20261105 | 새벽묵상 | 선택받은 자도 예외는 없다 No Exception for the Chosen | 암/Amos 2:1~8

2:1 여호와께서 이와 같이 말씀하시되 모압의 서너 가지 죄로 말미암아 내가 그 벌을 돌이키지 아니하리니 이는 그가 에돔 왕의 뼈를 불살라 재를 만들었음이라

2 내가 모압에 불을 보내리니 그리욧 궁궐들을 사르리라 모압이 요란함과 외침과 나팔 소리 중에서 죽을 것이라

3 내가 그 중에서 재판장을 멸하며 지도자들을 그와 함께 죽이리라 여호와께서 말씀하시니라

2:1 This is what the LORD says:

         “For three sins of Moab,

         even for four, I will not relent.

         Because he burned to ashes

         the bones of Edom’s king,

      2 I will send fire on Moab

         that will consume the fortresses of Kerioth. 

         Moab will go down in great tumult

         amid war cries and the blast of the trumpet.

      3 I will destroy her ruler

         and kill all her officials with him,”

           says the LORD.

4 여호와께서 이와 같이 말씀하시되 유다의 서너 가지 죄로 말미암아 내가 그 벌을 돌이키지 아니하리니 이는 그들이 여호와의 율법을 멸시하며 그 율례를 지키지 아니하고 그의 조상들이 따라가던 거짓 것에 미혹되었음이라

5 내가 유다에 불을 보내리니 예루살렘의 궁궐들을 사르리라

4 This is what the LORD says:

         “For three sins of Judah,

         even for four, I will not relent.

         Because they have rejected the law of the LORD

         and have not kept his decrees,

         because they have been led astray by false gods, 

         the gods their ancestors followed,

      5 I will send fire on Judah

         that will consume the fortresses of Jerusalem.”

6 여호와께서 이와 같이 말씀하시되 이스라엘의 서너 가지 죄로 말미암아 내가 그 벌을 돌이키지 아니하리니 이는 그들이 은을 받고 의인을 팔며 신 한 켤레를 받고 가난한 자를 팔며

7 힘 없는 자의 머리를 티끌 먼지 속에 발로 밟고 연약한 자의 길을 굽게 하며 아버지와 아들이 한 젊은 여인에게 다녀서 내 거룩한 이름을 더럽히며

8 모든 제단 옆에서 전당 잡은 옷 위에 누우며 그들의 신전에서 벌금으로 얻은 포도주를 마심이니라

6 This is what the LORD says:

“For three sins of Israel,

even for four, I will not relent.

They sell the innocent for silver,

and the needy for a pair of sandals.

7 They trample on the heads of the poor

as on the dust of the ground

and deny justice to the oppressed.

Father and son use the same girl

and so profane my holy name.

8 They lie down beside every altar

on garments taken in pledge.

In the house of their god

they drink wine taken as fines.

아모스가 활동하던 시기의 이스라엘과 유다는 솔로몬 이후 최고의 호황을 누리고 있었습니다. 아마도 그들은 자신들이 하나님의 선택을 받은 백성들이기에 하나님께서 그들에게 독점적으로 복을 내려주시고 있다고 생각했을 것입니다. 그래서 그들은 ‘여호와의 날’을 기다렸습니다. 그 날이 오면 하나님께서 임하셔서 자신들을 계속 괴롭혀왔던 이방 민족들을 심판하시고 자신들은 완전히 승리하리라 생각했습니다. 어제까지의 말씀을 들으면서 더욱 그러했겠지요. 주변 나라들에 대한 심판을 차례차례 말씀하시는데 하나님께서 그들의 대표적인 죄악들로 그들이 이스라엘을 괴롭혔던 것을 꼽으셨기 때문입니다. ‘아, 무슨 말씀을 하시는가 했더니 드디어 ‘여호와의 날’을 선포하시려나보다’ 라고 기대했을 그들에게 오늘의 말씀은 전혀 다른 말씀을 하십니다. 마지막 이방 민족에 대한 심판을 말씀하시는데 모압이 범한  죄악은 이스라엘과는 아무런 상관이 없는 죄악인 것입니다. ‘어, 뭐지?’ 하고 있는데 유다와 이스라엘도 심판의 대상이라고 말씀하십니다. 선택받은 하나님의 백성이어야 할 이들도 이방 민족들과 똑같이 심판을 받습니다. 오늘은 “선택받은 자도 예외는 없다”는 제목으로 말씀을 나누기 원합니다.

During the period when Amos was active, Israel and Judah were enjoying their greatest prosperity since the reign of Solomon. They likely believed that because they were God's chosen people, God was uniquely showering His blessings exclusively upon them. Therefore, they eagerly awaited the "Day of the Lord." They imagined that on that day, God would appear, judge the foreign nations that had continually oppressed them, and grant them total, resounding victory.

This expectation must have only grown stronger as they listened to the messages leading up to this point. When God pronounced judgment upon the surrounding nations one by one, He pointed out their representative sins—chiefly, how they had mistreated and oppressed Israel. They must have thought, "Ah, so that’s what He’s getting at! He’s finally about to declare the 'Day of the Lord!'"

But to an audience full of such expectations, today’s passage brings an entirely different message. When God delivers His final judgment against a foreign nation, the sin committed by Moab has nothing whatsoever to do with Israel. As the listeners think, "Wait, what is this?" God suddenly declares that Judah and Israel are also targets of judgment. Those who were supposed to be God’s chosen people face the exact same judgment as the pagan nations.

Today, I want to share a message with you titled: "No Exception for the Chosen."

                 오늘은 모압과 유다와 이스라엘에 대한 심판 메시지입니다. 먼저 모압에 대한 심판을 보기 원합니다. 하나님이 말씀하시는 모압의 대표적인 죄는 1절에 “그가 에돔 왕의 뼈를 불살라 재를 만들었음이라” 입니다. 이 말씀이 쉽게 이해가 되질 않습니다. 그래서 뭘 어쨌다는 거지? 이스라엘에 피해를 끼친것도 아니고 산 사람을 괴롭힌 것도 아니지 않습니까? 심지어 이스라엘을 적대하던 에돔을 적대한 것이라면 오히려 잘한 일 아닙니까? 분명 앞에서 차례차례 짚으셨던 이방 민족들의 죄악은 그들이 이스라엘을 괴롭히던 죄들이었는데 여기서부터 맥락이 맞질 않습니다. 요즘에 유행하는 유튜브 중에 이런 멘트가 유행하는게 있더라구요. ‘환장할 노릇입니다. 그래서 발상을 뒤집습니다.” 마찬가지입니다. 그래서 발상을 뒤집어서 역으로 돌아보게 되는 것입니다. 아, 그전까지 지적하셨던 죄악들의 촛점이 이스라엘을 적대했느냐에 있는 것이 아니구나. 그 대상이 누구이든지간에 사람에게 죄를 범하는 것을 하나님은 그들의 대표적인 죄악으로 꼽으셨던 거구나! 그것을 깨달을 때에, 갑자기 이 심판의 예언을 보는 시각이 바뀌게 됩니다. 그리고 그 순간에 진짜 공포가 깨어나는 것이지요. 어? 우리가 생각하던 ‘여호와의 날’에 대한 심판의 말씀이 아니네? 그러면 이게 대체 무슨 말씀을 하시려는거지? 여태까지 쭉 판을 키워오셨는데 그러면 진짜 저격하시려는게 누구인 것인가?

1. Moab and the Trap of Our Assumptions

Today’s text is a message of judgment against Moab, Judah, and Israel. Let us first look at the judgment against Moab.

The representative sin of Moab that God highlights in verse 1 is this: "He burned the bones of the king of Edom to lime." At first glance, this is difficult to understand. What does this actually mean? It didn’t cause direct harm to Israel, nor did it involve torturing the living. In fact, if Edom was Israel’s adversary, isn’t acting against Edom actually a good thing? This completely breaks the pattern. All the sins of the foreign nations addressed so far were crimes committed directly against Israel, so this context suddenly feels disconnected.

There is a popular catchphrase in YouTube videos these days that goes like this: "It’s driving me crazy. So, I’m flipping the perspective."

That is precisely what we must do here. We must flip our perspective and look back. We realize: Ah, the focus of the sins God has been pointing out isn't solely whether someone was hostile to Israel. Rather, God considers committing injustice against anyone, regardless of who they are, to be a fundamental sin!

When that realization hits, our entire perspective on these prophecies of judgment shifts dramatically. And at that exact moment, a genuine sense of dread awakens within us: Wait, this isn’t the kind of 'Day of the Lord' judgment we were hoping for? Then what on earth is God trying to say? He’s been expanding the scope of judgment this whole time—so who is He actually targeting in the crosshairs?

                1장의 서론에서부터 지금까지 하나님께서 말씀하고자 하셨던 대상은 바로 당신이 선택하신 이스라엘이었습니다. 그리고 그에 앞서 유다에 대한 심판의 말씀을 먼저 하십니다. 시동을 거는 것이지요. 4절을 보십시오. 앞에서 이방민족에게 말씀하셨던 것과 똑같은 패턴으로 유다를 그 심판의 대상으로 삼으십니다. “여호와께서 이와 같이 말씀하시되 유다의 서너가지 죄로 말미암아 내가 그 벌을 돌이키지 아니하리니” 이 말씀, 아람에게도, 블레셋에게도, 두로, 에돔, 암몬, 그리고 오늘 모압까지 동일한 말씀이었습니다. 무슨 말씀입니까? 너희도 똑같다는 말씀입니다. 선민이라고 해서 하나님의 심판의 대상에서 제외되지 않는다는 것입니다. 왜냐하면 하나님은 이스라엘 민족 만의 하나님이 아닌 모든 피조세계의 주인이시기 때문입니다. 그러므로 누구든지 하나님을 거부하고 죄에 빠져 있는다면 그가 선민이든 이방인이든 동일하게 하나님의 심판의 대상이 된다는 것입니다. 하지만 유다가 지적받은 죄악은 앞의 이방 민족들과는 조금 다릅니다. “이는 그들이 여호와의 율법을 멸시하며 그 율례를 지키지 아니하고 그의 조상들이 따라가던 거짓 것에 미혹되었음이라” 이들은 하나님의 말씀을 멸시하였습니다. 말씀을 귀히 여기지 않는데 어떻게 그 말씀을 지킬 수 있습니까? 말씀을 듣지 않고 지키지 않으면 세상의 우상과 거짓 가르침에 미혹될 수 밖에 없습니다. 이들이 스스로 미혹되려고 미혹된 것이 아니라 말씀을 멸시하고 지키지 않을 때 그들은 세상의 가치관을 따르게 될 수 밖에 없는 것입니다. 하나님은 이것이 유다의 대표적인 죄악이라고 말씀하십니다. 그리고 하나님께서는 하나님의 도성이라고 불리던 예루살렘마저도 예외없이 그들의 죄악 때문에 불을 보내시겠다고 하십니다.

2. Judah: The Danger of Despising God’s Word

From the introduction of chapter 1 all the way to this point, the ultimate target God intended to address was none other than His chosen Israel. But before getting there, He first pronounces judgment upon Judah. He is revving the engine.

Look at verse 4. God subjects Judah to judgment using the exact same pattern He used for the pagan nations:

"For three transgressions of Judah, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment..."

This was the exact same formula used for Aram, Philistia, Tyre, Edom, Ammon, and today, Moab. What does this mean? It means: "You are no different."

Being part of the chosen people does not exempt anyone from God's judgment. Why? Because God is not merely the God of the nation of Israel; He is the Master and Creator of the entire universe. Therefore, anyone—whether chosen covenant people or pagan foreigners—who rejects God and plunges into sin falls equally under the scope of God’s judgment.

However, the sin pointed out in Judah is slightly different from the surrounding nations:

"Because they have rejected the law of the Lord, and have not kept His statutes, but their lies have led them astray, those after which their fathers walked."

Judah despised God’s word. If you do not hold God’s word dear, how can you possibly keep it? When people fail to listen to and obey God's word, they inevitably become deluded by the world's idols and false teachings. They didn't set out to be deceived, but once they despised and neglected God's word, they had no choice but to follow worldly value systems. God declares this to be Judah’s representative sin. Furthermore, God warns that even Jerusalem—the so-called Holy City—will not be exempt; He will send fire upon it because of their sin.

                이제 마지막 심판의 대상이며 이 모든 심판들이 정조준하고 있는 표적, 이스라엘에 대한 심판의 말씀입니다. 서두가 똑같습니다. 이스라엘도 이방민족들과 똑같이 이들이 범한 죄악들로 인해 심판받는다는 것입니다. 앞에서 이방 민족들을 대표하는 죄악들이 사람을 대상으로 한 죄악 하나씩이었는데 이스라엘의 죄악들은 2장에 끝날때까지 이어지고 심지어 이것은 도입부분일 뿐이고 실제 그 심판의 말씀은 6장까지 이어집니다. 오늘 본문에 나온 죄악들을 보십시오. 모두 사회적 정의와 힘이 없는 사람들을 수탈하는 것들입니다. 6절, 결백하여 재판에서 무죄가 되어야 할 사람을 가난하다고 해서 뇌물을 받고 죄인으로 넘겨버립니다. 7절에 “힘없는 자의 머리를 티끌 먼지 속에 발로 밟고”라고 번역을 하고 있지만 조금 다르게 번역하면 “가난한 자의 머리에 붙어있는 티끌까지 탐욕스럽게 갈망한다”고도 번역이 됩니다. 자신의 욕망 때문에 힘없는 사람의 것을 빼앗고 연약한 사람의 길을 굽게 하며 성적으로 타락하였습니다. 이것이 무엇이라고요? 하나님의 거룩한 이름을 더럽히는 것이라고 합니다. 8절 보십시오 전당 잡은 겉옷 위에 누웠다고 하는데 당시 이스라엘에서 가난한 사람은 옷이 겉 외투와 속옷 밖에 없었습니다. 그래서 밤에 잘 때는 덮고 잘게 없어서 자신의 외투를 덮고 자야만 합니다. 그렇기 때문에 출애굽기 22:26-27을 보면 하나님께서 “이웃의 옷을 전당 잡거든 해가 지기 전에 그에게 돌려보내라 그것이 유일한 옷이라 그것이 그의 알몸을 가릴 옷인즉 그가 무엇을 입고 자겠느냐” 라고 명령하시지요. 그런데 지금 하나님을 모시는 제단 옆에서, 즉, 예배의 겉모습은 갖추고 있지만 정작 그들이 하는 일은 무엇입니까? 가난한 사람에게서 전당 잡은 그 옷 위에 누워있다는 것입니다. 우리가 하나님의 심판의 말씀이 이방 민족들에게도 예외없이 임하였던 것을 생각할 때에 지금 당신이 선택하시고  계명을 주셨던 이들에게 하시는 경고가 얼마나 두려운 것인지 짐작조차 하기 어렵습니다.

3. Israel: Empty Worship and Social Injustice

Finally, we come to the ultimate target—the bullseye of all these judgments: the judgment against Israel.

The opening formula is identical: Israel will be judged for their sins, just like the pagan nations. But while the foreign nations were each rebuked for a single representative crime against humanity, Israel’s sins stretch on through the end of chapter 2, and in fact, the actual discourse of judgment continues all the way through chapter 6.

Look at the sins listed in our text today. They are all violations of social justice and the exploitation of the vulnerable:

• Verse 6: They sell the righteous for silver, and the needy for a pair of sandals—condemning the innocent in court simply because they are poor and cannot offer bribes.

• Verse 7: While the text is often translated as “They trample on the heads of the poor as on the dust of the ground,” it can also be translated as, “They greedily crave even the dust on the heads of the helpless.” Out of sheer greed, they strip away the belongings of the powerless, bend the path of the afflicted, and engage in sexual immorality.

What is this called? It is profaning the holy name of God.

Look at verse 8: “They lay themselves down beside every altar on garments taken in pledge.” In those days, a poor person typically owned only two garments: an outer cloak and an inner tunic. Because they had nothing else to cover themselves with at night, they had to sleep wrapped in their outer cloak.

That is why God commanded in Exodus 22:26–27:

"If ever you take your neighbor's cloak in pledge, you shall return it to him before the sun goes down, for that is his only covering, and it is his cloak for his body; in what else shall he sleep?"

Yet what are the Israelites doing? Right beside the altar of God—maintaining all the outward, religious forms of worship—they are lounging on garments taken in pledge from the poor.

When we consider that God's judgment fell without exception even upon pagan nations, we cannot begin to fathom how terrifying this warning is to those whom God personally chose and entrusted with His commandments.

                말씀을 맺습니다. 오늘의 말씀은 우리에게 하나님의 선택을 받은 자들도 하나님의 심판 앞에 예외가 없음을 보여줍니다. 오히려 하나님의 선택을 받았고 말씀을 받았기에 그들은 더욱 큰 책임이 있음을 기억해야 할 것입니다. 우리가 하나님을 예배하는 모습을 갖추기는 너무 쉽습니다. 그러나 하나님께서 진정으로 우리에게 바라시는 것이 무엇인지, 무엇이 하나님의 이름을 영광스럽게 하는 것인지 생각해보길 원합니다. 우리가 예배하는 모습만 갖추고 하나님의 공의와 정의를 세상 가운데에 드러내지 못할 때에 그것은 하나님의 거룩한 이름을 더럽히는 일이며 그 죄악을 하나님께서는 결코 묵인하지 않으실 것이기 때문입니다. 기도하시겠습니다.

Conclusion

Let us conclude our message.

Today’s passage demonstrates that even those chosen by God are not exempt from His judgment. Rather, because they were chosen and given His word, we must remember that they bear an even greater responsibility.

It is so easy for us to put on the outward appearance of worshiping God. But I want us to reflect deeply on what God truly desires from us, and what genuinely brings glory to His name. If we merely maintain the rituals of worship while failing to manifest God’s righteousness and justice in the world, we are profaning His holy name—and God will never overlook that sin.

Let us pray.