-by James Gurganus

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Reason to Utilize the Plumb Line of Amos:

If you are experiencing feelings of depression, loneliness, isolation, fatigue, despair, and hopelessness due to the unjust ruling, mandate, or law that you are required to follow by an unrighteous authority over you, your workplace, your family, or business. The person or business is being influenced by an evil spirit that will perceive the world around them as completely fine.  Very common stronghold is when people under the leadership or authority are suffering greatly due to an injustice of human rights, beliefs, freedoms, authority overreach, or control.   

Side Effects in Your Body:

Tension in the muscles on the neck and shoulders. Sometimes pressure on the head. The person may even feel a constant weight pulling them down as if carrying a heavy backpack. Can interfere with how your subconscious mind processes information, so when you sleep you have a hard time dreaming and you wake up tired even though you slept all night.  Causes problems with focus and attention span which make it hard to concentrate on a specific topic or task. Also causes fear responses like when you feel something is off or something is watching you but you can’t identify what it is.  Quality of life is greatly diminished and you feel there is no hope of change.

Read Bible Verses:

Amos 7:7-15

7This is what he showed me: the Lord was standing beside a wall built with a plumb-line, with a plumb-line in his hand. 8And the Lord said to me, ‘Amos, what do you see?’ And I said, ‘A plumb-line.’ Then the Lord said, ‘See, I am setting a plumb-line in the midst of my people Israel; I will never again pass them by;  9the high places of Isaac shall be made desolate, and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste, and I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword.’

 

10Then Amaziah, the priest of Bethel, sent to King Jeroboam of Israel, saying, ‘Amos has conspired against you in the very center of the house of Israel; the land is not able to bear all his words. 

 

11For thus Amos has said, “Jeroboam shall die by the sword, and Israel must go into exile away from his land.” ’ 12And Amaziah said to Amos, ‘O seer, go, flee away to the land of Judah, earn your bread there, and prophesy there; 13but never again prophesy at Bethel, for it is the king’s sanctuary, and it is a temple of the kingdom.’

 

14Then Amos answered Amaziah, ‘I am no prophet, nor a prophet’s son; but I am a herdsman, and a dresser of sycomore trees, 15and the Lord took me from following the flock, and the Lord said to me, “Go, prophesy to my people Israel.”

 

Development of Key Themes:

In the world of the Hebrew scriptures, plumb lines were a common occurrence, being used in the construction of city-walls and important structures. Thus, in Zechariah’s vision of the construction of the second temple, one reads: “then the word of the Lord came to me: ‘The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this temple; his hands will also complete it. … the seven eyes of the Lord that range throughout the earth will rejoice when they see the chosen plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel’” (Zechariah 4:8-10).

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Thus, for example, when Manasseh succeeded Hezekiah as king of Judah, and turned from his father’s religious reforms to many idols—desecrating the temple and doing “what was evil in the sight of the LORD” (2 Kings 21:2), the prophets of the LORD receive a harsh word of judgment: “I will stretch out over Jerusalem the measuring line used against Samaria and the plumb line used against the house of Ahab. I will wipe out Jerusalem as one wipes a dish, wiping it and turning it upside down” (2 Kings 21:13).

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Amos gives a litany of the misdeeds of Israel. Following critiques of Damascus, Gaza, Tyre, Edom, the Ammonites, Moab, and Judah, Amos unleashes a scathing condemnation of Israel, longer than all the others combined. And yet, these complaints can ultimately be reduced to two. First, and anticipating the failure of Manasseh, Jeroboam II permitted idolatry and illegitimate worship. Thus, in a passage that likely refers not to incest, but temple prostitution, we read: “father and son go in to the same girl, so that my holy name is profaned; they lay themselves down beside every altar on garments taken in pledge” (Amos 2:8).

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And yet, surprisingly, this idolatry is only attendant to the principal complaint of Amos (or rather YHWH): the second and ultimate charge is rampant economic and social inequality. For this reason, Amos is often regarded as one of the earliest extensive treatments of social justice. There in the rich and the powerful of Israel are condemned “because they sell the righteous for silver, and the needy for a pair of sandals—they who trample the head of the poor into the dust of the earth”; they “who oppress the poor, who crush the needy” (Amos 2:6-7; 4:1).

This, however, only half answer the above questions. These two complaints—idolatry and economic inequality—mark the specific charges against Israel, but what is the measure, what is the plumb line? The answer, for Amos, is the two-fold pair: mishpat and tzedakah, justice and righteousness. As Isaiah will likewise remark: “I will make justice the measuring line and righteousness the plumb line” (Isaiah 28:17).

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For the prophets, the plumb line of justice is positive, is creative. It does not only destroy injustice, but also builds up communities of compassion and righteousness. As Jeremiah prophesied, “‘the days are coming,’ declares the Lord, ‘when this city will be rebuilt for me. … The measuring line will stretch from there straight to the hill of Gareb and then turn to Goah. … The city will never again be uprooted or demolished’” (Jeremiah 31:38-40).

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Therefore, let us affirm a plumb line of justice that strikes across the legal and the illegal alike, allowing us to distinguish that which is righteous from that which is unrighteous. And let us not only condemn, but affirm; let us not only tear down, but uplift. And may “justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream” (Amos 5:24). https://politicaltheology.com/justice-the-plumb-line-amos-77-15/

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Are you ready to drop the Plumb Line of Amos?
The justice of God is waiting.  Receive the freedom, healing, and love only Jesus freely offers.

 

Plumb Line Prayer Context:

Recognize that Jesus came to destroy the works of the Devil, and died to secure salvation for all men. Pray a 3 Part Prayer for Kings and All in Authority 1 Timothy 2:1-

First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, 2 for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.

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1. Pray for grace, mercy, conviction of sin, and kindness that leads to repentance

2. Decree Forgiveness for all acts of evil in using their authority to carry out an evil agenda, in worshiping demons, and in being deceived into submitting to false gods and fallen angels.

3. Decree that “The Plumb Line of Amos is Dropped”

4. Declare that judgment awaits any King or Human Authority who crosses over the plumb line to submit their authority to an evil spiritual power. Decree the judgment “You will be cut off”

 

“So if the Son (Jesus) sets you free, you will be free indeed” – (NIV)

Congratulations, you shall be free!  The justice of God can take time, however, just change will be coming.

 

If you do not see breakthrough after some time and would like guided help through this process, please book a session with our ministry team.