Amos 4
New Living Translation
Israel’s Failure to Learn
4 Listen to me, you fat cows[a]
living in Samaria,
you women who oppress the poor
and crush the needy,
and who are always calling to your husbands,
“Bring us another drink!”
2 The Sovereign Lord has sworn this by his holiness:
“The time will come when you will be led away
with hooks in your noses.
Every last one of you will be dragged away
like a fish on a hook!
3 You will be led out through the ruins of the wall;
you will be thrown from your fortresses,[b]”
says the Lord.
4 “Go ahead and offer sacrifices to the idols at Bethel.
Keep on disobeying at Gilgal.
Offer sacrifices each morning,
and bring your tithes every three days.
5 Present your bread made with yeast
as an offering of thanksgiving.
Then give your extra voluntary offerings
so you can brag about it everywhere!
This is the kind of thing you Israelites love to do,”
says the Sovereign Lord.
6 “I brought hunger to every city
and famine to every town.
But still you would not return to me,”
says the Lord.
7 “I kept the rain from falling
when your crops needed it the most.
I sent rain on one town
but withheld it from another.
Rain fell on one field,
while another field withered away.
8 People staggered from town to town looking for water,
but there was never enough.
But still you would not return to me,”
says the Lord.
9 “I struck your farms and vineyards with blight and mildew.
Locusts devoured all your fig and olive trees.
But still you would not return to me,”
says the Lord.
10 “I sent plagues on you
like the plagues I sent on Egypt long ago.
I killed your young men in war
and led all your horses away.[c]
The stench of death filled the air!
But still you would not return to me,”
says the Lord.
11 “I destroyed some of your cities,
as I destroyed[d] Sodom and Gomorrah.
Those of you who survived
were like charred sticks pulled from a fire.
But still you would not return to me,”
says the Lord.
12 “Therefore, I will bring upon you all the disasters I have announced.
Prepare to meet your God in judgment, you people of Israel!”
13 For the Lord is the one who shaped the mountains,
stirs up the winds, and reveals his thoughts to mankind.
He turns the light of dawn into darkness
and treads on the heights of the earth.
The Lord God of Heaven’s Armies is his name!
Amos 4
Christian Standard Bible
Social and Spiritual Corruption
4 Listen to this message, you cows of Bashan(A)
who are on the hill of Samaria,
women who oppress the poor
and crush the needy,(B)
who say to their husbands,
“Bring us something to drink.”(C)
2 The Lord God has sworn(D) by his holiness:(E)
Look, the days are coming[a]
when you will be taken away with hooks,(F)
every last one of you with fishhooks.(G)
3 You will go through breaches in the wall,(H)
each woman straight ahead,
and you will be driven along toward Harmon.
This is the Lord’s declaration.
4 Come to Bethel and rebel;
rebel even more at Gilgal!(I)
Bring your sacrifices every morning,(J)
your tenths every three days.
5 Offer leavened bread as a thanksgiving sacrifice,(K)
and loudly proclaim your freewill offerings,(L)
for that is what you Israelites love to do!(M)
This is the declaration of the Lord God.
God’s Discipline and Israel’s Apostasy
6 I gave you absolutely nothing to eat[b](N) in all your cities,
a shortage of food in all your communities,
yet you did not return to me.(O)
This is the Lord’s declaration.
7 I also withheld the rain from you(P)
while there were still three months until harvest.
I sent rain on one city
but no rain on another.(Q)
One field received rain
while a field with no rain withered.(R)
8 Two or three cities staggered
to another city to drink water(S)
but were not satisfied,(T)
yet you did not return(U) to me.
This is the Lord’s declaration.
9 I struck you with blight and mildew;(V)
the locust devoured(W)
your many gardens and vineyards,
your fig trees and olive trees,(X)
yet you did not return to me.(Y)
This is the Lord’s declaration.
10 I sent plagues like those of Egypt;(Z)
I killed your young men with the sword,(AA)
along with your captured horses.(AB)
I caused the stench of your camp
to fill your nostrils,(AC)
yet you did not return to me.(AD)
This is the Lord’s declaration.
11 I overthrew some of you
as I[c] overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah,(AE)
and you were like a burning stick
snatched from a fire,(AF)
yet you did not return to me(AG)—
This is the Lord’s declaration.
12 Therefore, Israel, that is what I will do to you,
and since I will do that to you,
Israel, prepare to meet your God!(AH)
13 He is here:
the one who forms the mountains,(AI)
creates the wind,(AJ)
and reveals his thoughts to man,(AK)
the one who makes the dawn out of darkness
and strides on the heights of the earth.(AL)
The Lord, the God of Armies, is his name.(AM)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.