Amos 1:13-15

13-15. The sin and punishment of Ammon.

Children of Ammon Ammonites (compare “Children of Israel” Israelites). The Ammonites, like the Moabites and Edomites, were closely related to the Hebrews. Their territory was east of the Jordan, north-northeast of Moab. The more desirable districts along the river were occupied in the earlier days by the Amorites and later by the Hebrews; as a result the Ammonites had to be content with the less desirable districts bordering on the desert. Consequently they were dependent upon their flocks, and never passed over entirely to an agricultural life. They possessed few large cities, and as a people they stood midway between the wandering Arab tribes of the desert and the settled agricultural peoples of Palestine.

Gilead Immediately west of Ammon (see on Amos 1:3).

Ripped up the women with child The Ammonites came frequently into hostile contact with the Hebrews (Judges 11:32; 1 Samuel 11:11; 2 Samuel 12:31). After the division Ammon became tributary to Israel, but remained so only a little while. To the very end it manifested a spirit of hostility (2 Kings 24:2; Jeremiah 40:14; Nehemiah 2:10). From the definiteness of the accusation it may be inferred that the prophet has in mind a particular event, though it is impossible to identify it with certainty; some connect it with the invasion of Israel by Hazael (2 Kings 13:3; compare Amos 8:12). That the Ammonites were capable of the most inhuman practices is seen from 1 Samuel 11:2. The special form of cruelty condemned was not unknown in ancient times, even in Israel (2 Kings 15:16; Hosea 13:6; compare Nahum 3:10; Isaiah 13:16). It is frequently spoken of in Arabic literature in connection with inter-tribal border warfare.

Enlarge their border The cruelties could not be excused on the ground of self-defense; they were practiced in the pursuit of a policy of conquest.

Kindle In all the other passages “send.”

Rabbah The capital of Ammon (Ezekiel 25:5; Deuteronomy 3:11), and the only city of the Ammonites mentioned in the Old Testament. It is situated at the head of the Jabbok, about twenty-five miles northeast of the Dead Sea. By Ptolemy Philadelphus (about 250 B.C.) its name was changed to Philadelphia; its ruins now bear the name Amman.

Shouting Not the cry of despair of the defeated Ammonites, but the joyful shouts of the victorious conquerors (Joshua 6:5; Jeremiah 4:19, etc.).

Tempest… whirlwind A figurative description of the onward sweep of the hostile armies; nothing can withstand. King and princes will be carried into exile.

Their king… his princes On the latter see Hosea 3:4. The reading “his princes,” analogy with the other oracles (Amos 2:3), the absence of all reference to idolatry in the preceding denunciations, and the LXX. and Targum favor the present Hebrew reading, “their king”; on the other hand, in Jeremiah 49:3, which seems to be dependent upon this passage, Vulgate and Peshitto read in the place of “their king,” “Milcom,” which is the name of the national deity of Ammon (1 Kings 11:5; 1 Kings 11:33). If the same reading is adopted here, as is done by some, his princes becomes equivalent to his (Milcom’s) priests. In Jeremiah, where “his priests” is added, Milcom (R.V., “Malcam”) is probably correct; here the present Hebrew text is preferable.

The later history of Ammon is shrouded in obscurity; hence it is not easy to trace the fulfillment of this oracle. From the time of Tiglath-pileser III the Ammonites are mentioned in inscriptions as paying tribute to the Assyrian kings. Jeremiah prophesied against them (Jeremiah 49:1-6; compare also Ezekiel 25:1-7). In the time of Nehemiah they were still hostile to the Jews (Nehemiah 2:19); and even at a later period they are spoken of as enemies of the Jews ( 1Ma 5:30-43 ). Justin Martyr speaks of them as still numerous, but Origen states that they had become merged into the Arab tribes.