(REFLECTIONS ON Amos 5:1-27)

3 For thus says the Lord God,
“The city which goes forth a thousand strong
Will have a hundred left,
And the one which goes forth a hundred strong
Will have ten left to the house of Israel.”

Ten percent. Yes, only ten percent will remain. Doesn’t ten percent remind us of something? Tithe? Yes, tithe, that is giving God the first ten percent of our earnings.

All that remains of Israel is ten percent, that little that we give to the Lord each month, that sometimes is so difficult to pull out of our pockets, is what remains. Amos isn’t making a direct connection to tithing, but it is something for us to consider.

What of the ninety percent? Didn’t the Lord bless us with so much to enjoy for our own and what have we done with it? What if only the ten percent remain? Will we keep that from the Lord as well? What does the Lord say to the ten percent in today’s Scripture?

“Seek Me that you may live” (v.5 & v.6)

What happens when all is taken away? Perhaps it is to serve as a reminder that not just ten percent belongs to the Lord, but that all of us belongs to the Lord. The Lord says,

22 “Even though you offer up to Me burnt offerings and your grain offerings,
I will not accept them;
And I will not even look at the peace offerings of your fatlings.
23 “Take away from Me the noise of your songs;
I will not even listen to the sound of your harps.
24 “But let justice roll down like waters
And righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.

No, it isn’t the ten percent, the tithes and offerings, for when that just becomes a number, and when our songs just become noise, the Lord will not be pleased with what we throw at Him.

Yes, it isn’t how much, how little, how loud, how soft, but a matter of the heart. Brothers and sisters, where is our heart? What flows out of us and our hearts? Ten percent? Twenty percent? Praise songs in which lyrics we can’t even identify with?

Or is it justice that rolls down like waters and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream? Yes, it is a matter of the heart. Let it be from our hearts that flows our worship, thanksgiving, and offering.

When all fades away, all is gone, may we seek the Lord that we may live, for it is indeed a matter of the heart.

Pastor Michael Lu
Enduring Word Bible Commentary: Amos 5