Christ in the Old Testament

Amos 8:9

“In that day,” declares the Sovereign Lord, “I will make the sun go down at noon and darken the earth in broad daylight. (NIV)

Today’s Reading: Amos 8:8-12

Amos was a shepherd from Tekoa in Judea which is located about 5 miles south of Bethlehem. He lived around the same time as Isaiah, Micah and Hosea although his ministry began about 10-20 years before their’s. He proclaimed God’s message to the northern kingdom of Israel even though he was from the southern kingdom of Judea.

Amos’s message was for Israel to repent from their sin or face God’s judgment. It was not well received particularly by Amaziah, the priest of Bethel, where Amos had traveled to call Israel to repentance:

“Then Amaziah sent orders to Amos: ‘Get out of here, you prophet! Go on back to the land of Judah, and earn your living by prophesying there! Don’t bother us with your prophecies here in Bethel. This is the king’s sanctuary and the national place of worship!’

“But Amos replied, ‘I’m not a professional prophet, and I was never trained to be one. I’m just a shepherd, and I take care of sycamore-fig trees. But the Lord called me away from my flock and told me, “Go and prophesy to my people in Israel”’” (Amos 7:12-15, NLT).

Amos was not a popular messenger to say the least. After this altercation with Amaziah, Amos went on to prophecy destruction over Israel in Amos chapter 8. We see the words, “In that day” repeated three times and one instance of “The days are coming.” These phrases are generally followed by bad things happening. The interesting prophecy for us today is found in Amos 8:9-10:

“’In that day,’ declares the Sovereign Lord,

‘I will make the sun go down at noon
    and darken the earth in broad daylight.
I will turn your religious festivals into mourning
    and all your singing into weeping.
I will make all of you wear sackcloth
    and shave your heads.
I will make that time like mourning for an only son
    and the end of it like a bitter day.’”

There is some uncertainty amongst the Biblical scholars as to when this prophecy was fulfilled or will be fulfilled. Some say it happened when the Assyrians invaded Israel. Some say it happened when the Babylonians invaded Jerusalem. Some say it will happen when Jesus returns a second time. And then some say it was fulfilled at the crucifixion.

I tend to fall in the camp of multiple fulfillments on this one. I think it was fulfilled at the cross and will also be fulfilled upon the return of Jesus. We know at the cross that darkness came over the land for three hours and as Amos said it actually occurred at noon:

“At noon, darkness fell across the whole land until three o’clock” (Matt 27:45, Mark 15:33, Luke 23:44 NLT).

Following along with Amos’s prophecy, at this time the religious festival would turn into a time of mourning and their celebration would turn into weeping. For many, this was certainly the case as Jesus was being crucified:

“A large number of people followed him, including women who mourned and wailed for him. Jesus turned and said to them, ‘Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep for yourselves and for your children’” (Luke 23:27-28).

There could certainly be dual fulfillment in the final stanza of Amos 8:10 where he says that it will be a “time like mourning of an only son.” Clearly there was mourning for God’s only son on the day of Jesus’s crucifixion.

But if you recall, we covered Isaiah 53 in our study from August 17 through September 25. That prophecy is unique in that it details the crucifixion of Jesus from the perspective of the Jewish remnant that will mourn their actions when they become believers during the end times. It’s very possible, that the “mourning for an only son” is a prophecy concerning the Jewish remnant that will look back on what they did to the Son of God and mourn their actions:

“By oppression and judgment he was taken away.
    Yet who of his generation protested?” (Isa 53:8).

But we know today that our mourning has turned into gladness, our sorrow into joy:

“I will turn their mourning into gladness;
    I will give them comfort and joy instead of sorrow” (Jer 31:13).

Today’s Prayer: Thank you Jesus for enduring the cross so that I could have eternal life. Help me live today with gladness and joy because you defeated the grave.