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16 Therefore, thus says Yahweh, the God of hosts, my Lord, “In all of the public squares there will be wailing, and in all of the streets they will say, ‘Alas, alas, alas!’ They shall call the farmers to mourning and to wailing, to those who are skilled in lamentation. 17 And in all of the vineyards there will be wailing, because I will pass in your midst,” says Yahweh.

The Day of Yahweh

18 Alas, those who desire the day of Yahweh, why is this for you the day of Yahweh? It will be darkness and not light! 19 It will be as if a man fled from a lion and a bear met him; or he went into the house and leaned his hand against the wall and a snake bit him. 20 Is not the day of Yahweh darkness and not light, and pitch dark with no brightness in it?

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16 Therefore this is what the Lord, the God of the Heavenly Armies, the Lord, says:

‘There will be dirges in all of the streets;
        and in all of the highways they will cry out in anguish.[a]
They will call the farmer to mourning
    and those who lament[b] to grieve.
17 And in all of the vineyards there will be mourning
    when I pass through your midst,’
        says the Lord.”

The Fearful Day of the Lord

18 “Woe to those who are craving the Day of the Lord!
    How is it to your benefit, this Day of the Lord?
        It’s a day of[c] darkness to you, and not light.
19 It will be like a man who runs from a lion,
    only to encounter a bear;
or who comes home, leans his hand against a wall,
    and a serpent bites him!
20 Will not the Day of the Lord be darkness, and not light—
    pitch black at that, without a ray of sunshine?”

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Footnotes

  1. Amos 5:16 Lit. will say, “Alas! Alas!”
  2. Amos 5:16 I.e. professional mourners
  3. Amos 5:18 The Heb. lacks a day of