Amos 7:7-8:12

New American Standard Bible

⁷So He showed me, and behold, the Lord was standing ^[a]by a ^[b]vertical wall with a plumb line in His hand. ⁸And the Lord said to me, “^(A)What do you see, Amos?” And I said, “A plumb line.” Then the Lord said,

“Behold I am about to put a ^(B)plumb line
In the midst of My people Israel.
I will not ^[c]^(C)spare them any longer.
⁹The ^(D)high places of Isaac will become deserted,
And the ^(E)sanctuaries of Israel will be in ruins.
Then I will ^(F)rise up against the house of Jeroboam with the sword.”

Amos Accused; Gives an Answer

¹⁰Then Amaziah, the ^(G)priest of Bethel, sent word to ^(H)Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, “Amos has ^(I)conspired against you in the midst of the house of Israel; the land is unable to endure all his words. ¹¹For this is what Amos says: ‘Jeroboam will die by the sword, and Israel will certainly go from its land into exile.’” ¹²Then Amaziah said to Amos, “^(J)Go, you seer, flee to the land of Judah; and eat bread there and do your prophesying there! ¹³But ^(K)do not prophesy at Bethel any longer, for it is a ^(L)sanctuary of the king and a royal ^[d]residence.”

¹⁴Then Amos replied to Amaziah, “I am not a prophet, nor am I the ^(M)son of a prophet; for I am a herdsman and a ^[e]grower of sycamore figs. ¹⁵But the Lord took me from ^[f]following the flock, and the Lord said to me, ‘Go ^(N)prophesy to My people Israel.’ ¹⁶So now hear the word of the Lord: you are saying, ‘You ^(O)shall not prophesy against Israel ^(P)nor shall you ^[g]prophesy against the house of Isaac.’ ¹⁷Therefore, this is what the Lord says: ‘Your ^(Q)wife will become a prostitute in the city, your ^(R)sons and your daughters will fall by the sword, your land will be parceled up by a measuring line, and you yourself will die ^[h]upon ^(S)unclean soil. Furthermore Israel will certainly go from its land into exile.’”

Basket of Fruit and Israel’s Captivity

8 This is what the Lord ^[i]God showed me, and behold, there was a basket of summer fruit. ²And He said, “What do you see, Amos?” And ^(T)I said, “A basket of summer fruit.” Then the Lord said to me, “The ^(U)end has come for My people Israel. I will not ^[j]^(V)spare them any longer. ³^[k]The ^(W)songs of the palace will turn to ^(X)wailing on that day,” declares the Lord God. “The ^(Y)corpses will be many; in every place ^[l]they will throw them out. ^[m]Hush!”

⁴Hear this, you who ^[n]^(Z)trample the needy, to put an end to the humble of the land, ⁵saying,

“When will the ^(AA)new moon ^[o]be over,
So that we may sell grain;
And the ^(AB)Sabbath, so that we may open the wheat market,
To make the ^[p]ephah smaller and the ^[q]shekel bigger,
And to ^(AC)cheat with dishonest scales,
⁶So as to ^(AD)buy the helpless for ^[r]money,
And the needy for a pair of sandals,
And that we may sell the refuse of the wheat?”

⁷The Lord has ^(AE)sworn by the ^(AF)pride of Jacob,
“Indeed, I will ^(AG)never forget any of their deeds.
⁸Because of this will the land not ^(AH)quake,
And everyone who lives in it ^(AI)mourn?
Indeed, all of it will ^(AJ)rise up like the Nile,
And it will be tossed about
And subside like the Nile of Egypt.
⁹And it will come about on that day,” declares the Lord God,
“That I will make the ^(AK)sun go down at noon,
And ^(AL)make the earth dark in ^[s]broad daylight.
¹⁰Then I will ^(AM)turn your festivals into mourning,
And all your songs into songs of mourning;
And I will put ^(AN)sackcloth around everyone’s waist,
And ^[t]baldness on every head.
And I will make it ^(AO)like a time of mourning for an only son,
And the end of it will be like a bitter day.

¹¹“Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord God,
“When I will send a famine on the land,
Not a famine of bread or a thirst for water,
But rather ^(AP)for hearing the words of the Lord.
¹²People will stagger from sea to sea
And from the north even to the east;
They will roam about to ^(AQ)seek the word of the Lord,
But they will not find it.