Amos 3:3 am i getting this right?

[Br4nd0n]

Twice in the past week ive heard Amos 3:3 can two walk together except that they agree?

Both speakers implying that if you dont agree about scripture or preferences acquired through experience regarding a biblical walk then you will part ways.

Then i thought ok. Is this a command? Or is it simply a description of the symptom?

Ok well context is important.
So i checked esv

"Hear this word that the Lord has spoken against you, O people of Israel, against the whole family that I brought up out of the land of Egypt:
2 “You only have I known
of all the families of the earth;
therefore I will punish you
for all your iniquities.
3 “Do two walk together,
unless they have agreed to meet?
4 Does a lion roar in the forest,
when he has no prey?
Does a young lion cry out from his den,
if he has taken nothing?
5 Does a bird fall in a snare on the earth,
when there is no trap for it?
Does a snare spring up from the ground,
when it has taken nothing?
6 Is a trumpet blown in a city,
and the people are not afraid?
Does disaster come to a city,
unless the Lord has done it?
7 “For the Lord God does nothing
without revealing his secret
to his servants the prophets.
8 The lion has roared;
who will not fear?
The Lord God has spoken;
who can but prophesy?”

It doesnt even sound like the context or meaning of the first two times ive heard it.

Before i looked up the esv i was wondering if the Lord was guiding me in light of an old friend that made an appearance back into my life not long after having had this verse brought to my attention repeatedly.

So now im not too sure what to think, it may be nothing at all. What do you think?

 

[Minister Monardo]

It doesnt even sound like the context or meaning of the first two times ive heard it.

Welcome to CF Brandon.
You are correct. This verse is being misapplied by the two
you mention. God is speaking as an aggrieved party who
is being betrayed by someone in which He has made an
agreement. Does He have an expectation that they would
walk with Him in accordance with the terms of covenant?
Yes. He even goes on to say in verse 7:

7 “For the Lord God does nothing without revealing his secret
to his servants the prophets.

In other words, He has let them know repeatedly that they
were turning away, and has called them back to Him through
the prophets, whose message was "turn back again, and I
will receive you, and we can continue to walk together".
His persistence in pursuing his betrothed is like a roaring
lion.
I am looking at the word translated agreed (to meet), and
its first use in Exodus 21 is translated betrothed. Hence His
frequent accusations that she (Israel), has played the harlot.

H3259 - yāʿaḏ - Strong's Hebrew Lexicon (kjv)

Nice job of looking at the context and meditating on the verses.
The truth would have come to you sooner rather than later.
Consider the full testimony of what was going on between God
and Israel. Hosea also was prophesying to Israel (northern
kingdom), at the time, where we find the living parable of
the prophet betrothed to Gomer, "a bride of whoredom", also
about calling back his betrothed from infidelity.

 

[Minister Monardo]

So now im not too sure what to think, it may be nothing at all. What do you think?

Amos 3 :: King James Version (KJV)
Here is a list of translations for comparison.
I usually do not care much for NIV, but it comes across
quite clearly in this case.
Do two walk together unless they have agreed to do so?

 

[Jonaitis]

Twice in the past week ive heard Amos 3:3 can two walk together except that they agree?

Both speakers implying that if you dont agree about scripture or preferences acquired through experience regarding a biblical walk then you will part ways.

Then i thought ok. Is this a command? Or is it simply a description of the symptom?

Ok well context is important.
So i checked esv

"Hear this word that the Lord has spoken against you, O people of Israel, against the whole family that I brought up out of the land of Egypt:
2 “You only have I known
of all the families of the earth;
therefore I will punish you
for all your iniquities.
3 “Do two walk together,
unless they have agreed to meet?
4 Does a lion roar in the forest,
when he has no prey?
Does a young lion cry out from his den,
if he has taken nothing?
5 Does a bird fall in a snare on the earth,
when there is no trap for it?
Does a snare spring up from the ground,
when it has taken nothing?
6 Is a trumpet blown in a city,
and the people are not afraid?
Does disaster come to a city,
unless the Lord has done it?
7 “For the Lord God does nothing
without revealing his secret
to his servants the prophets.
8 The lion has roared;
who will not fear?
The Lord God has spoken;
who can but prophesy?”

It doesnt even sound like the context or meaning of the first two times ive heard it.

Before i looked up the esv i was wondering if the Lord was guiding me in light of an old friend that made an appearance back into my life not long after having had this verse brought to my attention repeatedly.

So now im not too sure what to think, it may be nothing at all. What do you think?

I think a better reading of that verse based on the context would be that friends plan and agree to meet before they walk together.

 

[Sabertooth]

Ecc. 4:9-12 is a better verse for the OP.

 

[RCrihfield]

Twice in the past week ive heard Amos 3:3 can two walk together except that they agree?

Both speakers implying that if you dont agree about scripture or preferences acquired through experience regarding a biblical walk then you will part ways.

Then i thought ok. Is this a command? Or is it simply a description of the symptom?

Ok well context is important.
So i checked esv

"Hear this word that the Lord has spoken against you, O people of Israel, against the whole family that I brought up out of the land of Egypt:
2 “You only have I known
of all the families of the earth;
therefore I will punish you
for all your iniquities.
3 “Do two walk together,
unless they have agreed to meet?
4 Does a lion roar in the forest,
when he has no prey?
Does a young lion cry out from his den,
if he has taken nothing?
5 Does a bird fall in a snare on the earth,
when there is no trap for it?
Does a snare spring up from the ground,
when it has taken nothing?
6 Is a trumpet blown in a city,
and the people are not afraid?
Does disaster come to a city,
unless the Lord has done it?
7 “For the Lord God does nothing
without revealing his secret
to his servants the prophets.
8 The lion has roared;
who will not fear?
The Lord God has spoken;
who can but prophesy?”

It doesnt even sound like the context or meaning of the first two times ive heard it.

Before i looked up the esv i was wondering if the Lord was guiding me in light of an old friend that made an appearance back into my life not long after having had this verse brought to my attention repeatedly.

So now im not too sure what to think, it may be nothing at all. What do you think?

I would sum up this passage as "everything happens for a reason and God is behind it all" I often see those little connections where life intersects scripture. It way well be this encounter is directed by God. Be sure to act godly in everything with this person. You may either be the messenger or he is, but I'd look for the Spirit at work here.

 

[Arctangent]

It is just a series of rhetorical questions, and the key take-away is that the answer is "no" to each of the rhetorical questions. No individual rhetorical question in that list is itself the point of that passage. The point is that God is doing something and He sent prophets to warn about it.

The Greek translation says "Can two walk together unless they be acquainted?"

I'd say that people make too much out of that verse, and we shouldn't read too much into it, given the broader context of that passage.