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5:1 funeral song: The Hebrew word (qinah) describes a special rhythm (3+2 beats) used for funeral dirges (most of the book of Lamentations is written in qinah). The ominous significance was clear: Israel had already died and now awaited burial.
5:10 Amos resumes the thought begun in 5:7. Israel’s courts, controlled by the wealthy, depended on corrupt judges and hired witnesses. They had no use for what was true, but only for what was expedient to their own cause (5:12).
5:11 stone houses: Again, Amos targets the rich. The houses of peasants were built of mud brick. Cut stone, the result of laborious handwork, was very expensive.
5:13 Witnesses pleaded that they saw and heard nothing. Truthfulness had become a liability (5:10) and might endanger the one who spoke it.
genesis 21:33
genesis 22:19
leviticus 1:1-30
leviticus 26:8
numbers 14:32-35
deuteronomy 12:5
1 samuel 15:22-23
1 kings 11:36
Worship in Jerusalem
Worship in Jerusalem The Old Testament prophets realized that genuine worship depends on a proper understanding of God and his requirements. God had determined that the Temple in Jerusalem would be the central location of worship for his people. The Lord roared from Zion and thundered from Jerusalem (1:2). It was unacceptable for the Israelites to set up a central worship site in any place other than his authorized Temple in Jerusalem. But after the Israelite kingdom divided, the king of the north, Jeroboam, established alternative worship centers and discouraged his people from going to Jerusalem to worship. Over time, various worship sites were constructed—in the north and the south. But no matter how many sacrifices were offered or how elaborate the rituals performed there (5:4-5), these were not the places for worship God had chosen. In the New Testament, worship is no longer tied to a particular location; worship may occur wherever believers choose to gather (see Matt 18:20). But it must be conducted as God directs: “in spirit and in truth” (John 4:23-24). In both the Old and New Testaments, an emphasis is placed upon the authenticity of worship. Passages for Further...