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.

Judgment on Moab

This is what the Lord says:

“For three offenses of (A)Moab, and for four,
I will not [a]revoke its punishment,
Because he (B)burned the bones of the king of Edom to lime.
So I will send fire upon Moab
And it will consume the citadels of (C)Kerioth;
And Moab will die amid the (D)panic of battle,
Amid war cries and the sound of a trumpet.
I will also eliminate the [b](E)judge from her midst
And slay all her (F)leaders with him,” says the Lord.

Judgment on Judah

This is what the Lord says:
“For three offenses of (G)Judah, and for four,
I will not revoke its punishment,
Because they (H)rejected the Law of the Lord
And have not kept His statutes;
Their [c](I)lies also have led them astray,
Those which their (J)fathers followed.
So I will (K)send fire upon Judah,
And it will consume the citadels of Jerusalem.”

Judgment on Israel

This is what the Lord says:
“For three offenses of (L)Israel, and for four,
I will not revoke its punishment,
Because they (M)sell the righteous for [d]money,
And the needy for a pair of sandals.
These who [e]trample the head of the (N)helpless to the dust of the earth
Also (O)divert the way of the humble;
And a (P)man and his father [f]resort to the same [g]girl
So as to profane My holy name.
And on garments (Q)seized as pledges they stretch out beside (R)every altar,
And in the house of their God they (S)drink the wine of those who have been fined.

“Yet it was I who destroyed the (T)Amorite before them,
[h]Though his (U)height was like the height of cedars
And he was as strong as the oaks;
I also destroyed his (V)fruit above and his roots below.
10 And it was I who (W)brought you up from the land of Egypt,
And led you in the wilderness for (X)forty years
So that you might take possession of the land of the (Y)Amorite.
11 Then I (Z)raised up some of your sons to be prophets,
And some of your young men to be (AA)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 (AB)shall not prophesy!’
13 Behold, I am (AC)making a rut in the ground beneath you,
Just as a wagon makes a rut when filled with sheaves.
14 (AD)Refuge will be lost from the swift,
And the strong will not strengthen his power,
Nor the (AE)warrior save his [i]life.
15 The one who (AF)grasps the bow will not stand his ground,
The swift of foot will not escape,
Nor will the one who rides the (AG)horse save his [j]life.
16 Even the [k]bravest among the warriors will (AH)flee naked on that day,” declares the Lord.

Footnotes

  1. Amos 2:1 Lit cause it to turn back, and so throughout the ch
  2. Amos 2:3 Or executive officer
  3. Amos 2:4 Or false gods
  4. Amos 2:6 Lit silver
  5. Amos 2:7 Or pant for the dust...on the head of the helpless
  6. Amos 2:7 Lit go
  7. Amos 2:7 Possibly a prostitute, or a temple prostitute
  8. Amos 2:9 Lit Whose height
  9. Amos 2:14 Lit soul
  10. Amos 2:15 Lit soul
  11. Amos 2:16 Lit strong of his heart