The True Measures of Divine Favor

Reflecting on the Sixth Sunday after Pentecost: Two Days after Sunday (Year C)

Scripture

For information on semicontinuous and complementary readings in the season after Pentecost or Ordinary Time, click here.

Semicontinuous: Psalm 119:17-32; Amos 8:13—9:4; 1 John 2:1-6

Complementary: Psalm 119:97-104; Proverbs 9:1-18; 1 John 2:1-6

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Prayer

O Lord, mercifully receive the prayers of your people who call upon you, and grant that they may know and understand what things they ought to do, and also may have grace and power faithfully to accomplish them; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. (Book of Common Prayer)

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Reflection

Amos 8:13—9:4

Amos 8:13–9:4 is a climactic section in the prophet’s message of divine judgment against Israel. It is the culmination of a series of warnings issued throughout the book. Amos, a shepherd-prophet from Judah, was sent by God to deliver a message of judgment to the northern kingdom of Israel in the 8th century B.C., during a time of political prosperity and religious complacency. His primary concern was the nation’s corruption, social injustice, and religious hypocrisy.

Chapters 7–9 form the final major section of the book, known as the “vision section,” where Amos reports five visions of divine judgment. In chapter 7, Amos sees a vision of locusts, fire, and a plumb line—each indicating God’s coming discipline. Chapter 8 begins with a vision of a basket of summer fruit, which God interprets as a pun: “the end has come upon my people Israel.” In this image, Israel is revealed as ripe for judgment.