**The Warning of the Lord: A Story Based on Amos 4**

In the days when Uzziah reigned over Judah and Jeroboam son of Jehoash ruled Israel, the land was rich with prosperity—yet filled with corruption. The wealthy lounged on ivory couches, feasting on the choicest lambs and wine, while the poor were sold for a pair of sandals. The Lord had seen the pride of Samaria, the oppression in Bethel, and the empty rituals at Gilgal. His patience was wearing thin.

Among the green hills of Tekoa, a shepherd named Amos heard the voice of the Lord like the roar of a lion, shaking his bones with its power. The Lord spoke to him, saying, *”Go, prophesy to Israel, to those who crush the needy and mock justice. Warn them, for I will not remain silent while they fill My courts with hypocrisy.”*

So Amos journeyed north, his sandals dusty from the road, his heart heavy with the word of the Lord. When he reached Bethel, where golden calves stood as abominations before the Lord, he stood before the gates of the city and cried out:

*”Hear this word, you cows of Bashan, who lounge on Mount Samaria, who oppress the poor and demand yet another drink from your husbands! The Lord swears by His holiness—your days of feasting will turn to famine!”*

The wealthy women, adorned in fine linens and sparkling jewels, sneered at him. *”Who is this ragged shepherd to speak against us? Does he not know we offer sacrifices at the altar? Does he not see our piety?”*

But Amos continued, his voice rising like thunder: *”You bring your sacrifices morning by morning, your tithes every three days—and yet you love to boast of them! You trample the needy but claim to seek Me? The Lord says: I gave you hunger in every city, yet you did not return to Me. I withheld the rain, so your vineyards withered, yet you did not cry out to Me. I struck your fields with blight and mildew, yet you ignored My hand!”*

The people murmured, some in fear, others in anger. A merchant clutching a bag of silver shouted, *”These are but natural disasters! Why do you blame us?”*

Amos fixed his gaze upon him. *”Five times I sent plagues upon you—yet still, you hardened your hearts. I overthrew some of you as I overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah, and you were like a burning stick snatched from the fire—yet you did not turn back to your God!”*

A chill swept through the crowd. Some remembered the fires that had swallowed whole villages, the droughts that had left children crying for bread. Yet their priests had told them it was merely misfortune, not the judgment of God.

Then Amos spoke the final warning, his voice trembling with divine authority: *”Therefore, thus says the Lord: ‘Prepare to meet your God, O Israel! For behold, He who forms the mountains and creates the wind, who declares to man what is His thought—He is coming in judgment. And on that day, the mightiest walls will crumble, and the loftiest palaces will fall.’”*

Silence fell over Bethel. The wind howled through the streets as if echoing the prophet’s words. Some in the crowd trembled; others clenched their fists, vowing to silence this troublesome shepherd. But the word of the Lord had been spoken. And as surely as the dawn follows the night, judgment would come.

Amos turned away, his mission complete. The Lord had given them chance after chance—famine, drought, war, and fire—yet still, they refused to repent. Now, only the roar of the Lion of Judah would break their stubborn hearts.

And so, the stage was set. The day of reckoning drew near.