You asked

how do later prophets (e.g., amos) critique the wealthy for ignoring these kinds of laws?

Adds the setting and its conversation across both testaments.

Deuteronomy 24:14-15

“You shall not oppress a hired servant who is poor and needy, whether he is one of your brothers, or one of your foreigners who are in your land within your gates. In his day you shall give him his wages, neither shall the sun go down on it; for he is poor, and sets his heart on it: lest he cry against you to Yahweh, and it be sin to you.”

This passage is from Deuteronomy, part of a series of laws Moses delivered to the Israelites as they prepared to enter the Promised Land. It outlines ethical responsibilities within their community, emphasizing protection for vulnerable members.

What does a community lose when the vulnerable are exploited, and how might that loss manifest today?

Then — the setting

Deuteronomy was compiled and edited over centuries, likely reaching its final form in the 7th or 6th century BCE, during a period of social and political upheaval in Judah. These laws were addressed to a community establishing itself in the land, aiming to build a just society distinct from surrounding cultures. The emphasis on protecting the 'foreigner' (ger) alongside 'your brothers' reflects a foundational ethic of hospitality and justice that was often challenged in practice. The daily wage was crucial for survival in an agrarian economy where most lived hand-to-mouth.

Across the Testaments

This Deuteronomic law, found in the Old Testament, sets a fundamental ethical standard for economic justice, particularly protecting the most vulnerable. Later Old Testament prophets like Amos, Isaiah, and Micah consistently call Israel back to these covenantal obligations, fiercely condemning the wealthy and powerful for neglecting or actively exploiting the poor (e.g., Amos 2:6-7, 8:4-6; Isaiah 3:14-15; Micah 2:1-2). They often frame such injustice as a direct violation of God's character and covenant. The New Testament, particularly in the teachings of Jesus (e.g., Matthew 25:31-46) and the epistle of James (James 5:4), reinforces and expands this concern for the poor and exploited, seeing care for the needy as central to faithful living and a demonstration of genuine faith, reflecting a continuity of ethical concern across testaments.

Keep thinking

Read alongside it

Leviticus 19:13
Another Mosaic law explicitly forbidding the withholding of wages.
James 5:4
A New Testament warning against defrauding laborers, echoing the Deuteronomic principle.
Amos 2:6-7
A prophetic condemnation of Israel for oppressing the poor and vulnerable for profit.

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