Amos 1-4
New American Standard Bible
Judgment on Neighbor Nations
1 The words of Amos, who was among the (A)sheepherders from (B)Tekoa, which he saw in visions concerning Israel in the days of (C)Uzziah king of Judah, and in the days of (D)Jeroboam son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the (E)earthquake.
2 And he said,
“The (F)Lord roars from Zion,
And from Jerusalem He utters His voice;
And the shepherds’ (G)pasture grounds mourn,
And the [a](H)summit of Carmel dries up.”
3 This is what the Lord says:
“For (I)three offenses of (J)Damascus, and for four,
I will not [b]revoke its punishment,
Because they threshed Gilead with iron sledges.
4 So I will send fire upon the house of Hazael,
And it will consume the citadels of (K)Ben-hadad.
5 I will also (L)break the gate bar of Damascus,
And eliminate every inhabitant from the [c]Valley of Aven,
As well as him who holds the scepter, from Beth-eden;
So the people of Aram will be exiled to (M)Kir,”
Says the Lord.
6 This is what the Lord says:
“For three offenses of (N)Gaza, and for four,
I will not revoke its punishment,
Because they led into exile an entire population
To (O)turn them over to Edom.
7 So I will send fire on the wall of Gaza
And it will consume her citadels.
8 I will also eliminate every inhabitant from (P)Ashdod,
As well as him who holds the scepter, from (Q)Ashkelon;
And I will direct My [d]power against Ekron,
And the remnant of the (R)Philistines will perish,”
Says the Lord [e]God.
9 This is what the Lord says:
“For three offenses of (S)Tyre, and for four,
I will not revoke its punishment,
Because they turned an entire population over to Edom
And did not remember the covenant of [f](T)brotherhood.
10 So I will (U)send fire on the wall of Tyre,
And it will consume her citadels.”
11 This is what the Lord says:
“For three offenses of (V)Edom, and for four,
I will not revoke its punishment,
Because he (W)pursued his brother with the sword
And stifled his compassion;
His anger also (X)tore continually,
And he maintained his fury forever.
12 So I will send fire upon (Y)Teman
And it will consume the citadels of Bozrah.”
13 This is what the Lord says:
“For three offenses of the sons of (Z)Ammon, and for four,
I will not revoke its punishment,
Because they (AA)ripped open the pregnant women of Gilead
In order to (AB)enlarge their borders.
14 So I will kindle a fire on the wall of (AC)Rabbah,
And it will consume her citadels
Amid [g](AD)war cries on the day of battle,
And amid a (AE)storm on the day of tempest.
15 Their (AF)king will go into exile,
He and his princes together,” says the Lord.
Judgment on Moab
2 This is what the Lord says:
“For three offenses of (AG)Moab, and for four,
I will not [h]revoke its punishment,
Because he (AH)burned the bones of the king of Edom to lime.
2 So I will send fire upon Moab
And it will consume the citadels of (AI)Kerioth;
And Moab will die amid the (AJ)panic of battle,
Amid war cries and the sound of a trumpet.
3 I will also eliminate the [i](AK)judge from her midst
And slay all her (AL)leaders with him,” says the Lord.
Judgment on Judah
4 This is what the Lord says:
“For three offenses of (AM)Judah, and for four,
I will not revoke its punishment,
Because they (AN)rejected the Law of the Lord
And have not kept His statutes;
Their [j](AO)lies also have led them astray,
Those which their (AP)fathers followed.
5 So I will (AQ)send fire upon Judah,
And it will consume the citadels of Jerusalem.”
Judgment on Israel
6 This is what the Lord says:
“For three offenses of (AR)Israel, and for four,
I will not revoke its punishment,
Because they (AS)sell the righteous for [k]money,
And the needy for a pair of sandals.
7 These who [l]trample the head of the (AT)helpless to the dust of the earth
Also (AU)divert the way of the humble;
And a (AV)man and his father [m]resort to the same [n]girl
So as to profane My holy name.
8 And on garments (AW)seized as pledges they stretch out beside (AX)every altar,
And in the house of their God they (AY)drink the wine of those who have been fined.
9 “Yet it was I who destroyed the (AZ)Amorite before them,
[o]Though his (BA)height was like the height of cedars
And he was as strong as the oaks;
I also destroyed his (BB)fruit above and his roots below.
10 And it was I who (BC)brought you up from the land of Egypt,
And led you in the wilderness for (BD)forty years
So that you might take possession of the land of the (BE)Amorite.
11 Then I (BF)raised up some of your sons to be prophets,
And some of your young men to be (BG)Nazirites.
Is this not so, you sons of Israel?” declares the Lord.
12 “But you made the Nazirites drink wine,
And you commanded the prophets, saying, ‘You (BH)shall not prophesy!’
13 Behold, I am (BI)making a rut in the ground beneath you,
Just as a wagon makes a rut when filled with sheaves.
14 (BJ)Refuge will be lost from the swift,
And the strong will not strengthen his power,
Nor the (BK)warrior save his [p]life.
15 The one who (BL)grasps the bow will not stand his ground,
The swift of foot will not escape,
Nor will the one who rides the (BM)horse save his [q]life.
16 Even the [r]bravest among the warriors will (BN)flee naked on that day,” declares the Lord.
All the Tribes Are Guilty
3 Hear this word which the Lord has spoken against you, sons of Israel, against the entire [s](BO)family which [t]He brought up from the land of Egypt:
2 “(BP)You only have I [u]known among all the families of the earth;
Therefore I will [v](BQ)punish you for all your wrongdoing.”
3 Do two people walk together unless they have agreed to meet?
4 Does a (BR)lion roar in the forest when he has no prey?
Does a young lion [w]growl from his den unless he has captured something?
5 Does a bird fall into a trap on the ground when there is no [x]device in it?
Does a trap spring up from the earth when it captures nothing at all?
6 If a (BS)trumpet is blown in a city, will the people not tremble?
If a (BT)disaster occurs in a city, has the Lord not brought it about?
7 [y]Certainly the Lord [z]God does nothing
Unless He (BU)reveals His secret plan
To His servants the prophets.
8 A (BV)lion has roared! Who will not fear?
The (BW)Lord God has spoken! (BX)Who can do anything but prophesy?
9 Proclaim on the citadels in (BY)Ashdod and on the citadels in the land of Egypt and say, “Assemble yourselves on the (BZ)mountains of Samaria and see the great panic within her and the (CA)oppressions in her midst. 10 But they (CB)do not know how to do what is right,” declares the Lord, “these who (CC)store up [aa]violence and devastation in their citadels.”
11 Therefore, this is what the Lord God says:
“An (CD)enemy, one surrounding the land,
Will take down your fortifications from you,
And your (CE)citadels will be looted.”
12 This is what the Lord says:
“Just as the shepherd [ab](CF)snatches from the lion’s mouth a couple of legs or a piece of an ear,
So will the sons of Israel living in Samaria be [ac]snatched away—
With the (CG)corner of a bed and the [ad](CH)cover of a couch!
13 Hear and (CI)testify against the house of Jacob,”
Declares the Lord God, the God of armies.
14 “For on the day that I punish Israel’s offenses,
I will also punish the altars of (CJ)Bethel;
The horns of the altar will be cut off,
And will fall to the ground.
15 I will also strike the (CK)winter house together with the (CL)summer house;
The houses of [ae](CM)ivory will also perish,
And the (CN)great houses will come to an end,”
Declares the Lord.
“Yet You Have Not Returned to Me”
4 Hear this word, you [af]cows of (CO)Bashan who are on the (CP)mountain of Samaria,
Who (CQ)exploit the poor, who oppress the needy,
[ag]And say to their [ah]husbands, “Bring now, that we may (CR)drink!”
2 The Lord [ai]God has (CS)sworn by His (CT)holiness,
“For behold, the days are coming upon you
When [aj]they will take you away with (CU)meat hooks,
And the last of you with (CV)fish hooks.
3 You will (CW)go out through holes in the walls,
One in front of the other,
And you [ak]will be hurled to Harmon,” declares the Lord.
4 “Enter Bethel and do wrong;
In Gilgal multiply wrongdoing!
(CX)Bring your sacrifices every morning,
Your tithes every three days.
5 [al]Offer a (CY)thanksgiving offering also from that which is leavened,
And proclaim (CZ)[am]voluntary offerings, make them known.
For so you (DA)love to do, you sons of Israel,”
Declares the Lord God.
6 “But I gave you also (DB)cleanness of teeth in all your cities,
And lack of bread in all your places;
Yet you have (DC)not returned to Me,” declares the Lord.
7 “Furthermore, I (DD)withheld the rain from you
While there were still three months until harvest.
Then I would send rain on one city,
But on (DE)another city I would not send rain;
One part would be rained on,
While the part not rained on would dry up.
8 So the people of two or three cities would stagger to another city to drink (DF)water,
But would (DG)not be satisfied;
Yet you have (DH)not returned to Me,” declares the Lord.
9 “I (DI)struck you with scorching wind and mildew;
The (DJ)caterpillar was devouring
Your many gardens and vineyards, fig trees and olive trees;
Yet you have (DK)not returned to Me,” declares the Lord.
10 “I sent a (DL)plague among you [an]as in Egypt;
I (DM)killed your young men with the sword, along with your (DN)captured horses,
And I made the (DO)stench of your camp rise up in your nostrils;
Yet you have (DP)not returned to Me,” declares the Lord.
11 “I overthrew you, as (DQ)God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah,
And you were like a (DR)log snatched from a fire;
Yet you have (DS)not returned to Me,” declares the Lord.
12 “Therefore so I will do to you, Israel;
Because I will do this to you,
Prepare to (DT)meet your God, Israel.”
13 For behold, He who (DU)forms mountains and (DV)creates the wind,
And (DW)declares to a person what are His thoughts,
He who (DX)makes dawn into darkness
And (DY)treads on the high places of the earth,
(DZ)The Lord God of armies is His name.
Footnotes
- Amos 1:2 Lit head
- Amos 1:3 Lit cause it to turn back, and so throughout the ch
- Amos 1:5 Possibly Baalbek
- Amos 1:8 Lit hand
- Amos 1:8 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
- Amos 1:9 Lit brothers
- Amos 1:14 Or shouts
- Amos 2:1 Lit cause it to turn back, and so throughout the ch
- Amos 2:3 Or executive officer
- Amos 2:4 Or false gods
- Amos 2:6 Lit silver
- Amos 2:7 Or pant for the dust...on the head of the helpless
- Amos 2:7 Lit go
- Amos 2:7 Possibly a prostitute, or a temple prostitute
- Amos 2:9 Lit Whose height
- Amos 2:14 Lit soul
- Amos 2:15 Lit soul
- Amos 2:16 Lit strong of his heart
- Amos 3:1 I.e., nation
- Amos 3:1 Lit I
- Amos 3:2 Or chosen
- Amos 3:2 Lit visit
- Amos 3:4 Lit give his voice
- Amos 3:5 Lit snare
- Amos 3:7 Or For
- Amos 3:7 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord, and so throughout the ch
- Amos 3:10 I.e., the plunder from violence
- Amos 3:12 Or rescues
- Amos 3:12 Or rescued
- Amos 3:12 Or headrest; lit damask
- Amos 3:15 I.e., ivory inlay
- Amos 4:1 I.e., haughty, prominent women
- Amos 4:1 Lit Who
- Amos 4:1 Lit lords
- Amos 4:2 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord, and so throughout the ch
- Amos 4:2 Lit he
- Amos 4:3 As in LXX; MT will hurl
- Amos 4:5 Lit Offer up in smoke
- Amos 4:5 Or freewill offerings
- Amos 4:10 Lit in the way of Egypt
Amos 1-4
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
1 The words of Amos, who was among the shepherds of Tekoa, which he saw concerning Israel in the days of King Uzziah of Judah and in the days of King Jeroboam son of Joash of Israel, two years[a] before the earthquake.(A)
Judgment on Israel’s Neighbors
2 And he said:
The Lord roars from Zion
and utters his voice from Jerusalem;
the pastures of the shepherds wither,
and the top of Carmel dries up.(B)
3 Thus says the Lord:
For three transgressions of Damascus,
and for four, I will not revoke the punishment,[b]
because they have threshed Gilead
with threshing sledges of iron.(C)
4 So I will send a fire on the house of Hazael,
and it shall devour the strongholds of Ben-hadad.(D)
5 I will break the gate bars of Damascus
and cut off the inhabitants from the Valley of Aven
and the one who holds the scepter from Beth-eden,
and the people of Aram shall go into exile to Kir,
says the Lord.(E)
6 Thus says the Lord:
For three transgressions of Gaza,
and for four, I will not revoke the punishment,[c]
because they carried into exile entire communities,
to hand them over to Edom.(F)
7 So I will send a fire on the wall of Gaza,
and it shall devour its strongholds.
8 I will cut off the inhabitants from Ashdod
and the one who holds the scepter from Ashkelon;
I will turn my hand against Ekron,
and the remnant of the Philistines shall perish,
says the Lord God.(G)
9 Thus says the Lord:
For three transgressions of Tyre,
and for four, I will not revoke the punishment,[d]
because they delivered entire communities over to Edom
and did not remember the covenant of kinship.(H)
10 So I will send a fire on the wall of Tyre,
and it shall devour its strongholds.(I)
11 Thus says the Lord:
For three transgressions of Edom,
and for four, I will not revoke the punishment,[e]
because he pursued his brother with the sword
and cast off all pity;
he maintained his anger perpetually[f]
and kept his wrath[g] forever.(J)
12 So I will send a fire on Teman,
and it shall devour the strongholds of Bozrah.(K)
13 Thus says the Lord:
For three transgressions of the Ammonites,
and for four, I will not revoke the punishment,[h]
because they have ripped open pregnant women in Gilead
in order to enlarge their territory.(L)
14 So I will kindle a fire against the wall of Rabbah,
and it shall devour its strongholds,
with shouting on the day of battle,
with a storm on the day of the whirlwind;(M)
15 then their king shall go into exile,
he and his officials together,
says the Lord.(N)
2 Thus says the Lord:
For three transgressions of Moab,
and for four, I will not revoke the punishment,[i]
because he burned to lime
the bones of the king of Edom.(O)
2 So I will send a fire on Moab,
and it shall devour the strongholds of Kerioth,
and Moab shall die amid uproar,
amid shouting and the sound of the trumpet;(P)
3 I will cut off the ruler from its midst
and will kill all its officials with him,
says the Lord.(Q)
Judgment on Judah
4 Thus says the Lord:
For three transgressions of Judah,
and for four, I will not revoke the punishment,[j]
because they have rejected the instruction of the Lord
and have not kept his statutes,
but they have been led astray by the same lies
after which their ancestors walked.(R)
5 So I will send a fire on Judah,
and it shall devour the strongholds of Jerusalem.(S)
Judgment on Israel
6 Thus says the Lord:
For three transgressions of Israel,
and for four, I will not revoke the punishment,[k]
because they sell the righteous for silver
and the needy for a pair of sandals—(T)
7 they who trample the head of the poor into the dust of the earth
and push the afflicted out of the way;
father and son go in to the same young woman,
so that my holy name is profaned;(U)
8 they lay themselves down beside every altar
on garments taken in pledge;
and in the house of their God they drink
wine bought with fines they imposed.(V)
9 Yet I destroyed the Amorite before them,
whose height was like the height of cedars
and who was as strong as oaks;
I destroyed his fruit above
and his roots beneath.(W)
10 Also I brought you up out of the land of Egypt
and led you forty years in the wilderness,
to possess the land of the Amorite.(X)
11 And I raised up some of your children to be prophets
and some of your youths to be nazirites.
Is it not indeed so, O people of Israel?
says the Lord.(Y)
12 But you made the nazirites drink wine
and commanded the prophets,
saying, “You shall not prophesy.”(Z)
13 So, I will press you down in your place,
just as a cart presses down
when it is full of sheaves.[l](AA)
14 Flight shall perish from the swift,
and the strong shall not retain their strength,
nor shall the mighty save their lives;(AB)
15 those who handle the bow shall not stand,
and those who are swift of foot shall not save themselves,
nor shall those who ride horses save their lives;(AC)
16 and those who are stout of heart among the mighty
shall flee away naked on that day,
says the Lord.(AD)
Israel’s Guilt and Punishment
3 Hear this word that the Lord has spoken against you, O people of Israel, against the whole family that I brought up out of the land of Egypt:(AE)
2 You only have I known
of all the families of the earth;
therefore I will punish you
for all your iniquities.(AF)
3 Do two walk together
unless they have made an appointment?(AG)
4 Does a lion roar in the forest
when it has no prey?
Does a young lion cry out from its den
if it has caught nothing?(AH)
5 Does a bird fall into a snare on the earth
when there is no trap for it?
Does a snare spring up from the ground
when it has taken nothing?
6 Is a trumpet blown in a city,
and the people are not afraid?
Does disaster befall a city
unless the Lord has done it?(AI)
7 Surely the Lord God does nothing
without revealing his secret
to his servants the prophets.(AJ)
8 The lion has roared;
who will not fear?
The Lord God has spoken;
who can but prophesy?(AK)
9 Proclaim to the strongholds in Ashdod
and to the strongholds in the land of Egypt,
and say, “Assemble yourselves on Mount[m] Samaria,
and see what great tumults are within it
and what oppressions are in its midst.”(AL)
10 They do not know how to do right, says the Lord,
those who store up violence and robbery in their strongholds.(AM)
11 Therefore thus says the Lord God:
An adversary shall surround the land
and strip you of your defense,
and your strongholds shall be plundered.(AN)
12 Thus says the Lord: As the shepherd rescues from the mouth of the lion two legs or a piece of an ear, so shall the people of Israel who live in Samaria be rescued, with the corner of a couch and part[n] of a bed.(AO)
13 Hear and testify against the house of Jacob,
says the Lord God, the God of hosts:(AP)
14 On the day I punish Israel for its transgressions,
I will punish the altars of Bethel,
and the horns of the altar shall be cut off
and fall to the ground.
15 I will tear down the winter house as well as the summer house,
and the houses of ivory shall perish,
and the great houses[o] shall come to an end,
says the Lord.(AQ)
4 Hear this word, you cows of Bashan
who are on Mount Samaria,
who oppress the poor, who crush the needy,
who say to their husbands, “Bring something to drink!”(AR)
2 The Lord God has sworn by his holiness:
The time is surely coming upon you
when they shall take you away with hooks,
even the last of you with fishhooks.(AS)
3 Through breaches in the wall you shall leave,
each one straight ahead,
and you shall be flung out into Harmon,[p]
says the Lord.
4 Come to Bethel—and transgress;
to Gilgal—and multiply transgression;
bring your sacrifices every morning,
your tithes every three days;(AT)
5 bring a thank offering of leavened bread
and proclaim freewill offerings, publish them;
for so you love to do, O people of Israel!
says the Lord God.(AU)
Israel Rejects Correction
6 I gave you cleanness of teeth in all your cities
and lack of bread in all your places;
yet you did not return to me,
says the Lord.(AV)
7 And I also withheld the rain from you
when there were still three months to the harvest;
I would send rain on one city
and send no rain on another city;
one field would be rained upon,
and the field on which it did not rain withered;
8 so two or three towns wandered to one town
to drink water and were not satisfied;
yet you did not return to me,
says the Lord.(AW)
9 I struck you with blight and mildew;
I laid waste[q] your gardens and your vineyards;
the locust devoured your fig trees and your olive trees;
yet you did not return to me,
says the Lord.(AX)
10 I sent among you a pestilence after the manner of Egypt;
I killed your young men with the sword;
I carried away your horses;[r]
and I made the stench of your camp go up into your nostrils;
yet you did not return to me,
says the Lord.(AY)
11 I overthrew some of you
as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah,
and you were like a brand snatched from the fire;
yet you did not return to me,
says the Lord.(AZ)
12 Therefore thus I will do to you, O Israel;
because I will do this to you,
prepare to meet your God, O Israel!(BA)
13 For the one who forms the mountains, creates the wind,
reveals his thoughts to mortals,
makes the morning darkness,
and treads on the heights of the earth—
the Lord, the God of hosts, is his name!(BB)
Footnotes
- 1.1 Or during two years
- 1.3 Heb cause it to return
- 1.6 Heb cause it to return
- 1.9 Heb cause it to return
- 1.11 Heb cause it to return
- 1.11 Syr Vg: Heb and his anger tore perpetually
- 1.11 Gk Syr Vg: Heb and his wrath kept
- 1.13 Heb cause it to return
- 2.1 Heb cause it to return
- 2.4 Heb cause it to return
- 2.6 Heb cause it to return
- 2.13 Meaning of Heb uncertain
- 3.9 Gk Syr: Heb the mountains of
- 3.12 Meaning of Heb uncertain
- 3.15 Or many houses
- 4.3 Meaning of Heb uncertain
- 4.9 Cn: Heb the multitude of
- 4.10 Heb with the captivity of your horses
Amos 1-4
Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition
1 The words of Amos, who was among herdsmen of Thecua: which he saw concerning Israel in the days of Ozias king of Juda, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joas king of Israel two years before the earthquake.
2 And he said: The Lord will roar from Sion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem: and the beautiful places of the shepherds have mourned, and the top of Carmel is withered.
3 Thus saith the Lord: For three crimes of Damascus, and for four I will not convert it: because they have thrashed Galaad with iron wains.
4 And I will send a fire into the house of Azael, and it shall devour the houses of Benadad.
5 And I will break the bar of Damascus: and I will cut off the inhabitants from the plain of the idol, and him that holdeth the sceptre from the house of pleasure: and the people of Syria shall be carried away to Cyrene, saith the Lord.
6 Thus saith the Lord: For three crimes of Gaza, and for four I will not convert it: because they have carried away a perfect captivity to shut them up in Edom.
7 And I will send a fire on the wall of Gaza, and it shall devour the houses thereof.
8 And I will cut off the inhabitant from Azotus, and him that holdeth the sceptre from Ascalon: and I will turn my hand against Accaron, and the rest of the Philistines shall perish, saith the Lord God.
9 Thus saith the Lord: For three crimes of Tyre, and for four I will not convert it: because they have shut up an entire captivity in Edom, and have not remembered the covenant of brethren.
10 And I will send a fire upon the wall of Tyre, and it shall devour the houses thereof.
11 Thus saith the Lord: For three crimes of Edom, and for four I will not convert him: because he hath pursued his brother with the sword, and hath cast off all pity, and hath carried on his fury, and hath kept his wrath to the end.
12 I will send a fire into Theman: and it shall devour the houses of Bosra.
13 Thus saith the Lord: For three crimes of the children of Ammon, and for four I will not convert him: because he hath ripped up the women with child of Galaad to enlarge his border.
14 And I will kindle a fire in the wall of Rabba: and it shall devour the houses thereof with shouting in the day of battle, and with a whirlwind in the day of trouble.
15 And Melchom shall go into captivity, both he, and his princes together, saith the Lord.
2 Thus saith the Lord: For three crimes of Moab, and for four I will not convert him: because he hath burnt the bones of the king of Edom even to ashes.
2 And I will send a fire into Moab, and it shall devour the houses of Carioth: and Moab shall die with a noise, with the sound of the trumpet:
3 And I will cut off the judge from the midst thereof, and will slay all his princes with him, saith the Lord.
4 Thus saith the Lord: For three crimes of Juda, and for four I will not convert him: because he hath cast away the law of the Lord, and hath not kept his commandments: for their idols have caused them to err, after which their fathers have walked.
5 And I will send a fire into Juda, and it shall devour the houses of Jerusalem.
6 Thus saith the Lord: For three crimes of Israel, and for four I will not convert him: because he hath sold the just man for silver, and the poor man for a pair of shoes.
7 They bruise the heads of the poor upon the dust of the earth, and turn aside the way of the humble: and the son and his father have gone to the same young woman, to profane my holy name.
8 And they sat down upon garments laid to pledge by every altar: and drank the wine of the condemned in the house of their God.
9 Yet I cast out the Amorrhite before their face: whose height was like the height of cedars, and who was strong as an oak: and I destroyed his fruit from above, and his roots beneath.
10 It is I that brought you up out of the land of Egypt, and I led you forty years through the wilderness, that you might possess the land of the Amorrhite.
11 And I raised up of your sons for prophets, and of your young men for Nazarites. Is it not so, O ye children of Israel, saith the Lord?
12 And you will present wine to the Nazarites: and command the prophets, saying: Prophesy not.
13 Behold, I will screak under you as a wain screaketh that is laden with hay.
14 And flight shall perish from the swift, and the valiant shall not possess his strength, neither shall the strong save his life.
15 And he that holdeth the bow shall not stand, and the swift of foot shall not escape, neither shall the rider of the horse save his life.
16 And the stout of heart among the valiant shall flee away naked in that day, saith the Lord.
3 Hear the word that the Lord hath spoken concerning you, O ye children of Israel: concerning the whole family that I brought up out of the land of Egypt, saying:
2 You only have I known of all the families of the earth: therefore will I visit upon you all your iniquities.
3 Shall two walk together except they be agreed?
4 Will a lion roar in the forest, if he have no prey? will the lion's whelp cry out of his den, if he have taken nothing?
5 Will the bird fall into the snare upon the earth, if there be no fowler? Shall the snare be taken up from the earth, before it hath taken somewhat?
6 Shall the trumpet sound in a city, and the people not be afraid? Shall there be evil in a city, which the Lord hath not done?
7 For the Lord God doth nothing without revealing his secret to his servants the prophets.
8 The lion shall roar, who will not fear? The Lord God hath spoken, who shall not prophesy?
9 Publish it in the houses of Azotus, and in the houses of the land of Egypt, and say: Assemble yourselves upon the mountains of Samaria, and behold the many follies in the midst thereof, and them that suffer oppression in the inner rooms thereof.
10 And they have not known to do the right thing, saith the Lord, storing up iniquity, and robberies in their houses.
11 Therefore thus saith the Lord God: The land shall be in tribulation, and shall be compassed about: and thy strength shall be taken away from thee, and thy houses shall be spoiled.
12 Thus saith the Lord: As if a shepherd should get out of the lion's mouth two legs, or the tip of the ear: so shall the children of Israel be taken out that dwell in Samaria, in a piece of a bed, and in the couch of Damascus.
13 Hear ye, and testify in the house of Jacob, saith the Lord the God of hosts:
14 That in the day when I shall begin to visit the transgressions of Israel, I will visit upon him, and upon the altars of Bethel: and the horns of the altars shall be cut off, and shall fall to the ground.
15 And I will strike the winter house with the summer house: and the houses of ivory shall perish, and many houses shall be destroyed, saith the Lord.
4 Hear this word, ye fat kine that are in the mountains of Samaria: you that oppress the needy, and crush the poor: that say to your masters: Bring, and we will drink.
2 The Lord God hath sworn by his holiness, that lo, the days shall come upon you, when they shall lift you up on pikes, and what shall remain of you in boiling pots.
3 And you shall go out at the breaches one over against the other, and you shall be cast forth into Armon, saith the Lord.
4 Come ye to Bethel, and do wickedly: to Galgal, and multiply transgressions: and bring in the morning your victims, your tithes in three days.
5 And offer a sacrifice of praise with leaven: and call free offerings, and proclaim it: for so you would do, O children of Israel, saith the Lord God.
6 Whereupon I also have given you dulness of teeth in all your cities, and want of bread in all your places: yet you have not returned to me, saith the Lord.
7 I also have withholden the rain from you, when there were yet three months to the harvest: and I caused it to rain upon one city, and caused it not to rain upon another city: one piece was rained upon: and the piece whereupon I rained not, withered.
8 And two and three cities went to one city to drink water, and were not filled: yet you returned not to me, saith the Lord.
9 I struck you with a burning wind, and with mildew, the palmerworm hath eaten up your many gardens, and your vineyards: your olive groves, and fig groves: yet you returned not to me, saith the Lord.
10 I sent death upon you in the way of Egypt, I slew your young men with the sword, even to the captivity of your horses: and I made the stench of your camp to come up into your nostrils: yet you returned not to me, saith the Lord.
11 I destroyed some of you, as God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrha, and you were as a firebrand plucked out of the burning: yet you returned not to me, saith the Lord.
12 Therefore I will do these things to thee, O Israel: and after I shall have done these things to thee, be prepared to meet thy God, O Israel.
13 For behold he that formeth the mountains and createth the wind, and declareth his word to man, he that maketh the morning mist, and walketh upon the high places of the earth: the Lord the God of hosts is his name.
Amos 1-4
The Message
1 The Message of Amos, one of the shepherds of Tekoa, that he received on behalf of Israel. It came to him in visions during the time that Uzziah was king of Judah and Jeroboam II son of Joash was king of Israel, two years before the big earthquake.
Swallowing the Same Old Lies
2 The Message:
God roars from Zion,
shouts from Jerusalem!
The thunderclap voice withers the pastures tended by shepherds,
shrivels Mount Carmel’s proud peak.
3-5 God’s Message:
“Because of the three great sins of Damascus
—make that four—I’m not putting up with her any longer.
She pounded Gilead to a pulp, pounded her senseless
with iron hammers and mauls.
For that, I’m setting the palace of Hazael on fire.
I’m torching Ben-hadad’s forts.
I’m going to smash the Damascus gates
and banish the crime king who lives in Sin Valley,
the vice boss who gives orders from Paradise Palace.
The people of the land will be sent back
to where they came from—to Kir.”
God’s Decree.
6-8 God’s Message:
“Because of the three great sins of Gaza
—make that four—I’m not putting up with her any longer.
She deported whole towns
and then sold the people to Edom.
For that, I’m burning down the walls of Gaza,
burning up all her forts.
I’ll banish the crime king from Ashdod,
the vice boss from Ashkelon.
I’ll raise my fist against Ekron,
and what’s left of the Philistines will die.”
God’s Decree.
9-10 God’s Message:
“Because of the three great sins of Tyre
—make that four—I’m not putting up with her any longer.
She deported whole towns to Edom,
breaking the treaty she had with her kin.
For that, I’m burning down the walls of Tyre,
burning up all her forts.”
11-12 God’s Message:
“Because of the three great sins of Edom
—make that four—I’m not putting up with her any longer.
She hunts down her brother to murder him.
She has no pity, she has no heart.
Her anger rampages day and night.
Her meanness never takes a timeout.
For that, I’m burning down her capital, Teman,
burning up the forts of Bozrah.”
13-15 God’s Message:
“Because of the three great sins of Ammon
—make that four—I’m not putting up with her any longer.
She ripped open pregnant women in Gilead
to get more land for herself.
For that, I’m burning down the walls of her capital, Rabbah,
burning up her forts.
Battle shouts! War whoops!
with a tornado to finish things off!
The king has been carted off to exile,
the king and his princes with him.”
God’s Decree.
* * *
2 1-3 God’s Message:
“Because of the three great sins of Moab
—make that four—I’m not putting up with her any longer.
She violated the corpse of Edom’s king,
burning it to cinders.
For that, I’m burning down Moab,
burning down the forts of Kerioth.
Moab will die in the shouting,
go out in the blare of war trumpets.
I’ll remove the king from the center
and kill all his princes with him.”
God’s Decree.
4-5 God’s Message:
“Because of the three great sins of Judah
—make that four—I’m not putting up with them any longer.
They rejected God’s revelation,
refused to keep my commands.
But they swallowed the same old lies
that got their ancestors onto dead-end roads.
For that, I’m burning down Judah,
burning down all the forts of Jerusalem.”
Destroyed from the Roots Up
6-8 God’s Message:
“Because of the three great sins of Israel
—make that four—I’m not putting up with them any longer.
They buy and sell upstanding people.
People for them are only things—ways of making money.
They’d sell a poor man for a pair of shoes.
They’d sell their own grandmother!
They grind the penniless into the dirt,
shove the luckless into the ditch.
Everyone and his brother sleeps with the ‘sacred whore’—
a sacrilege against my Holy Name.
Stuff they’ve extorted from the poor
is piled up at the shrine of their god,
While they sit around drinking wine
they’ve conned from their victims.
9-11 “In contrast, I was always on your side.
I destroyed the Amorites who confronted you,
Amorites with the stature of great cedars,
tough as thick oaks.
I destroyed them from the top branches down.
I destroyed them from the roots up.
And yes, I’m the One who delivered you from Egypt,
led you safely through the wilderness for forty years
And then handed you the country of the Amorites
like a piece of cake on a platter.
I raised up some of your young men to be prophets,
set aside your best youth for training in holiness.
Isn’t this so, Israel?”
God’s Decree.
12-13 “But you made the youth-in-training break training,
and you told the young prophets, ‘Don’t prophesy!’
You’re too much for me.
I’m hard-pressed—to the breaking point.
I’m like a wagon piled high and overloaded,
creaking and groaning.
14-16 “When I go into action, what will you do?
There’s no place to run no matter how fast you run.
The strength of the strong won’t count.
Fighters won’t make it.
Skilled archers won’t make it.
Fast runners won’t make it.
Chariot drivers won’t make it.
Even the bravest of all your warriors
Won’t make it.
He’ll run off for dear life, stripped naked.”
God’s Decree.
The Lion Has Roared
3 Listen to this, Israel. God is calling you to account—and I mean all of you, everyone connected with the family that he delivered out of Egypt. Listen!
2 “Out of all the families on earth,
I picked you.
Therefore, because of your special calling,
I’m holding you responsible for all your sins.”
3-7 Do two people walk hand in hand
if they aren’t going to the same place?
Does a lion roar in the forest
if there’s no carcass to devour?
Does a young lion growl with pleasure
if he hasn’t caught his supper?
Does a bird fall to the ground
if it hasn’t been hit with a stone?
Does a trap spring shut
if nothing trips it?
When the alarm goes off in the city,
aren’t people alarmed?
And when disaster strikes the city,
doesn’t God stand behind it?
The fact is, God, the Master, does nothing
without first telling his prophets the whole story.
8 The lion has roared—
who isn’t frightened?
God has spoken—
what prophet can keep quiet?
* * *
9-11 Announce to the forts of Assyria,
announce to the forts of Egypt—
Tell them, “Gather on the Samaritan mountains, take a good, hard look:
what a snake pit of brutality and terror!
They can’t—or won’t—do one thing right.” God said so.
“They stockpile violence and blight.
Therefore”—this is God’s Word—“an enemy will surround the country.
He’ll strip you of your power and plunder your forts.”
12 God’s Message:
“In the same way that a shepherd
trying to save a lamb from a lion
Manages to recover
just a pair of legs or the scrap of an ear,
So will little be saved of the Israelites
who live in Samaria—
A couple of old chairs at most,
the broken leg of a table.
13-15 “Listen and bring witness against Jacob’s family”—
this is God’s Word, God-of-the-Angel-Armies!
“Note well! The day I make Israel pay for its sins,
pay for the sin-altars of worship at Bethel,
The horned altars will all be dehorned
and scattered around.
I’ll tear down the winter palace,
smash the summer palace—all your fancy buildings.
The luxury homes will be demolished,
all those pretentious houses.”
God’s Decree.
You Never Got Hungry for God
4 “Listen to this, you cows of Bashan
grazing on the slopes of Samaria.
You women! Mean to the poor,
cruel to the down-and-out!
Indolent and pampered, you demand of your husbands,
‘Bring us a tall, cool drink!’
2-3 “This is serious—I, God, have sworn by my holiness!
Be well warned: Judgment Day is coming!
They’re going to rope you up and haul you off,
keep the stragglers in line with cattle prods.
They’ll drag you through the ruined city walls,
forcing you out single file,
And kick you to kingdom come.”
God’s Decree.
4-5 “Come along to Bethel and sin!
And then to Gilgal and sin some more!
Bring your sacrifices for morning worship.
Every third day bring your tithe.
Burn pure sacrifices—thank offerings.
Speak up—announce freewill offerings!
That’s the sort of religious show
you Israelites just love.”
God’s Decree.
6 “You know, don’t you, that I’m the One
who emptied your pantries and cleaned out your cupboards,
Who left you hungry and standing in bread lines?
But you never got hungry for me. You continued to ignore me.”
God’s Decree.
7-8 “Yes, and I’m the One who stopped the rains
three months short of harvest.
I’d make it rain on one village
but not on another.
I’d make it rain on one field
but not on another—and that one would dry up.
People would stagger from village to village
crazed for water and never quenching their thirst.
But you never got thirsty for me.
You ignored me.”
God’s Decree.
9 “I hit your crops with disease
and withered your orchards and gardens.
Locusts devoured your olive and fig trees,
but you continued to ignore me.”
God’s Decree.
10 “I revisited you with the old Egyptian plagues,
killed your choice young men and prize horses.
The stink of rot in your camps was so strong
that you held your noses—
But you didn’t notice me.
You continued to ignore me.”
God’s Decree.
11 “I hit you with earthquake and fire,
left you devastated like Sodom and Gomorrah.
You were like a burning stick
snatched from the flames.
But you never looked my way.
You continued to ignore me.”
God’s Decree.
12 “All this I have done to you, Israel,
and this is why I have done it.
Time’s up, O Israel!
Prepare to meet your God!”
13 Look who’s here: Mountain-Shaper! Wind-Maker!
He laid out the whole plot before Adam.
He brings everything out of nothing,
like dawn out of darkness.
He strides across the alpine ridges.
His name is God, God-of-the-Angel-Armies.
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Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson