Amos 9
New American Standard Bible
God’s Judgment Unavoidable
9 I saw the Lord standing beside the (A)altar, and He said,
“Strike the pillar capitals so that the (B)thresholds will shake,
And (C)break them on the heads of them all!
Then I will (D)put to death the rest of them with the sword;
They will (E)not have a fugitive who will flee,
Nor a survivor who will escape.
2 Though they dig into (F)Sheol,
From there My hand will take them;
And though they (G)ascend to heaven,
From there I will bring them down.
3 And though they hide on the summit of Carmel,
I will (H)track them down and take them from there;
And though they (I)hide themselves from My sight on the bottom of the sea,
I will command the (J)serpent from there, and it will bite them.
4 And though they go into (K)captivity before their enemies,
From there I will command the sword and it will kill them,
And I will (L)set My eyes against them for harm and not for good.”
5 The Lord [a]God of armies,
The One who (M)touches the land so that it quakes,
And (N)all those who live in it mourn,
And all of it rises up like the Nile
And subsides like the Nile of Egypt;
6 The One who builds His (O)upper chambers in the heavens
And has founded His vaulted dome over the earth,
He who (P)calls for the waters of the sea
And (Q)pours them out on the face of the earth,
(R)The Lord is His name.
7 “Are you not as the sons of (S)Ethiopia to Me,
You sons of Israel?” declares the Lord.
“Have I not brought up Israel from the land of Egypt,
And the (T)Philistines from Caphtor and the (U)Arameans from (V)Kir?
8 Behold, the (W)eyes of the Lord God are on the sinful kingdom,
And I will (X)eliminate it from the face of the earth;
Nevertheless, I will (Y)not totally eliminate the house of Jacob,”
Declares the Lord.
9 “For behold, I am commanding,
And I will (Z)shake the house of Israel among all nations
As grain is shaken in a sieve,
But not a pebble will fall to the ground.
10 All the (AA)sinners of My people will die by the sword,
Those who say, ‘(AB)The catastrophe will not overtake or confront us.’
The Restoration of Israel
11 “On that day I will (AC)raise up the fallen [b](AD)shelter of David,
And wall up its (AE)gaps;
I will also raise up its ruins
And rebuild it as in the (AF)days of old;
12 (AG)So that they may [c]possess the remnant of (AH)Edom
And all the [d]nations who are (AI)called by My name,”
Declares the Lord who does this.
13 “Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord,
“When the (AJ)plowman will overtake the reaper,
And the one who treads grapes will overtake him who sows the seed;
When the (AK)mountains will drip grape juice,
And all the hills will come apart.
14 I will also (AL)restore the fortunes of My people Israel,
And they will (AM)rebuild the desolated cities and live in them;
They will also (AN)plant vineyards and drink their wine,
And make gardens and eat their fruit.
15 I will also plant them on their land,
And (AO)they will not be uprooted again from their land
Which I have given them,”
Says the Lord your God.
Amos 9
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
The Destruction of Israel
9 I saw the Lord standing beside[a] the altar, and he said:
Strike the capitals until the thresholds shake
and shatter them on the heads of all the people,[b]
and those who are left I will kill with the sword;
not one of them shall flee away,
not one of them shall escape.(A)
2 Though they dig into Sheol,
from there shall my hand take them;
though they climb up to heaven,
from there I will bring them down.(B)
3 Though they hide themselves on the top of Carmel,
from there I will search out and take them;
and though they hide from my sight at the bottom of the sea,
there I will command the serpent, and it shall bite them.(C)
4 And though they go into captivity in front of their enemies,
there I will command the sword, and it shall kill them;
and I will fix my eyes on them
for harm and not for good.(D)
5 The Lord, God of hosts,
he who touches the earth and it melts,
and all who live in it mourn,
and all of it rises like the Nile
and sinks again, like the Nile of Egypt,(E)
6 who builds his upper chambers in the heavens
and founds his vault upon the earth,
who calls for the waters of the sea
and pours them out upon the surface of the earth—
the Lord is his name.(F)
7 Are you not like the Cushites to me,
O people of Israel? says the Lord.
Did I not bring Israel up from the land of Egypt
and the Philistines from Caphtor and the Arameans from Kir?(G)
8 The eyes of the Lord God are upon the sinful kingdom,
and I will destroy it from the face of the earth
—except that I will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob,
says the Lord.(H)
9 For I will command
and shake the house of Israel among all the nations,
as one shakes with a sieve
but no pebble shall fall to the ground.(I)
10 All the sinners of my people shall die by the sword,
who say, “Evil shall not overtake or meet us.”(J)
The Restoration of David’s Kingdom
11 On that day I will raise up
the booth of David that is fallen
and repair its[c] breaches
and raise up its[d] ruins
and rebuild it as in the days of old,(K)
12 in order that they may possess the remnant of Edom
and all the nations who are called by my name,
says the Lord who does this.(L)
13 The time is surely coming, says the Lord,
when the one who plows shall catch up with the one who reaps
and the treader of grapes with the one who sows the seed;
the mountains shall drip sweet wine,
and all the hills shall flow with it.(M)
14 I will restore the fortunes of my people Israel,
and they shall rebuild the ruined cities and inhabit them;
they shall plant vineyards and drink their wine,
and they shall make gardens and eat their fruit.(N)
15 I will plant them upon their land,
and they shall never again be plucked up
out of the land that I have given them,
says the Lord your God.(O)
Amos 9
Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition
9 I saw the Lord standing upon the altar, and he said: Strike the hinges, and let the lintels be shook: for there is covetousness in the head of them all, and I will slay the last of them with the sword: there shall be no flight for them: they shall flee, and he that shall flee of them shall not be delivered.
2 Though they go down even to hell, thence shall my hand bring them out: and though they climb up to heaven, thence will I bring them down.
3 And though they be hid in the top of Carmel, I will search and take them away from thence: and though they hide themselves from my eyes in the depth of the sea, there will I command the serpent and he shall bite them.
4 And if they go into captivity before their enemies, there will I command the sword, and it shall kill them. And I will set my eyes upon them for evil, and not for good.
5 And the Lord the God of hosts is he who toucheth the earth, and it shall melt: and all that dwell therein shall mourn: and it shall rise up as a river, and shall run down as the river of Egypt.
6 He that buildeth his ascension in heaven, and hath founded his bundle upon the earth: who calleth the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth, the Lord is his name.
7 Are not you as the children of the Ethiopians unto me, O children of Israel, saith the Lord? did not I bring up Israel, out of the land of Egypt: and the Philistines out of Cappadocia, and the Syrians out of Cyrene?
8 Behold the eyes of the Lord God are upon the sinful kingdom, and I will destroy it from the face of the earth: but yet I will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob, saith the Lord.
9 For behold I will command, and I will sift the house of Israel among all nations, as corn is sifted in a sieve: and there shall not a little stone fall to the ground.
10 All the sinners of my people shall fall by the sword: who say: The evils shall not approach, and shall not come upon us.
11 In that day I will raise up the tabernacle of David, that is fallen: and I will close up the breaches of the walls thereof, and repair what was fallen: and I will rebuild it as in the days of old.
12 That they may possess the remnant of Edom, and all nations, because my name is invoked upon them: saith the Lord that doth these things.
13 Behold the days come, saith the Lord, when the ploughman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed: and the mountains shall drop sweetness, and every hill shall be tilled.
14 And I will bring back the captivity of my people Israel: and they shall build the abandoned cities, and inhabit them: and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine of them: and shall make gardens, and eat the fruits of them. And I will plant them upon their own land: and I will no more pluck them out of their land which I have given them, saith the Lord thy God.
Amos 9
The Message
Israel Thrown into a Sieve
9 1-4 I saw my Master standing beside the altar at the shrine. He said:
“Hit the tops of the shrine’s pillars,
make the floor shake.
The roof’s about to fall on the heads of the people,
and whoever’s still alive, I’ll kill.
No one will get away,
no runaways will make it.
If they dig their way down into the underworld,
I’ll find them and bring them up.
If they climb to the stars,
I’ll find them and bring them down.
If they hide out at the top of Mount Carmel,
I’ll find them and bring them back.
If they dive to the bottom of the ocean,
I’ll send Dragon to swallow them up.
If they’re captured alive by their enemies,
I’ll send Sword to kill them.
I’ve made up my mind
to hurt them, not help them.”
5-6 My Master, God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
touches the earth, a mere touch, and it trembles.
The whole world goes into mourning.
Earth swells like the Nile at flood stage;
then the water subsides, like the great Nile of Egypt.
God builds his palace—towers soaring high in the skies,
foundations set on the rock-firm earth.
He calls ocean waters and they come,
then he ladles them out on the earth.
God, your God, does all this.
* * *
7-8 “Do you Israelites think you’re any better than the far-off Cushites?” God’s Decree.
“Am I not involved with all nations? Didn’t I bring Israel up from Egypt, the Philistines from Caphtor, the Arameans from Qir? But you can be sure that I, God, the Master, have my eye on the Kingdom of Sin. I’m going to wipe it off the face of the earth. Still, I won’t totally destroy the family of Jacob.” God’s Decree.
9-10 “I’m still giving the orders around here. I’m throwing Israel into a sieve among all the nations and shaking them good, shaking out all the sin, all the sinners. No real grain will be lost, but all the sinners will be sifted out and thrown away, the people who say, ‘Nothing bad will ever happen in our lifetime. It won’t even come close.’
Blessings Like Wine Pouring off the Mountains
11-12 “But also on that Judgment Day I will restore David’s house that has fallen to pieces. I’ll repair the holes in the roof, replace the broken windows, fix it up like new. David’s people will be strong again and seize what’s left of enemy Edom, plus everyone else under my sovereign judgment.” God’s Decree. He will do this.
13-15 “Yes indeed, it won’t be long now.” God’s Decree.
“Things are going to happen so fast your head will swim, one thing fast on the heels of the other. You won’t be able to keep up. Everything will be happening at once—and everywhere you look, blessings! Blessings like wine pouring off the mountains and hills. I’ll make everything right again for my people Israel:
“They’ll rebuild their ruined cities.
They’ll plant vineyards and drink good wine.
They’ll work their gardens and eat fresh vegetables.
And I’ll plant them, plant them on their own land.
They’ll never again be uprooted from the land I’ve given them.”
God, your God, says so.
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New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
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Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson