Amo 9:1-2 | TNotes | STEP | 9:1 I saw ... the Lord (see 7:1 ): God ceased to reveal how or why he would punish Israel; he was now poised to act. • beside the altar: Judgment must begin with the center of worship (cp. 1 Pet 4:17 ). This altar probably refers to the Bethel shrine, although it could refer to the Temple in Jerusalem.

c1 Pet 4:17►

ePs 139:7-12►

‏ Amos 9:1-2

9:1 ^a I saw ... the Lord (see 7:1 ^b): God ceased to reveal how or why he would punish Israel; he was now poised to act.

• beside the altar: Judgment must begin with the center of worship (cp. 1 Pet 4:17 ^c). This altar probably refers to the Bethel shrine, although it could refer to the Temple in Jerusalem.
Summary for Amos 9:2-4: 9:2-4 ^d God is inescapable (cp. Ps 139:7-12 ^e). When people trust, believe, and obey God, his inescapability is a great blessing. But because Israel rejected God’s revelation, his presence would mean judgment, not comfort. 9:2 ^f to the place of the dead (literally to Sheol): In the Old Testament, Sheol is a place beneath the earth where the dead have their abode.