Locusts, Fire and a Plumb Line

This is what the Sovereign Lord showed me:(A) He was preparing swarms of locusts(B) after the king’s share had been harvested and just as the late crops were coming up. When they had stripped the land clean,(C) I cried out, “Sovereign Lord, forgive! How can Jacob survive?(D) He is so small!(E)

So the Lord relented.(F)

“This will not happen,” the Lord said.(G)

This is what the Sovereign Lord showed me: The Sovereign Lord was calling for judgment by fire;(H) it dried up the great deep and devoured(I) the land. Then I cried out, “Sovereign Lord, I beg you, stop! How can Jacob survive? He is so small!(J)

So the Lord relented.(K)

“This will not happen either,” the Sovereign Lord said.(L)

This is what he showed me: The Lord was standing by a wall that had been built true to plumb,[a] with a plumb line[b] in his hand. And the Lord asked me, “What do you see,(M) Amos?(N)

“A plumb line,(O)” I replied.

Then the Lord said, “Look, I am setting a plumb line among my people Israel; I will spare them no longer.(P)

“The high places(Q) of Isaac will be destroyed
    and the sanctuaries(R) of Israel will be ruined;
    with my sword I will rise against the house of Jeroboam.(S)

Amos and Amaziah

10 Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel(T) sent a message to Jeroboam(U) king of Israel: “Amos is raising a conspiracy(V) against you in the very heart of Israel. The land cannot bear all his words.(W) 11 For this is what Amos is saying:

“‘Jeroboam will die by the sword,
    and Israel will surely go into exile,(X)
    away from their native land.’”(Y)

12 Then Amaziah said to Amos, “Get out, you seer!(Z) Go back to the land of Judah. Earn your bread there and do your prophesying there.(AA) 13 Don’t prophesy anymore at Bethel,(AB) because this is the king’s sanctuary and the temple(AC) of the kingdom.(AD)

14 Amos answered Amaziah, “I was neither a prophet(AE) nor the son of a prophet, but I was a shepherd, and I also took care of sycamore-fig trees.(AF) 15 But the Lord took me from tending the flock(AG) and said to me, ‘Go,(AH) prophesy(AI) to my people Israel.’(AJ) 16 Now then, hear(AK) the word of the Lord. You say,

“‘Do not prophesy against(AL) Israel,
    and stop preaching against the descendants of Isaac.’

17 “Therefore this is what the Lord says:

“‘Your wife will become a prostitute(AM) in the city,
    and your sons and daughters will fall by the sword.
Your land will be measured and divided up,
    and you yourself will die in a pagan[c] country.
And Israel will surely go into exile,(AN)
    away from their native land.(AO)’”

A Basket of Ripe Fruit

This is what the Sovereign Lord showed me:(AP) a basket of ripe fruit. “What do you see,(AQ) Amos?(AR)” he asked.

“A basket(AS) of ripe fruit,” I answered.

Then the Lord said to me, “The time is ripe for my people Israel; I will spare them no longer.(AT)

“In that day,” declares the Sovereign Lord, “the songs in the temple will turn to wailing.[d](AU) Many, many bodies—flung everywhere! Silence!(AV)

Hear this, you who trample the needy
    and do away with the poor(AW) of the land,(AX)

saying,

“When will the New Moon(AY) be over
    that we may sell grain,
and the Sabbath be ended
    that we may market(AZ) wheat?”(BA)
skimping on the measure,
    boosting the price
    and cheating(BB) with dishonest scales,(BC)
buying the poor(BD) with silver
    and the needy for a pair of sandals,
    selling even the sweepings with the wheat.(BE)

The Lord has sworn by himself, the Pride of Jacob:(BF) “I will never forget(BG) anything they have done.(BH)

“Will not the land tremble(BI) for this,
    and all who live in it mourn?
The whole land will rise like the Nile;
    it will be stirred up and then sink
    like the river of Egypt.(BJ)

“In that day,” declares the Sovereign Lord,

“I will make the sun go down at noon
    and darken the earth in broad daylight.(BK)
10 I will turn your religious festivals(BL) into mourning
    and all your singing into weeping.(BM)
I will make all of you wear sackcloth(BN)
    and shave(BO) your heads.
I will make that time like mourning for an only son(BP)
    and the end of it like a bitter day.(BQ)

11 “The days are coming,”(BR) declares the Sovereign Lord,
    “when I will send a famine through the land—
not a famine of food or a thirst for water,
    but a famine(BS) of hearing the words of the Lord.(BT)
12 People will stagger from sea to sea
    and wander from north to east,
searching for the word of the Lord,
    but they will not find it.(BU)

13 “In that day

“the lovely young women and strong young men(BV)
    will faint because of thirst.(BW)
14 Those who swear by the sin of Samaria(BX)
    who say, ‘As surely as your god lives, Dan,’(BY)
    or, ‘As surely as the god[e] of Beersheba(BZ) lives’—
    they will fall,(CA) never to rise again.(CB)

Israel to Be Destroyed

I saw the Lord standing by the altar, and he said:

“Strike the tops of the pillars
    so that the thresholds shake.
Bring them down on the heads(CC) of all the people;
    those who are left I will kill with the sword.
Not one will get away,
    none will escape.(CD)
Though they dig down to the depths below,(CE)
    from there my hand will take them.
Though they climb up to the heavens above,(CF)
    from there I will bring them down.(CG)
Though they hide themselves on the top of Carmel,(CH)
    there I will hunt them down and seize them.(CI)
Though they hide from my eyes at the bottom of the sea,(CJ)
    there I will command the serpent(CK) to bite them.(CL)
Though they are driven into exile by their enemies,
    there I will command the sword(CM) to slay them.

“I will keep my eye on them
    for harm(CN) and not for good.(CO)(CP)

The Lord, the Lord Almighty—
he touches the earth and it melts,(CQ)
    and all who live in it mourn;
the whole land rises like the Nile,
    then sinks like the river of Egypt;(CR)
he builds his lofty palace[f](CS) in the heavens
    and sets its foundation[g] on the earth;
he calls for the waters of the sea
    and pours them out over the face of the land—
    the Lord is his name.(CT)

“Are not you Israelites
    the same to me as the Cushites[h]?”(CU)
declares the Lord.
“Did I not bring Israel up from Egypt,
    the Philistines(CV) from Caphtor[i](CW)
    and the Arameans from Kir?(CX)

“Surely the eyes of the Sovereign Lord
    are on the sinful kingdom.
I will destroy(CY) it
    from the face of the earth.
Yet I will not totally destroy
    the descendants of Jacob,”
declares the Lord.(CZ)
“For I will give the command,
    and I will shake the people of Israel
    among all the nations
as grain(DA) is shaken in a sieve,(DB)
    and not a pebble will reach the ground.(DC)
10 All the sinners among my people
    will die by the sword,(DD)
all those who say,
    ‘Disaster will not overtake or meet us.’(DE)

Israel’s Restoration

11 “In that day

“I will restore David’s(DF) fallen shelter(DG)
    I will repair its broken walls
    and restore its ruins(DH)
    and will rebuild it as it used to be,(DI)
12 so that they may possess the remnant of Edom(DJ)
    and all the nations that bear my name,[j](DK)
declares the Lord, who will do these things.(DL)

13 “The days are coming,”(DM) declares the Lord,

“when the reaper(DN) will be overtaken by the plowman(DO)
    and the planter by the one treading(DP) grapes.
New wine(DQ) will drip from the mountains
    and flow from all the hills,(DR)
14     and I will bring(DS) my people Israel back from exile.[k](DT)

“They will rebuild the ruined cities(DU) and live in them.
    They will plant vineyards(DV) and drink their wine;
    they will make gardens and eat their fruit.(DW)
15 I will plant(DX) Israel in their own land,(DY)
    never again to be uprooted(DZ)
    from the land I have given them,”(EA)

says the Lord your God.(EB)

Footnotes

  1. Amos 7:7 The meaning of the Hebrew for this phrase is uncertain.
  2. Amos 7:7 The meaning of the Hebrew for this phrase is uncertain; also in verse 8.
  3. Amos 7:17 Hebrew an unclean
  4. Amos 8:3 Or “the temple singers will wail
  5. Amos 8:14 Hebrew the way
  6. Amos 9:6 The meaning of the Hebrew for this phrase is uncertain.
  7. Amos 9:6 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
  8. Amos 9:7 That is, people from the upper Nile region
  9. Amos 9:7 That is, Crete
  10. Amos 9:12 Hebrew; Septuagint so that the remnant of people / and all the nations that bear my name may seek me
  11. Amos 9:14 Or will restore the fortunes of my people Israel

Thus hath the Lord God shewed unto me; and, behold, he formed grasshoppers in the beginning of the shooting up of the latter growth; and, lo, it was the latter growth after the king's mowings.

And it came to pass, that when they had made an end of eating the grass of the land, then I said, O Lord God, forgive, I beseech thee: by whom shall Jacob arise? for he is small.

The Lord repented for this: It shall not be, saith the Lord.

Thus hath the Lord God shewed unto me: and, behold, the Lord God called to contend by fire, and it devoured the great deep, and did eat up a part.

Then said I, O Lord God, cease, I beseech thee: by whom shall Jacob arise? for he is small.

The Lord repented for this: This also shall not be, saith the Lord God.

Thus he shewed me: and, behold, the Lord stood upon a wall made by a plumbline, with a plumbline in his hand.

And the Lord said unto me, Amos, what seest thou? And I said, A plumbline. Then said the Lord, Behold, I will set a plumbline in the midst of my people Israel: I will not again pass by them any more:

And the high places of Isaac shall be desolate, and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste; and I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword.

10 Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, Amos hath conspired against thee in the midst of the house of Israel: the land is not able to bear all his words.

11 For thus Amos saith, Jeroboam shall die by the sword, and Israel shall surely be led away captive out of their own land.

12 Also Amaziah said unto Amos, O thou seer, go, flee thee away into the land of Judah, and there eat bread, and prophesy there:

13 But prophesy not again any more at Bethel: for it is the king's chapel, and it is the king's court.

14 Then answered Amos, and said to Amaziah, I was no prophet, neither was I a prophet's son; but I was an herdman, and a gatherer of sycomore fruit:

15 And the Lord took me as I followed the flock, and the Lord said unto me, Go, prophesy unto my people Israel.

16 Now therefore hear thou the word of the Lord: Thou sayest, Prophesy not against Israel, and drop not thy word against the house of Isaac.

17 Therefore thus saith the Lord; Thy wife shall be an harlot in the city, and thy sons and thy daughters shall fall by the sword, and thy land shall be divided by line; and thou shalt die in a polluted land: and Israel shall surely go into captivity forth of his land.

Thus hath the Lord God shewed unto me: and behold a basket of summer fruit.

And he said, Amos, what seest thou? And I said, A basket of summer fruit. Then said the Lord unto me, The end is come upon my people of Israel; I will not again pass by them any more.

And the songs of the temple shall be howlings in that day, saith the Lord God: there shall be many dead bodies in every place; they shall cast them forth with silence.

Hear this, O ye that swallow up the needy, even to make the poor of the land to fail,

Saying, When will the new moon be gone, that we may sell corn? and the sabbath, that we may set forth wheat, making the ephah small, and the shekel great, and falsifying the balances by deceit?

That we may buy the poor for silver, and the needy for a pair of shoes; yea, and sell the refuse of the wheat?

The Lord hath sworn by the excellency of Jacob, Surely I will never forget any of their works.

Shall not the land tremble for this, and every one mourn that dwelleth therein? and it shall rise up wholly as a flood; and it shall be cast out and drowned, as by the flood of Egypt.

And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord God, that I will cause the sun to go down at noon, and I will darken the earth in the clear day:

10 And I will turn your feasts into mourning, and all your songs into lamentation; and I will bring up sackcloth upon all loins, and baldness upon every head; and I will make it as the mourning of an only son, and the end thereof as a bitter day.

11 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord:

12 And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, and shall not find it.

13 In that day shall the fair virgins and young men faint for thirst.

14 They that swear by the sin of Samaria, and say, Thy god, O Dan, liveth; and, The manner of Beersheba liveth; even they shall fall, and never rise up again.

I saw the Lord standing upon the altar: and he said, Smite the lintel of the door, that the posts may shake: and cut them in the head, all of them; and I will slay the last of them with the sword: he that fleeth of them shall not flee away, and he that escapeth of them shall not be delivered.

Though they dig into hell, thence shall mine hand take them; though they climb up to heaven, thence will I bring them down:

And though they hide themselves in the top of Carmel, I will search and take them out thence; and though they be hid from my sight in the bottom of the sea, thence will I command the serpent, and he shall bite them:

And though they go into captivity before their enemies, thence will I command the sword, and it shall slay them: and I will set mine eyes upon them for evil, and not for good.

And the Lord God of hosts is he that toucheth the land, and it shall melt, and all that dwell therein shall mourn: and it shall rise up wholly like a flood; and shall be drowned, as by the flood of Egypt.

It is he that buildeth his stories in the heaven, and hath founded his troop in the earth; he that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth: The Lord is his name.

Are ye not as children of the Ethiopians unto me, O children of Israel? saith the Lord. Have not I brought up Israel out of the land of Egypt? and the Philistines from Caphtor, and the Syrians from Kir?

Behold, the eyes of the Lord God are upon the sinful kingdom, and I will destroy it from off the face of the earth; saving that I will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob, saith the Lord.

For, lo, I will command, and I will sift the house of Israel among all nations, like as corn is sifted in a sieve, yet shall not the least grain fall upon the earth.

10 All the sinners of my people shall die by the sword, which say, The evil shall not overtake nor prevent us.

11 In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof; and I will raise up his ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old:

12 That they may possess the remnant of Edom, and of all the heathen, which are called by my name, saith the Lord that doeth this.

13 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed; and the mountains shall drop sweet wine, and all the hills shall melt.

14 And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel, and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; they shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them.

15 And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, saith the Lord thy God.

Psalm 104

Praise the Lord, my soul.(A)

Lord my God, you are very great;
    you are clothed with splendor and majesty.(B)

The Lord wraps(C) himself in light(D) as with a garment;
    he stretches(E) out the heavens(F) like a tent(G)
    and lays the beams(H) of his upper chambers on their waters.(I)
He makes the clouds(J) his chariot(K)
    and rides on the wings of the wind.(L)
He makes winds his messengers,[a](M)
    flames of fire(N) his servants.

He set the earth(O) on its foundations;(P)
    it can never be moved.
You covered it(Q) with the watery depths(R) as with a garment;
    the waters stood(S) above the mountains.
But at your rebuke(T) the waters fled,
    at the sound of your thunder(U) they took to flight;
they flowed over the mountains,
    they went down into the valleys,
    to the place you assigned(V) for them.
You set a boundary(W) they cannot cross;
    never again will they cover the earth.

10 He makes springs(X) pour water into the ravines;
    it flows between the mountains.
11 They give water(Y) to all the beasts of the field;
    the wild donkeys(Z) quench their thirst.
12 The birds of the sky(AA) nest by the waters;
    they sing among the branches.(AB)
13 He waters the mountains(AC) from his upper chambers;(AD)
    the land is satisfied by the fruit of his work.(AE)
14 He makes grass grow(AF) for the cattle,
    and plants for people to cultivate—
    bringing forth food(AG) from the earth:
15 wine(AH) that gladdens human hearts,
    oil(AI) to make their faces shine,
    and bread that sustains(AJ) their hearts.
16 The trees of the Lord(AK) are well watered,
    the cedars of Lebanon(AL) that he planted.
17 There the birds(AM) make their nests;
    the stork has its home in the junipers.
18 The high mountains belong to the wild goats;(AN)
    the crags are a refuge for the hyrax.(AO)

19 He made the moon to mark the seasons,(AP)
    and the sun(AQ) knows when to go down.
20 You bring darkness,(AR) it becomes night,(AS)
    and all the beasts of the forest(AT) prowl.
21 The lions roar for their prey(AU)
    and seek their food from God.(AV)
22 The sun rises, and they steal away;
    they return and lie down in their dens.(AW)
23 Then people go out to their work,(AX)
    to their labor until evening.(AY)

24 How many are your works,(AZ) Lord!
    In wisdom you made(BA) them all;
    the earth is full of your creatures.(BB)
25 There is the sea,(BC) vast and spacious,
    teeming with creatures beyond number—
    living things both large and small.(BD)
26 There the ships(BE) go to and fro,
    and Leviathan,(BF) which you formed to frolic(BG) there.(BH)

27 All creatures look to you
    to give them their food(BI) at the proper time.
28 When you give it to them,
    they gather it up;
when you open your hand,
    they are satisfied(BJ) with good things.
29 When you hide your face,(BK)
    they are terrified;
when you take away their breath,
    they die and return to the dust.(BL)
30 When you send your Spirit,(BM)
    they are created,
    and you renew the face of the ground.

31 May the glory of the Lord(BN) endure forever;
    may the Lord rejoice in his works(BO)
32 he who looks at the earth, and it trembles,(BP)
    who touches the mountains,(BQ) and they smoke.(BR)

33 I will sing(BS) to the Lord all my life;
    I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.
34 May my meditation be pleasing to him,
    as I rejoice(BT) in the Lord.
35 But may sinners vanish(BU) from the earth
    and the wicked be no more.(BV)

Praise the Lord, my soul.

Praise the Lord.[b](BW)

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 104:4 Or angels
  2. Psalm 104:35 Hebrew Hallelu Yah; in the Septuagint this line stands at the beginning of Psalm 105.

104 Bless the Lord, O my soul. O Lord my God, thou art very great; thou art clothed with honour and majesty.

Who coverest thyself with light as with a garment: who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain:

Who layeth the beams of his chambers in the waters: who maketh the clouds his chariot: who walketh upon the wings of the wind:

Who maketh his angels spirits; his ministers a flaming fire:

Who laid the foundations of the earth, that it should not be removed for ever.

Thou coveredst it with the deep as with a garment: the waters stood above the mountains.

At thy rebuke they fled; at the voice of thy thunder they hasted away.

They go up by the mountains; they go down by the valleys unto the place which thou hast founded for them.

Thou hast set a bound that they may not pass over; that they turn not again to cover the earth.

10 He sendeth the springs into the valleys, which run among the hills.

11 They give drink to every beast of the field: the wild asses quench their thirst.

12 By them shall the fowls of the heaven have their habitation, which sing among the branches.

13 He watereth the hills from his chambers: the earth is satisfied with the fruit of thy works.

14 He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle, and herb for the service of man: that he may bring forth food out of the earth;

15 And wine that maketh glad the heart of man, and oil to make his face to shine, and bread which strengtheneth man's heart.

16 The trees of the Lord are full of sap; the cedars of Lebanon, which he hath planted;

17 Where the birds make their nests: as for the stork, the fir trees are her house.

18 The high hills are a refuge for the wild goats; and the rocks for the conies.

19 He appointed the moon for seasons: the sun knoweth his going down.

20 Thou makest darkness, and it is night: wherein all the beasts of the forest do creep forth.

21 The young lions roar after their prey, and seek their meat from God.

22 The sun ariseth, they gather themselves together, and lay them down in their dens.

23 Man goeth forth unto his work and to his labour until the evening.

24 O Lord, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all: the earth is full of thy riches.

25 So is this great and wide sea, wherein are things creeping innumerable, both small and great beasts.

26 There go the ships: there is that leviathan, whom thou hast made to play therein.

27 These wait all upon thee; that thou mayest give them their meat in due season.

28 That thou givest them they gather: thou openest thine hand, they are filled with good.

29 Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled: thou takest away their breath, they die, and return to their dust.

30 Thou sendest forth thy spirit, they are created: and thou renewest the face of the earth.

31 The glory of the Lord shall endure for ever: the Lord shall rejoice in his works.

32 He looketh on the earth, and it trembleth: he toucheth the hills, and they smoke.

33 I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live: I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.

34 My meditation of him shall be sweet: I will be glad in the Lord.

35 Let the sinners be consumed out of the earth, and let the wicked be no more. Bless thou the Lord, O my soul. Praise ye the Lord.

Doing Good for the Sake of the Gospel

You, however, must teach what is appropriate to sound doctrine.(A) Teach the older men(B) to be temperate,(C) worthy of respect, self-controlled,(D) and sound in faith,(E) in love and in endurance.

Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers(F) or addicted to much wine,(G) but to teach what is good. Then they can urge the younger women(H) to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled(I) and pure, to be busy at home,(J) to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands,(K) so that no one will malign the word of God.(L)

Similarly, encourage the young men(M) to be self-controlled.(N) In everything set them an example(O) by doing what is good.(P) In your teaching show integrity, seriousness and soundness of speech that cannot be condemned, so that those who oppose you may be ashamed because they have nothing bad to say about us.(Q)

Teach slaves to be subject to their masters in everything,(R) to try to please them, not to talk back to them, 10 and not to steal from them, but to show that they can be fully trusted, so that in every way they will make the teaching about God our Savior(S) attractive.(T)

11 For the grace(U) of God has appeared(V) that offers salvation to all people.(W) 12 It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions,(X) and to live self-controlled,(Y) upright and godly lives(Z) in this present age, 13 while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing(AA) of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ,(AB) 14 who gave himself for us(AC) to redeem us from all wickedness(AD) and to purify(AE) for himself a people that are his very own,(AF) eager to do what is good.(AG)

15 These, then, are the things you should teach. Encourage and rebuke with all authority. Do not let anyone despise you.

But speak thou the things which become sound doctrine:

That the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience.

The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things;

That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children,

To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed.

Young men likewise exhort to be sober minded.

In all things shewing thyself a pattern of good works: in doctrine shewing uncorruptness, gravity, sincerity,

Sound speech, that cannot be condemned; that he that is of the contrary part may be ashamed, having no evil thing to say of you.

Exhort servants to be obedient unto their own masters, and to please them well in all things; not answering again;

10 Not purloining, but shewing all good fidelity; that they may adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour in all things.

11 For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,

12 Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;

13 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;

14 Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.

15 These things speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no man despise thee.