Sharper Iron — The Day Is Surely Drawing Near: The Oracle against Ammon

Rev. James Preus, pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church in Ottumwa, IA joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Amos 1:13-15.

The Ammonites trace their lineage to the incestuous relationship between Lot and his youngest daughter. Due to this familial connection to Abraham through his nephew, the LORD gave Ammon land as an inheritance that Israel was not allowed to take. Yet their worship of Milcom, the cruel and violent idol who demanded child sacrifice, put them at enmity with the LORD’s people. The Ammonites were a thorn in Israel’s side at several points in the Old Testament, not only by military hostility but also by leading them into idol worship due to intermarriage. The LORD speaks His Word through the prophet Amos against Ammon for their heartless violence against pregnant women and their children. The day of their judgment did come, just as the LORD spoke against them. This day serves as a picture of the Day of the LORD, a theme throughout the book of Amos. This text stands as a sobering warning to us still today, given the horror of abortion in our own time. Yet the fact that the LORD is speaking brings hope, for He speaks to bring us to repentance over our evil and to faith in the Savior, Jesus Christ. God’s wrath and punishment is real, but so is the salvation He delivers in His Son. That salvation is for Ammon, for you, and for all.

“The Day Is Surely Drawing Near” is a mini-series on Sharper Iron that digs into the book of Amos. This Old Testament prophet speaks the LORD’s roaring Word in order to call us first to repentance over our idolatry and injustice and second to faith in the Messiah in the line of David, Jesus Christ. Only through faith in Him will we stand forgiven and redeemed on the coming Day of the LORD.

Sharper Iron, hosted by Rev. Timothy Appel, looks at the text of Holy Scripture both in its broad context and its narrow detail, all for the sake of proclaiming Christ crucified and risen for sinners. Two pastors engage with God’s Word to sharpen not only their own faith and knowledge, but the faith and knowledge of all who listen.

Sharper Iron is underwritten by Lutheran Church Extension Fund, where your investments help support the work of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. Visit lcef.org.

Amos 1:13-15

¹³Thus says the Lord:

“For three transgressions of the Ammonites,
    and for four, I will not revoke the punishment,
because they have ripped open pregnant women in Gilead,
    that they might enlarge their border.
¹⁴So I will kindle a fire in the wall of Rabbah,
    and it shall devour her strongholds,
with shouting on the day of battle,
    with a tempest in the day of the whirlwind;
¹⁵and their king shall go into exile,
    he and his princes^[a] together,”
says the Lord.

Footnotes:

Amos 1:15 Or officials

English Standard Version (ESV)

Rev. Timothy Appel

Although a mathematics degree may not be incredibly helpful to (proudly born-and-raised Texan) Rev. Timothy Appel while hosting Sharper Iron, his love of CFW Walther and the season of Easter will come in handy. His Call is shepherding the flock at Faith Lutheran Church in Godfrey, Illinois, and he’s also husband to wife Kristin and dad to their growing basketball team of children. When he’s not carrying out pastoral duties, you may find him reading “The Lord of the Rings,” snacking on Reese’s peanut butter cups, playing dominoes with his boys, or studying up on Texas history (including Sam Houston, of course).