4<\/strong>. when he hath no prey<\/em> ] i.e. when it is not within his reach: the roar is that with which the lion springs upon its prey: cf. Isa 5:29<\/span> a<\/em> (not Isa 5:29<\/em><\/span> b<\/em>, where the word used is a different one; see below); Psa 104:21<\/span>, “roaring for prey”; Eze 22:25<\/span>, “like a roaring lion, tearing the prey.”<\/p>\n cry out of his den, if he have taken nothing?<\/em> ] give forth his voice<\/strong> (Jer 2:15<\/span>) out of his<\/em> lair<\/strong>, &c.? the allusion is to the growl of satisfaction with which the animal consumes its prey when caught: hence ‘growl,’ would be a better paraphrase than ‘cry’: see Isa 5:29<\/span> b<\/em> (where ‘roar’ nham<\/em>, not sh’ag<\/em>, as in clause a<\/em> should be rather growl<\/em>: cf. W. R. Smith, The Prophets of Israel<\/em>, pp. 129, 243).<\/p>\n An ancient Egyptian Bird-trap. (From Sir J. Gardner Wilkinson’s Ancient Egyptians<\/em>, 1878, ii. 103).<\/p>\n Will a lion roar in the forest, when he hath no prey? – <\/B>Then, further, each question by itself suggests its own thought. Amos had already, in repeating Joels words, spoken of Gods Voice, under the image of a lion roaring (Amo 1:2<\/span>; Hos 11:10<\/span> (add Hos 5:14<\/span>; Hos 6:1<\/span>; Hos 13:7<\/span>); Jer 25:30<\/span>). Hosea had likened Israel to a silly dove without heat Hos 7:11<\/span>; on the other hand, he had likened Gods loud call to repentance to the roaring of the lion, the conversion of Israel to the return of the dove to its home Hos 11:10-11<\/span>. As the roaring of the lion causeth terror, for he sendeth forth his terrible roar when he is about to spring on his prey , so God threatens by His prophets, only when He is about to punish. Yet the lions roar is a warning to escape. Gods threatening is a warning to betake them to repentance, and so to escape from all fear, by fleeing from their sins. If the season is neglected, wilt thou rescue the prey from the lions grasp, or thyself from the wrath of God?<\/P> <\/p>\n Amo 3:4-6<\/span><\/p>\n Will a lion roar in the forest when he hath no prey?<\/em><\/p>\n <\/em><\/p>\n Retribution<\/strong><\/p>\n Verse 4<\/span>. Will a lion roar<\/B><\/I>] Should I threaten such a judgment without cause?<\/P> <\/p>\n In this verse, by a double similitude, Amos certifieth the Jews of near and inevitable punishment; first, by similitude of a lion roaring at sight of his prey, which seldom escapes when the lion roareth against it. The lion usually is so nigh to his prey when he roareth, that he leapeth on it presently, and teareth it: so here God would have sinning Israel know that their sins had provoked him to wrath, and that his judgments were near at hand. Nay, nearer yet; like a prey dragged by the old lion into the den for the young lions to feed on, so was their case, their enemies the Assyrians should as certainly devour them as the young lions in the den do devour the prey which is brought to them. If the departure of God from them affect them not, perhaps the fierceness of lion-like enemies may affect them. <\/P> <\/p>\n 4.<\/B> The same idea as in Mt24:28<\/span>. Where a corrupt nation is, there God’s instruments ofpunishment are sure also to be. The lion roars loudly only when hehas prey in sight. <\/P> Will a young lion cry out . .. if he<\/B>the “lion,” not the “young lion.” <\/P> have taken nothing?<\/B>Theyoung lion just weaned lies silent, until the old lion brings theprey near; then the scent rouses him. So, the prophet would not speakagainst Israel, if God did not reveal to him Israel’s sins asrequiring punishment.<\/P><\/p>\n Will a lion roar in the forest when he hath no prey<\/strong>?…. He will not, unless he has it in his sight, or in his paws; he roars when he first sees it, whereby he terrifies the creature, that it cannot move till he comes up to it; and when he has got it in his paws, he roars over it, to invite others to partake with him. Now prophecy from the Lord is compared to the roaring of a lion, Am 1:2<\/span>; and this is never in a way of judgment without a cause; the sin of men, or of a nation, which makes them a prey to the wrath and fury of God;<\/p>\n will a young lion cry<\/strong>, or “give forth his voice”;<\/p>\n out of his den, if he have taken nothing<\/strong>? that is, if the old lion has taken nothing, and brought nothing unto him; which signifies the same as before; unless by the young lion is meant the prophets of the Lord, who never prophesy but when they have a commission from him, and a people are pointed out to them as the just prey of his wrath and vengeance. All the images here used are very natural; the lion is for the most part in woods and forests, hence called the “lion out of the forest”, Jer 5:6<\/span>; as he is by Theocritus d; where his voice is heard, but not unless he is in sight of his prey, or has got it, even though ever so hungry; but when he has it in view, he roars so terribly, that, as Basil e observes, many animals that could escape him through their swiftness, yet are so frightened at his roaring, that they have no power to move; and they have their dens either in caves or in thickets, where are the she lioness and the young lions, to whom the prey is brought; see Na 2:11<\/span>.<\/p>\n d , Theocrit. Idyll. 1. e In Hexaemeron, Homil. 9.<\/p>\n The second similitude follows, Will a lion roar in the forest without a prey? Will a lion send forth his voice from his den when he has caught nothing? By this verse he intimates that God does not cry out for nothing by his Prophets; for ungodly men supposed that the air was only made to reverberate by an empty sound, when the Prophets threatened, “These,” they said, “are mere words;” as though indeed they could not find that the necessity of crying arose from themselves, because they had provoked God by their vices. Hence the Prophet, meeting their objection, says, “If lions roar not, except when they have obtained a prey, shall God cry from heaven and send forth his voice as far as the earth, when there is no prey?” The meaning is, that the word of God was very shamefully despised by the Israelites, as though there was no reason for crying, as though God was trifling with them. His word is indeed precious, and is not thrown heedlessly into the air, as if it were a mere refuse; but it is an invaluable seed. Since the Lord cries, it is not, says Amos, without a lawful cause. How so? The lions do not indeed roar without prey; God then does not cry by his Prophets, except for the best reason. It hence follows that the Israelites were hitherto extremely stupid inasmuch as they did not listen with more earnestness and attention to the teaching of the Prophets, as though God had uttered only an empty sound. <\/p>\n (4) Lion.<\/strong>The questions suggest that the prey is being seized. This is intimated by the lions roar, the loud roar of the lion in the forest, the growl of the famished young lions in the den. Aben-Ezra thus interprets; but G. Baur thinks that Caphir<\/em> distinguishes a hunting lion from the beast that growls in his lair. (Comp. Amo. 1:2<\/span>.) Amos, by his graphic representation of the terrifying threat, signifies that nations, and kingdoms, and this family of Israel, are, at the present moment, trembling in the grasp of the great Avenger.<\/p>\n Amo 3:4 Will a lion roar in the forest, when he hath no prey? will a young lion cry out of his den, if he have taken nothing?<\/p>\n Ver. 4. Will a lion roar in the forest, when, &c.<\/strong> ] It is said of the lion, that he sets up a double roar; first, when he spies his prey, next, when he seizeth it; then, saith Plutarch, he roareth, or rather belloweth like a bull, that other beasts may come to him, and take part with him. It is not for nothing that the lion uttereth his voice; much less that Almighty God thundereth and threateneth by his prophets, your sins without repentance will be your ruin, according to those threatenings; though you are so sturdy, or at least so stupid, as to fear them no more than Behemoth doth the iron weapons, which are esteemed by him as straws, or bullrushes, Job 40:15<\/span> . Shall the wrath of a king be as the roaring of a lion, Pro 19:12<\/span> , and as the messengers of death, Pro 16:14<\/span> , and shall God’s menaces be slighted? will vile men imagine him a God of clouts? One that howsoever he speaketh heavy words, will not do as he saith? intends them no otherwise than in terrorem,<\/em> for spectres? Surely they will find it far otherwise; and it must be concluded, that being already sentenced, either their beds are very soft, or their hearts very hard, that can sleep securely in so deplorable a condition. Surely God’s predictions shall have their accomplishment, 1Sa 3:19<\/span> ; 1Sa 15:29<\/span> . Believe them, therefore; stand in awe and sin not, since he that “despiseth the word shall be destroyed; but he that feareth the commandment shall be rewarded,” Pro 13:13<\/span> . See Trapp on “<\/em> Pro 13:13 “<\/em> <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Will a young lion cry out of his den<\/strong> ] q.d.<\/em> Is it for nothing that God so terribly threateneth? “Is there not a cause?” as David said in another case, 1Sa 17:29<\/span> . Surely, as in the Revelation we never read that heaven opened, but some great matter followed; so here: Hath the Lord spoken it, and shall he not do it? Never think it. Oh think of God as of one not to be thought of; as one whose wisdom is his justice, whose justice is his power, whose power is his truth, and all himself. He is the God of Amen, Psa 31:6<\/span> , faithful and true; he can as soon die as lie; neither can he be hindered or resisted, as angels, men, and devils may. In the creature there is an essence and a faculty whereby they work; as in fire is the substance and the quality of heat. Now between these God can separate, and so hinder their working, as in the Babylonish fire. In the angels there is an essence and an executive power: God comes between these often and hinders them from doing what they would. Not so in God, who is most simple and entire, armed with power irresistible to tame his rebels: “Every morning doth he bring his judgment to light, he faileth not; but the unjust knoweth no shame,” Zep 3:5<\/span> ; the fool passeth on and is punished, Pro 22:3<\/span> .<\/p>\n Will . . . ? Figure of speech Erotesis. App-6. <\/p>\n forest = thicket. <\/p>\n a lion: Amo 3:8, Amo 1:2, Psa 104:21, Hos 11:10 <\/p>\n cry: Heb. give forth his voice <\/p>\n Reciprocal: Psa 10:9 – secretly Jer 2:15 – young lions Hos 5:14 – as a lion Hos 13:7 – General 1Pe 5:8 – as<\/p>\n 6<\/p>\n Amo 3:4-6. I have grouped these verses into one paragraph because they are all written for one purpose, and that may well be expressed by the phrase, no effect without a cause.” For instance, a lion does not roar if there is no prey; a bird cannot be entrapped unless there is a trap; a snare cannot be taken up if there is no snare to take; a trumpet would not be blown unless there was some danger to be announced. Evil is used in the sense of some chastisement, and its presence is proof that there is some cause for It in the mind of the Lord.<\/p>\n Amo 3:4-6. Will a lion roar, &c., when he hath no prey? Naturalists assert that when the lion sees his prey, he roars before he rushes on it; and that at this roaring many animals show great fear. He likewise roars over his prey. The sense seems to be, As the lion roareth on account of his prey, so by my prophets I cry aloud against you, because ye are the objects of my vengeance. Newcome. Can a bird fall in a snare where no gin is for him As a bird does not fall into a snare, unless one has been laid for him, so the people of Israel and Judah would not fall into the calamities coming upon them, had not God, for their ingratitude and other sins, brought these punishments upon them. Figuratively speaking, the Assyrians and Chaldeans were gins or snares which God had laid to take the Israelites. Shall one take up a snare and have taken nothing As it is not usual for the fowler or hunter to take up the snares he has laid, till he has taken something in them; so neither will the enemies which God will bring upon Israel and Judah depart from them without executing the purpose for which they were brought, namely, making a conquest of the country, and spoiling its inhabitants. Or, God will not remove his judgments when they have begun to take place, till they have attained their proper end, the peoples repentance and reformation. Shall a trumpet be blown and the people not be afraid? Will not the people of the city, when they first hear the alarm-trumpet blown, be affected with the danger, and run to their arms? and will not ye be moved by the warnings God gives you of approaching judgments? and will ye not be stirred up to repent and amend your ways? Shall there be evil Such as famine, plague, and war; in a city Or country; and the Lord hath not done it? Either immediately by his own hand, or by the hands of those whom he employs. Whoever are the instruments of chastising a people, God is the principal agent. The meaning here is, You may be assured that the calamities you feel, or have just cause to fear, are not the effect of chance, but come upon you by the special direction of Providence.<\/p>\n 3:4 Will a {c} lion roar in the forest, when he hath no prey? will a young lion cry out of his den, if he have taken nothing?<\/p>\n (c) Will God threaten by his Prophet, unless there is some great occasion?<\/p>\n A lion does not roar in the forest unless it has found prey. Young lions do not growl in their dens unless they have captured something and are protecting it (cf. Amo 1:2).<\/p>\n Will a lion roar in the forest, when he hath no prey? will a young lion cry out of his den, if he have taken nothing? 4. when he hath no prey ] i.e. when it is not within his reach: the roar is that with which the lion springs upon its prey: cf. Isa … Continue reading “Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Amos 3:4”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-22410","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-commentary"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22410","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22410"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22410\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22410"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22410"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22410"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
I. <\/strong>Retribution springs out of the nature of things. Poiset, in his travels, states that the lion has two different modes of hunting his prey. When not <\/strong>very hungry he contents himself with watching behind a bush for the animal which is the object of his attack till it approaches; when by a sudden leap he attacks it, and seldom misses his aim. But if he is famished he does not proceed so quietly; but impatient and full of rage, he leaves his den, and fills with his terrific roar the echoing forest. His voice inspires all beings with terror, no creature deems itself safe in its retreat; all flee they know not whither, and by this means some fall into his fangs. The naturalness of punishment is perhaps the prophets point. It is so with moral retribution. It springs from the constitution of things, Every sin carries with it its own penalty. No positive infliction is required; God has only to leave the sinner alone, and his sins will find him out.<\/p>\n
II. <\/strong>Retribution is not accidental, but arranged. The bird is not taken in a snare by chance. The fowler has been there, and made preparation for its entanglement and ruin. Every sinner is a bird that must be caught.<\/p>\n
III. <\/strong>Retribution always sounds a timely alarm. Heaven does not punish without warnings. Nature warns. Providence warns. Conscience warns.<\/p>\n
IV. <\/strong>Retribution, however it comes, is always Divine. God is in all. He has established the connection between sin and suffering. He has planned and laid the snare. The everlasting destruction with which the sinner is punished comes from the presence of the Lord and the glory of His power. ( Homilist.<\/em>)<\/p>\nFuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible <\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"