The Three "I"s

 

Amos 2:6 Thus says the Lord:
“For three transgressions of Israel,
    and for four, I will not revoke the punishment,
because they sell the righteous for silver,
    and the needy for a pair of sandals—
7 those who trample the head of the poor into the dust of the earth
    and turn aside the way of the afflicted;
a man and his father go in to the same girl,
    so that my holy name is profaned;
8 they lay themselves down beside every altar
    on garments taken in pledge,
and in the house of their God they drink
    the wine of those who have been fined.

As we work our way through the prophets, there are lots of sins and lots of reasons that God's judgment is pronounced to come, but there are three main categories that can summarize them all: Indifference, Immorality, and Idolatry.  As Amos zeroes in on the sins of Israel, after glancing at all the nations around them, he points out these three in his opening address.  They didn't care about the needy; they performed increasingly immoral acts; they blatantly committed idolatry.  All of these they did with Pride, showing a total disregard for the will, word, and glory of God.  Everywhere we look we see everyone guilty of some, if not all of the above.  Why would God not send His judgment?