For quite some time now the nations have been provoking the Lord and the Lord has let them get away with it. But Amos has to warn them: Watch out!…Amos, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, does that by comparing the Lord to a lion. A lion can be very quiet for a long time, but then just before attacking with a deadly attack it lets out a mighty roar that everyone knows is going to be followed with an immediate, devastating, and lethal attack.

We too can easily get the impression that the Lord is nonchalant. Our society scoffs more and more at what he says and what he wants—and seems to get away with it. In our own personal lives too we can easily get used to living in sinful ways that seem to have little impact on how we are doing. But let us not fool ourselves. Yes, our God is long-suffering, but he is a holy God who sees and who knows. That we slight him more and more does not escape his attention. It might appear that way at times, but let us not kid ourselves.