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Amos 4
The Message
Amos 4
The Message
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.
Amos 4
New International Version
Amos 4
New International Version
Israel Has Not Returned to God
4 Hear this word, you cows of Bashan(A) on Mount Samaria,(B)
you women who oppress the poor(C) and crush the needy(D)
and say to your husbands,(E) “Bring us some drinks!(F)”
2 The Sovereign Lord has sworn by his holiness:
“The time(G) will surely come
when you will be taken away(H) with hooks,(I)
the last of you with fishhooks.[a]
3 You will each go straight out
through breaches in the wall,(J)
and you will be cast out toward Harmon,[b]”
declares the Lord.
4 “Go to Bethel(K) and sin;
go to Gilgal(L) and sin yet more.
Bring your sacrifices every morning,(M)
your tithes(N) every three years.[c](O)
5 Burn leavened bread(P) as a thank offering
and brag about your freewill offerings(Q)—
boast about them, you Israelites,
for this is what you love to do,”
declares the Sovereign Lord.
6 “I gave you empty stomachs in every city
and lack of bread in every town,
yet you have not returned to me,”
declares the Lord.(R)
7 “I also withheld(S) rain from you
when the harvest was still three months away.
I sent rain on one town,
but withheld it from another.(T)
One field had rain;
another had none and dried up.
8 People staggered from town to town for water(U)
but did not get enough(V) to drink,
yet you have not returned(W) to me,”
declares the Lord.(X)
9 “Many times I struck your gardens and vineyards,
destroying them with blight and mildew.(Y)
Locusts(Z) devoured your fig and olive trees,(AA)
yet you have not returned(AB) to me,”
declares the Lord.
10 “I sent plagues(AC) among you
as I did to Egypt.(AD)
I killed your young men(AE) with the sword,
along with your captured horses.
I filled your nostrils with the stench(AF) of your camps,
yet you have not returned to me,”(AG)
declares the Lord.(AH)
11 “I overthrew some of you
as I overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.(AI)
You were like a burning stick(AJ) snatched from the fire,
yet you have not returned to me,”
declares the Lord.(AK)
12 “Therefore this is what I will do to you, Israel,
and because I will do this to you, Israel,
prepare to meet your God.”
Amos 5
The Message
Amos 5
The Message
All Show, No Substance
5 Listen to this, family of Israel,
this Message I’m sending in bold print, this tragic warning:
2 “Virgin Israel has fallen flat on her face.
She’ll never stand up again.
She’s been left where she’s fallen.
No one offers to help her up.”
3 This is the Message, God’s Word:
“The city that marches out with a thousand
will end up with a hundred.
The city that marches out with a hundred
will end up with ten. Oh, family of Israel!”
4-5 God’s Message to the family of Israel:
“Seek me and live.
Don’t fool around at those shrines of Bethel,
Don’t waste time taking trips to Gilgal,
and don’t bother going down to Beer-sheba.
Gilgal is here today and gone tomorrow
and Bethel is all show, no substance.”
6 So seek God and live! You don’t want to end up
with nothing to show for your life
But a pile of ashes, a house burned to the ground.
For God will send just such a fire,
and the firefighters will show up too late.
Raw Truth Is Never Popular
7-9 Woe to you who turn justice to vinegar
and stomp righteousness into the mud.
Do you realize where you are? You’re in a cosmos
star-flung with constellations by God,
A world God wakes up each morning
and puts to bed each night.
God dips water from the ocean
and gives the land a drink.
God, God-revealed, does all this.
And he can destroy it as easily as make it.
He can turn this vast wonder into total waste.
10-12 People hate this kind of talk.
Raw truth is never popular.
But here it is, bluntly spoken:
Because you run roughshod over the poor
and take the bread right out of their mouths,
You’re never going to move into
the luxury homes you have built.
You’re never going to drink wine
from the expensive vineyards you’ve planted.
I know precisely the extent of your violations,
the enormity of your sins. Appalling!
You bully right-living people,
taking bribes right and left and kicking the poor when they’re down.
13 Justice is a lost cause. Evil is epidemic.
Decent people throw up their hands.
Protest and rebuke are useless,
a waste of breath.
14 Seek good and not evil—
and live!
You talk about God, the God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
being your best friend.
Well, live like it,
and maybe it will happen.
15 Hate evil and love good,
then work it out in the public square.
Maybe God, the God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
will notice your remnant and be gracious.
16-17 Now again, my Master’s Message, God, God-of-the-Angel-Armies:
“Go out into the streets and lament loudly!
Fill the malls and shops with cries of doom!
Weep loudly, ‘Not me! Not us, Not now!’
Empty offices, stores, factories, workplaces.
Enlist everyone in the general lament.
I want to hear it loud and clear when I make my visit.”
God’s Decree.
Time to Face Hard Reality, Not Fantasy
18-20 Woe to all of you who want God’s Judgment Day!
Why would you want to see God, want him to come?
When God comes, it will be bad news before it’s good news,
the worst of times, not the best of times.
Here’s what it’s like: A man runs from a lion
right into the jaws of a bear.
A woman goes home after a hard day’s work
and is raped by a neighbor.
At God’s coming we face hard reality, not fantasy—
a black cloud with no silver lining.
21-24 “I can’t stand your religious meetings.
I’m fed up with your conferences and conventions.
I want nothing to do with your religion projects,
your pretentious slogans and goals.
I’m sick of your fund-raising schemes,
your public relations and image making.
I’ve had all I can take of your noisy ego-music.
When was the last time you sang to me?
Do you know what I want?
I want justice—oceans of it.
I want fairness—rivers of it.
That’s what I want. That’s all I want.
25-27 “Didn’t you, dear family of Israel, worship me faithfully for forty years in the wilderness, bringing the sacrifices and offerings I commanded? How is it you’ve stooped to dragging gimcrack statues of your so-called rulers around, hauling the cheap images of all your star-gods here and there? Since you like them so much, you can take them with you when I drive you into exile beyond Damascus.” God’s Message, God-of-the-Angel-Armies.
Amos 5
New International Version
Amos 5
New International Version
A Lament and Call to Repentance
5 Hear this word, Israel, this lament(A) I take up concerning you:
2 “Fallen is Virgin(B) Israel,
never to rise again,
deserted in her own land,
with no one to lift her up.(C)”
3 This is what the Sovereign Lord says to Israel:
“Your city that marches out a thousand strong
will have only a hundred left;
your town that marches out a hundred strong
will have only ten left.(D)”
4 This is what the Lord says to Israel:
“Seek(E) me and live;(F)
5 do not seek Bethel,
do not go to Gilgal,(G)
do not journey to Beersheba.(H)
For Gilgal will surely go into exile,
and Bethel will be reduced to nothing.[a](I)”
6 Seek(J) the Lord and live,(K)
or he will sweep through the tribes of Joseph like a fire;(L)
it will devour them,
and Bethel(M) will have no one to quench it.(N)
8 He who made the Pleiades and Orion,(R)
who turns midnight into dawn(S)
and darkens day into night,(T)
who calls for the waters of the sea
and pours them out over the face of the land—
the Lord is his name.(U)
9 With a blinding flash he destroys the stronghold
and brings the fortified city to ruin.(V)
10 There are those who hate the one who upholds justice in court(W)
and detest the one who tells the truth.(X)
11 You levy a straw tax on the poor(Y)
and impose a tax on their grain.
Therefore, though you have built stone mansions,(Z)
you will not live in them;(AA)
though you have planted lush vineyards,
you will not drink their wine.(AB)
12 For I know how many are your offenses
and how great your sins.(AC)
There are those who oppress the innocent and take bribes(AD)
and deprive the poor(AE) of justice in the courts.(AF)
13 Therefore the prudent keep quiet(AG) in such times,
for the times are evil.(AH)
14 Seek good, not evil,
that you may live.(AI)
Then the Lord God Almighty will be with you,
just as you say he is.
15 Hate evil,(AJ) love good;(AK)
maintain justice in the courts.(AL)
Perhaps(AM) the Lord God Almighty will have mercy(AN)
on the remnant(AO) of Joseph.
16 Therefore this is what the Lord, the Lord God Almighty, says:
“There will be wailing(AP) in all the streets(AQ)
and cries of anguish in every public square.
The farmers(AR) will be summoned to weep
and the mourners to wail.
17 There will be wailing(AS) in all the vineyards,
for I will pass through(AT) your midst,”
says the Lord.(AU)
The Day of the Lord
18 Woe to you who long
for the day of the Lord!(AV)
Why do you long for the day of the Lord?(AW)
That day will be darkness,(AX) not light.(AY)
19 It will be as though a man fled from a lion
only to meet a bear,(AZ)
as though he entered his house
and rested his hand on the wall
only to have a snake bite him.(BA)
20 Will not the day of the Lord be darkness,(BB) not light—
pitch-dark, without a ray of brightness?(BC)
21 “I hate,(BD) I despise your religious festivals;(BE)
your assemblies(BF) are a stench to me.
22 Even though you bring me burnt offerings(BG) and grain offerings,
I will not accept them.(BH)
Though you bring choice fellowship offerings,
I will have no regard for them.(BI)
23 Away with the noise of your songs!
I will not listen to the music of your harps.(BJ)
24 But let justice(BK) roll on like a river,
righteousness(BL) like a never-failing stream!(BM)
25 “Did you bring me sacrifices(BN) and offerings
forty years(BO) in the wilderness, people of Israel?
26 You have lifted up the shrine of your king,
the pedestal of your idols,(BP)
the star of your god[b]—
which you made for yourselves.
27 Therefore I will send you into exile(BQ) beyond Damascus,”
says the Lord, whose name is God Almighty.(BR)
Amos 6
The Message
Amos 6
The Message
Those Who Live Only for Today
6 1-2 Woe to you who think you live on easy street in Zion,
who think Mount Samaria is the good life.
You assume you’re at the top of the heap,
voted the number-one best place to live.
Well, wake up and look around. Get off your pedestal.
Take a look at Calneh.
Go and visit Great Hamath.
Look in on Gath of the Philistines.
Doesn’t that take you off your high horse?
Compared to them, you’re not much, are you?
3-6 Woe to you who are rushing headlong to disaster!
Catastrophe is just around the corner!
Woe to those who live in luxury
and expect everyone else to serve them!
Woe to those who live only for today,
indifferent to the fate of others!
Woe to the playboys, the playgirls,
who think life is a party held just for them!
Woe to those addicted to feeling good—life without pain!
those obsessed with looking good—life without wrinkles!
They could not care less
about their country going to ruin.
7 But here’s what’s really coming:
a forced march into exile.
They’ll leave the country whining,
a rag-tag bunch of good-for-nothings.
You’ve Made a Shambles of Justice
8 God, the Master, has sworn, and solemnly stands by his Word.
The God-of-the-Angel-Armies speaks:
“I hate the arrogance of Jacob.
I have nothing but contempt for his forts.
I’m about to hand over the city
and everyone in it.”
9-10 Ten men are in a house, all dead. A relative comes and gets the bodies to prepare them for a decent burial. He discovers a survivor huddled in a closet and asks, “Are there any more?” The answer: “Not a soul. But hush! God must not be mentioned in this desecrated place.”
11 Note well: God issues the orders.
He’ll knock large houses to smithereens.
He’ll smash little houses to bits.
12-13 Do you hold a horse race in a field of rocks?
Do you plow the sea with oxen?
You’d cripple the horses
and drown the oxen.
And yet you’ve made a shambles of justice,
a bloated corpse of righteousness,
Bragging of your trivial pursuits,
beating up on the weak and crowing, “Look what I’ve done!”
14 “Enjoy it while you can, you Israelites.
I’ve got a pagan army on the move against you”
—this is your God speaking, God-of-the-Angel-Armies—
“And they’ll make hash of you,
from one end of the country to the other.”
Amos 6
New International Version
Amos 6
New International Version
Woe to the Complacent
6 Woe to you(A) who are complacent(B) in Zion,
and to you who feel secure(C) on Mount Samaria,(D)
you notable men of the foremost nation,
to whom the people of Israel come!(E)
2 Go to Kalneh(F) and look at it;
go from there to great Hamath,(G)
and then go down to Gath(H) in Philistia.
Are they better off than(I) your two kingdoms?
Is their land larger than yours?
3 You put off the day of disaster
and bring near a reign of terror.(J)
4 You lie on beds adorned with ivory
and lounge on your couches.(K)
You dine on choice lambs
and fattened calves.(L)
5 You strum away on your harps(M) like David
and improvise on musical instruments.(N)
6 You drink wine(O) by the bowlful
and use the finest lotions,
but you do not grieve(P) over the ruin of Joseph.(Q)
7 Therefore you will be among the first to go into exile;(R)
your feasting and lounging will end.(S)
The Lord Abhors the Pride of Israel
8 The Sovereign Lord has sworn by himself(T)—the Lord God Almighty declares:
“I abhor(U) the pride of Jacob(V)
and detest his fortresses;(W)
I will deliver up(X) the city
and everything in it.(Y)”
9 If ten(Z) people are left in one house, they too will die. 10 And if the relative who comes to carry the bodies out of the house to burn them[a](AA) asks anyone who might be hiding there, “Is anyone else with you?” and he says, “No,” then he will go on to say, “Hush!(AB) We must not mention the name of the Lord.”
11 For the Lord has given the command,
and he will smash(AC) the great house(AD) into pieces
and the small house into bits.(AE)
Psalm 86
The Message
Psalm 86
The Message
86 1-7 Bend an ear, God; answer me.
I’m one miserable wretch!
Keep me safe—haven’t I lived a good life?
Help your servant—I’m depending on you!
You’re my God; have mercy on me.
I count on you from morning to night.
Give your servant a happy life;
I put myself in your hands!
You’re well-known as good and forgiving,
bighearted to all who ask for help.
Pay attention, God, to my prayer;
bend down and listen to my cry for help.
Every time I’m in trouble I call on you,
confident that you’ll answer.
8-10 There’s no one quite like you among the gods, O Lord,
and nothing to compare with your works.
All the nations you made are on their way,
ready to give honor to you, O Lord,
Ready to put your beauty on display,
parading your greatness,
And the great things you do—
God, you’re the one, there’s no one but you!
11-17 Train me, God, to walk straight;
then I’ll follow your true path.
Put me together, one heart and mind;
then, undivided, I’ll worship in joyful fear.
From the bottom of my heart I thank you, dear Lord;
I’ve never kept secret what you’re up to.
You’ve always been great toward me—what love!
You snatched me from the brink of disaster!
God, these bullies have reared their heads!
A gang of thugs is after me—
and they don’t care a thing about you.
But you, O God, are both tender and kind,
not easily angered, immense in love,
and you never, never quit.
So look me in the eye and show kindness,
give your servant the strength to go on,
save your dear, dear child!
Make a show of how much you love me
so the bullies who hate me will stand there slack-jawed,
As you, God, gently and powerfully
put me back on my feet.
Psalm 86
New International Version
Psalm 86
New International Version
Psalm 86
A prayer of David.
1 Hear me, Lord, and answer(A) me,
for I am poor and needy.
2 Guard my life, for I am faithful to you;
save your servant who trusts in you.(B)
You are my God; 3 have mercy(C) on me, Lord,
for I call(D) to you all day long.
4 Bring joy to your servant, Lord,
for I put my trust(E) in you.
5 You, Lord, are forgiving and good,
abounding in love(F) to all who call to you.
6 Hear my prayer, Lord;
listen to my cry(G) for mercy.
7 When I am in distress,(H) I call(I) to you,
because you answer(J) me.
8 Among the gods(K) there is none like you,(L) Lord;
no deeds can compare with yours.
9 All the nations you have made
will come(M) and worship(N) before you, Lord;
they will bring glory(O) to your name.
10 For you are great(P) and do marvelous deeds;(Q)
you alone(R) are God.
11 Teach me your way,(S) Lord,
that I may rely on your faithfulness;(T)
give me an undivided(U) heart,
that I may fear(V) your name.
12 I will praise you, Lord my God, with all my heart;(W)
I will glorify your name forever.
13 For great is your love toward me;
you have delivered me(X) from the depths,
from the realm of the dead.(Y)
14 Arrogant foes are attacking me, O God;
ruthless people are trying to kill me—
they have no regard for you.(Z)
15 But you, Lord, are a compassionate and gracious(AA) God,
slow to anger,(AB) abounding(AC) in love and faithfulness.(AD)
16 Turn to me(AE) and have mercy(AF) on me;
show your strength(AG) in behalf of your servant;
save me, because I serve you
just as my mother did.(AH)
17 Give me a sign(AI) of your goodness,
that my enemies may see it and be put to shame,
for you, Lord, have helped me and comforted me.
Titus 1
The Message
Titus 1
The Message
1 1-4 I, Paul, am God’s slave and Christ’s agent for promoting the faith among God’s chosen people, getting out the accurate word on God and how to respond rightly to it. My aim is to raise hopes by pointing the way to life without end. This is the life God promised long ago—and he doesn’t break promises! And then when the time was ripe, he went public with his truth. I’ve been entrusted to proclaim this Message by order of our Savior, God himself. Dear Titus, legitimate son in the faith: Receive everything God our Father and Jesus our Savior give you!
A Good Grip on the Message
5-9 I left you in charge in Crete so you could complete what I left half-done. Appoint leaders in every town according to my instructions. As you select them, ask, “Is this man well-thought-of? Is he committed to his wife? Are his children believers? Do they respect him and stay out of trouble?” It’s important that a church leader, responsible for the affairs in God’s house, be looked up to—not pushy, not short-tempered, not a drunk, not a bully, not money-hungry. He must welcome people, be helpful, wise, fair, reverent, have a good grip on himself, and have a good grip on the Message, knowing how to use the truth to either spur people on in knowledge or stop them in their tracks if they oppose it.
10-16 For there are a lot of rebels out there, full of loose, confusing, and deceiving talk. Those who were brought up religious and ought to know better are the worst. They’ve got to be shut up. They’re disrupting entire families with their teaching, and all for the sake of a fast buck. One of their own prophets said it best:
The Cretans are liars from the womb,
barking dogs, lazy bellies.
He certainly spoke the truth. Get on them right away. Stop that diseased talk of Jewish make-believe and made-up rules so they can recover a robust faith. Everything is clean to the clean-minded; nothing is clean to dirty-minded unbelievers. They leave their dirty fingerprints on every thought and act. They say they know God, but their actions speak louder than their words. They’re real creeps, disobedient good-for-nothings.
Titus 1
New International Version
Titus 1
New International Version
1 Paul, a servant of God(A) and an apostle(B) of Jesus Christ to further the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth(C) that leads to godliness(D)— 2 in the hope of eternal life,(E) which God, who does not lie,(F) promised before the beginning of time,(G) 3 and which now at his appointed season(H) he has brought to light(I) through the preaching entrusted to me(J) by the command of God(K) our Savior,(L)
4 To Titus,(M) my true son(N) in our common faith:
Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.(O)
Appointing Elders Who Love What Is Good(P)
5 The reason I left you in Crete(Q) was that you might put in order what was left unfinished and appoint[a] elders(R) in every town, as I directed you. 6 An elder must be blameless,(S) faithful to his wife, a man whose children believe[b] and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient. 7 Since an overseer(T) manages God’s household,(U) he must be blameless—not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest gain.(V) 8 Rather, he must be hospitable,(W) one who loves what is good,(X) who is self-controlled,(Y) upright, holy and disciplined. 9 He must hold firmly(Z) to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine(AA) and refute those who oppose it.
Rebuking Those Who Fail to Do Good
10 For there are many rebellious people, full of meaningless talk(AB) and deception, especially those of the circumcision group.(AC) 11 They must be silenced, because they are disrupting whole households(AD) by teaching things they ought not to teach—and that for the sake of dishonest gain. 12 One of Crete’s own prophets(AE) has said it: “Cretans(AF) are always liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons.”[c] 13 This saying is true. Therefore rebuke(AG) them sharply, so that they will be sound in the faith(AH) 14 and will pay no attention to Jewish myths(AI) or to the merely human commands(AJ) of those who reject the truth.(AK) 15 To the pure, all things are pure,(AL) but to those who are corrupted and do not believe, nothing is pure.(AM) In fact, both their minds and consciences are corrupted.(AN) 16 They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him.(AO) They are detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good.(AP)
Footnotes
- Titus 1:5 Or ordain
- Titus 1:6 Or children are trustworthy
- Titus 1:12 From the Cretan philosopher Epimenides
The Message (MSG)
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson
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