Amos 7:1

Thus hath the Lord GOD shewed unto me; and, behold, he formed grasshoppers in the beginning of the shooting up of the latter growth; and, lo, it was the latter growth after the king's mowings. Amos 7:1 consists of two parts: First (Amos 7:1), PROPHECIES ILLUSTRATED BY THREE SYMBOLS: (1) A vision of grasshoppers, or young locusts, which devour the grass, but are removed at Amos' entreaty; (2) Fire drying up even the deep, and withering part of the land, but removed at Amos' entreaty; (3) A plumb-line to mark the buildings for destruction. (3) A plumb-line to mark the buildings for destruction. Secondly (Amos 7:10), NARRATIVE OF AMAZlAH'S INTERRUPTION OF AMOS IN CONSEQUE...

Amos shows in this chapter that God had already often deferred the punishments which he had yet determined to inflict on the people; and thus he reminds the Israelites of their perverseness, inasmuch as they had abused the forbearance of God, and repented not after a long lapse of time: for God had suspended his judgments for this end — that they might willingly return to the right way, as he commonly allures men by his kindness, provided they be teachable. Since then this forbearance of God had been without fruit, Amos reproves the Israelites, though he had also another object in view: for ungodly men, we know, when God spares them and does not immediately indict the punishments they deserve, laugh at them, and harden themselves for the future, so that they fear nothing; and when the Lord threatens, and does not instantly execute his vengeance, they then especially think that all threat...

1-9 God bears long, but he will not bear always with a provoking people. The remembrance of the mercies we formerly received, like the produce of the earth of the former growth, should make us submissive to the will of God, when we meet with disappointments in the latter growth. The Lord has many ways of humbling a sinful nation. Whatever trouble we are under, we should be most earnest with God for the forgiveness of sin. Sin will soon make a great people small. What will become of Israel, if the hand that should raise him be stretched out against him? See the power of prayer. See what a blessing praying people are to a land. See how ready, how swift God is to show mercy; how he waits to be gracious. Israel was a wall, a strong wall, which God himself reared as a defence to his sanctuary. The Lord now seems to stand upon this wall. He measures it; it appears to be a bowing, bulging wall...

CHAPTER VII _In this chapter God represents to Amos, by three several_ _visions, the judgments he is about to bring on Israel. The_ _first is a plague of locusts, threatening to cut of the hopes_ _of the harvest by attacking it in the time of the second_ _growth; the first luxuriances of the crop being probably mowed_ _for the king's horses_, 1-3. _The next vision threatens a judgment by fire, which would_ _consume a great part_, 4-6; _and the third a total overthrow of Israel, levelling it as it_ _were by a line_, 7-9....

AND BEHOLD HE FORMED - (that is, He was forming.) The very least things then are as much in His infinite Mind, as what we count the greatest. He has not simply made “laws of nature,” as people speak, to do His work, and continue the generations of the world. He Himself was still framing them, giving them being, as our Lord saith, “My Father worketh hitherto, and I work” John 5:17. The same power of God is seen in creating the locust, as the universe. The creature could as little do the one as the other. But further, God was “framing” them for a special end, not of nature, but of His moral government, in the correction of man. He was “framimg the locust,” that it might, at His appointed time, lay waste just those tracts which He had appointed to them. God, in this vision, opens our eyes, and lets us see Himself, framing the punishment for the deserts of the sinners, tha

EXPOSITION VERSE 1-CH. 9:10 Part III. FIVE VISIONS, WITH EXPLANATIONS, CONTINUING AND CONFIRMING THE PREVIOUS PROPHECY. The afflictions are climactic, increasing in intensity. The first two symbolize judgments which have been averted by the prophet's intercession; the third and fourth adumbrate judgments which are to fall inevitably; and the fifth proclaims the overthrow of the temple and the old theocracy. AMOS 7:1 _§ 1. The first vision, of locusts, represents Israel as a field eaten down to the ground, but shooting up afresh, and its utter destruction postponed at the prophet's prayer._...

THUS HATH THE LORD SHOWED UNTO ME,.... What follows in this and the two Chapter s, before the prophet delivered what he heard from the Lord; now what he saw, the same thing, the ruin of the ten tribes, is here expressed as before, but in a different form; before in prophecy, here in vision, the more to affect and work upon the hearts of the people: AND, BEHOLD, HE FORMED GRASSHOPPERS; or "locusts" u, as the word is rendered, Isaiah 33:4; and so the Septuagint here, and other versions. Kimchi interprets it, and, behold, a collection or swarm of locusts; and the Targum, a creation of them. Though Aben Ezra takes the word to be a verb, and not a noun, and the sense to be, agreeably to our version, he showed me the blessed God, who was forming locusts; it appeared to Amos, in the vision of prophecy, as if the Lord was making locusts, large and great ones, and many of them; not t

Amos 7:1. _Thus hath the Lord God showed unto me; and, behold, he formed grasshoppers in the beginning of the shooting up of the latter growth; and, lo, it was the latter growth after the king's mowings. And it came to pass, that when they had made an end of eating the grass of the land, then I said, O Lord God, forgive, I beseech thee: by whom shall Jacob arise? For he is small. The Lord repented for this: it shall not be, saith the LORD._ In a vision, the prophet saw the locusts or grasshoppers come to devour all the green things of the land, a very terrible visitation. If you have never seen it, you cannot realize how utterly bare everything is made after the visit of the locusts. The prophet put up a vehement and earnest prayer; he cried, «O Lord God, forgive» and, no sooner was the intercession offered than the Lord said, «It shall not be.» Thus the impending judgment was turned aw...

III. THE FIVE VISIONS OF THE PROPHET CHAPTER 7 Three Visions and the Opposition Against Amos _ 1. The vision of locusts (Amos 7:1) _ 2. The vision concerning the fire (Amos 7:4) 3. The vision of the plumbline (Amos 7:7) 4. Opposition against Amos (Amos 7:10) Amos 7:1. In the first vision Amos saw how the Lord prepared locusts (not grasshoppers as in the A.V. They started in with their destructive work, just as they did in the day of Joel. Then Amos interceded in behalf of the sinful nation, “O Lord, GOD, forgive, I beseech Thee, by whom

THE VISION OF THE LOCUSTS. On one occasion the prophet saw (Amos 7:1) and behold, Yahweh formed locusts at the beginning of the coming up of the late spring grass (_lekesh_, RV latter growth), the grass brought on by the late spring rain (_malkosh_,_ cf._ Joel 2:23), and further described here as coming up after the king's shearing or after the king's mowings. The king's mowings may mean (_cf._ Driver) that the mowings were taken as tribute by the king. (Ehrlich takes it to mean national mowings.) The locusts were beginning to work havoc (Amos 7:2). Then, when they would have wholly devoured the herbage of the land, the prophet interceded with Yahweh, who relented ...