NOTES for Amo 3:1-15

Amos reminds us once again that God’s election is not only a gift, not only grace, but also responsibility for the promises given.

“All that the Lord has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient”: these are the very words the children of Israel spoke when they made the Covenant with God at Sinai (Ex 24:7). On the one hand, this promise given to God opened extraordinary possibilities before the people of God; on the other, it placed upon the people of Israel the yoke of fulfilling His commandments. This was precisely what should have distinguished Israel from the other nations. Yet it was this very burden that the chosen people wished to cast off, without, however, renouncing God’s protection.

But the Lord cannot remain indifferent when His people, in their foolishness, are ready to renounce what constitutes the essence of the Covenant. Therefore, to preserve the Covenant, God must exact everything that has not been rendered to Him: the commandments fulfilled. The appearance in Israel of prophets calling people to repentance, to turn back, is a sure sign that the time has come for the people of God to repay their debts.