• Seek The Lord
• Cows of Bashan
• Bethel & Gilgal
• Why Gilgal and not Dan?
• Bethel - historical significance & decline
• Gilgal - historical significance & decline
• Iniquity & transgression multiplied
• Reflection - A call to abide
• Application

Seek The Lord

Too long, please open your Bible Amos 3:1-4:5

Cows of Bashan

Hear this word, you cows of Bashan who are on the mountain of Samaria, Who oppress the poor, who crush the needy, Who say to their husbands, “Bring now, that we may drink!” Amos 4:1

Bashan was a fertile region east of the Jordan, famous for its lush pastures and strong cattle. The biblical writers frequently used it as a metaphor for abundance, strength, pride, and often oppression or opposition to God.

Bethel & Gilgal

“Enter Bethel and transgress; In Gilgal multiply transgression! Bring your sacrifices every morning, Your tithes every three days. “And offer a thank offering also from that which is leavened, And call for freewill offerings; cause them to be heard about. For so you love to do, you sons of Israel,” Declares Lord Yahweh. Amos 4:4-5

“But do not seek Bethel, And do not come to Gilgal, Nor cross over to Beersheba; For Gilgal will certainly go into exile, And Bethel will become evil. Amos 5:5

To understand the above verses, we must look at the significance of both cities.

The repeated pairing of Gilgal and Bethel forms a striking parallelism that should draw our attention to their shared function in Israel’s religious life. By consistently linking the two sites, Amos implicitly communicates that what is true of one is true of the other—both have become symbols of a distorted approach to worship.

Though you, Israel, play the harlot, Do not let Judah become guilty; Also do not go to Gilgal Nor go up to Beth-aven And swear the oath: “As Yahweh lives!” Hosea 4:15

Hosea has the same parallelism as Amos, but in a more subtle way. In Hosea, we have Beth-aven (House of wickedness) instead of Bethel (House of God) to reflect Israel’s false worship.

Why Gilgal and not Dan?

Bethel is more commonly associated with Dan, especially in the context of Jeroboam's two golden calves (1 Kings 12:29). Yet in Amos, we see Bethel paired with Gilgal instead. This is because of what Amos is trying to emphasize. Bethel and Dan often appear together in historical texts (e.g., 2 Kings 10:29) that focus on state-sponsored idolatry, but Amos is highlighting popular religious behavior rather than royal policy. There’s a common thread of a terrible culture of worship at both places that makes Amos pair them. We’ll see more of this as we go on.

Bethel - historical significance & decline

Too long, please open your Bible Genesis 28:10-19

Too long, please open your Bible Genesis 35: 1-7

Bethel, meaning “House of God,” first rose to prominence as the site of Jacob’s vision of the ladder and his covenantal encounter with God. It later became an important location in Israel’s national history, hosting the Ark of the Covenant temporarily (Judges 20:18, 26–27) and serving as a place of prophetic activity (2 Kgs 2:2–3).

However, its spiritual prestige was corrupted in the time of Jeroboam I, who established a golden calf there as part of his alternative northern kingdom worship to prevent pilgrimages to Jerusalem (1 Kgs 12:28–33). By Amos’ day, Bethel’s rituals continued vigorously, but they were devoid of covenantal faithfulness. The prophet portrays Bethel as a place where worship only multiplies guilt: “Come to Bethel and transgress” (Amos 4:4).

What was once a place of divine encounter had become a hub of idolatry and self-assured religion, symbolic of Israel’s reliance on nostalgia instead of present faithfulness and righteousness.

Gilgal - historical significance & decline

Too long, please open your Bible Joshua 4: 19-24

Too long, please open your Bible Joshua 5: 2-12

Gilgal held a celebrated place in Israel’s memory as the first campsite after crossing the Jordan into the Promised Land (Joshua 4:19–24). It was at Gilgal that Israel renewed the covenant through circumcision (Joshua 5:2–9) and celebrated the first Passover in Canaan (Joshua 5:10–12).

It also served as a rallying and prophetic location in the early monarchy; Saul was confirmed as king there (1 Samuel 11: 14–15), and the prophet Samuel often returned there for judgment and instruction (1 Samuel  7: 15–16).

Yet by the time of Amos, Gilgal had become another center of ritualistic, empty worship. The prophet laments its decline: “Do not enter Gilgal… Gilgal shall surely go into exile” (Amos 5:5).

The very place that once symbolized covenant renewal had become an emblem of spiritual decay, as Israel turned sacred memory into lifeless tradition.

Iniquity & transgression multiplied

“Enter Bethel and transgress; In Gilgal multiply transgression! Bring your sacrifices every morning, Your tithes every three days. “And offer a thank offering also from that which is leavened, And call for freewill offerings; cause them to be heard about. For so you love to do, you sons of Israel,” Declares Lord Yahweh. Amos 4:4-5

Israel in Amos’ day lived on a nostalgia-driven religion, clinging to sacred memories and traditions while neglecting living obedience. They flocked to Bethel, Gilgal, and other historic sites, confident that revisiting places of past glory would secure divine favor.

Their offerings, tithes, and pilgrimages were enthusiastic, but they were divorced from covenant loyalty and justice (Amos 4:4–5; 5:21–23). God was not impressed by their rituals or their sentimental attachment to holy places.

Through Amos, He declared that He despised their feasts, assemblies, and music because their worship lacked the integrity of righteousness and the freshness of daily devotion (Amos 5:21–24). In essence, Israel was trying to live off yesterday’s encounters, but God was seeking hearts actively aligned with Him in the present.

Reflection - A call to abide

Too long, please open your BIble John 15: 1-10

The same way the call in Amos is to seek God, Jesus asks us abide. Our walk with God isn’t designed to be view-once. To “abide” in Christ is not a one-time event or a distant memory of closeness; it is the ongoing posture of seeking, depending, and obeying daily. The promise is clear: only those who remain in this living connection bear fruit, while separation leads to withering (John 15:4–6). Even love and obedience in the Christian life are pictured as dynamic, present realities—“If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love” (v. 10).

We are called to resist spiritual complacency and to cultivate an ever-renewed, intimate reliance on Christ, allowing His life to flow through us today and every day.

Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. Brothers, I do not consider myself as having laid hold of it yet, but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3: 12-14

Application

1. Identify areas where your faith has gone on “autopilot”. What are your “Bethels” and “Gilgals”? A season of revival on campus? A ministry milestone? Family heritage?
2. Commit to a fresh daily pursuit this week.
3. Ask God for renewed hunger and first-love devotion (Psalm 63:1, Rev 2:4–5).