For, lo, he that formeth the mountains, and createth the wind, and declareth unto man what is his thought, that maketh the morning darkness, and treadeth upon the high places of the earth, The Lord, The God of hosts, is his name. (Amos 4:13)
To give force to his warning of punishment the prophet emphasizes God’s power and omniscience.
His thought.
That is, man’s thought, not God’s, which God, in His omniscience, declares unto man before man expresses it in words. At times God does this through conscience; at other times through inspiring His prophets to reveal men’s secret motives and the real state of their hearts (see Jer. 17:9, 10).
Treadeth upon.
God’s might and majesty is represented here in human form and action. The Creator rules all things, and has the loftiest under His perfect control (see Deut. 32:13; 33:29; Micah 1:3). The prophets recognize God as the being in whose service so-called natural laws operate.
The God of hosts.
Because of the fundamental fact that God does control all things, the OT writers often speak of Him as the “Lord of hosts” (see on Jer. 7:3). Particularly did Amos so envision his Creator, which accounts for his frequent use of the title “God of hosts” (see Amos 3:13; 5:14, 15, 16, 27; 6:8, 14; 9:5). Amos properly and grandly thought of God as being over all, as not the God of Israel alone, but as the Lord and Ruler of all the universe.