Amos 3:4

Will a lion roar in the forest, when he hath no prey? will a young lion cry out of his den, if he have taken nothing? WILL A LION ROAR IN THE FOREST WHEN HE HATH NO PREY? The same idea as in . Where a corrupt nation is, there God's instruments of punishment are sure also to be. The lion roars loudly only when he has prey in sight. WILL A YOUNG LION CRY OUT OF HIS DEN IF HE (the "lion," not the "young lion"). HAVE TAKEN NOTHING? The young lion just weaned lies silent until the old lion brings the prey near; then the scent rouses him. So the prophet would not speak against Israel if God did not reveal to him Israel's sins as requiring punishment. The effect must follow the cause. God's command to denounce judgment upon the guilty is the cause: Amos' prophesying is the effect....

The second similitude follows, _Will a lion roar in the forest without a prey? Will a lion send forth his voice from his den when he has caught nothing? _By this verse he intimates that God does not cry out for nothing by his Prophets; for ungodly men supposed that the air was only made to reverberate by an empty sound, when the Prophets threatened, “These,” they said, “are mere words;” as though indeed they could not find that the necessity of crying arose from themselves, because they had provoked God by their vices. Hence the Prophet, meeting their objection, says, “If lions roar not, except when they have obtained a prey, shall God cry from heaven and send forth his voice as far as the earth, when there is no prey?” The meaning is, that the word of God was very shamefully despised by the Israelites, as though there was no reason for crying, as though God was trifling with them. His w...

1-8 The distinguishing favours of God to us, if they do not restrain from sin, shall not exempt from punishment. They could not expect communion with God, unless they first sought peace with him. Where there is not friendship, there can be no fellowship. God and man cannot walk together, except they are agreed. Unless we seek his glory, we cannot walk with him. Let us not presume on outward privileges, without special, sanctifying grace. The threatenings of the word and providence of God against the sin of man are certain, and certainly show that the judgments of God are at hand. Nor will God remove the affliction he has sent, till it has done its work. The evil of sin is from ourselves, it is our own doing; but the evil of trouble is from God, and is his doing, whoever are the instruments. This should engage us patiently to bear public troubles, and to study to answer God's meaning in...

Verse Amos 3:4. _WILL A LION ROAR_] Should I threaten such a judgment without cause?...

WILL A LION ROAR IN THE FOREST, WHEN HE HATH NO PREY? - Then, further, each question by itself suggests its own thought. Amos had already, in repeating Joel’s words, spoken of God’s Voice, under the image of a lion roaring (Amos 1:2; Hosea 11:10 (add Hosea 5:14; Hosea 6:1; Hosea 13:7); Jeremiah 25:30). Hosea had likened Israel to “a silly dove without heat Hosea 7:11; on the other hand,

EXPOSITION VERSE 1-CH. 6:14 Part II. THREE ADDRESSES PARTICULARIZING THE SINS OF ISRAEL AND ANNOUNCING IMMINENT JUDGMENT. AMOS 3:1 _§ 1. First address: the prophet begins by showing Israel's ingratitude for past mercies _(Amos 3:1, Amos 3:2)_, and his own commission to announce the coming judgment _(Amos 3:3). They have drawn this upon themselves by iniquities which astonish even heathen

WILL A LION ROAR IN THE FOREST WHEN HE HATH NO PREY?.... He will not, unless he has it in his sight, or in his paws; he roars when he first sees it, whereby he terrifies the creature, that it cannot move till he comes up to it; and when he has got it in his paws, he roars over it, to invite others to partake with him. Now prophecy from the Lord is compared to the roaring of a lion, Amos 1:2; and this is never in a way of judgment without a cause; the sin of men, or of a nation, which makes them a prey to the wrath and fury of God; WILL A YOUNG LION CRY, or "give forth his voice"; OUT OF HIS DEN, IF HE HAVE TAKEN NOTHING? that is, if the old lion has taken nothing, and brought nothing unto him; which signifies the same as before; unless by the young lion is meant the prophets of the Lord, who never prophesy but when they have a commission from him, and a people a

II. THE PROPHETIC MESSAGES UNCOVERING THE CONDITION OF THE PEOPLE CHAPTER 3 The First Discourse _ 1. There is cause for judgment (Amos 3:1) _ 2. The coming judgment visitation (Amos 3:9) Amos 3:1. “Hear this word that the LORD hath spoken against you, O children of Israel, against the whole family which I brought up from the land of Egypt, saying, You have I only known of all the families of the earth, therefore will I punish you for all your iniquities.” This is the solemn beginning of the special messages addressed to the nation by the humble herdman of Tekoa. The Lord had singled them out from the other nations. He had separated them unto Himself. With His mighty power and outstretched arm He had del

ISRAEL'S RESPONSIBILITY AND THE PROPHET'S OBLIGATION. Amos, after addressing the children of Israel, includes Judah by adding the whole family, unless this is a gloss, as it may be, since the inclusion of Judah here seems inappropriate. Yahweh had selected Israel for special notice and favour. On that account its apostasy and sin were all the more deserving of punishment. The law of cause and effect applies here as elsewhere. When two walk in accord (so Ehrlich, comparing Genesis 22:8), the reason is that they have made an appointment (_mg.)._ When a lion roars, it is because he scents the prey. When vv. young lion growls from his lair, it is because he has made a capture. When a bird falls on the ground, it is because a boomerang has struck it. When a trap springs up from the ground, it is because it has caught something. When a horn is blown in the city, it is because there is some cau...

WILL... ? Figure of speech _Erotesis_. App-6. FOREST = thicket....