"Behold, the days come, saith the Lord Jehovah, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of Jehovah. And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the North even to the East; they shall run to and fro to seek the word of Jehovah, and shall not find it. In that day shall the fair virgins and the young men faint for thirst." (Amos 8:11-13)
The prophet spoke of a period, at that time future, when God would no longer send the prophets, His spokesmen, to His children to reprove and instruct them. Amos compared this time--when there would be no inspired men among them--to a famine.
It is a terrible thing when people perish for lack of food, but how much worse would it be for them to perish when abundant food is at hand? The prophet, Amos, spoke of a famine during which there would be no messengers from God. How much more grievous would be a famine when there is revelation from God, but mankind will not take the time, nor manifest enough interest, to read and heed Jehovah's voice! The Jewish Targum mentions a tradition of such a famine:
"God has decreed ten grievous famines to take place in the world, to punish the inhabitants of the earth, before the coming of Messiah the king. The first in the days of Adam; the second in the days of Lamech; the third in the days of Abraham; the fourth in the days of Isaac; the fifth in the days of Jacob; the sixth in the days of Boaz, who is called Abstan (Ibzan) the just, of Bethlehem-Judah; the seventh in the days of David, king of Israel; the eighth in the days of Elijah the prophet; the ninth in the days of Elisha, in Samaria; the tenth is yet to come, and it is not a famine of bread or of water, but of hearing the word of prophecy from the mouth of the Lord; and even now this famine is grievous in the land of Israel." (Clarke's Commentary, Vol. n, p. 192)
It is interesting to note that such an attitude did exist in the time of our Lord, and He rebuked the lawyers of His time, "for ye took away the key of knowledge; ye entered not in yourselves, and them that were entering in ye hindered." (Luke 11:52)
But this condition was not peculiar to Jesus' time. The history of the Jewish nation is but a vivid, running commentary on this point. The book of Judges, in particular, is a book of cycles. The Jews would turn from God; God would allow the nations around them to conquer and oppress them; the Jews would then turn in penitence to God; and God would raise up a Judge to deliver them. But after the Judge died, the cycle would begin again.
In 2 Kings 22:8, we find one of the saddest passages in God's word: "And Hilkiah the high priest said unto Shapan the scribe, 'I have found the book of the law in the house of Jehovah.'" Imagine the neglect of God's people to allow the book of God to be lost in God's own house!
Such a famine existed at the close of the first century, and in succeeding years, when the Lord's people turned from His Word and corrupted the organization, the work, and the worship of the church. From this apostasy came the Roman Catholic Church.
During the Dark Ages, the famine flourished via the Roman Catholic Church, with its human traditions and commandments, and the Bible virtually became a forgotten book. The Roman Catholic Church's attitude toward the Bible is best stated by this excerpt from an address by the church cardinals to Pope Pius III, which is preserved in the National Library of Paris, folio No.1 068, Vol. 2, pp. 650-651:
"Of all the advice that we can offer your holiness we must open your eyes well and use all possible force in the matter, namely to permit the reading of the Gospel as little as possible in all the countries under your jurisdiction. Let the very little part of the Gospel suffice which is usually read in mass, and let no one be permitted to read more. So long as people will be content with the small amount, your interest will prosper; but as soon as the people want to read more, your interest will fail. The Bible is the book, which more than any other, has raised against us the tumults and tempests by which we have almost perished. In fact, if one compares the teaching of the Bible with what takes place in our churches, he will soon find discord, and will realize that our teachings are often different from the Bible, and oftener still, contrary to it."
Upon this scene came John Wycliffe (1320-1384), determined to give the English-speaking people the Word of God in their own language. His hand-copied version of the Bible (Purvey-Revision) sold for $150 per copy, and Foxe tells that a whole load of hay was paid for the use of a complete New Testament for one day. (General Biblical Introduction, H. S. Miller, p. 328) Forty-four years after Wycliffe's death, upon the orders of Pope Clement VIII, his bones were dug up, burned, and thrown into the River Swift.
After Wycliffe came William Tyndale (1484-1536). In Wycliffe's time, it took a scribe ten months to produce a copy of the Bible, but with the invention of the printing press, William Tyndale gave the world the first printed English Bible. Tyndale's life was one of persecution inflicted by the Roman Catholic Church because of his translation work. On one occasion, a disputant said, "We were better without God's law than without the Pope's," to which Tyndale replied, "I defy the Pope and all his laws; if God spares my life, ere many years I will cause a boy that driveth the plough shall know more of the Scripture than thou doest." (Miller, Ibid., p. 334) On October 6, 1536, Tyndale was strangled and burned at the stake.
The Roman Catholic Church successfully kept the Bible from the people, so much so that Martin Luther, the great reformer, was 20 years old before he ever saw a copy of the Bible! (J. W. Shepherd, The Church, the Falling Away, and the Restoration, p. 91)
But through the work of Luther, Wycliffe, Tyndale, and many others, the famine of the Dark Ages was stayed. And yet today, we are in the midst of another famine.
Ours is worse, in that we live in a free country, where we can buy a copy of the New Testament for as little as 35 cents; yet, people are appallingly ignorant about God's Word. In the midst of plenty, the people perish as in a famine! And this famine has not passed over the Lord's people; for they also perish due to lack of knowledge. We must turn our minds back to God's Word and search its sacred pages for the Words of Life.
Frederic W. Cropp, president of the American Bible Society, once received a letter asking the question: "What do you recommend for keeping the leather on the back of my Bible from becoming stiff, cracking and peeling?" Mr. Cropp replied, "There is one oil that is especially good for the treatment of the leather on a Bible. In fact, it will ensure that your Bible will stay in good condition. It is not sold on the market but it may be found in the palm of the human hand!" Christian, wipe the dust off your Bible, study it, and teach others also; for in doing this, you can save your soul and theirs. Let us rise up and stay the "famine in the land."
From some of the statements in this article, it's obvious that it was written many years ago--in June of 1961. Yet, its truths are still relevant. Although Bibles are no longer available for 35 cents, they are still easy to purchase at a small price, even by today's standards. I've read that the average home contains two Bibles. The Bible has been translated into more languages than any book ever written. For the past 150 years (as long as records have been kept), the Bible has been the number-1 selling book in the world. Still, from our discussions with many people, in and out of the church, we know there is still a "famine in the land."
When I teach an adult Bible class or preach, I often notice that many don't even bring their Bibles to class or open them during class or the sermon. Even more revealing is the lack of involvement in the Bible studies. Can it be that so many church members already have so much knowledge that further study is unnecessary? Our congregation's adult Bible class has undertaken an extensive teaching program designed to cover the entire Bible in a four-year period. We are taking a Bible-survey approach. Since we are endeavoring to provide a complete view of the entire Bible story, we began in the Old Testament. Some have complained that it's taking too long. How well do these people understand the Bible's different parts and how they all fit together? Does each of us have a good understanding of the Bible story? Can we accurately tell the Bible story to someone who knows none of it?
Here is the problem-each person is at a different place in his understanding of the Bible. Some are just beginning and have little knowledge of the Old Testament; others have a good understanding of its major parts but are fuzzy about the details of other periods of Bible history. Some have forgotten the basic stories of the past; while others know them very well. How do we keep everyone happy and content? By being patient and allowing each person to gain the needed knowledge by reviewing the parts others already know. We can all learn something new along the way as we study some things we've gone over in the past. Another thing that will help greatly is fervent love for God's word. Just be sure you're not helping to cause the "famine in the land." (KMG)