All the sinners of my people shall die by the sword, which say, The evil shall not overtake nor prevent us.
Amos 9:10 was spoken to apostate Israel before the captivity, together with warnings that the houses of ivory and the great houses would perish, that the land would melt with all its inhabitants mourning, that sons and daughters would fall by the sword, that the land would be divided, and that Israel would surely go into captivity, so that Israel must prepare to meet God because He would do this to them. It reveals God's purpose to bring judgment on His impenitent people, with His eyes upon the sinful kingdom to destroy it from the face of the earth, yet He will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob.
The judgment is a sifting of the house of Israel among all nations like corn in a sieve, a close work that separates chaff from kernels of grain. Not the least true kernel will fall to the ground, for His discerning eye detects the smallest particle of chaff while preserving every true grain. All the sinners of His people who insist that evil will not overtake or reach them will die by the sword, condemned for false security that disaster will never come upon them.
Those sinners are asleep and at ease, trusting teachers who are also asleep, who speak smooth things, see no special cause for alarm among God's professed people, and cry peace. The verse also describes a present sifting in a time of scouring and purifying, warfare and trial in days of darkness and peril in which God's people are tested and proved. It requires plain and pointed testimony to act a prominent part through faithful teachers who can stand and speak the whole truth.
Amos 9:10 was spoken to apostate Israel before the captivity, together with warnings that the houses of ivory and the great houses would perish, that the land would melt with all its inhabitants mourning, that sons and daughters would fall by the sword, that the land would be divided, and that Israel would surely go into captivity, so that Israel must prepare to meet God because He would do this to them. It reveals God's purpose to bring judgment on His impenitent people, with His eyes upon the sinful kingdom to destroy it from the face of the earth, yet He will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob.
The judgment is a sifting of the house of Israel among all nations like corn in a sieve, a close work that separates chaff from kernels of grain. Not the least true kernel will fall to the ground, for His discerning eye detects the smallest particle of chaff while preserving every true grain. All the sinners of His people who insist that evil will not overtake or reach them will die by the sword, condemned for false security that disaster will never come upon them.
Those sinners are asleep and at ease, trusting teachers who are also asleep, who speak smooth things, see no special cause for alarm among God's professed people, and cry peace. The verse also describes a present sifting in a time of scouring and purifying, warfare and trial in days of darkness and peril in which God's people are tested and proved. It requires plain and pointed testimony to act a prominent part through faithful teachers who can stand and speak the whole truth.