Old/New Testament

1 These are the words of Amos, a shepherd of Tekoa, which he received in special dreams about Israel two years before the earth shook. Uzziah was king of Judah then, and Jeroboam the son of Joash was the king of Israel. ² He said, “The Lord makes a loud noise from Zion. He lets His voice be heard from Jerusalem. And the shepherds’ fields are filled with sorrow, and the top of Carmel dries up.”

God Judges Israel’s Neighbors—Syria

³ The Lord says, “For three sins of Damascus and for four, I will not hold back punishment. They have crushed Gilead with tools of sharp iron. ⁴ So I will send fire upon the people of Hazael, and it will destroy the strong-places of Ben-hadad. ⁵ I will break down the gate of Damascus, and destroy the people from the Valley of Aven and the king from Beth-Eden. The people of Syria will be taken away to Kir,” says the Lord.

Philistia

⁶ The Lord says, “For three sins of Gaza and for four, I will not hold back punishment. They took a nation of people away and sold them to Edom. ⁷ So I will send fire upon the wall of Gaza, and it will destroy her strong-places. ⁸ I will destroy the people from Ashdod and the king from Ashkelon. I will send My power against Ekron, and the rest of the Philistines will die,” says the Lord God.

Tyre

⁹ The Lord says, “For three sins of Tyre and for four, I will not hold back punishment. They took a nation of people and sold them to Edom. They did not remember the agreement between brothers. ¹⁰ So I will send fire upon the wall of Tyre, and it will destroy her strong-places.”

Edom

¹¹ The Lord says, “For three sins of Edom and for four, I will not hold back punishment. He went after his brother with the sword and would not have loving-pity. He was always angry, and he held on to his anger forever. ¹² So I will send fire upon Teman, and it will destroy the strong-places of Bozrah.”

Ammon

¹³ The Lord says, “For three sins of Ammon and for four, I will not hold back punishment. They tore open the women of Gilead who were going to have a baby, so that they would get more land. ¹⁴ So I will set a fire on the wall of Rabbah, and it will destroy her strong-places. Then there will be cries of war on the day of battle, and strong winds on the day of the storm. ¹⁵ And their king and his sons will be taken away to a strange land,” says the Lord.

Moab

2 The Lord says, “For three sins of Moab and for four, I will not hold back punishment. He burned the bones of the king of Edom to ashes. ² So I will send fire upon Moab, and it will destroy the strong-places of Kerioth. Moab will die among much noise, with cries of war and the sound of a horn. ³ I will kill the ruler of Moab and all his sons with him,” says the Lord.

Judah

⁴ The Lord says, “For three sins of Judah and for four, I will not hold back punishment. They turned away from the Law of the Lord. They have not obeyed His Laws. They have gone the wrong way, following the lies of their fathers. ⁵ So I will send fire upon Judah, and it will destroy the strong-places of Jerusalem.”

God Judges Israel

⁶ The Lord says, “For three sins of Israel and for four, I will not hold back punishment. They sell those who are right and good for money. To get shoes, they sell people who are in need. ⁷ They crush those who are poor in the dust of the earth with their feet. They push the poor out of the way. A man and his father go to the same girl and sin against My holy name. ⁸ They lie down beside every altar on clothing taken as trust for promises. And in the house of their God they drink the wine which was paid by those who have done wrong.

⁹ “I destroyed the Amorite before them, who was as tall as the cedar trees and as strong as the oaks. I destroyed his fruit above and his root below. ¹⁰ I brought you up from the land of Egypt and led you in the desert for forty years to give you the land of the Amorite. ¹¹ Then I raised up some of your sons to speak for Me, and some of your young men to be Nazirites. Is this not true, you sons of Israel?” says the Lord. ¹² “But you made the Nazirites drink wine. And you told the men who speak for Me not to speak. ¹³ Now I will crush you down like a wagon is crushed under a heavy load of grain. ¹⁴ Even the fast man will not get away. The strong man will not keep his strength. And the powerful man will not save his life. ¹⁵ He who uses the bow will not stand. The fast runner will not get away. The horseman will not save his life. ¹⁶ Even the strongest of heart among the men of war will run away without clothes on that day,” says the Lord.

Word from the Man of God

3 O people of Israel, hear this word which the Lord has spoken against you and against the whole family which He brought up from the land of Egypt. ² “You are the only ones I have chosen among all the families of the earth. So I must punish you for all your sins.” ³ Do two men walk together unless they have made an agreement? ⁴ Does a lion make noise among the trees when he has no food? Does a young lion cry out from his home if he has not caught anything? ⁵ Does a bird fall into a trap on the ground when there is no food to tempt it? Does a trap jump up from the ground when it does not catch anything? ⁶ Are not the people afraid when a horn is blown in a city? When trouble comes to a city, has not the Lord caused it? ⁷ For sure the Lord does not do anything without making His plan known to His servants who speak for Him. ⁸ The lion has made a noise! Who will not be afraid? The Lord God has spoken! Who can keep from speaking His Word?

Israel Will Be Punished for Its Sin

⁹ Say to the people who live in the strong cities of Ashdod and Egypt, “Gather together on the mountains of Samaria. See all the trouble within her and how her people suffer. ¹⁰ They do not know how to do what is right,” says the Lord. “They store up in their strong cities what they have fought for and robbed.”

¹¹ So the Lord God says, “Those who hate you will gather around the land. They will pull down your strong-places and rob your strong cities.” ¹² The Lord says, “As the shepherd saves from the lion’s mouth just two legs or a piece of an ear, so will the people of Israel living in Samaria be saved, with the corner of a bed and a part of a cover. ¹³ Hear and speak against the family of Jacob,” says the Lord God, the God of All. ¹⁴ “On the day I punish Israel for her sins, I will punish the altars of Bethel. The horns of the altar will be cut off and fall to the ground. ¹⁵ I will destroy the winter house together with the summer house. The houses of ivory will be destroyed, and the beautiful houses will come to an end,” says the Lord.

The Seven Locks: the First Lock—Power to Win

6 I saw the Lamb break open the first of the seven locks. I heard one of the four living beings cry out like the sound of thunder, “Come and see!” ² I looked and saw a white horse. The one who sat on it had a bow. A crown was given to him. He went out to win and he won.

The Second Lock—Fighting

³ He broke open the second lock. Then I heard the second living being say, “Come and see!” ⁴ Another horse came out. This one was red. The one who sat on it was given a long sword. He was given power to take peace from the earth so men would kill each other.

The Third Lock—No Food

⁵ He broke open the third lock. Then I heard the third living being say, “Come and see!” I looked and saw a black horse. The one who sat on it had something in his hand with which to weigh things. ⁶ I heard a voice from among the four living beings saying, “A small jar of wheat for a day’s pay. Three small jars of barley for a day’s pay. Do not hurt the olive oil and wine.”

The Fourth Lock—Death

⁷ He broke open the fourth lock. Then I heard the fourth living being say, “Come and see!” ⁸ I looked and saw a light colored horse. The one who sat on it had the name of Death. Hell followed close behind him. They were given the right and the power to kill one-fourth part of everything on the earth. They were to kill with the sword and by people having no food and by sickness and by the wild animals of the earth.

The Fifth Lock—Killed for Telling of Jesus

⁹ He broke open the fifth lock. Then I saw under the altar all the souls of those who had been killed for telling the Word of God. They had also been killed for being faithful in telling about Christ. ¹⁰ All those who had been killed cried out with a loud voice saying, “How long will it be yet before You will punish those on the earth for killing us? Lord, You are holy and true.” ¹¹ White clothes were given to each one of them. They were told to rest a little longer. They were to wait until all the other servants owned by God and their Christian brothers would be killed as they had been. Then the group would be complete.

The Sixth Lock—God’s Anger on the Earth

¹² I looked as the Lamb broke the sixth lock. The earth shook as if it would break apart. The sun became black like dark cloth. The moon became like blood. ¹³ The stars of the sky fell to the earth. They were like figs falling from a tree that is shaken by a strong wind. ¹⁴ The sky passed away like paper being rolled up. Every mountain and island moved from its place. ¹⁵ The kings and the leaders of the earth hid themselves in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. All the head soldiers and rich men and strong men and men who were free and those who were owned by someone hid themselves also. ¹⁶ They called to the mountains and to the rocks, “Fall on us! Hide us from the face of the One Who sits on the throne. Hide us from the anger of the Lamb, ¹⁷ because the special day of Their anger has come! Who is able to stand against it?”