Shaken and Sifted

Amos 9:1-10

1 I saw the Lord standing by the altar, and He said:

"Strike the doorposts, that the thresholds may shake,
And break them on the heads of them all.
I will slay the last of them with the sword.
He who flees from them shall not get away,
And he who escapes from them shall not be delivered.

2 "Though they dig into hell,
From there My hand shall take them;
Though they climb up to heaven,
From there I will bring them down;

3 And though they hide themselves on top of Carmel,
From there I will search and take them;
Though they hide from My sight at the bottom of the sea,
From there I will command the serpent, and it shall bite them;

4 Though they go into captivity before their enemies,
From there I will command the sword,
And it shall slay them.
I will set My eyes on them for harm and not for good."

5 The Lord GOD of hosts,
He who touches the earth and it melts,
And all who dwell there mourn;
All of it shall swell like the River,
And subside like the River of Egypt.

6 He who builds His layers in the sky,
And has founded His strata in the earth;
Who calls for the waters of the sea,
And pours them out on the face of the earth—
The LORD is His name.

7 "Are you not like the people of Ethiopia to Me,
O children of Israel?" says the LORD.
"Did I not bring up Israel from the land of Egypt,
The Philistines from Caphtor,
And the Syrians from Kir?

8 "Behold, the eyes of the Lord GOD are on the sinful kingdom,
And I will destroy it from the face of the earth;
Yet I will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob,"
Says the LORD.

9 "For surely I will command,
And will sift the house of Israel among all nations,
As grain is sifted in a sieve;
Yet not the smallest grain shall fall to the ground.

10 All the sinners of My people shall die by the sword,
Who say, 'The calamity shall not overtake nor confront us.'

The destruction of Israel was pronounced, but hope was also given as they were to be shaken and sifted for a remnant even as they were weighed and found wanting.  For would shake the doorposts of the temple as He emerged from the most holy place to stand by the altar of sacrifice to point to Himself as an offer of atonement for their sin as He held them to account.  He struck the tops of the columns supporting the temple to destroy it and kill those who escaped by the sword set against them from the nations He used for His purposes.  They could not escape judgment by burrowing to hide in Hell or climb a ladder into heaven as was tried at Babel long before.  There is no hiding place from God’s judgment but His grace.  That is what the gospel promises to those under the same judgment of sin’s condemnation, grace to atone for our accountability by deliverance when facing destruction.  Deuteronomy 30:11-14 had the answer for them and us (Romans 10:5-7), to hear and heed the word of the LORD instead of trying to find it because He put it right in front of us to see.  Running from it to hide does no good but trust (faith) as of Romans 10:8-10 points to God’s living Word to escape the depths of Hell and accomplish reaching heaven which we are completely unable to achieve by our good works that never reach far enough (Romans 3:10, 22-24).  We cannot run and hide as Amos’s listeners tried.  God’s judgment is the hound of Hell hunting all down no matter where we try to hide from Him.  Amos used examples like the heights of Mount Carmel and the bottom of the sea to demonstrate how impossible it is to hide from He who created and sustains all creation.  This is the same God who builds layers in the sky and under the earth’s soil, demonstrating His wisdom in the atmosphere and in the semblance of age of the planet’s fossils hidden in layers (strata) of earth by both His hand of creation here and of the later settling of the great flood to give the appearance of age.  It is all in His almighty hand which nobody can run and hide from.  His eyes watched the sins of His people and proclaimed judgment but not for all, keeping a remnant of His choosing whom He called His own out of the nation in which they were kept for Him.  The nation failed to follow His word by faith and obedience, but some were called out of there to find God’s calling and work sufficient for their deliverance.  He sifted Israel as a sieve shakes grain to separate the good seed from the worthless chaff to be burned (Luke 3:17).  He would not allow the smallest grain of good seed which He had called and chosen to fall away (John 6:39-40, 17:12).  Those who are not His and consequently do not follow Him according to His word are the sinners that are judged as verse 10 reminds them and us all that there is no escape but by God’s choosing.  Denial of the calamity cannot stop the harsh reality.  As the world is shaken and sifted, only Jesus Christ can do this for all the sheep who He calls and who hear to follow the Word of God.  We who remain from that sieve of grace have a kingdom which cannot be shaken (Hebrews 12:25-26, 27-28) given to us to serve Him as we follow our Shepherd.  He is the only escape from the calamity of justice and judgment who sifts us out of the world.  We hear this example from Amos and follow.