Contemplative Bible Reading

Amos 5:18-20 (New Living Translation)

18 What sorrow awaits you who say,
“If only the day of the Lord were here!”
You have no idea what you are wishing for.
That day will bring darkness, not light.
19 In that day you will be like a man who runs from a lion—
only to meet a bear.
Escaping from the bear, he leans his hand against a wall in his house—
and he’s bitten by a snake.
20 Yes, the day of the Lord will be dark and hopeless,
without a ray of joy or hope.

The prophet Amos is telling his people what is to come. The people are hoping for “the day of the LORD.” Surely, they think, that day will be good as it will bring a better future.

Amos tells them otherwise. Note verse 19 as a bad day will go from to to worse to worse(r). After escaping wild animals to the shelter of a house, the man will lean on the wall and be bit by a snake.

A comic tragedy.

What’s the point? There are several and several more possibilities. One point is that we assume we are right, and one day the LORD will show up and make things right for us and bad for everyone else. ooops, sometimes we are the one who will be punished when the LORD arrives. Another point, we just think things are bad now. Why do we think that? Why don’t we recognize the blessings of today and thank the LORD for them?