correspond respectively to 'Jehovah,' and 'Bethel,
Gilgal, and Beersheba,' in former verses. That is to say, morality is
the garb of religion, and religion is the only true source of morality.
If we are not seeking the things that are lovely and of good report, our
professions of seeking God are false; and we shall never earnestly and
successfully seek good and hate evil unless we have begun by seeking and
finding God, and holding Him in our heart of hearts. Modern social
reformers, who fancy that they can sweeten society without religion,
might do worse than go to school to Amos.

Notable, too, is the lowered tone of confidence in the beneficial result
of obeying the Prophet's call. In the earlier exhortation the promise
had been absolute. 'Seek ye Me, and ye _shall_ live'; now it has cooled
to 'it may be.' Is Amos faltering? No; but while it is always true that
blessed life is found by the seeker after God, because He finds the very
source of life, it is not always true that the consequences of past
turnings from Him are diverted by repentance. 'It may be' that these
have to be endured, but even they become tokens of Jehovah's
graciousness, and the purified 'remnant of Joseph' will possess the true
life more abundantly because they have been exercised thereby.

THE CARCASS AND THE EAGLES

'Woe to them that are at ease in Zion, and trust in the mountain of
Samaria, which are named chief of the nations, to whom the house of
Israel came! 2. Pass ye unto Calneh, and see; and from thence go ye
to Hamath the great; then go down to Gath of the Philistines: be
they better than these kingdoms? or their border greater than your
border? 3. Ye that put far away the evil day, and cause the seat of
violence to come near; 4. That lie upon beds of ivory, and stretch
themselves upon their couches, and eat the lambs out of the flock,
and the calves out of the midst of the stall; 5. That chant to the
sound of the viol, and invent to themselves instruments of musick,
like David; 6. That drink wine in bowls, and anoint themselves with
the chief ointments: but they are not grieved for the affliction of
Joseph. 7. Therefore now shall they go captive with the first that
go captive, and the banquet of them that stretched themselves shall
be removed. 8. The Lord God hath sworn by Himself, saith the Lord
the God of hosts, I abhor the excellency of Jacob, and hat