What is the meaning of Amos 7:1? This is what the Lord GOD showed me • Amos is not guessing or speculating; he is recording a vision granted directly by the Sovereign LORD, just as Numbers 12:6 explains God does with His prophets. • Because the source is “the Lord GOD,” the message carries absolute authority (Jeremiah 1:11–12) and is historically reliable. • The phrase signals that what follows is both a warning and an invitation to respond, much like the visions of Ezekiel 40:2 and Revelation 4:1. He was preparing swarms of locusts • The LORD Himself is “preparing,” underscoring His active rule over nature (Job 37:6–13). • Locusts are a classic instrument of divine judgment (Exodus 10:12–15; Joel 1:4). Their destructive power is real, not symbolic, and would be instantly understood by Amos’s audience. • By revealing the threat before it strikes, God is giving opportunity for repentance, paralleling Jeremiah 18:7–8 where announced judgment can still be averted. just after the king’s harvest • In Israel, the first cutting of hay or grain often went to the royal storehouses as tax (1 Samuel 8:15). Once the king’s portion was secured, ordinary farmers depended on the remaining growth for survival. • A locust plague timed “after the king’s harvest” means common people would face the brunt of the loss, highlighting God’s concern for social justice (Amos 5:11–12). • The detail confirms the literal timing and severity of the judgment, echoing Deuteronomy 28:38–42, where covenant curses strike at agricultural cycles. as the late spring crop was coming up • The “late spring” (second) crop is the final hope for food before summer; destroying it would ensure famine (Habakkuk 3:17). • The picture intensifies the warning: God can touch the nation at its most vulnerable moment (Joel 2:25). • For believers today, it reminds us that worldly security can vanish quickly when the LORD’s hand moves (James 4:13–16). summary Amos 7:1 records a literal vision in which God readies a locust plague timed to devastate Israel’s food supply right after the royal harvest, leaving the populace exposed. The scene underscores God’s sovereign control over creation, His righteous judgment on national sin, and His merciful willingness to warn before acting. |
    |