Part 50 of the David Pawson 'Unlocking the Bible' Podcast series 

David Pawson looks at what God was doing in the 8th Century B.C., in particular with prophets Amos and Hosea. God’s great plan was to win the world back to himself through his people, the Jews. But his people did not have the same plan. He had made a covenant with them and planted them in the crossroads of the world, promising to bless them as they were obedient to him. The choice was theirs and to disobey would bring curse instead of blessing. There was a time of peace and prosperity and corruption emerged. Religion was popular but it was not true religion. When goddesses come in, religions become sexual. What was supposed to be a holy nation were becoming just like everybody else. Amos goes through the things by which God disciplined his people: a food shortage; a shortage of fresh drinking water; locusts and mildew to the crops and animals; plagues to the people; they were raided; lightning set houses on fire. Each time Amos mentioned the warnings God had sent, the refrain was the same – “yet you did not return to Me”. The last 2 disasters were an extreme earthquake and then exile from their land. Amos’s prayers affected God’s actions.