Amos 1-2
Holman Christian Standard Bible
1 The words of Amos, who was one of the sheep breeders[a](A) from Tekoa(B)—what he saw regarding Israel in the days of Uzziah,(C) king of Judah, and Jeroboam(D) son of Jehoash, king of Israel, two years before the earthquake.(E)
2 He said:
The Lord roars(F) from Zion
and raises His voice from Jerusalem;
the pastures of the shepherds mourn,[b](G)
and the summit of Carmel(H) withers.
Judgment on Israel’s Neighbors
3 The Lord says:
I will not relent from punishing Damascus(I)
for three crimes, even four,(J)
because they threshed Gilead with iron sledges.
4 Therefore, I will send fire against Hazael’s palace,
and it will consume Ben-hadad’s(K) citadels.
5 I will break down the gates[c](L) of Damascus.
I will cut off the ruler from the Valley of Aven,
and the one who wields the scepter from Beth-eden.
The people of Aram will be exiled to Kir.(M)
The Lord has spoken.
6 The Lord says:
I will not relent from punishing Gaza(N)
for three crimes, even four,
because they exiled a whole community,
handing them over to Edom.
7 Therefore, I will send fire against the walls of Gaza,
and it will consume its citadels.
8 I will cut off the ruler from Ashdod,(O)
and the one who wields the scepter from Ashkelon.(P)
I will also turn My hand against Ekron,
and the remainder of the Philistines(Q) will perish.
The Lord God has spoken.
9 The Lord says:
I will not relent from punishing Tyre(R)
for three crimes, even four,
because they handed over
a whole community of exiles to Edom
and broke[d] a treaty of brotherhood.(S)
10 Therefore, I will send fire(T) against the walls of Tyre,
and it will consume its citadels.
11 The Lord says:
I will not relent from punishing Edom(U)
for three crimes, even four,
because he pursued his brother with the sword.(V)
He stifled his compassion,
his anger tore at them(W) continually,
and he harbored his rage incessantly.
12 Therefore, I will send fire against Teman,(X)
and it will consume the citadels of Bozrah.
13 The Lord says:
I will not relent from punishing the Ammonites(Y)
for three crimes, even four,
because they ripped open
the pregnant women of Gilead(Z)
in order to enlarge their territory.(AA)
14 Therefore, I will set fire to the walls of Rabbah,(AB)
and it will consume its citadels.
There will be shouting on the day of battle(AC)
and a violent wind on the day of the storm.(AD)
15 Their king and his princes
will go into exile together.(AE)
The Lord has spoken.
2 The Lord says:
I will not relent from punishing Moab(AF)
for three crimes, even four,
because he burned the bones
of the king of Edom to lime.(AG)
2 Therefore, I will send fire against Moab,
and it will consume the citadels of Kerioth.(AH)
Moab will die with a tumult,(AI)
with shouting and the sound of the ram’s horn.
3 I will cut off the judge(AJ) from the land
and kill all its officials(AK) with him.
The Lord has spoken.
Judgment on Judah
4 The Lord says:
I will not relent from punishing Judah(AL)
for three crimes, even four,
because they have rejected the instruction of the Lord(AM)
and have not kept His statutes.(AN)
The lies(AO) that their ancestors followed(AP)
have led them astray.
5 Therefore, I will send fire(AQ) against Judah,
and it will consume the citadels of Jerusalem.
Judgment on Israel
6 The Lord says:
I will not relent from punishing Israel(AR)
for three crimes, even four,
because they sell a righteous person for silver
and a needy person for a pair of sandals.(AS)
7 They trample the heads of the poor(AT)
on the dust of the ground
and block the path of the needy.(AU)
A man and his father have sexual relations
with the same girl,(AV)
profaning My holy name.(AW)
8 They stretch out beside every altar(AX)
on garments taken as collateral,(AY)
and in the house of their God,
they drink wine obtained through fines.(AZ)
9 Yet I destroyed the Amorite(BA) as Israel advanced;
his height(BB) was like the cedars,
and he was as sturdy as the oaks;
I destroyed his fruit(BC) above and his roots beneath.
10 And I brought you from the land of Egypt(BD)
and led you 40 years in the wilderness(BE)
in order to possess the land of the Amorite.(BF)
11 I raised up some of your sons as prophets(BG)
and some of your young men as Nazirites.(BH)
Is this not the case, Israelites?
This is the Lord’s declaration.
12 But you made the Nazirites drink wine
and commanded the prophets,
“Do not prophesy.”(BI)
13 Look, I am about to crush[e] you in your place(BJ)
as a wagon full of sheaves crushes grain.
14 Escape will fail the swift,(BK)
the strong one will not prevail by his strength,(BL)
and the brave will not save his life.
15 The archer will not stand his ground,(BM)
the one who is swift of foot
will not save himself,
and the one riding a horse will not save his life.(BN)
16 Even the most courageous of the warriors
will flee naked on that day(BO)—
this is the Lord’s declaration.
Psalm 142
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Psalm 142
A Cry of Distress
A Davidic Maskil. When he was in the cave.(A) A prayer.
1 I cry aloud to the Lord;(B)
I plead aloud to the Lord for mercy.(C)
2 I pour out my complaint before Him;
I reveal my trouble to Him.(D)
3 Although my spirit is weak within me,
You know my way.(E)
Along this path I travel
they have hidden a trap for me.(F)
4 Look to the right and see:[a]
no one stands up for me;
there is no refuge for me;
no one cares about me.(G)
5 I cry to You, Lord;
I say, “You are my shelter,
my portion in the land of the living.”(H)
6 Listen to my cry,
for I am very weak.(I)
Rescue me from those who pursue me,
for they are too strong for me.(J)
7 Free me from prison
so that I can praise Your name.
The righteous will gather around me
because You deal generously with me.(K)
Footnotes
- Psalm 142:4 DSS, LXX, Syr, Vg, Tg read I look to the right and I see
Acts 12
Holman Christian Standard Bible
James Martyred and Peter Jailed
12 About that time King Herod cruelly attacked some who belonged to the church, 2 and he killed James,(A) John’s brother, with the sword. 3 When he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter too, during the days of Unleavened Bread.(B) 4 After the arrest, he put him in prison and assigned four squads of four soldiers each to guard him, intending to bring him out to the people after the Passover. 5 So Peter was kept in prison, but prayer was being made earnestly to God for him by the church.
Peter Rescued
6 On the night before Herod was to bring him out for execution, Peter, bound with two chains, was sleeping between two soldiers, while the sentries in front of the door guarded the prison. 7 Suddenly an angel of the Lord(C) appeared, and a light shone in the cell. Striking Peter on the side, he woke him up and said, “Quick, get up!” Then the chains fell off his wrists.(D) 8 “Get dressed,” the angel told him, “and put on your sandals.” And he did so. “Wrap your cloak around you,” he told him, “and follow me.” 9 So he went out and followed, and he did not know that what took place through the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision.(E) 10 After they passed the first and second guard posts, they came to the iron gate that leads into the city, which opened to them by itself. They went outside and passed one street, and immediately the angel left him.(F)
11 Then Peter came to himself and said, “Now I know for certain that the Lord has sent His angel and rescued me from Herod’s grasp and from all that the Jewish people expected.”(G) 12 When he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John Mark,[a](H) where many had assembled and were praying. 13 He knocked at the door in the gateway, and a servant named Rhoda came to answer. 14 She recognized Peter’s voice, and because of her joy, she did not open the gate but ran in and announced that Peter was standing at the gateway.
15 “You’re crazy!” they told her. But she kept insisting that it was true. Then they said, “It’s his angel!”(I) 16 Peter, however, kept on knocking, and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astounded.
17 Motioning to them with his hand(J) to be silent, he explained to them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. “Report these things to James[b](K) and the brothers,” he said. Then he departed and went to a different place.
18 At daylight, there was a great commotion[c] among the soldiers as to what could have become of Peter. 19 After Herod had searched and did not find him, he interrogated the guards and ordered their execution. Then Herod went down from Judea to Caesarea and stayed there.(L)
Herod’s Death
20 He had been very angry with the Tyrians and Sidonians.[d] Together they presented themselves before him. They won over Blastus, who was in charge of the king’s bedroom, and through him they asked for peace, because their country was supplied with food from the king’s country.(M) 21 So on an appointed day, dressed in royal robes and seated on the throne, Herod delivered a public address to them. 22 The assembled people began to shout, “It’s the voice of a god and not of a man!” 23 At once an angel of the Lord(N) struck him because he did not give the glory to God, and he became infected with worms and died.(O) 24 Then God’s message flourished and multiplied.(P) 25 After they had completed their relief mission, Barnabas and Saul returned to[e] Jerusalem, taking along John who is called Mark.(Q)
Footnotes
- Acts 12:12 Lit John who was called Mark
- Acts 12:17 This was James, the Lord’s brother; Mk 6:3. This was not James the apostle; Ac 12:2.
- Acts 12:18 Or was no small disturbance
- Acts 12:20 The people of the area of modern Lebanon
- Acts 12:25 Other mss read from
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