In | Classism in Amos, Part 2

I hate, I reject your festivals,
Nor do I delight in your solemn assemblies.
Even though you offer up to Me burnt offerings and your grain offerings,
I will not accept them;
And I will not even look at the peace offerings of your fatlings.
Take away from Me the noise of your songs;
I will not even listen to the sound of your harps.
But let justice roll down like waters
And righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.
Amos 5:21-24 NASB

While the elite in Israel celebrated with delicacies, the poor were deprived of essentials like fruit, olive oil, livestock and land. To make matters worse, the rich demanded yet more tribute in order to hold festivals and widen the disparity between themselves and the disadvantaged.

The people at the top of society were turning God’s appointed feasts into lavish events, but they lost the meaning of holy days. Instead of bringing people closer to God and each other, the festivals became a divisive and predatory status symbol—one which God came to hate. These once sacred occasions became hollow rituals for the rich to serve themselves rather than God.