Through Amos, God continues to speak words of destruction that will descend upon Israel. He reminds Israel of how she was brought out of slavery from Egypt, and yet not do the right thing now. Instead her people store riches in their fortresses... The rich ones have summer house and winter house, adorned with highly decorated pieces like ivory. And from the previous chapter, we learnt that such wealth often than not comes at the expense of the poor. But here we need pause and ask if there is any problem with being rich. Why did God say that the mansions will be destroyed?
God was not against a person being rich. But then there are two things we should remember about riches. First, how does one become rich? God is not pleased when a person becomes rich using unfair and wrong means. He does not want that a person gathers riches through exploitation, cheating, robbing etc.; he does not want that riches come through bribery or corruption. Second, what does one do with the wealth one has? God does not want the wealth to be used for luxurious and extravagant lifestyle. I think we can make a difference between living a simple, comfortable and beautiful life and luxurious, extravagant and wasteful life. He wants us to use wealth to help those in need. This may take the form of investing in ways to create jobs, for example; not using wealth in ways that will make the needy dependent and parasitic, but lifting them to stand on their own feet.
God's judgement on Israel came true in 721 BC when she was conquered by the Assyrian empire and her people taken as captive to foreign land. Within a span of 20-30 years of Amos' prophecy, God's judgment came on Israel.
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