Are You Ready for the Plumb Line?

Daily Devotional – Friday, July 28, 2023
Then the Lord said, “Look, I am setting a plumb line among my people Israel; I will spare them no longer.”
Amos 7:8 (NKJV)

According to Merriam Webster Dictionary, a plumb line is, “a line (as of cord) that has at one end a weight (such as a plumb bob) and is used especially to determine verticality.” Ancient Egyptians invented this instrument more than 4,000 years ago and used it in building the pyramids and other structures.

The Essential Plummet

A plumb line was also a critical equipment for builders in ancient Israel hence finding its way as a symbol in sacred writing. If you wanted a building you were constructing to be perfectly straight and not to defy gravity, you needed to use a plumb bob.

This instrument is not subject to human intrigues. It tells you exactly what the situation is. It is an objective measure of the verticality of a building walls and angles. As a builder or carpenter, you can only ignore the plummet at your own risk.

I Am Setting a Plummet in the Midst

Now, he is an interesting Bible passage that utilizes the plummet motif:
Thus, He showed me: Behold, the Lord stood on a wall made with a plumb line, with a plumb line in His hand. And the LORD said to me, “Amos, what do you see?”
And I said, “A plumb line.”
Then the Lord said, “Behold, I am setting a plumb line in the midst of My people Israel. I will not pass by them anymore. The high places of Isaac shall be desolate, and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste. I will rise with the sword against the house of Jeroboam.” (Amos 7:7-9).

God’s Plumb Bob at Work

The passage foretells God’s judgement for wayward Israel. Because He is not an arbitrary judge, the Lord had given His people His commandments to live by. The plumb line, therefore, symbolizes God’s impending judgement of His people against His perfect character and law.

God, the builder wants to establish the faithfulness of His people to discover their weaknesses and the extent to which they have deviated from His perfect law. His infallible standard points out exactly where our weaknesses are. We can only argue with God’s requirements at our own peril.

Are You Ready for the Plumb Line?

On the flipside, God uses His plumb line to help us realize where we are crooked hence our need for His correction. When we look into the perfect character of God, we realize how much we need Him. In this regard, the plummet becomes God’s instrument for reforming our character.

Are you ready for the plumb line? Only by the grace of God can you pass the test the plumb line of God presents. When you allow God to dwell in you through the Holy Spirit and to transform your thoughts, words and deeds, you cannot fear God’s plumb line.

Prayer
Dear God, I want to have Your character. Fill me and strengthen me that when you plumber line assesses me, I will pass the test.