This is Daniel Whyte III president of Gospel Light Society International with The Scripture & the Sense Podcast #451, where I read the Word of God and give the sense of it based on an authoritative commentary source such as the Bible Knowledge Commentary or Matthew Henry Commentary. This podcast is based upon Nehemiah 8:8 where it says Ezra and the Levites “read in the book in the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading.” The aim of this podcast is that through the simple reading of the Word of God and the giving of the sense of it, the church would be revived and the world would be awakened.
Today we are reading Amos 5:4-5.
4 For thus saith the Lord unto the house of Israel, Seek ye me, and ye shall live:
5 But seek not Bethel, nor enter into Gilgal, and pass not to Beersheba: for Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Bethel shall come to nought.
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That was Amos 5:4-5. Now here is the sense of it.
The Bible Knowledge Commentary reads:
National judgment was certain, but individuals could yet seek God and live. They should not, however, seek Him at the sanctuaries, for these were doomed. See comments on Bethel and Gilgal in 3:14; 4:4. Beersheba was in the southern part of Judah’s territory. Evidently northern Israelites crossed over the border to worship at a shrine associated with the patriarchs. Gilgal, the memorial of entrance into the land, was to become the symbol of exile from the land. And Bethel, the “house of God,” was to become “Beth Aven”, a “house of nothing,” a “house of spirits.” In Hebrew, the last part of the city’s name, “El,” meaning “God,” was changed by Amos to “Aven”, meaning “nothing, empty, having no existence,” a word often used to describe the powerless spirits of wickedness. This sarcasm would have a stinging effect on the people.
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Thank you for listening to the Scripture & The Sense Podcast. Remember to read the Word of God each and every day and pray without ceasing to God for wisdom to understand it and apply it to your life. Most importantly, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. Please stay tuned for a complete presentation of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ so that you can get your soul saved from Hell to that wonderful place called Heaven when you die. May God bless you and keep you is my prayer.
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