVERBS 19:17 One who is gracious to a poor man lends to the LORD, And He will repay him for his good deed. In contrast it follows that one who possesses graciousness toward the poor finds favor with God! He will repay him for his good deed! This is a great principle to remember! Again, notice the emphasis of this kind of sowing and reaping is illuminated in the context of individuals, i.e. one who is. Governments are nowhere to be found; in fact they are outside the purview of this principle. D. PROVERBS 22:7 The rich rules over the poor, And the borrower becomes the lender's slave. Solomon is stating another fact of life in a fallen world: The rich rule over the poor. But, as is vividly illustrated in the Book of Amos, God strongly condemns inappropriate rulership: those who oppress the poor in their rule over them. This heinous sin is underscored in Proverbs 22:22-23 which capsulizes many former points. Do not rob the poor because he is poor, Or crush the afflicted at the gate; For the LORD will plead their case And take the life of those who rob them. Again, Amos serves as a narrative account of God taking the life (via exile) of those who robbed the poor. Proverbs and Amos fit like hand-in-glove. E. PROVERBS 28:8 He who increases his wealth by interest and usury Gathers it for him who is gracious to the poor. It was against God s law, although often violated, to charge interest to fellow Jews (cf. Deut. 23:19-20). In God s providence and justice He has a way of arranging situations to take from the unjust and to benefit those whom He chooses to reward, in 7

8 this case for obeying His command to be gracious to the poor. What goes around comes around. Prov. 28:27 echoes this. He who gives to the poor will never want, But he who shuts his eyes will have many curses. Again, notice the use of the first person singular pronoun Him used by Solomon in both of these above Proverbs relative to God s wrath. Accurate to Scripture is this: God s curse applies to individuals and in Amos to governmental leaders who are oppressive and exploitative of the poor. No mention is made anywhere in Scripture of Civil Governments being cursed for not taking care of the poor. Why do you suppose in God s wisdom He didn t assign this responsibility to the institution of Civil Governments? Could it be due to the slippery slope of burgeoning entitlement programs? Government best serves the poor by incentivizing individuals for him to be gracious to the poor. The most efficient and effective solution to poverty is beautifully personalized (and feminized) by the words of Lemuel, who penned the last chapter of the Book of Proverbs. F. PROVERBS 31:20 She extends her hand to the poor, And she stretches out her hands to the needy. In a biblical, complementarian (versus egalitarian) understanding of marriage, the responsibility to meet the needs of the poor are best met by sensitivities and compassions inherent in females. VI. SUMMARY There are at least three takeaway principles the Public Servant must glean from a careful and serious study of the Book of Amos. They are as follows, in no particular order of importance. A. IDENTIFYING ISRAEL S SIN The careful study of the Book of Amos specifically identifies the heinous sin of individual governmental leaders exploitation of the poor for unjustified personal gain. Amos therefore cannot be used as a pretext for support of governmental entitlement programs. B. DIFFERENTIATING BETWEEN WEALTH AND EXPLOITATION The gain of personal wealth and the exploitation of the poor are not necessarily intrinsically intertwined. As in Amos s day, it remains possible to create wealth in ways that are honorable and legitimate, apart from exploitation. It is therefore irresponsible to argue that poor people are a byproduct of exploitative rich people. C. GOD S REMEDY FOR THE POOR In that Jesus said the poor will always be with us in a fallen world, His remedy is for individuals, immediate and extended families to care for the less fortunate. Nowhere in Scripture does He assign this responsibility to Civil Government. When individuals view Government as responsible, they become largely desensitized to them. For Governments to engage in entitlement programs, no matter how compassionate a response that may seem to be at first, it not only leads to personal desensitizing but also the Treasury s slippery slope. For these reasons God assigns the indispensible need for compassion to people, not Governments! Individuals represent society s most informed, responsive, efficient and effective safety net. When Civil Government takes on this blanket responsibility, its inevitable bankrupt Treasury leads to an inability to manifest compassionate exceptions to victims of natural disasters, etc. May God grant you, the Public Servant, great insight from this historic book so that you will not be hoodwinked by those who attempt to use Amos for purposes other than what God intends. 8