Amos & Romans 2

Romans 2:12 is a peculiar verse: "For all who have sinned without the law will also perish without the law, and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law." This verse is often used to give people groups that have never heard the Gospel an out. The ESV Study Bible's commentary on the verse says the following:

All will be judged according to the standard they had. The Gentiles will perish (i.e., face final judgment) because of their sins (c.f. vv 14-15) even though they are without the law (they don't have the written laws of the OT). The Jews are not spared judgment simply because they possess the law (of the OT), for those who transgress the law will be judged for their transgression.

What is striking is, if the commentary is the correct interpretation of Romans 2:12 then Amos is a perfect microcosm of this in action.

The book of Amos opens with eight oracles that use the following formula: "For three transgressions of [insert some country name here] and for four" then a judgment explaining why the LORD is about to bring destruction against the nation. Eight nations in all: Damascus (1:3), Gaza (1:6), Tyre (1:9), Edom (1:11), Ammonites (1:13), Moab (2:1), Judah (2:4) and Israel (2:6). The crazy part connecting us back to Romans 2:12 is found when we read the reason why the pagan nations are being judged and the reason why Israel and Judah are being judged. The judgments align perfectly with the commentary's explanation.

Compare these reasons for judgement. The pagans are accused of the following: Slaughtering nations, deporting entire populations into exile, violating the covenant of brotherhood, ripping open pregnant women and desecrating dead bodies. The people of God were guilty of rejecting the LORD's covenantal laws and His statutes, being greedy and unjust, and worshipping other gods. Juxtaposing these judgments, it is clear that the pagans violated the natural law and were judged by it (what Paul says in Romans 1 is made known to all man). God's people were judged by His higher revealed law. Both were / are without excuse.

Beautiful consistency between the covenants tucked nicely away in a book we never read.