John Calvin Commentary Amos 5:19

"As if a man did flee from a lion, and a bear met him; or went into the house and leaned his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him." — Amos 5:19 (ASV)

Here, what the Prophet had said before is expressed more clearly—that hypocrites can have no hope that the various changes which may take place will bring them any alleviation. Hypocrites, while straying in circuitous courses, do indeed promise themselves better things when the condition of the times is changed; and as Satan transforms himself into an angel of light, so hypocrites imitate the true servants of God.

But it is a false imitation, for these are only fading flowers, and no fruit follows; and besides, they do not proceed from a living root. When the children of God are at any time pressed down by adverse events, they sustain and patiently nourish their faith with this consolation: that clouds soon pass away. So also, when the Lord chastises them with temporal punishment, He will presently return to favor with them.

Hypocrites present the same outward appearance, but they widely differ from the faithful. For when the faithful promise themselves a prosperous outcome, they are at the same time touched with a sense of their own sins and strive to reconcile themselves to God. But hypocrites continue immersed in their vices and boldly despise God. At the same time, they look here and there, and when any change happens, they think that they have got rid of all evils.

Since, then, they deceived themselves with vain consolation, the Prophet now says, “You have no reason to think that it will be better with you when one calamity passes away; for the same thing will happen to you, as when one flees away from a lion and meets with a bear, as when one escapes from a bear, and betakes himself to his own house, and there a serpent finds him: while he is leaning with his hand on the wall, a serpent bites him.

Thus the Lord has ready various and many ways by which He can punish you. Therefore, when you sustain one battle, when one enemy departs, the battle will be immediately renewed by another enemy. When a foreign power does not rage through the kingdom of Israel, the Lord will consume you either by famine, or by deprivation, or by pestilence.” We then see how well the Prophet's context harmonizes.

“You have no reason,” he says, “to hope for any light from the day of Jehovah.” Why? “For Jehovah will not come, except when armed; for, as you conduct yourselves in a hostile manner towards Him, He must necessarily take vengeance.

He will, therefore, bring with Him no light, except it may be to fulminate against you; but His appearance will be dreadful—even darkness and thick darkness.

And then, when He ceases to pursue you in one way, He will assail you in another. When foreign enemies spare you, God will find means by which He may destroy you in your own land without human agency.

For you have already found what the sterility of the land is, and what pestilence is. The Lord then has all such modes of vengeance in His own hand.

Therefore, do not think that there will be any alleviation for you, even if the world were to change a hundred times, and even if the condition of the country were wholly different.”

But the Prophet did not intend here to drive all those indiscriminately into despair who were guilty of grievous offenses. Instead, his design was to shake hypocrites from their self-flatteries, so that by such proofs they might be led to know that God would be ever like Himself.

If, then, they wished to return to favor with Him, he shows that a change was needful: when they put off their perverse conduct, God would be instantly ready to give them pardon.

But if they proceeded in their vices and obstinate wickedness, and always continued in that hardness in which they had until now indulged, he declares that the day of Jehovah would be ever dark and gloomy to them. He also declares that, though the Lord does not always use the same kind of rod, He yet has innumerable means by which He can destroy a perverse nation, such as the Israelites then were.

Prayer:

Grant, Almighty God, that since we are so sleepy, yes, so captivated by our sins, that nothing is more difficult than to put off our own nature and to renounce that wickedness to which we have become accustomed—O grant that we, being truly awakened by Your scourgings, may genuinely return to You, and that, having wholly changed our disposition and renounced all wickedness, we may sincerely and from the heart submit ourselves to You, and so look forward to the coming of Your Son, that we may cheerfully and joyfully wait for Him, by ever striving after such a renovation of life as may strip us of our flesh and all corruptions, until, being at length renewed after Your image, we become partakers of that glory which has been obtained for us by the blood of the same, Your only-begotten Son. Amen.