Amos 3:1-10: a reflection

1Hear this word that the LORD has spoken against you, children of Israel, against the whole family which I brought up out of the land of Egypt, saying: 2“I have only chosen you of all the families of the earth. Therefore I will punish you for all of your sins.” 3Do two walk together, unless they have agreed? 4Will a lion roar in the thicket, when he has no prey? Does a young lion cry out of his den, if he has caught nothing? 5Can a bird fall in a trap on the earth, where no snare is set for him? Does a snare spring up from the ground, when there is nothing to catch? 6Does the trumpet alarm sound in a city, without the people being afraid? Does evil happen to a city, and the LORD hasn’t done it? 7Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, unless he reveals his secret to his servants the prophets. 8The lion has roared. Who will not fear? The Lord GOD has spoken. Who can but prophesy? 9Proclaim in the palaces at Ashdod, and in the palaces in the land of Egypt, and say, “Assemble yourselves on the mountains of Samaria, and see what unrest is in her, and what oppression is among them.” 10“Indeed they don’t know to do right,” says the LORD, “Who hoard plunder and loot in their palaces.”

God speaks a sobering word to Israel, reminding them that their special closeness to him brings not exemption but greater responsibility. You only have I known of all the families of the earth, God says; therefore I will punish you for all your sins. It might seem that being chosen, being close to God, would mean escaping accountability; but God says the opposite: because you are the people I have known, therefore you are more accountable, not less. Their privilege of nearness to God carried with it a greater responsibility to live as his people, and a greater accountability when they did not. This confronts a temptation to presume on our closeness to God as if it exempted us from responsibility. Closeness to God brings greater responsibility, not exemption. Being chosen means more accountability, not less. Privilege before God carries responsibility. To whom much is given, much is required.

Notice how God turns their privilege into a summons to responsibility. Israel might have presumed that being God's chosen people, the ones he had known and brought out of Egypt, meant they were safe, exempt, free from accountability whatever they did. But God says: precisely because I have known you of all the families of the earth, therefore I will hold you accountable for your sins. Their nearness to God did not lessen their responsibility; it heightened it. This confronts a real temptation in us. We can presume on our closeness to God, our belonging to him, our privileges of knowing him, as though these exempted us from living as we should, as though being God's people meant we could take sin lightly. But the opposite is true: the closer we are to God, the more we have been given of him, the greater our responsibility to live faithfully, and the greater our accountability. Privilege before God is not license but responsibility. To whom much is given, much is required. Nearness to God calls us to greater faithfulness, not less. Do not presume your closeness to God exempts you; it calls you to more. The more we are given of God, the more is required of us.

That is worth taking to heart, for closeness to God brings greater responsibility, not exemption, and we should not presume our privilege exempts us from living faithfully. We can presume on our belonging to God, our knowing him, as though it meant we could take sin lightly or escape accountability; but God told Israel that because he had known them of all the families of the earth, therefore he would hold them accountable. Privilege before God is responsibility, not license. Do not presume your closeness to God exempts you from living as his people; let it call you to greater faithfulness. Let your closeness to God call you to greater faithfulness rather than presuming it exempts you, for God told Israel, you only have I known of all the families of the earth, therefore I will punish you for all your sins, turning their privilege of nearness to him not into exemption but into greater accountability; for we can presume on our belonging to God, our knowing him, our privileges of closeness, as though these meant we could take sin lightly or escape responsibility, but the opposite is true, and the closer we are to God and the more we have been given of him, the greater our responsibility to live faithfully and the greater our accountability when we do not, so that privilege before God is not license but a summons to responsibility, and to whom much is given, much is required, calling us to greater faithfulness rather than presuming on our nearness as if it exempted us.

Lord, you speak a sobering word to Israel, reminding them that their special closeness to you brings not exemption but greater responsibility. You only have I known of all the families of the earth, you say; therefore I will punish you for all your sins. It might seem that being chosen, being close to you, would mean escaping accountability; but you say the opposite: because you are the people I have known, therefore you are more accountable, not less. Their privilege of nearness to you carried with it a greater responsibility to live as your people, and a greater accountability when they did not. This confronts a temptation to presume on my closeness to you as if it exempted me from responsibility. Show me how you turn their privilege into a summons to responsibility. Israel might have presumed that being your chosen people meant they were safe, exempt, free from accountability whatever they did. But you say: precisely because I have known you, therefore I will hold you accountable for your sins. Their nearness to you did not lessen their responsibility; it heightened it. This confronts a real temptation in me. I can presume on my closeness to you, my belonging to you, my privileges of knowing you, as though these exempted me from living as I should. But the opposite is true: the closer I am to you, the more I have been given of you, the greater my responsibility to live faithfully. Take that to my heart, for closeness to you brings greater responsibility, not exemption. Keep me from presuming that my closeness to you exempts me from living as your person; let it call me instead to greater faithfulness, Lord, remembering that to whom much is given, much is required, so that I hold my nearness to you as a summons to responsibility rather than a license to take sin lightly.