Who Is the Modern-Day Jeroboam?

Donald Trump’s victory in the 2016 United States presidential election gives us a clear indication as to where we are in Bible prophecy.

Most people pay little attention to Bible prophecy. But did you know that one third of the Bible is prophecy, and 90 percent of that prophecy is for our day?

In the weeks before the election, Hillary Clinton held a considerable lead in the polls. But in a sermon at the same time, I commented that I was leaning toward Mr. Trump being the winner. Why? Because of an end-time prophecy in the book of Amos.

The Prophet Amos recorded a prophecy about a leader named Jeroboam. I want to show you that this is referring to a powerful individual who is on the scene right now.

You can’t fully understand the Amos prophecy without knowing who Jeroboam is. You desperately need to understand why God is revealing names in this book!

It seems obvious that God is telling us we have now entered the time frame of Amos chapter 7. What does that time frame mean for America and for you? God has revealed to me more understanding from Amos 7.

The book of Amos has some of the strongest prophecies in the Bible, with little emphasis on the positive message. But there is great hope in this prophetic book.

The Time of Jeroboam

The prophecy of Amos 7 is directed specifically at “Israel” (see verse 8). Although the Jewish state in the Middle East took that name when it formed in 1948, when Israel is used in prophecy it has a wider meaning. It is referring to the modern nations descended from the 12 tribes of the biblical nation of Israel. This is a foundational truth that you must prove in order to understand the Bible’s prophecies. It is explained in exciting detail in Herbert W. Armstrong’s book The United States and Britain in Prophecy, a book that we will gladly send you free upon request.

Look now at the specifics of this prophecy of Amos: “Thus he shewed me: and, behold, the Lord stood upon a wall made by a plumbline, with a plumbline in his hand” (verse 7). A plumbline is usually used in measuring a building or in construction. But God uses it differently here: This is about measuring the destruction that is to come upon the nations of Israel. This destruction is not random; God is measuring it carefully and precisely. And it will bring about the most wonderful results imaginable.

“And the Lord said unto me, Amos, what seest thou? And I said, A plumbline. Then said the Lord, Behold,
I will set a plumbline in the midst of my people Israel: I will not again pass by them any more” (verse 8). This is God speaking! In recent years, He has warned these nations many times to try to wake them up, but they have ignored these warnings. So, He says, I’ll warn one last time. He is giving these people one last chance to repent!

We are entering the last time that God passes by the people of Israel before they are destroyed! This is a time of extreme urgency!

And notice: This is in the context of an end-time Jeroboam. Verse 9 continues: “And the high places of Isaac shall be desolate, and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste; and I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword.”

When God says, “I will not again pass by them any more,” He is talking about them being destroyed in the time of Jeroboam.

Who is Jeroboam? Who is this specific man that Amos prophesies will be ruling the superpower of Israel when the final warning ends? There are two nations that prophetically have the name of biblical Israel in this end time—Britain and the superpower America.

God is telling the end-time nations of Israel how to solve their problems and difficulties, and to warn them of the consequences of their failure to do so.

This chapter states that God is going to rise with the sword against them in the time of Jeroboam. The Moffatt translation renders the end of verse 9 as, “I will attack Jeroboam’s house.” There is something very upsetting to God about the house of Jeroboam. This is why He wants us to understand it and why it is so offensive to Him!

God emphasizes the U.S. superpower, the leader of the nations of Israel. The U.S. is led by a modern-day Jeroboam. When there is a type of Jeroboam on the scene, then God will send the sword upon His people because of all their sins. It is because of America’s sins that it must suffer!

This is sobering to think about. Here is a severe end-time prophecy, and God is speaking about an individual. God names names! We must understand these names and the roles these men play if we are to understand these end-time prophecies! It is essential that we know who these individuals are.

God gives us checkpoints in Bible prophecy: the “time of the end” (e.g. Daniel 12:4), the “last end” (Daniel 8:19), and the “last hour” (1 John 2:18; Revised Standard Version; request my free booklet The Last Hour for an explanation). This prophecy occurs in the Jeroboam time frame—or, we could say, the Jeroboam end—the last time God will pass by with His message! God will not bring this warning to His people again; the Jeroboam time is going to be the last time!

If you understand this, it really makes Bible prophecy come alive to you. God is revealing the identity of significant individuals in Bible prophecy in this end time especially—I believe like He’s never done before. He wants us to understand this because it is leading directly into the Great Tribulation and then the coming of the Messiah! Though it is extremely distressing news in the short run, what it leads to is the greatest news you could hear!

The Land Cannot Bear His Words

Amos’s prophecy continues: “Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, Amos hath conspired against thee in the midst of the house of Israel: the land is not able to bear all his words” (Amos 7:10).

God is sending His message into the “midst of the house of Israel,” into the very heart of America and Britain. The Philadelphia Church of God message is going to take center stage.

Just watch how this prophecy is going to be fulfilled.

God has spoken!

It is our words that the land will not be able to bear! This strongly indicates that there are serious problems plaguing the nation or they wouldn’t care what we say. But we have a message they cannot bear because it is about their destruction—at a time when their problems are soaring! Most people want to close their minds to what is coming upon them—instead of repenting of their sins.

Who is this “priest of Bethel”? “Bethel” means house of God. “Amaziah the priest of Bethel” is prophetic language referring to a man who came from within the Church of God in this end time. You can see from the prophecy in Revelation 3 beginning in verse 14 that the last era of God’s true Church before Christ’s return—the very time frame we are in right now—is the Laodicean era, a lukewarm church that has turned its back on God. Amaziah is a very rebellious Laodicean minister.

Here Amaziah is accusing Amos, God’s true prophet, of treason—“conspiring against” Jeroboam! Amos is a type of the man in this end time who is proclaiming God’s warning message to Israel today. So this is a prophecy of a real clash between a false minister and a true prophet of God.

I believe Amaziah the priest is the same man as the leader of God’s rebellious Church whom we battled with for copyrights to the truth and message of God (Amos 9:1, 11-12). Amaziah hates our message. He is almost certainly the individual who led a six-year court battle trying to suppress God’s truth from going out to this world! (You can read more about that Amos 9 court battle in our free booklet The Lion Has Roared.) Satan doesn’t like that we won that battle and made him look bad. He never gives up when something like that happens. We are in the middle of Satan’s worst wrath.

The priest Amaziah is sending this message about Amos to Jeroboam. This strongly indicates that the end-time Jeroboam has a religious following! He is leading people further away from God.

Look again at Amos 7:9, and you see more religious imagery. As our booklet on Amos, The Lion Has Roared, explains, “the high places of Isaac” refers to the Laodicean Church. The “sanctuaries of Israel” are the religions of this world, like the evangelicals.

Mr. Trump received over 80 percent of the white evangelical vote and a large portion of the Catholic vote in 2016. He really is leading most of America’s “religious” people. But where is he leading them?

This is quite different religiously from what you find in Britain—the other birthright nation. Jeroboam is leading the superpower of Israel.

‘Thus Saith the Lord’

Amaziah’s message to Jeroboam is, “The land is not able to bear all his words.” What “words” are so difficult to bear? Amaziah explains: “For thus Amos saith, Jeroboam shall die by the sword, and Israel shall surely be led away captive out of their own land” (Amos 7:11).

In the short run, this is bad news. But it is a message from God that must be delivered! This false priest will go before Jeroboam and say, “This is what Amos says.” He doesn’t say that this is a message from God! But when Amos speaks, he says, “[H]ear thou the word of the Lord …. [T]hus saith the Lord”! (verses 16-17). Amos came with a “thus saith the Lord” message! Amos is just the messenger. God gives the messenger His message and says, Go and deliver this to my people.

The world doesn’t want to believe this is from God. They almost always look at it as a message from a man. But it isn’t! This is what God says! It’s such a powerful message that you cannot deny it is coming from God—but the world still tries.

We all have human nature, but we must overcome it or we too will think, Well that’s just a man’s opinion; I don’t think it is from God. We have to stay focused on “thus saith the Lord”! This is a message from God!

America has different messages coming from Republicans and Democrats, but the only message that will prevail is “thus saith the Lord”! Nothing else will succeed. This world must understand that.

How well do you understand that God is sending out His Word today? The message you are reading right now is coming from His mouth. And you can prove it. This is critical understanding that ought to sober anybody!

For decades, this Work has been warning America and Britain about what is going to happen, but people have scorned this message and pushed it aside. Yet there will come a point when people cannot bear it anymore.

Still, the message is wrapped in wonderful good news. Even though there is bad news in the short term, this is the beginning of Israel getting to know God! There will be rough times ahead, but God is going to use those trials to help Israel get to know Him! We have to see the destruction in the context of God’s plan. This vision will keep us positive. When you think about the end result, what could be more inspiring?

At the time of the end, Jeroboam is going to be laden with problems and difficulties, but his biggest problem is going to be the message of God coming out of this organization! Our message is going to plague him! This is what people in this land are going to fear most of all. God is forcing them to face the warning message of their own destruction! This is a problem Jeroboam never saw coming.

This modern-day Jeroboam has made it clear that he knows little or nothing about the Bible, which is Jesus Christ in print.

The King’s Chapel

Here is what Herbert W. Armstrong wrote in his book Mystery of the Ages: “David’s son Solomon became the wisest man who ever lived (except Christ). But he taxed the people very heavily, and when he died his son Rehoboam became king. The people sent a delegation with an ultimatum to Rehoboam. If he would reduce their taxes, they would serve him. If not, they would reject him as king. On the advice of the younger men among his councilors, Rehoboam told the people he would lay even heavier taxes on them.

“Thereupon the people decided against the royal house of David. They named as king, Jeroboam, who had occupied the office we would today call prime minister, under King Solomon. Since Rehoboam was seated on the throne in Jerusalem, the people of Israel chose a new capital some distance north of Jerusalem. (Under a later king, Omri, they built a new northern capital at Samaria.)”

Jeroboam was “a mighty man of valour” and “industrious” (1 Kings 11:28). But he ended up being a disaster for Israel, turning the people away from God by institutionalizing false religion (1 Kings 12). The emphasis in Amos 7 on the “house of Jeroboam” could mean the leader of America in the end time is a physical descendant of the original Jeroboam.

It seems logical that God would have an Israelite leader, a Jeroboam type whose ancestors were from ancient Israel, in this end time because our message is to warn Israel, or specifically modern-day America, Britain and the Jewish nation. We have to warn people that it is their sins that God is concerned about! There are Gentiles in this land, and they will suffer along with Israel. But God puts the blame on Israel, the house of Jeroboam. That is where the sword is aimed. You probably wouldn’t have an Antiochus, a Gentile leader, in office when God is punishing and destroying the house of Jeroboam.

America is one of the birthright nations of Israel. God has blessed this land abundantly. Perhaps America’s greatest sin is ingratitude to God for making America great!

America’s president says, “I will make America great again.” Notice the big I: I will make America great again—not God—like I made myself great. That attitude is going to usher in the ultimate disaster. Men vainly think they can do magnificent things. That is one of the most deceitful thoughts anyone can have—especially when you are facing the worst disaster ever! Yet that is what we are facing in this time of Jeroboam.

America, the British peoples (including Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa) and the Jewish nation are facing horrendous problems. Only God can save these nations.

For God to save them, our people must repent. Do you see evidence of that happening? I do not. We need a leader who will cause our people to embrace the living God—not a puny, helpless man!

This modern-day Jeroboam fights for many good causes. But in the process he gets people to look to him as the solution—not the omnipotent, all-powerful God!

This is the great deception and the great sin.

“Also Amaziah said unto Amos, O thou seer, go, flee thee away into the land of Judah, and there eat bread, and prophesy there: But prophesy not again any more at Bethel: for it is the king’s chapel, and it is the king’s court” (Amos 7:12-13). Amaziah is being directed by Jeroboam about what to say. He’s saying, Tell them to get out of here! This is “the king’s chapel,” the president’s domain—this is our religious place. Get out of this land because we will have none of that message!

This man becomes the evil “Jeroboam” because he is fighting against the message of God—along with Amaziah the priest, who is a spiritual Antiochus. (For more information, request our free booklet Daniel—Unsealed at Last!) The modern-day Jeroboam commits the same sin that Jeroboam did anciently. There is a reason God uses Jeroboam as the last warning to the nations of Israel. The original Jeroboam committed a great sin, and the modern-day Jeroboam is committing the identical sin again. What is that specific sin?

What Was Jeroboam’s Sin?

The book of 1 Kings is part of what is called the former prophets, and it is prophecy mainly for this end time. (Request a free copy of my book The Former Prophets—How to Become a King. It explains thoroughly how relevant these biblical books are for us in this end time.)

Notice what Jeroboam did after he received rulership of the 10 northern tribes of Israel: “Then Jeroboam built Shechem in mount Ephraim, and dwelt therein; and went out from thence, and built Penuel. And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David” (1 Kings 12:25-26). He feared that the people would return to the house of David. They had just broken away, and he wanted to keep them separated from King David’s throne. God had even explained the importance of the house of David to Jeroboam (read 1 Kings 11:29-39), but he rejected God’s instruction.

Jeroboam wanted to keep the 10 tribes of Israel away from the house of David, denying the eternal promise that God had made to David. So what did he do?

“If this people go up to do sacrifice in the house of the Lord at Jerusalem, then shall the heart of this people turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah [Solomon’s son], and they shall kill me, and go again to Rehoboam king of Judah. Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold, and said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt” (1 Kings 12:27-28). Jeroboam took them right back to the false gods they had worshiped shortly after they came out of Egypt and rebelled against God and Moses (Exodus 32).

Jeroboam then polluted the priesthood by ordaining priests from “the lowest of the people, which were not of the sons of Levi” (1 Kings 12:31). Then he changed the dates of God’s sacred holy days so they would be different from what they were under David and in Jerusalem (verses 32-33). He had his own holy day plan—his own “master plan.” He rigged the system so he could lead the people and keep them away from the house of David. That was his great sin.

Sadly, the people just went along. They turned away from God and worshiped these golden calves just as they had done in ancient history. This culminated in terrible disaster!

This same sin is being committed today! This is not that difficult to understand or prove: Something is wrong with most religions today—even those that claim to follow the Bible and to understand God. The modern-day Jeroboam is causing religions to look to him—not the true God, the only solution to our many destructive problems. It is going the same way it did anciently, only in this end time there is a much greater abundance of truth.

How can we make sure we don’t commit this sin?

The Key of David

We need to view this spiritually, as God does. You need to understand the importance of David’s throne! This has deep meaning physically and spiritually. I explain it in detail in my book The Key of David, which we will send you upon request at no charge.

Revelation 3 beginning in verse 7 describes the second-to-last era of God’s Church—the one before the Laodicean era. And that message begins: “And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David ….” Jesus Christ has the “key of David,” and He gave it to the Philadelphia era of the Church.

Do you hear religions today talking about the key of David? How many traditional Christians, who say they believe the Bible, do you know who talk about and understand the key of David? It seems strange to them! The key of David is about a lot more than a man. It is the most important message in the Bible! This is the key that explains the house of David. It is the ultimate, all-inclusive message—the only message—that Christ gave to His Church in this end time—yet most people reject it, just like Jeroboam did. Isn’t that amazing? They are following the spirit of Jeroboam!

Herbert W. Armstrong was the leader of God’s Church during the Philadelphia era, and he had this key. The Philadelphia Church of God has remained loyal to God in the Laodicean era, and we have clung tightly to this key! The name of our television program is The Key of David. We have produced abundant material on the promises God made to David.

In Revelation 3:7, God says that for those who have this key, He will open doors so they can deliver this message! We must get this: The key of David is the very heart and core of God’s message today and throughout most Bible history! But the Jeroboams keep rejecting it. They want to devise their own plans and live by their own rules. That leads to one catastrophe after another after another!

Notice this promise God makes to His faithful Philadelphians: “Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth” (verse 10). A grievous trial is about to come upon this whole world! Nuclear weapons are proliferating, and they are going to be used! But to those who keep the key of David and promote it and teach it and have a work that delivers it, God promises protection!

Read God’s promise to David in 2 Samuel 7:12-13. This is in the former prophets and is also prophecy for today: “And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever.” This is an eternal promise!

“And thine house [the house of David] and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever” (verse 16). That physical throne still exists today. This wonderful, inspiring message is all explained in The United States and Britain in Prophecy. However, this promise from God is really talking about much more than the royal line of a mortal man: It is actually talking about the throne of God! This is God’s throne, and He is going to rule from this throne for all eternity!

God is inviting human beings to share this throne with Him! If they will be loyal to Him and teach the key of David message, then He will give them the reward of being the Bride of Christ forever—an unparalleled offer to any human being! What a reward God gives those who are loyal to Him before Christ’s Second Coming!

This is what Jeroboam rejected. And a modern-day Jeroboam is going to turn Israel away from the message of God and the throne of David. He is opposing spiritual Jerusalem, as Jeroboam did against physical Jerusalem anciently.

Isaiah 22:20-22 is a related end-time prophecy. It begins, “And it shall come to pass in that day”—an expression that always means the end time, which is today. God says He will call a man and lay upon his shoulder “the key of the house of David.” This is not only about the key of David, but specifically about the key of the house of David—meaning the descendants of David, physically and spiritually.

God says we must have this message today, yet three nations of Israel are rejecting it and following the end-time Jeroboam.

Flee to Judah!

When this nation can’t bear our message anymore, the leaders will tell us to get out: “O thou seer, go, flee thee away into the land of Judah, and there eat bread, and prophesy there” (Amos 7:12). Judah, not Israel, is the biblical name of the Jewish state in the Middle East. The Philadelphia Church of God has had significant projects and activities over there, and these will apparently be well known. We now have an office in Jerusalem and a weekly worldwide radio program airing from there. We could have a stronger work there when this prophecy is fulfilled. People will know a lot about our work and our involvement in Judah. And when we are cast out, it appears they will force us to go to Jerusalem, or to a place of safety, which God promises not only in Revelation 3:10 but also in many other scriptures.

The “Israel” in Amos 7:11 includes the U.S. and the United Kingdom. Verse 12 brings Judah into the picture. Hosea 5:5 reveals that all three of these nations will fall together. Why is God so wrathful toward these three Israelite nations? Because they received the most blessings of all—they are the birthright nations and the scepter nation—yet are mired in unparalleled sin! In addition, all three of them rejected God’s message. These three nations have a history with God. They also received the gigantic birthright and scepter blessings, yet they are totally ungrateful! Ingratitude is perhaps their greatest sin!

“Ephraim [Britain] shall be desolate in the day of rebuke: among the tribes [nations] of Israel have I made known that which shall surely be. The princes of Judah [the Jewish nation] were like them that remove the bound: therefore I will pour out my wrath upon them like water. Ephraim is oppressed and broken in judgment, because he willingly walked after the commandment” (verses 9-11). What “commandment” is being discussed here? The commandment of Jeroboam anciently, who changed God’s holy days, perverted the religious worship, and led the nation into idolatry!

However, this is a prophecy for the end time.

People in Britain, where the third of three prophesied overturns of David’s throne occurred (Ezekiel 21:27), are going to be led astray by a modern-day Jeroboam. They are going to be led more deeply into sin. Now that the United Kingdom has decided to break away from Europe, it will be more desperate to trade with the U.S. This will entice them to follow Jeroboam’s lead into disaster.

What a painful day it is in Israel when you look at what its people are doing. God has been so patient; He has given them so many warnings—but this is the last one! It all revolves around the time of Jeroboam.

A Time of Extreme Urgency

Amos “warned the people that the supreme moment of their success was but the prelude to their doom” (Soncino commentary). This is what we are looking at with Donald Trump assuming the American presidency. Some people believe there was good news in his election. The Republican side was ecstatic. Right after the 2016 election, Rush Limbaugh said, “We just got our country back!” The “good news” is a mirage. It is a false hope.

This “supreme moment of their success” is but the prelude to America’s doom. A man is on the scene whose house God is going to take out by the sword! Conditions in America may improve for a short time. It may even help the Work of God. But its ultimate end is destruction. Our people are going to face the wrath of God until they repent!

Amos 7:7-17 show that our time is very limited.

This is one of the strongest, most urgent warnings in the Bible!

“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 sycomore fruit” (verse 14). Amos had no formal seminary or college training. God simply gave him a job. Even without “credentials,” God used this courageous man!

“Now therefore hear thou the word of the Lord: Thou sayest, Prophesy not against Israel, and drop not thy word against the house of Isaac. Therefore thus saith the Lord; Thy wife shall be an harlot in the city, and thy sons and thy daughters shall fall by the sword, and thy land shall be divided by line; and thou shalt die in a polluted land: and Israel shall surely go into captivity forth of his land” (verses 16-17). Amos had a very different view from Amaziah: He knew this was a message from God!

“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” (Amos 8:11). How will this famine of the word come about? God’s Church will be forced to leave. No one will be here to deliver the message anymore. When this faithful remnant of God’s people is taken to a place of safety, God’s message will cease, except what we do from that location. The nations of Israel have had over 80 years to heed this message, but soon they will not be able to even find it.

Verse 14 talks about people who are going to “fall, and never rise up again.” This is talking about 50 percent of God’s own Laodicean, or lukewarm, Church who will lose their eternal lives! What a tragedy—the greatest tragedy in this end time!

The Lion Has Roared

“In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof; and I will raise up his ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old” (Amos 9:11). God’s Philadelphian remnant has worked to rebuild everything that God built through Herbert W. Armstrong. We won the copyright battle for Mr. Armstrong’s writings and raised the ruins as in the days of old. God’s revealed truth continues to be proclaimed to this world—for now. But all of this is God’s doing; He gives the victory (verse 12).

God is using a small group of obedient people to fulfill this ruin-raising work!

Understanding where we are in prophecy—when God is giving His last warning to Israel in the time of the “Jeroboam end”—stirs us to increase our zeal for God’s Work.

The 2016 presidential election was prophetic. God puts His people right in the middle of it all—“in the midst of my people Israel” (Amos 7:8). His people have to be at the center telling the world what is happening and what it all means.

Look at the context for Amos 7. “The words of Amos, who was among the herdmen of Tekoa, which he saw concerning Israel …. And he said, The Lord will roar from Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem …” (Amos 1:1-2). Who is going to be the voice? Who will be the people who utter God’s voice from spiritual Jerusalem? God has given us this message—we must proclaim it!

Verse 2 concludes, “and the habitations of the shepherds shall mourn, and the top of Carmel shall wither.” The Anchor Bible says the subject here is a cosmic holocaust—a nuclear holocaust! God is about to send nuclear fire! (see also verses 4, 7, 10, 12, 14; 2:2, 5).

We are all weak and sinners, but God promises to make us strong! We will have difficult trials ahead. But God needs people who are eager to do battle and fight for Him, knowing they’re going to win! With that faith, nobody can prevail over our message.

“Will a lion roar in the forest, when he hath no prey? will a young lion cry out of his den, if he have taken nothing?” (Amos 3:4). God is roaring—and He wouldn’t be doing that unless the destruction of Israel is very close.

“Shall a trumpet be blown in the city, and the people not be afraid? shall there be evil in a city, and the Lord hath not done it?” (verse 6). Soncino says, “Shall the horn be blown in a city and the people not tremble?” If we are properly trembling at God’s word, we will be overcoming and conquering our problems. God is building His character in us, but we first have to overcome our weaknesses.

“Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets. The lion hath roared, who will not fear? the Lord God hath spoken, who can but prophesy?” (verses 7-8). We have to prophesy! We have so much wonderful truth and a powerful message from God that must be delivered to the end-time nations of Israel!

“Therefore thus saith the Lord God; An adversary there shall be even round about the land; and he shall bring down thy strength from thee, and thy palaces shall be spoiled. Thus saith the Lord; As the shepherd taketh out of the mouth of the lion two legs, or a piece of an ear; so shall the children of Israel be taken out that dwell in Samaria in the corner of a bed, and in Damascus in a couch” (verses 11-12). Again, this is a “thus saith the Lord” message. It is not from Amos or any man. It’s a picture of a lion’s attack on sheep, but it is discussing Israel—not sheep! God is going to tear these nations apart, until they repent. This is what it takes for them to get to know God and listen to Him!

This message has been saturating their lands, especially America and Britain, but they have refused to hear. God is going to bring them down, so they can finally get to know Him!

“That in the day that I shall visit the transgressions of Israel upon him I will also visit the altars of Bethel: and the horns of the altar shall be cut off, and fall to the ground” (verse 14). “Altars of Bethel” is talking about the Laodiceans (God’s own lukewarm Church). Anciently, people could take refuge in the temple and grab the horns of the altar. By doing this, there was a good chance they would be saved from punishment because they were showing God that they deeply repented and wanted to change. Oftentimes, they would receive mercy from God. But in verse 14, God is saying that won’t happen anymore! There won’t be horns on the altar. They can’t run and hide!

Those without God’s protection who try to flee from one disaster will just be hit by another one! (Amos 5:19). But if we seek God and turn to Him, He will help us overcome, and we will live! (verses 4-9). God will protect us physically and spiritually (Revelation 12:14). Even in a blistering message like Amos’s, there is good news!

When we see this world race to its own destruction before our eyes, we know that a new world is almost here! Yes, there are difficult prophecies ahead, but they all lead directly to the return of Christ!

“Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed; and the mountains shall drop sweet wine, and all the hills shall melt. And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel, and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; they shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them. And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, saith the Lord thy God” (Amos 9:13-15). This is the wonderful conclusion Amos gives us.

There is a lot of bad news in the near future, but that is only temporary. All of it is good news because God is paving the way for Israel to know Him! Soon, everyone will be educated in God’s ways, and blessed for their obedience!

Continue Reading: Chapter 2: America’s Real Enemy