Seek the Lord and live, or he will break out against the house of Joseph like fire, and it will devour Bethel, with no one to quench it. Ah, you that turn justice to wormwood, and bring righteousness to the ground! They hate the one who reproves in the gate, and they abhor the one who speaks the truth. Therefore, because you trample on the poor and take from them levies of grain, you have built houses of hewn stone, but you shall not live in them; you have planted pleasant vineyards, but you shall not drink their wine. For I know how many are your transgressions, and how great are your sins— you who afflict the righteous, who take a bribe, and push aside the needy in the gate. Therefore the prudent will keep silent in such a time; for it is an evil time. Seek good and not evil, that you may live; and so the Lord, the God of hosts, will be with you, just as you have said. Hate evil and love good, and establish justice in the gate; it may be that the Lord, the God of hosts, will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.
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This is an optional Old Testament selection from the Episcopal Lectionary for the Twenty-first Sunday after Pentecost, Year B 2018. In the numbering system that lists each Sunday in an ordinal fashion, this Sunday is referred to as Proper 23. If chosen, it will next be read aloud in an Episcopal church by a reader on Sunday October 14, 2018. It is important because it tells of the downfall of Israel (the Northern Kingdom) due to the people preferring sin over sacrifice.
The beginning of this song should be heard with full understanding. When the Lord flowed through His servant Amos, saying, “Seek the Lord and live,” this says eternal life is only possible through “Yahweh.”
The Hebrew root word used to say, “and live” is “chayah.” One must understand that to be able to read a verse of Scripture, or to hear one read to one, one has to be alive and alert. That means, obviously, this usage has nothing to do with the present incarnation of one’s being, or the near future ideas and concepts of “living it up” in the same body. The word implies, “continue in life, sustain life, preserve life and restore to life.” Living is the opposite of dying, which is the bane of mortals.
This, as the Word of God being spoken, is not a reference in cheating death, but the realization that the soul is eternal and for it “to live” it must be trapped within a body of flesh or freed forever to dwell in Heaven, in the presence of God. The fact that one’s soul is presently in a human body says, “You have been given another chance to get it right.” You have been reborn as a mortal that is assured of death; but the advice here is “Seek the Lord and live eternally,” flesh-free.
Under the philosophy “As above, so below,” the punishment that Amos was called to prophesy was coming, would be realized in the deaths of the soldiers of Israel and the banishment into slavery of those whose lives continues, but greatly changed for the worse. Their defeat by the Assyrians scattered the blood of Israel to the winds of the earth, with none remaining identifiable as Israelites. Israel ceased to be; the lives of those still living became a veritable hell on earth. However, that is the “below” view.
That microcosm of trauma and a lesser quality of life must be seen as applicable in the macrocosm as a soul “burning in Hell,” if one loses the comforts of God’s gift – a place to stay and call home. Beyond the clear and present danger of Assyrian annihilation, God (whose Eye sees well into the future) was not just using Amos to deliver “today’s news,” but a consistent theme that should be grasped. To gain eternal life with God, one must first “seek the Lord.”
The aspect of reincarnation is real. An eternal soul that has not lived a righteous life on earth cannot be granted entrance into Heaven (for longer than spent receiving the Judgment of a soul). The accompanying Gospel reading from Mark points out the difficulty the rich have in gaining entrance into heaven. (Mark 10:25) If one cannot get into heaven when their soul leaves their body after one life, the soul is not sent to Hell or Purgatory, any more than a first grader who fails to earn second grade status is kicked out of elementary school. A soul repeats life in a fleshy body, just like little Johnny or Sally repeats the first grade.
As above, so below. Macrocosm, microcosm.
The problem with this system is then said as “the end of the age” or when the end times come. If the worldly plane that is Earth became a place more like Venus or Mars, it would be most difficult to be reincarnated into a body that demanded oxygen [the breath of life] to live. The “end of the age” becomes symbolic of great changes in humanity.
An “age” is roughly 2,200 years, when the first day of spring occurs and a new zodiac constellation has precessed into position, so it is then behind the Sun when it rises at the equator. Precession is the movement of the earth’s wobble, which makes the backdrop of stars slowly appear changed. We now live at the end of the The “age” of Jesus [Pisces], but the earth will mosey on to having Aquarius in that position – the dawning of the Age of Aquarius.
The Fish is the symbol of the sign Pisces. It is a highly spiritual sign.
We are close to that “age” now, which means it is important for human beings to realize what Amos was saying, about the nearing collapse and destruction of the Israelite world. That foreseen destructive change is then relative to the collapse and destruction of our world as we know it. Just as the Northern Kingdom was never regained (although a nation named Israel was artificially reinstated into the world in 1948), once Christianity comes to an end, there will be no going back.
As above, so below. Macrocosm, microcosm. Aquarius is a sign that loves knowledge, with few feelings for faith-based ideas.
In the movies and television shows over the past fifty years, the fiction of zombies has been made popular. In the movie Night of the Living Dead (1968), inspired by the novel I Am Legend (1954) the concept of the “undead” gained cult status. Ghouls (spirits of Muslim folklore) are demon spirits that feed on the flesh of corpses. They act as the Universal Mind projecting a ‘what if’ into the future, as God using fiction to show what reincarnation into an unlivable planet would be like.
Like vampires (who live off the blood of living human beings), zombies are trapped in dead bodies, with souls that cannot be released from the worldly plane. Ordinary death is not part of their futures. Eternal life for such demonic souls is denied by God, making their hell be on earth. They live mindlessly, afraid of the sun, until a stake was driven through their hearts or their brains were blown out by survivors that are mortals attempting to never die. Presumably that end would be when a lost soul finally is released to the fires of Hell, because Heaven is not an option.
This concept of evil souls returning to the earth was probably the result of fears over the threat of a nuclear holocaust. Splitting atoms and warfare inventions are the result of an “Aquarian” brain, tinkering with things best left alone. A planet earth no longer suitable for ordinary life would become the punishment of souls reincarnated, over and over again, because the “age” of religious redemption was no longer possible. This should be read into the words of Amos.
Seeing that meaning, one can then read, “[God] will break out against the house of Joseph like fire.”
Here, the verb translated as “break out” is “tsalach,” which means “to rush,” implying “advance” or “prosper.” This “rush” “of fire” has to be recognized as a sudden conflagration, which was the Assyrians burning villages and towns. However, on a greater scale, this fits the onset of a global nuclear warfare scenario.
As to the “house of Joseph,” where Joseph was given the holy name Israel by God’s angel, the implication that flows into the “end of the age” (our time) is of those who maintain the holy lineage as Christians (and Jews who believe in Jesus as the Christ). Those who will attack the West and its allies, and the retaliation released in return will then cause a burning hell on earth.
When God spoke through Amos, saying “It will devour Bethel, with no one to quench it,” one must realize there is no fire still burning in Bethel, Israel. This makes Bethel mean more than a fixed place on earth, which means the name is important.
“Bethel” means “House of God,” meaning the fire will eat away the foundations of Christianity and Judaism, until neither religion will “quench” the emotional thirst of the faithful. The “fire” will be impossible to “extinguish,” once it has started. Unquenched fire will mean the the House of God [Christianity] will be devoured – destroyed, consumed, wasted.
The song then continues by singing, “Ah, you that turn justice to wormwood, and bring righteousness to the ground!”
The Hebrew word “laanah” is translated as “wormwood.” There are eight references to “wormwood” in the Old Testament (two by Amos), but only one in the New Testament. That NT reference comes in The Apocalypse of John. As such, John wrote:
“The third angel sounded his trumpet, and a great star, blazing like a torch, fell from the sky on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water — the name of the star is Wormwood. A third of the waters turned bitter, and many people died from the waters that had become bitter.” (Revelations 8:10-11)
Comet? Asteroid? Meteorite? Or, perhaps, an ICBM?
When “wormwood” is realized to be a “bitter substance,” rather than rotted wood eaten by worms. It is the plant also known as absinthe. As such, God spoke through Amos, saying (paraphrasing) “Justice is a bitter pill to swallow.” When the House of God has been destroyed, justice is no longer associated with divine judgment. Law is based on might, not right.
The translation that says, “bring righteousness to the ground” is incorrect. It is literally written as, “justice and righteousness in the earth , lay to rest .” Each segment must be grasped individually for the impact of the words, before they are meshed together.
The Hebrew word “yanach” means “cast down, left alone, and pacified.” This then says that “justice and righteousness” will have become lowered, no longer upright. This is a picture of the cross Jesus spoke of (the stake that grapevines run along), which must be raised to ensure good fruit on the vine. It has fallen down. It falls with the destruction of Beth-el – the Church of God. Therefore, the bitterness of a fire that cannot be quenched is then the death of all who represent “justice and righteousness,” which is the foundation of societal laws on God’s Law through Moses.
All the statues of the Ten Commandments will have been removed from courtyard squares and houses of justice. As above, so below. Macrocosm, Microcosm.
Then, the song skips forward to verse ten.
There, Amos wrote in his song, while in an ecstatic trance, the verse that sings, “They hate the one who reproves in the gate, and they abhor the one who speaks the truth.” This relates to the keepers of the gates of heaven and hell. Neither will allow entrance into a spiritual realm once the final annihilation of a livable earth has begun.
Everyone will be alone with their souls in their deteriorating flesh, filled with “hate” towards God and Jesus Christ. They are those who “decide” the fate of lost souls. Jesus of Nazareth, the prototype of all Apostles and Saints, is known for having said, “Truly I say to you.” However, the truth always hurts when it comes in the words, “I told you so!”
This is a lack of belief. It is looking at the past and envisioning the future will remain the same.
Still, this was a prophecy of Amos being shown Jesus the Messiah, who as a body of flesh, born of a woman, would say, “I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture.” (John 10:9) This means Amos foresaw the time when there were no longer any Apostles or Saints, when no souls worthy of entrance into the sheepfold guarded by Jesus Christ.
Heaven is his sheepfold, and Jesus said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6) One has to be reborn as Jesus Christ, in order to be resurrected as the gate in oneself. Without that name received, one will be reproved Heaven [rejected].
Amos then sang about the separation between the haves and the have nots, where he wrote:
“Therefore, because you trample on the poor and take from them levies of grain, you have built houses of hewn stone, but you shall not live in them; you have planted pleasant vineyards, but you shall not drink their wine.”
This should evoke imagery of the rich who abuse the poor. They buy island paradise homes and build palatial estates that cost millions of dollars, all taken from the poor. They own vast acres of land, on which they plant trees that require much water to grow. They not only steal the waters of the people’s aquifers, lakes, streams and rivers, but they transform the water they stole into fruits and liquids that are sold at a premium price. However, when the end of the age comes, the rich will no longer be able to enjoy the fruits of their labors, which are selfish and without redeeming credits.
It all goes to a good cause … us!
These examples of injustice and evil then led God to have Amos sing, “For I know how many are your transgressions, and how great are your sins— you who afflict the righteous, who take a bribe, and push aside the needy in the gate.”
The sins of the wicked are too numerous for the poor to keep track of, but God keeps the details on his scales of justice. There are many sins that greatly affect the lives of the masses (such as those which put wicked rulers over nations). This in turn makes it most difficult to live a righteous life, as religions of all kinds are persecuted; the most prominent of which being Christianity.
Those of Christian values will be bought, such that John wrote: “Then I heard what sounded like a voice among the four living creatures, saying, “Two pounds of wheat for a day’s wages, and six pounds of barley for a day’s wages, and do not damage the oil and the wine!” (Revelations 6:6)
Those Christians with money will pay the price to save themselves, but those without will be left to suffer. The entrance to the gate will be found in those pushed aside; but many Christians (like the Israelites of Amos’ day) will sacrifice the lives of others to save themselves, the opposite of what being Christian means.
Amos then wrote, “Therefore the prudent will keep silent in such a time; for it is an evil time.” Those who do not capitulate to evil are then said to be careful and exercising common sense, which is expressed quietly.
The Hebrew word “yiddum” means both “keep silent” and “not keep silent,” from the root word “damam,” meaning “to be still.” This means that “the prudent” will not be caught up in the hysteria that will be pervasive in “an evil time.” Instead, their hearts and minds will remain calm as turmoil breaks out all around them. The “prudent” are then Christians led by the insight of the Mind of Christ, while Big Brains demand acts of revenge.
Plotting more revenge.
At this point, Amos repeated a variation of his first verse, saying: “Seek good and not evil, that you may live.” Here, “good” (from “towb”) means to seek those others who have God present in them. This is a return to the true Church, where the gathering of others of the same mind – Apostles in the name of Jesus Christ – becomes the reinforcement for focus on God. When insanity will rule the day, true Christians must come together in support of one another. Remaining true to one’s rebirth as Jesus Christ will keep one’s soul promise of service to the Lord, in reward for eternal life.
This commitment to one’s marriage to God makes the words of Amos ring true to the faithful. The reading ends his song selection today, by singing:
“so the Lord, the God of hosts, will be with you, just as you have said. Hate evil and love good, and establish justice in the gate; it may be that the Lord, the God of hosts, will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.”
It is important to see how God has commanded His children to “hate evil.” This has been changed in today’s world, where the wolves in sheep’s clothing have infiltrated the pulpits to preach falsely, “Love your neighbor is what Jesus said. You cannot hate another who says he or she is Christian, even when they openly admit to actively practicing evil deeds that are called abominations in the sight of the Lord.” The words of Jesus have been so misconstrued to those in Christian denomination congregations that no one is able to hate any evil, simply from doubts that have been purposefully built.
Hate is a natural emotion in human beings. It is that which makes enemies. To love an enemy means to allow an enemy to hate you by afar. Otherwise, if constantly in the face of an enemy, mutual hatred will be the prevalent expression. Love is possible from turning away from evil. However, when evil refuses to leave one alone, hatred will raise conflict, and conflict comes from the love of good meeting the love of evil.
Returning to The Apocalypse of John, when Jesus Christ told John to write letters to the seven churches, we today represent all of those churches. In the letter written to the church of Laodicea this was transcribed:
“These are the words of the Amen [the Truth], the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.” (Revelations 3:14-16)
The “lukewarm” taste of Western Christianity means being “tepid,” which means, “Lacking in emotional warmth or enthusiasm; halfhearted.” [American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition] One can only be “halfhearted when half of one’s heart loves self and the other half loves God.
This leads to doubts and hesitations stem from being halfhearted, exactly like those seen in Peter, causing Jesus to say, “Oh you of little faith, why did you doubt?” (Matthew 14:31b) A halfhearted Christian is lacking the faith to hate evil, by striking out against evil. It means one is too timid to overturn a money-changer’s table in the House of God. It means one is too accepting of trees that bear no fruit. It means one is too afraid to tell Satan, “Get out of my face!” much less walk on the waters of one’s faith without drowning.
Only if one lives a good life, where one has “established justice in the gate,” by being reborn as the gate – in the name of Jesus Christ – then one hates evil by not bowing down to it. One establishes the justice of God by demanding that evil gets out of one’s face and serves mankind, not abuse it. As a resurrected Jesus Christ, one allows the God of hosts to Lord over one’s body, merged with one’s soul. One is adopted as a “remnant of Joseph,” as a child of God, His Son.
As an optional Old Testament reading selection for the twenty-first Sunday after Pentecost, when one’s own personal ministry for the LORD should be underway – one has no place in one’s life for evil – the message here is to see the threat of Amos’ Israel is current and present today. The sins that brought one nation’s downfall are the same throughout all times.
In my analysis of the accompanying Epistle to this optional reading, I mentioned how the prophet Nostradamus quoted Paul’s letter to the Hebrew-speaking Jews of Rome, saying “all things will be made naked and bare.” The “end times” theme of Nostradamus can be seen here in this reading selection from the prophet Amos. The mood of Christians (that I have experienced for seventeen years now, relative to Nostradamus and Scripture) is, “I do not believe.”
They don’t believe in Nostradamus being a prophet of Jesus Christ. They don’t believe in the End Times. They don’t believe in sacrifice of self. They don’t believe there can be more than one Jesus. They think that Jesus sits on a little throne next to God’s big throne, in Heaven, some day planning a return, when evil will be punished. They don’t believe they are the ones Jesus will come for, wielding the sword of justice. They don’t believe God talks to Christians. They don’t believe there are Saints (for the most part). Therefore, in general, Christians reject the Lord and live for today, not for a restricted Heaven in the future.
Ms. Cleo sent this back from the other side: “I do believe in zombies. Please help me!” From the ghoul formerly known as Einstein.
I have had so much revealed to me over the years, since two towers collapsed from fire in New York City, that I have sought to tell as many people as would listen. The revelations I have been shown can only come from God, because I certainly am not bright enough to know what I know otherwise. I try to share with others, but few demonstrate that they have received the same spirit that I have received.
Meanwhile, the news shown on televisions and I-phones is so filled with hatred and incendiary opinions that the cameras show the hatred everywhere. This is not hatred of evil, as much as it is evil hatred. We are our worst enemy. We hate ourselves because we have allowed evil to rule our hearts!
Our leaders spew hatred. Our children spew hatred. Our allies spew hatred. Our enemies spew hatred. Our television shows spew hatred. Politicians spew hatred towards other politicians and the citizens in between are caught in that crossfire.
When they go low, we kick them.
I feel the time shortly coming when I must become prudent and be silent.
I have repeated in my articles posted about how “one’s own personal ministry for the LORD should be underway.” The symbolism of a season of the year being devoted to the time following Pentecost (the Fiftieth Day) and the time beginning with Advent and Christmas [rebirth from year to year] is when Apostles should be praising God and welcoming a gathering of Saints. Christian means a ministry of works, based on true faith. However, I feel little in return that says the Holy Spirit is growing in the world.
Hatred is killing those who call themselves Christians.
As an optional Old Testament reading selection, one which has a dark theme – darker than Job’s seeming lament – I doubt this will be preached this coming Sunday. It may never be preached. The theme of the end times has become too dark to preach about.
Christianity has become lukewarm.
The time for inward inspiration has come. Few are the priests who teach people how not to hate, where hating evil means the love of separation. We have been reborn as the Northern Kingdom that sits on the eve of doom.