The Oracle Judgements of God

Well, we are taking a break from our study series in the Fruit of the Spirit to turn our eyes and to turn our focus onto the upcoming fall Holy Days, of course. And the Feast of Trumpets is next in our study, and we're looking forward to that. That's what we want to do today. And I will tell you that it is a little bit of a difficult study today, so I'll give you a little bit of pre-warning on that.

But we do have to take a look at these things, and we do know the Day of Trumpets, while it is a great day, and it's going to usher in a new millennium, a new world. It is difficult to think about that, and I've had many discussions with you, about how it is going to be, in many ways, a dreadful day, as God's judgment is poured out upon humanity and mankind. So today, we want to look at God's judgment, and we want to take a look at the nature, and hopefully come away from the Scriptures today with a deeper understanding of the nature of God's judgment.

So, the title of our study today is, The Oracle Judgments of God. The Oracle Judgments of God. And I invite you, with your Bibles open, to turn to Amos chapters 1 and 2. Amos chapters 1 and 2. And we're going to spend the balance of our time here in these first two chapters of Amos. And I've titled this study in this way, because we are going to look at the oracles today, which are given to us in these first two chapters of Amos.

You know, an oracle is simply a prophetic statement. And specifically here, these are prophetic statements of judgment. And Amos is putting forth these oracle judgments from God. And in doing so, he's not only or merely going to speak to the surrounding nations, the surrounding nations of God's people. We're also going to see that the focus will also turn on the people of God themselves. Now, you'll notice here in Amos chapter 1 and verse 3, from Amos chapter 1 and verse 3, to Amos chapter 2 and verse 3.

So chapter 1 and verse 3, all the way to chapter 2 and verse 3. That Amos is going to be speaking these judgments to the surrounding nations. We're going to go through these oracles. But then, from chapter 2 and verse 4, essentially to the end of chapter 2, Amos is going to pivot and speak God's word of judgment to God's people themselves. So chapter 2 verse 4, through the end of the chapter, Amos is going to direct God's judgment to God's people themselves. And again, we're going to go through these. And we're going to see that there are six oracle judgments directed to the surrounding nations.

And then two judgments directed to God's people. You'll notice that in each of these oracles, each of these prophetic statements of judgment, they begin in the same way. And they begin with the phrase, thus says the Lord. And then as follows that phrase, it will say, for three transgressions, it'll state the nation, for four, I will not turn away its punishment.

You'll notice the first oracle judgment found Amos 1 verse 3. Amos 1 and verse 3, you'll see this pattern. Thus says the Lord, for three transgressions of Damascus, and for four, I will not turn away its punishment. Then the second oracle, and we'll go through these beginning chapter 1 and verse 6. Same wording but directed to Gaza. Chapter 1 verse 6, thus says the Lord, for three transgressions of Gaza, and for four, I will not turn away its punishment. The third is in verse 9, directed to Tyre.

The fourth in verse 11, to Edom. The fifth in verse 13, to Ammon. And then the sixth oracle to the surrounding nations is chapter 2 verse 1, directed to Moab. So again, you have these six prophetic oracle judgments, all directed to the surrounding nations of God's people. Then again, Amos doesn't stop there. He pivots and directs now God's word of judgment to God's people. Beginning chapter 2 verse 4, to Judah.

Chapter 2 verse 4, thus says the Lord, for three transgressions of Judah, and for four, I will not turn away its punishment. And then verse 6 of chapter 2, to Israel. There's the pattern. Thus says the Lord, for three transgressions of Israel, and for four, I will not turn away its punishment.

So, we could ask, what is this? What is this? What are these oracle judgments here? Six to the surrounding nations, two to God's people. Is this just poetic, you know, in its phraseology? Is Amos being poetic here, repeating the same phraseology over and over again? Well, not at all. Not at all. Rather, there is teaching in this regarding the nature of God's judgment. When Amos speaks in this way to the people, he is conveying the way in which God deals with people. And what he's conveying by using this repetitive phraseology over and over again is simply and over-archingly speaks to the fact that God is patient. God is patient. If there's anything you want to get about the nature of God's judgment, it's that. And that God doesn't primarily or immediately respond to transgressions and sin with immediate punishment. This is, if we were to put this in human terms, I'll add a little levity to this. You know, you might think of a teacher or a parent, perhaps. God looks down on the people and he says, now, essentially, that's one. And he says, that's two. Does that bring anybody's, any parent or teacher to mind? You know, Jimmy, that's one. You know, and the kid's trying to decipher, how far can I push this, you know, before I get in trouble?

But that's human terms. But what God is essentially saying is, I'm not going to act just yet.

Perhaps there won't be a third. Perhaps they'll come to repentance. Perhaps they'll turn from their iniquity, from their sin. But there comes a point in which he says, and must say, enough is enough. And that is what Amos describes here in the fourth transgression, as it were. The fourth transgression is descriptive of the point in which God's patience runs out. And God's patience does run out. Why? Well, you see, because to have no righteous anger, to have no loss of patience with regards to sin, at some point indicates an ambivalence to sin. And if we know anything about God, anything about His nature, He is not ambivalent to sin, by any means. And there comes a point in a moral and righteous God where He says, enough is enough. And in many ways, in coming to the day of trumpets, which we are soon anticipating observing, and perhaps soon anticipate the fulfillment of it, Jesus Christ comes to put an end to sin and transgressions, puts an end to the work of the devil. In many ways, God will be declaring just that. That's enough. One, two, three, four, four, I will not turn away its punishment. So, we come to the book of Amos today with a desire to uncover more of the nature of God's judgment, which He will eventually pour out upon man in their sin, in their transgressions, on the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And I believe that even though we're removed from the details of this book of Amos by thousands of years, even being so, we're going to hear a message from Amos that is absolutely timeless. And it's an uncomfortable message. Frankly, it's a devastating message we will see today. It was devastating for them then. In many ways, it's devastating today, as we look to the future. Because you'll notice that Amos chapter 1 and verse 2, God makes it clear. And God at this point, Amos 1 verse 2, is speaking to the nations with a roar from Zion, He says. The Lord roars from Zion and utters His voice from Jerusalem. The pastures of His shepherds mourn the top of Carmel withers.

So this is, if you like, the thunder that you hear that gives us an indication of the threat and the foreboding storm, which is coming. So, in the balance of the time we have left, we want to take these oracles of judgment in order that Amos gives them to us. And we do see that Amos is going to address the individuals that are outside of the covenant of God. They are not part of God's people. But yet, God still speaks to them. So we're going to talk about that a little bit. Now, you'll notice he first speaks to Damascus. That's Amos chapter 1, beginning in verse 3 through 5. Speaking to Damascus, which was the capital of Syria, a long-time enemy of Israel. Chapter 1, verse 3, the prophet of God says, Now say this to Damascus. For three transgressions of Damascus, and for four, I will not turn away its punishment. Because they have thresh Gilead with implements of iron. But I will send a fire to the house of Haziel, which shall devour the palaces of Ben-Hadad. I will also break the gate-bar of Damascus and cut off the inhabitant from the valley of Avin, and the one who holds the scepter from Beth-Adin. And the people of Syria shall go captive to Ker, says the Lord. Let's stop there. So, God is saying to Damascus, the people of Syria here, that the last straw, as far as I'm concerned, God says, is the unbelievable cruelty which you have shown to the people that you conquered. Namely, verse 3, Gilead. Because God says, they thresh Gilead with implements of iron. So, this evokes imagery in our mind, and it is the farming image. It's this threshing with iron teeth here. And this is an implement metaphor here, symbolizing the cruelty and the inhumane treatment of the people they conquered. So, what happened here is that Syria went in and they conquered the nation of Gilead. And that's one thing. But not just that.

History also records that we might even be able to take this symbolism, literally. And they not only conquered these people, but they took the nation of Gilead, laid them out on the battlefield, stretched them prostrate on the ground, took these gigantic threshing machines, machines that were to be used for pounding grain and pulverizing it, and they took these threshing machines and ran them right over the bodies of the conquered people.

Difficult to think about.

And just know, just know, people made in the image of God must never be treated merely as objects or as things.

Okay? This is going to be a theme today, I believe. People must never be treated merely as objects. And applying this to today, does this principle speak to the various issues of our day today?

You might be thinking about this. Men and women in the image of God treated less than human. Less than human. Men and women created in the image of God treated as less than human. So think of the various issues of today across our nations, the various atrocities. Today, the issue of child pornography. Unspeakable to cruelty. That's just one of the examples of inhuman, inhumane, less than human treatment and atrocities occurring across our nation today. And does God say that His judgment will fall upon this activity? Yes, He certainly does. So God says, through Amos, Syria, if you think you can get away with that, you've got another thing coming. I'm about to come and destroy you. I'm roaring from Zion.

So, Amos stands up and first speaks to these people. Second, secondly, verse 6, He now speaks to Gaza. These just come right one after another here. Gaza, whom God will judge because, verse 6, they're involved in wholesale slavery. So let's break into the verse here.

He says, I will not turn away its punishment, because they took captive the whole captivity to deliver them up to Edom. But I will send fire upon the wall of Gaza, which shall devour its palaces. I will cut off the inhabitant of Ashdod and the one who holds the scepter of Ashkelon. I will turn my hand against Ekron, and the remnant of the Philistines shall perish, says the Lord. The people of Gaza were actually Philistines. It was really a conglomeration of city-states, and Gaza was one of the most prominent. Amongst these city-states, business was conducted with a total disregard to human beings. In the words of verse 8, they took captive, the whole captivity, to deliver them up to Edom. So after conquering them, instead of treating them as human beings, and perhaps sheltering them as refugees, they in fact sold them. Not only sold them as captives, they sold them back to their enemies. So you can imagine the incredible atrocities that occurred at that time. We don't have to go very far back in our nation's history to find a point of contact to this. What's the principle? Turning profit...

Where turning profit takes precedence over human dignity and welfare. Turning profit takes precedence over even human dignity and welfare. So it was the sin of wholesale buying and selling of people. And you'll notice the third oracle judgment. It's alike unto this here. This time it's being directed to Tyre, verse 9 and 10 here. Verse 9 and 10, for three transgressions of Tyre, and for four, I will not turn away its punishment, because they delivered the whole captivity to Edom, and did not remember the covenant of brotherhood.

But I will send fire upon the wall of Tyre, which shall devour its palaces.

So why would God turn away His punishment? It's the same atrocity here.

Tyre sells whole communities as captives to Edom. In other words, there is the inhumanity of wholesale trafficking of human flesh. The trafficking of human bodies, treating individuals as things. I can buy you, I can sell you, I can beat you, I could even bury you if I want, you know. And so God says for three transgressions, three sins, but for four, I will not turn away, for punishment upon that nation.

You know, we could ask, should a righteous God turn away forever? Should a righteous God turn away forever?

Or should a righteous Creator God, at some point, put an end to these lives? The aggressor, absolutely. And even the misery of the victim, who's caught up with the aggressor. And raise them up in a second resurrection, which we heard about in the sermonette. And raise them up in a world with a loving king.

Furthermore, he says, in relation to you people, he has a further issue here. This is interesting. Verse 9, that you disregard the covenant of brotherhood. You don't remember the covenant of the brotherhood. In other words, you're guilty of breaking the obligations. And what this was, was a betrayal between an agreement between Tyre and Israel. And Tyre broke this agreement for their own gain. And it was quite a breaching. So the principle, honor to a pledged word that matters to God. Honor to a pledged word. That's a word we could bring to today's diplomats, couldn't we? And statesmen. And God says, let me tell you something. Your word matters. It greatly matters to God.

Fourthly, in the beginning of verse 11, we have the oracle warning to Edom. Now, verse 11 and 12.

Stop there. So why the judgment on Edom? Well, it was because of their absolute uncalled for unbelievable anger toward their brother.

You may know the Edomites were descendants of Esau, twin brother of Jacob. So there was this close relationship between them and Israel. They were brothers. God considered them brothers. But Edom was always set against Israel. And it wasn't just any kind of anger. It was this perpetual anger. And they came against their brother with sword. It says, and it just raged. And their fury. Just unmitigated anger. And if you think about some of the nations that are warring today, you step back and you look at it and you think, wow, there is just this unmitigated anger. They want to just take the sword to them any chance they could get. It speaks to today, doesn't it? I've looked upon them and I can see how they operate. They pursue their brother with the sword. Unmitigated anger, inamiscible to God. How long should God turn away from this poison, this hatred in their hearts? Well, he says, I will now send fire upon the nation and wipe them out. Fifthly, Ammon. This one's a difficult one. If they've been difficult so far, this one's particularly difficult. To Ammon, verse 13 through 15. For three transgressions of the people of Ammon, and for four I will not turn away its punishment. Because they ripped open the women with child in Gilead, that they might enlarge their territory. But I will kindle a fire in the wall of Raba, and it shall devour its palaces, amid shouting in the day of battle, and the tempest in the day of the whirlwind. Their king shall go into captivity. He and his princes together, says Lord. So this is a judgment, and they are found guilty of an all-consuming passion for what? For more territory. More territory. And it's such a passion that they enlarge their territory. They're prepared to engage in the most horrendous acts to achieve their objectives.

So much so, the Amorites killed pregnant women for the mere fact to prevent the increase of the Israelite population in Gilead. And so they were trying to wrestle this land from Israel. Now, you look at verse 13, and this atrocity, and let's bring it to today. You know, these eight centuries ago, prophetic words, do they speak to anything today? They ripped open the pregnant of Gilead in order to extend their borders. So what's the principle here? The overarching principle here is, pursuit of unjust gain, no matter the cost. Pursuit of unjust gain, no matter the cost in lives, even women, even little babies.

How would this relate to today? Pursuit of unjust gain, no matter the cost to a little baby inside a mother. And I can tell you, you know, if you read scripture, there's nothing that moves God more to punish than cruelty to the helpless, the vulnerable. It is a theme throughout scripture. It's one thing to bring atrocities to someone that's capable or strong. But you bring those atrocities to someone vulnerable, someone weak, someone helpless?

Nothing moves God more to punishment than the cruelty to the helpless. And God sees this happening thousands and thousands upon thousands every year.

So are we any better? Are we any better?

Sixthly, what about Moab? So moving to chapter 2, beginning in verse 1 through 3, here's the sixth oracle. Chapter 2, beginning in verse 1, And I will cut off the judge from its mist, and slay all of its princes with him, says the Lord.

So we'll stop there for a moment. So in looking at this text, it's interesting to think about the application of this. There's probably a few possibilities here, and history records to back these up. The first possibility is that they're guilty of raiding the tombs. You think of what must be in a heart to raid a tomb of peoples they've already defeated, and they would grind down the bodies even more. Also, they were absolutely guilty of burning alive those heir apparent to the thrones, those thrones that had already been vanquished. But just to send an explanation point, they would burn alive those who were the heir apparent, the successors to those kingdoms in which they conquered. But in all this, the issue with Moab is that the nation was guilty of acts of vengeance, which were outside the realm, outside the limits of human, not only human justice, but human conscience. If there's one thing we could summarize, these six oracles, these six judgments which God's putting forth, is if there is an overarching judgment, is that all these nations were guilty of going beyond the limits of even human justice or even just human conscience.

Amos's about to turn his focus on God's people, but before we move into the judgment of God's people, I want to wrap up this understanding here regarding the nature of God's judgment on the world. That term, the world, simply meaning the nature of God's judgment upon those outside the covenant of God. Because we notice that these people, they were non-called individuals, aren't they? Do these individuals have a special relationship, a special revelation, like the nation of Israel? No. So why would God be talking to them? Have you ever wondered that?

Do they have a particular knowledge of God, like the nation of Israel? No. Do they have the law written on tablets of stone, such as Israel, the nation of Israel? Nope.

Yet God speaks to them and calls them into account. How come? Let me try to explain.

God does not regard the ignorance of these nations as an excuse for unspeakable behavior. I'll say that again. God does not regard the ignorance of these nations as an excuse for unspeakable behavior. God does not regard the ignorance of nations today as an excuse for unspeakable behavior. There are some unspeakable behaviors coming as we get closer to the return of Jesus Christ.

So God does not regard the ignorance of the nations as an excuse for unspeakable behavior. Why? Well, the reason is that God created all of humanity.

And in creating man and woman in his image, he made man with a conscience. In man's conscience, it's part of the internal indication of the fact that man didn't emerge from a slimy pool into existence today. So man's conscience is part of the internal indication of the fact that we didn't emerge simply from a pool of slime.

Rather, man has been raised above the animals and therefore raised above animal behavior. And it is that God gave man this innate right and wrong. And that conscience, although marred by sin, severely marred by sin, that conscience has not been eradicated. And man, all men, all women, have a law inside of them. When they were stamped with the image of God, I wonder if you knew this, that man and woman has a law stamped also inside of them. And when we look at the day of Trump, it's in the day of the Lord. And when we think about God enacting His future judgment upon the nations, we need to know this. Keep your marker here. We're going to come right back. But let's turn over to Romans chapter 2 for a moment. Before we move into the judgment upon God's people, we want to get this regarding the nature of God's judgment. With regards to those outside of the covenant. So Romans chapter 2, and we're going to begin in verse 12. Again, when we look at the day of the future day of Trump, it's coming the day of the Lord, the day in which God will enact judgment upon the nations. We need to know this regarding the nature of God's judgment. So Romans 2, let's read verses 12 through 16, and we may read a portion of this twice here. Romans 2, beginning in verse 12, notice this truth.

Romans 2 verse 12, For as many as have sinned without law, will also perish without law. And as many as have sinned in the law, will be judged by the law. For not the hearers of the law are just in the sight of God, but the doers of the law will be justified. Verse 14, For when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do the things in the law, these, although not having the law, are a law to themselves, who show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and between themselves and their thoughts accusing or else excusing them in the day when God will judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel. Let's stop there. So Gentiles are different than the people of God. They do not have the law. They don't have those tablets of stone. They don't have this covenant. So read this again, verse 14 through 16, For when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do the things in the law, these Gentiles, although not having the law, are a law to themselves, who show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and between themselves and their thoughts accusing or else excusing them in the day of the Lord when God will judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel. Okay, so Paul says, indeed, the Gentiles do not have a law. When they do, by nature, things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though they don't have the law. Verse 15, The work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, their thoughts even now accusing or even excusing them. So, we could put it pagan. Pagan people are aware of what's right and wrong, aren't they? Even though they don't have a Bible to make it clear to them, they are a law to themselves. Within them, written the very law of God because they're human, they're human beings, they're not animals. In fact, they're in the very image of God. They are human beings, not in the fullness of Scripture, not in the fullness of Revelation, but sufficient fullness to yield them accountable to God. And today, across our world, no human being can escape the obligation of being a human being. Okay? A human being stamped in the image of God. That's why, that's why, incidentally, the Godless theory, which is being taught, it tries to show man no better than the animal. You know, we're just part of the animal kingdom. That's all we are. We're no different than animals. And that's vital to their case. The evolution hypothesis is vital to their cause because once showing man is not in the image of a creator God, then they can disregard human treatment. And they can justify inhumane treatment, you see.

They can treat them how they like and justify it. And the Bible says that's wrong. And inhumane treatment is coming. And it's coming greater and greater. We know this.

And as men and women's conscience gets more and more marred, they will take on these aspects of inhumanity. That stamp of God's image, that conscience, becomes less and less. And they're going to be able to justify all kinds of horrible treatments, like in these oracles that we're reading about.

But the Bible says that's wrong. Man cannot escape the obligation of being human. He's not an animal. In fact, he's made in the image of God, and he's made with a sense of moral exactitude.

And when man does something wrong, he or she stifles something in them. Even though their nature is prone to this very thing, and again, the more they stifle it, the easier it gets, of course. And we're getting to a point in society where there's been so much stifling.

But even though they've never received the law from God, they officially bear the marks of a Creator upon them. So they are not without moral guidance. The voice of conscience speaks in every man or woman. And God's voice roars from heaven against this inhumane activity. And the voice of Amos speaks to 21st century society today. And society is in desperate need of these oracle judgments.

Now, the people of God themselves are far from being exempt from God's judgment. You'll turn back to Amos chapter 2 here. We're going to move through this fairly quickly. Considering the spiritual condition of God's people, we could probably assume maybe at this point, God's people who were off track may have been saying, you tell them, Amos, you know, here, here, you let them have it. But now, all of a sudden, they would have been shut up pretty quickly as Amos turns and gives two oracles. He's going to give two oracle judgments to God's people themselves. And he's going to address Judah first, and then Israel. And I just want to say right up front, to the church, it is not given the privilege or the prerogative to stand, as it were, and shout pronouncements of judgment from the rooftops against the communities around us. There is a warning we need to give. However, we must first open our hearts and minds to what God warns his own people. And we're going to see that the things that the nations were warned against, it even comes to God's people as well. So beginning in chapter 2, verse 4 and 5, chapter 2, verse 4 and 5, stop there. So this is the warning to Judah, God's people, those in possession of God's word. And if I can put it as simply as possible, if we are in possession of God's word, we better adhere our lives to it. It is that simple. This is the oracle that's coming down upon Judah. And you know, the surrounding nations and those six oracles there, they're held accountable, as we said. They can look around at creation, and God reveals himself through that. They have an internal conscience stamped upon their lives. But now God's judgment falls upon God's people, God's people not merely seeing God in creation, not merely knowing God through a conscience. But they know God because God reached out to them with a personal relationship and offered an intimate relationship, an intimate knowledge available to them.

And Christ says to everyone to whom much is given, much is expected. And God will not turn away punishment upon them. Why? Simply put, they rejected God's law. And in fact, it's not even just a rejection of God's law, you'll notice. Verse 4 says, because they have despised the law of God. So this is something deeper here.

As a man or woman thinks, so they are.

So in their minds, while they possess the law, they refuse to submit to it. They refuse to submit to it up here and here. So God's not simply concerned with looking down, seeing that we're all dressed correctly, seeing that we're all here on the right day. All that's very important and required, no doubt. But the overarching importance is here, it's the heart. It's not enough just to obey God's law. You and I have to have a willingness, and not only a willingness, an eagerness to obey God's law. An eagerness, as we talked about in a previous study, to reveal who we are in Christ. We just have to have that eagerness to participate in God's great plan of salvation. And this is how we do it. So you can think about and pray about, is there any part of me, and it might be very subtle, that I'm despising something about God's way. I feel like it limits me. I feel like whatever it might be. Pray to God that He'll make it known to you, and then pray to God's help to bring your mind around and pray that you want an eagerness to follow Him. Also, truth was replaced with error. Human reasoning was the call of the day over God's divine revelation. They would overlay it with all their human reasoning. So that's the judgment on Judah. So next we find the condemnation on Israel, verse 6 through 8. Beginning in verse 6, for three transgressions of Israel. For four I will not turn away its punishment, because they sell the righteous for silver, and the poor for a pair of sandals. Verse 7, they pant after the dust of the earth, which is on the head of the poor, and pervert the way of the humble. A man and his father go into the same girl, to defile my holy name. They lie down on every altar, on clothes taken in pledge, and drink the wine of the condemned in the house of their God. Stop there. You know, each one of these oracles could probably be a sermon in and of themselves. There's a lot to unpack, though, but these poetic words here point to some terrible behavior. Verse 7, they pant after the dust of the earth, which is on the head of the poor.

Israel, I hold you in judgment for this. So what God is saying, it's not even as if you just passed by the poor, and ignored that you heard the cries. That's one thing. But it's not even that. You don't even sidestep them.

Rather, the imagery here, you grind their heads in the pavement underneath.

So it is just greed. It is self. It is taking over these people. And in verse 6 again, because they sell the righteous for silver, there's no cost too high, and the poor for a pair of sandals. Again, treating the most vulnerable in an inhumane way. Sound familiar? This was the judgment against the outside nations. A man or woman, get them into a point where they just want a pair of sandals, and then taking them to the point where they can't pay for it, and then you sell them into slavery for the debt of sandals.

This also evokes, you remember in our study on Ruth, they would consummate deals by exchanging sandals. You remember that? Boaz. He also has a picture of that background as well. But ultimately, the overarching principle, the denial of human rights, this was unrestricted self advancement, unrestricted self indulgement here. So we think, I wonder what it was like in the 8th century. Well, look around. It's all the same, isn't it?

This was the judgment for the surrounding nations, and now it comes to the people of God. It's treating others as less than human, in all kinds of social injustice. And not only that, Israel, but now you've got this sexual perversity attached to it. Verse 7 is unbelievable there. The sexual debauchery they would participate in. And then at the end it says, And drink the wine of the condemned in the house of their God. So their God was themselves, and at the end of the day, it's the imagery here of this wealthy swindler at the end of the day taking a glass of wine just to finish off the day after he took the sandals of a poor man and sold him into slavery. And now he's just the sexual perversity. No holds barred. Everything is permissible. And I'm going to toast wine at the end of the day, you know.

Corrupt money. Anything goes. Indulgment of yourself. This is what we're moving into. More and more as a society. Where does this money come from? The money comes from corruption and exploitation. So we could ask, any corrupt money in our society today? Or any money that comes from exploitation in our society today? And this is not a condemnation on the free market where we want our young people and ourselves to work hard and you move up the ladder. But it's how you get there. And that's what I would tell our young people. How you get there matters, you know. This is the overarching condemnation of taking the throne of God yourself. That's what this is. I'm going to take my little throne here on earth. I'm going to become a God, you know. I'm going to drink the wine of the condemned and the house of my God, you know, me. That's what this is. And ultimately, in the end, you or I will not dethrone God. And after all these oracles of judgment, with all those in the backdrop, all those atrocities, beginning in verse 9 here, God is moving his thoughts here. And it's almost as if we're going to read here in a moment that God is just weighed down by all of this. He's just so weighed down by all this activity. But look at this. Starting in verse 9, he says, you act this way. He's speaking to Israel and Judah. God's people. God's people. Verse 9, you act this way.

He says, do not prophesy. So I don't want to hear what they said. We don't want any of that prophecy. We don't want any of that upcoming judgment. Word. This is the reminder of God's grace. And God had been so loving and so kind to them, brought them out of slavery. It was by grace that he redeemed them from Egypt. It was by grace that he brought them through the journey, through the wilderness. It was by grace that he gave them the knowledge of how to live in the blessings that he would give. It was by grace that he continued to guide them even though they were turning from him in their shortcomings. And today, if you have been placed in Christ as a called believer, you can look back on all the goodness God has given you in your life. His grace. He has redeemed you, brought you through, given you a vision, given you hope, given you a purpose here in this lifetime and a vision to come.

You see, those surrounding nations, they really weren't as condemned as the people of God. Because the condemnation of God's people, it's compounded by ingratitude. That's what God is seeing here in this past. That passage that we just read. It was I. So it's even worse. It's compounded because of an ingratitude. There's great danger in that. That's the danger we need to prevent ourselves from falling in. To receive God's grace in vain. You know? It's just not nothing special.

Well, the people would find out what happens when a righteous God says, enough is enough. And that's here in the wrap-up verses here. We'll read these to wrap up today's study. Verses 13 through 16. Verses 13 through 16. Listen to these words from God. As a cart full of sheaves is weighed down.

Well, we'll stop there and that day is coming. That day is coming. And here we have these oracles, these statements of judgment. All of which will come to a culmination on that great day. The day of the Lord. When God will send his Son to the earth to finally bring these judgments to pass. And I hope these give us a better understanding of the nature of God's judgment. The overarching nature is God's patience. But would we want, would we want to worship a God that would continue to turn away forever?

I want a God that will usher in a new world.

As foreboding as it is, I want a God who at some point, according to his will, will say, that's enough. Enough's enough.

So we urge ourselves today, we urge the nations to take these warnings, to come to God. The purpose of these warnings is to come to Him, to cause you and I to live as children who've received His Word and His wonderful grace. And the ultimate purpose of these judgments is to move you and I, and eventually the whole world, toward repentance. To take these principles and make sure now that none of this behavior, none of these principles are in our lives. So respond to these warnings, 1, 2, 3, while you still have opportunity. And may Christ return to find a people of faith here on earth and a people who have taken to heart the oracles of God.