Well, let us turn to this portion
of scripture, this chapter that we've just read, in the prophecy
of Amos, in chapter 7, and I have a double text really I want to
consider what we find here at the end of verse 2 and again
in verse 5, really the prayer of Amos. The prayer of Amos, here in chapter
7 then, and Verse 2, he says, O Lord God, forgive I beseech
Thee, by whom shall Jacob arise? For he is small. And then in
verse 5, then said I, O Lord God, cease, I beseech Thee, by
whom shall Jacob arise? For he is small. This theme then of the prayer
of Amos and you will observe immediately of course the repetition
that we have in the prayer, by whom shall Jacob arise for he
is small. This isn't vain repetition. The Lord Jesus of course speaks
plainly against vain repetitions in prayers In the Sermon on the
Mount he says, When ye pray, use not vain repetitions as the
heathen do, for they think that they shall be heard for their
much speaking. We don't come merely to repeat
words. We think of the Romanist with
his beads, praying over them, saying his Hail Marys and his
Hail Father. or the Muslim also repeating
vain words over his beads as he addresses a false god. This
is not vain repetition that we see in Holy Scripture. It shows something of the intensity
really of the prayers of the people of God and we know that
the Lord Jesus Christ himself in the Garden of Gethsemane would
pride the same words over and over all the intensity of those
prayers being in an agony we're told how we pride the more earnestly
struggling with that cup that he must drink to the very dregs
and always submissive to the will of the father. So here we
have the godly prophet also coming with some intensity as he utters
the words of our text on these two occasions. We read through
the chapter and the chapter is one that of course contains various
visions. In fact, chapters 7, 8, and 9
are made up of some five visions that were shown to the Prophet,
and all of them concern Israel, that is the Northern Kingdom. After the division of the kingdom
we have Judah, of course, associated with little Benjamin, in the
south with the capital there in Jerusalem, but then to the
north with ten tribes. And there they established their
capital at Samaria. And here the prophet is one who
addresses both Judah and Israel. We see that in the opening verse
of the book. The words of Amos, who was among
the herdmen of Decauah, which he saw concerning Israel in the
days of Uzziah, king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam,
the son of Joas, king of Israel, two years before the earthquake. So, whilst his ministry is primarily,
principally to Israel, we also have mention of the kingship
of Uzziah, who was the king of Judah. And so we have these visions,
five visions, here in the opening words of the chapter, Thus hath
the Lord God showed unto me, he says, and behold, he formed
grasshoppers in the beginning of the shooting up of the latter
growth, and lo, it was the latter growth after the king's mowings. And then it seems to be another
vision in verse 4, Thus hath the Lord God showed unto them,
and behold, the Lord God called to contend by fire, and it devoured
the great deep, and it ate up a part. And then yet another
vision, In verse 7, God showed me and behold the Lord stood
upon a wall made by a plumb line, with a plumb line in His hands. We have these three visions. And then in chapter 8, again
the opening verse, I said to the Lord, God showed unto me
and behold a basket of summer fruits. and then at the beginning
of the ninth chapter I saw the Lord standing upon the altar
and he said smite the lintel of the door and the post that
the post may shake cut them in the head all of them and I will
slay the last of them with the sword he that fleeth of them
shall not flee away and he that escapeth of them shall not be
delivered. These are different visions,
mysterious visions in many respects and not easy to interpret. And it's not so much the visions
that I want to dwell on really at all. I want to really concentrate
on the prayer that he makes as the Lord comes and thus reveals
these various matters to him concerning Israel. And this prayer,
By whom shall Jacob arise? For he is small. Three things
I want to try to deal with, and first of all to say something
of God's judgment, and then to look at the petition of Amos,
and then finally to say something of the prophecy that we find
in this word, the spiritual application, how does it relate to us tonight. It's an interesting book, like
all of the Word of God, but we don't just come to study God's
Word in a detached fashion. We know it's a spiritual book. Is it not to us the very bread
of life? It's that that ministers to the
needs of our souls. But first of all to say something
of God's judgment because all of these visions are really setting
forth that very idea that God's judgment is going to come upon
Israel. And we have that here in the opening verses where
he sees these grasshoppers and it's in the beginning of the
shooting up it says of the latter growth and in many ways the imagery
is very similar to what we find previously in the book of the
Prophet Joel remember what Joel speaks of there in The opening
chapter, verse 4, he speaks of the palmer worm, and the locust,
and so forth. That which the palmer worm hath
left hath the locust eaten, and that which the locust hath left
hath the canker worm eaten, and that which the canker worm hath
left hath the caterpillar eaten. He's speaking of these various
plagues, as it were, that come upon God's ancient people. He says at verse 6 there, A nation
is come up upon my land, strong and without number, whose teeth
are the teeth of a lion, and yet the cheek teeth of a great
lion, yet laid my vine waste. and barbed my feet, He hath made
it clean bare and carted away. The branches thereof are made
white." These plagues, locust plagues and so forth, devouring
the land and yet it's very much God that is in these things.
It's God's army, it's God's judgment. In chapter 2 there, in verse
11, the Lord shall utter His voice before His army. all these
insects at God's command for his camp is very great for he
is strong that executes his word for the day of the Lord is great
and very terrible and who can abide it but then also in that
second chapter of Joel towards the end we read of God yet having
mercy upon his people restoration in verse 25 I will restore to
you the years that the locust hath eaten, the canker-worm,
and the caterpillar, and the palmer-worm, my great armour,
which I sent among you. And ye shall eat in plenty, and
be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord your God, that
hath dealt wondrously with you, and my people shall never be
ashamed." Oh, there was to be some restoration Well, that might
be the case with regards to the southern kingdom of Judah, but
not so with the northern kingdom, with Israel. Though the Prophet
makes that abundantly clear in the words that we were reading
at the end of this 7th chapter, how he speaks boldly against
the king Jeroboam, and then Amaziah, the priest of Bethel, comes and
seeks to rebuke the Prophet. Verse 12, Amaziah says, Unto
Amos, O thou seer, go, flee away into the land of Egypt. And there
he prayed, and prophesied there, but prophesied not again any
more to Bethel, for it is the king's chapel, and it is the
king's court. Then answered Amos, and said
to Amaziah, I was no prophet, neither was I a prophet's son,
but I was an herdman, and a gatherer of sycamore fruit. And the Lord
took me as I followed the flock, and the Lord said unto me, Go,
prophesy unto my people Israel. And then he makes this awful
prophecy very personally against Amaziah himself, the end of the
chapter, Thy wife shall be an harlot in the city, thy sons
and thy daughters shall fall by the sword and thy land shall
be divided by line and they shall die in a polluted land and Israel
shall surely go into captivity forth of his land." All there
was going to be judgments. It is sure, it is certain, it
is definite. It's going to fall upon that
northern kingdom of Israel and so it was. So it was, and we
have the historic record there in the second book of Kings,
in 2nd Kings 17 and verse 5, then the king of Assyria came
up throughout all the land, it says, and went up to Samaria
and besieged it three years. The king of Assyria took Samaria
and carried Israel away captive into Assyria. Now, we probably
know much about the Babylonian captivity, but this is not the
Babylonian captivity, that came later to Judah. This is principally
God's dealings with the North, with Israel. And those 10 tribes
were lost. They were taken away, there was
never any restoration. And yet we have here the petitions,
and this particular prayer that is made by the Prophet. And you will observe in these
two verses that I've announced as a text, in this 7th chapter,
verse 2, and again in verse 5, we have alternative readings
in the margin. Who shall stand for Jacob? Who shall stand for Jacob, the
text, as it is before us in the actual verses? By whom shall
Jacob arise? But obviously the Hebrew bears
a slightly different interpretation. It could have been rendered,
and the translators here are being honest with us, it could
be rendered, Who shall stand for Jacob? Who was it there that would in
any way come in and fill the breach and plead before the Lord
God when He had spoken His word and spoken of terrible judgments
that were going to come upon those people, His ancient covenant
people. In the language of the Psalmist
in the 12th Psalm, Help, Lord, for the godly man ceaseth, for
the faithful fail from among the children of men. Who will
plead? Who will pray? We know with the matter of the
golden calf, when Israel had sinned so soon after God had
entered into covenant with them, He told them never to make a
graven image, and yet, whilst Moses was there in the mount,
receiving all the instructions concerning God's worship, those
40 days he was in the mount, God spoke concerning the tabernacle
and the manner of worship. and they grow weary what has
become of the man and you know the account Aaron makes the golden
calf and they're going to worship God by means of the golden calf.
It's syncretism really. They still think they're worshipping
Jehovah but they're doing it in a manner that was contrary
to what God had commanded. They're doing it by means of
an idol and God would cast them off. But in Psalm 106 and verse
23 we read how Moses stood in the breach. And we have the account
back in Exodus how he prays, how he pleads. Well, who shall
stand for Jacob now is the question. Who shall stand for Jacob? Well,
Amos. Amos is the man who comes forward and he's praying. He's
praying for the nation. uttered these fearful words of
prophecy. But what does he say in his prayer
in verse 2? O Lord God, forgive! O Lord God, forgive! I beseech
Thee, by whom shall Jacob arise? For he is small. And then when God speaks of contending
by fire, He says in verse 5, O Lord, God sees thy beseeched,
or by whom shall Jacob arise, for he is small. And God answers the prayer in
a sense, certainly God answers prayers, we know that. He answers
in verse 3. It says, The Lord repented for
this. It shall not be. says the Lord and then again in verse 6 the
Lord repented for this this also shall not do says the Lord I
mention now the beginning is very much addressing himself
to Israel but Judah is there also and Judah certainly was
spared spared from the assault of the Assyrians and we see that
God's grace is so discriminating and we know how there was a remarkable
deliverance there in the reign of that goodly king Ezekiel who
was king of Judah in Jerusalem and we have the records not only
in the historic books of Kings and Chronicles but also in those
chapters in the middle of the prophecy of Isaiah in Isaiah
37 for example and the words that we can read
there Isaiah 37 verse 33 Therefore thus saith the Lord concerning
the king of Assyria, He shall not come into this city, that
is Jerusalem, nor shoot an arrow there, nor come before it with
shields, nor cast a bank against it. By the way that he came,
by the same shall he return. And he shall not come into this
city, saith the Lord, for I will defend this city, to save it,
for mine own sake, and for my servant David's sake. And then we read at the end of
that chapter, So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed, and
went and returned, and dwelt at Nineveh. And he came to pass
as he was worshipping in the house of Nisroch, his god, that
Adrammelech and Shari'ezah, his son, smote him with the sword.
and they escaped into the land of Armenia and Esau had on his
son reigned in his stead so there was deliverance, there was certainly
deliverance for Judah because when the Assyrians came they
came attacking from the north they fell first upon Israel and
Samaria but they moved south into Judah and many of the walled
cities fell but when they come to Jerusalem, how the prayers
of the King prevail and there's deliverance, there's deliverance.
The Lord repented. Now, is it really possible for
the Lord God to repent? God is not a man that He should
lie, nor the Son of Man that He should repent. have he spoken it shall he not
do it remember the words of numbers 2319 what God has said God will
do it is of one mind that no one can turn he says I know the
thoughts that I think towards you thoughts of peace and not
of evil to give you an expected end God has a purpose God doesn't repent in that sense
but God in his goodness and mercy does condescend to speak to us
in human terms. It might appear that God is repenting
but that's simply the appearance. God's purpose must stand. He doesn't repent like we repent.
There's never any change of mind with God. But he hears and he answers the
prayers of his people. And of course what he does in
answer to the prayers of his people is in accordance with
his will, with his decree. Doesn't he say there at the end
of Ezekiel 36, I will yet be inquired of for the house of
Israel to do it for them. I will increase them with men
as a flock. He'll be inquired of, he'll do it, but he does
things in answer to the prayers of his people. Our prayers, poor,
pathetic as we might think they are, our poor stumblings and
stutterings, our broken sentences. And often times that's how we
feel, isn't it, when we try to pray. We can't pray as we would
wish. And yet we know that those prayers prevail with God through
the intercession and the mediation of the Lord Jesus Christ. So,
the Prophet's prayer is answered. But what of the spiritual significance?
What is his prophetic word? By whom shall Jacob now arise? For he is small, is the question. And it's repeated, it's repeated
and there's significance in the repetition, there's significance
for us because there's never any idle words anywhere in Holy
Scripture. We believe in the verbal inspiration,
every word is the word of God. remarkable then when God repeats
himself that lays emphasis upon the word that is before us God
gives us a fourfold gospel how remarkable is that fourfold gospel
or the preeminence of the gospel here in holy scripture And we
know that whatsoever things were written aforetime in scripture
were written for our learning. Paul says that in Romans 15. They are written for our learning
that we through patience or endurance and comfort of the scriptures
might have hope. We come to God's word that we
might find some hope, some encouragement. And with regards to all these
things that are recorded concerning his dealings with his ancient
people, Again, the language of 1 Corinthians 10 and verse 11.
All these things happened unto them, Paul says, for ensamples. And the margin says types. And
they're all written for our learning that we through... We upon whom the ends of the
world have come might have hope. They're written for our learning.
to give us hope. So we come to God's Word to find
some spiritual encouragement, some spiritual sustenance. And what do we see here? Well,
Israel is small. By whom shall Jacob arise, for
he is small? They're not all Israel, are they,
that are of Israel? We must always remember that
there was ever in ancient Israel a remnant, except the Lord had
left unto us a very small remnant. We should have been a Sodom,
we should have been like unto Gomorrah, says Isaiah in the
opening chapter of his book. There's the doctrine of the remnant.
And he is not a Jew which is one outwardly, neither is circumcision
that which is outward in the flesh, but he is a Jew which
is one inwardly, and circumcision is that of the heart in the Spirit
and not in the letter, Paul says. There's a spiritual Israel. There's a spiritual Israel. And
I was very struck when we were singing our opening praise really. That's a lovely hymn of John Newton's. I don't think
we've sung it very often. I know we've sung it on previous
occasions. and 66 but what struck me was
the not the actual hymn but the text at the head of the hymn
Deuteronomy 33 29 happy art thou O Israel happy art thou O Israel
happy are they to whom the Lord his gracious name makes known
and by his spirit and his word adopts them for his own he calls
them to a mercy seat hears their humble prayer and when within
his house they meet they find his presence there how favored
we are then even tonight that we can meet him in a house of
prayer and we have the ear of God and God will hear our prayers
isn't that the true Israel of God they're a spiritual people
they're a spiritual people and the Lord hears them and the Lord
preserves them though they feel themselves to be so very small
and though they seem to be so so few I was thinking then earlier of
the words that we have elsewhere here in the Old Testament in
Jeremiah in Jeremiah chapter 13 and there at verse 9 following
it says, Alas for that day is great so that none is like it,
it is even the time of Jacob's trouble but he shall be saved
out of it. For he shall come to pass in
that day, saith the Lord of hosts, that I will break his yoke from
off thy neck, and I will burst thy bonds, and strangers shall
no more serve themselves of him. But they shall serve the Lord
their God, and David their King, whom I will raise up unto them."
And this is a gospel promise really because Jeremiah of course
is ministering God's Word many years after King David. And there
in verse 9, it's a promise of David's greatest son. God says
He will raise this one up to them. They shall serve the Lord
their God and David their King, whom I will raise up unto them. And what is the day? That day
is great. read again in verse 2, it shall
come to pass in verse 8, it shall come to pass in that day and
it is the day of grace, the gospel day but often times it is the
day of Jacob's trouble it's the day of Jacob's trouble
now it certainly was that at the time when Amos was the Lord's
servant and speaking the Lord's words and there were other prophets
that the Lord God was pleased to raise up the Lord speaks to his people
his remnant, he encourages them there were those who did receive
his word and here in Amos in chapter 5 and verse 5 we have
that remarkable promise this man shall be the peace when the
Assyrian comes into the land you know that words we've referred
to it on previous occasions who is the man that he's being spoken
of? who is the man that he's being spoken of? this man shall
be the peace If I got this right. It's Micah's prophecy. It's Micah's
prophecy, not Amos. It's Micah 5 and verse 5. This
man shall be the peace when the Assyrians shall come into our
land. Who is the man that he's being
spoken of there? That's the Lord Jesus Christ. That's the Lord
Jesus Christ. He was the Savior of his Israel,
his spiritual Israel in the Old Testament as he is the Savior
of his spiritual Israel also in this day of grace. What is
to be done then in the day of Jacob's trouble? When he feels
his smallness, his weakness How is he going to survive? How is
he going to arise? It's only through the Lord Jesus
Christ. And as I say, we have the ministry
of these various prophets, be it Amos, or Jeremiah, or Micah,
and then also the language of Zechariah. Remember Zechariah
4.10, Who hath despised the day of small things, for they shall
rejoice and shall see the plummet in the hand of the rubbable.
the plum line, we have mention of the plum line don't we here
in verse 7 following that there we have the plummets in the hands
of Zerubbabel the rebuilding of the temple of the Lord that's
in Judah after the days of exile when they restored to the land
and the temple is being built the historic account in the book
of Ezra And how does it read elsewhere
in that fourth chapter of Zechariah? We read of Zerubbabel that he
shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings crying
grace, grace unto it. But it's all ultimately fulfilled
in Christ in the New Testament. I will build my church as Christ
and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. Even when God's people find themselves
to be very small, just a remnant, and the day is to be troublesome
and difficult, and it's felt to be a day of small things,
and God's judgments are abroad, and again we see it here in this
prophecy, later in chapter 11, a solemn word of verse 12 also, Chapter 8, 11 and 12, 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. 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. What a terrible judgment when
God takes His word away from a people. now thank God he's
not done that with us yet and yet we know not what might come
there's much I'm sure a great deal that's offensive in God's
words to those who seem to have the chief influence in these
wicked days God's judgment you see and yet
in the midst of all these in all Jacob's time of trouble there
is one to whom God's people can go all their comfort is found
there in God himself in the Lord in his sovereignty by whom shall
Jacob now arise for he is small I think of the words of Isaiah
41 and verse 14 where we have worm Jacob Fear not thou worm, Jacob, and
ye men of Israel." The margin says, ye few men, literally,
worm Jacob and ye few men of Israel. I will help thee, saith
the Lord, and thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel. Oh, the Lord is mindful of his
people. Though he be small, though Jacob
be a worm, well, Isn't worm Jacob so united to the Lord Jesus Christ? Isn't that one of the names that's
given to the Lord? He utters it himself there in
Psalm 22, 6, I am a worm, he says, and no man. The reproof of men and despised of
the people. How amazing! and that's what
the Lord is, and the Lord is therefore identified with His
people, His people are identified with Him. Or the time of Jacob's trouble,
yes, but he shall be saved out of it. We read there in Jeremiah
37, he shall be saved out of it. By whom shall Jacob arise? For he is small, he may be small,
But what does Paul say? When I am weak, then am I strong. And again, I can do all things,
he says, through Christ. That strengthens me. And so what
do we learn here? What spiritual lesson? The Lord God in His wisdom has
ordained that even in this day of grace there will be trials,
troubles, and tribulations. We think of the words of the
Saviour Himself at the end of John chapter 16. Oh, that's gracious words. Tribulation, yes. In the world
ye shall have tribulation, says Christ, but be of good cheer. I have overcome the world. That's what the Lord says, but
previous to that, previous to that, He reminds them of the things He's
spoken of. The end of that 16th chapter, these things have I
spoken unto you, He says, that in me ye might have peace. Oh, even when there's trouble,
there's at peace, there's at rest in the Lord Jesus Christ. He has spoken His words that
we might learn to find our peace in Him in the world. Ye shall
have tribulation, but, says Christ, be of good cheer. I have overcome the world. By whom shall Jacob arise? For he is small. He can only
rise by Him who is able to save from the uttermost to the uttermost. May the Lord be pleased to bless
His word to us. Let us, before we turn to prayer,
sing our second praise, the hymn 1047, Tunis Dalehurst 124, and
of course it's very much based upon these words in Amos 7. By whom shall Jacob
never rise? For Jacob's friends are few,
and what should fill us with surprise? They seem divided too. 1047, Tune 124.