Self-Inflicted Famine (Amos 8:1–14)

The covenantal unfaithfulness of Israel, the Northern Kingdom, had doomed them for God’s irrevocable judgement. They were hopeless for deliverance, sealed by God’s silence towards them. For this reason chapter 8 is one of the saddest prophecies in Scripture. It is also one of the most frightening, for there was going to be a famine of hearing the word of the Lord. Among other lessons to be learned is that we dare not treat God with contempt by taking his grace for granted. We consider the text under the following headings:

1. A Final Festival (vv. 1–10)

a. What Amos Sees (vv. 1–2a)
b. What God Says (vv. 2b–3)
c. What God Sees (vv. 4–6)
d. What God Will Do (vv. 7–10)

2. A Frightful Famine (vv. 11–14)

a. What God Sends (v. 11)
b. What the Godless Seek (vv. 12–14)