Amos 3:1-11
Samaria
- the capital of Israel - has built fortresses of defense using the
wealth accumulated through violence and theft and exploitation of the
surrounding nations.
It's in this context that the author writes to the countries which have been brutalized by Israel: "Gather on the Samaritan mountains, take a good, hard look at this snake pit of brutality and terror!"
Lets say (theoretically, but not really) that there was a country that built itself up for generations and generations on the wealth of exploiting smaller nations. Through doing so, it built the best economy in the world. It was able to build the most effective military and defense system in the world as well. It was able to stockpile weapons to the point that no one would want to mess with them.
All the while, all the nations sitting at the lap of this one country started realizing what was going on. They started realizing that all this time, they were going nowhere. They were stuck in the same economic and political rut they had been in from the very beginning while this one country grew on all sides.
At some point, these nations are called together to pay attention to what this one country is really doing. And it dawns on them: "We're getting taken advantage of year, after year, after year."
Because, in order for there to be such a thing as a "sovereign nation," other nations have to suffer. And, it's only before long before those nations realize what's going on.
I live in a duplex, and my neighbor is a very mysterious cat. So, one day I was talking to another neighbor and asked him, "What's his story?" He kind of looked around to make sure no one was listening and he said, "Oh, Matt (he's my neighbor)?"
"Yeah, Matt," I said.
"He's got an intricate business going on, and he's been at it for years. He takes people to the doctor because they don't have a way to get there. As payment for his services, he takes a little off the top of their prescriptions and then sells it. That's why you see all these people coming in and out of the house all the time."
"That explains it," I said. "I knew it had to be something like that."
It's not random that Matt keeps getting robbed. First, his toolbox, then his safe, then his bike.
When we build ourselves up on the exploitation of others, there will be retaliation. People only let us step on their toes for so long before they start seeing what's happening. And, when one nation builds itself up off the backs of other nations, it becomes a target. It becomes hated. It becomes a source of anger.
The author also writes about Israel, "They can't - or won't - do one thing right." Israel has been at the business of exploitation and violence for so long that it's become right in their eyes. She can't see what she's doing wrong. She can't see why other nations would want to attack or plot or scheme against her.
Sound familiar?
So, when we talk about fair trade and poverty and third world and oppression, we're talking about real things. We're talking about one nation being stripped of its resources all in the name of economic growth, and being given unfair recompense for those resources.
Just recently, factory workers in Bangladesh got to their boiling point. They were tired of getting paid unfair wages to make garments that would be sold in billion dollar enterprises like Gap and WalMart. So, what'd they do? They burnt the $100 million factory to the ground, after realizing they were losing on the deal. They were making $40/month or $1.33 per day.
If anything, the author of Amos is saying, "Look, don't blame God when these countries retaliate! You've created this mess, and these countries aren't gonna put up with this any longer!"
It's in this context that the author writes to the countries which have been brutalized by Israel: "Gather on the Samaritan mountains, take a good, hard look at this snake pit of brutality and terror!"
Lets say (theoretically, but not really) that there was a country that built itself up for generations and generations on the wealth of exploiting smaller nations. Through doing so, it built the best economy in the world. It was able to build the most effective military and defense system in the world as well. It was able to stockpile weapons to the point that no one would want to mess with them.
All the while, all the nations sitting at the lap of this one country started realizing what was going on. They started realizing that all this time, they were going nowhere. They were stuck in the same economic and political rut they had been in from the very beginning while this one country grew on all sides.
At some point, these nations are called together to pay attention to what this one country is really doing. And it dawns on them: "We're getting taken advantage of year, after year, after year."
Because, in order for there to be such a thing as a "sovereign nation," other nations have to suffer. And, it's only before long before those nations realize what's going on.
I live in a duplex, and my neighbor is a very mysterious cat. So, one day I was talking to another neighbor and asked him, "What's his story?" He kind of looked around to make sure no one was listening and he said, "Oh, Matt (he's my neighbor)?"
"Yeah, Matt," I said.
"He's got an intricate business going on, and he's been at it for years. He takes people to the doctor because they don't have a way to get there. As payment for his services, he takes a little off the top of their prescriptions and then sells it. That's why you see all these people coming in and out of the house all the time."
"That explains it," I said. "I knew it had to be something like that."
It's not random that Matt keeps getting robbed. First, his toolbox, then his safe, then his bike.
When we build ourselves up on the exploitation of others, there will be retaliation. People only let us step on their toes for so long before they start seeing what's happening. And, when one nation builds itself up off the backs of other nations, it becomes a target. It becomes hated. It becomes a source of anger.
The author also writes about Israel, "They can't - or won't - do one thing right." Israel has been at the business of exploitation and violence for so long that it's become right in their eyes. She can't see what she's doing wrong. She can't see why other nations would want to attack or plot or scheme against her.
Sound familiar?
So, when we talk about fair trade and poverty and third world and oppression, we're talking about real things. We're talking about one nation being stripped of its resources all in the name of economic growth, and being given unfair recompense for those resources.
Just recently, factory workers in Bangladesh got to their boiling point. They were tired of getting paid unfair wages to make garments that would be sold in billion dollar enterprises like Gap and WalMart. So, what'd they do? They burnt the $100 million factory to the ground, after realizing they were losing on the deal. They were making $40/month or $1.33 per day.
If anything, the author of Amos is saying, "Look, don't blame God when these countries retaliate! You've created this mess, and these countries aren't gonna put up with this any longer!"
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