Amos 3–4

God’s Reasons for Punishing Israel

3Listen to this message that the Lord has spoken against you, Israelites, against the entire clan that I brought from the land of Egypt: ^u

²I have known only you ^v

out of all the clans of the earth;

therefore, I will punish you for all your iniquities. ^w

³Can two walk together ^x

without agreeing to meet? ^y

⁴Does a lion roar ^zin the forest

when it has no prey?

Does a young lion growl from its lair

unless it has captured something?

⁵Does a bird land in a trap on the ground

if there is no bait for it?

Does a trap spring from the ground

when it has caught nothing?

⁶If a ram’s horn ^ais blown in a city,

aren’t people afraid? ^b

If a disaster ^coccurs in a city,

hasn’t the Lord done it? ^d

⁷Indeed, the Lord God does nothing

without revealing His counsel

to His servants the prophets. ^e

⁸A lion has roared; ^f

who will not fear?

The Lord God has spoken; ^g

who will not prophesy? ^h

⁹Proclaim on the citadels in Ashdod ⁱ

and on the citadels in the land of Egypt:

Assemble on the mountains of Samaria ^j

and see the great turmoil in the city

and the acts of oppression within it. ^k

¹⁰The people are incapable of doing right ^l—

this is the Lord’s declaration—

those who store up violence and destruction ^m

in their citadels.

¹¹Therefore, the Lord God says:

An enemy ⁿwill surround the land;

he will destroy ^oyour strongholds

and plunder your citadels. ^p

¹²The Lord says:

As the shepherd snatches two legs

or a piece of an ear

from the lion’s mouth, ^q

so the Israelites who live in Samaria

will be rescued

with only the corner of a bed ^r

or the ^scushion ^tof a couch. ^uv

¹³Listen and testify ^wagainst the house of Jacob—

this is the declaration of the Lord God,

the God of Hosts.

¹⁴I will punish the altars of Bethel ^x

on the day I punish Israel for its crimes;

the horns of the altar ^ywill be cut off

and fall to the ground. ^z

¹⁵I will demolish the winter house ^a

and the summer house; ^b

the houses inlaid with ivory ^cwill be destroyed,

and the great houses ^dwill come to an end.

This is the Lord’s declaration.

Social and Spiritual Corruption

4Listen to this message, you cows of Bashan ^e

who are on the hill of Samaria,

women who oppress the poor

and crush the needy, ^f

who say to their husbands,

“Bring us something to drink.” ^g

²The Lord God has sworn ^hby His holiness: ⁱ

Look, the days are coming ^j

when you will be taken away with hooks, ^k

every last one of you with fishhooks. ^l

³You will go through breaches in the wall, ^m

each woman straight ahead,

and you will be driven along toward Harmon.

This is the Lord’s declaration.

⁴Come to Bethel and rebel;

rebel even more at Gilgal! ⁿ

Bring your sacrifices every morning, ^o

your tenths every three days.

⁵Offer leavened bread as a thank offering, ^p

and loudly proclaim your freewill offerings, ^q

for that is what you Israelites love to do! ^r

This is the Lord’s declaration.

God’s Discipline and Israel’s Apostasy

⁶I gave you absolutely nothing to eat ^st

in all your cities,

a shortage of food in all your communities,

yet you did not return to Me. ^u

This is the Lord’s declaration.

⁷I also withheld the rain from you ^v

while there were still three months until harvest.

I sent rain on one city

but no rain on another. ^w

One field received rain

while a field with no rain withered. ^x

⁸Two or three cities staggered

to another city to drink water ^y

but were not satisfied, ^z

yet you did not return ^ato Me.

This is the Lord’s declaration.

⁹I struck you with blight and mildew; ^b

the locust devoured ^c

your many gardens and vineyards,

your fig trees and olive trees, ^d

yet you did not return to Me. ^e

This is the Lord’s declaration.

¹⁰I sent plagues like those of Egypt; ^f

I killed your young men with the sword, ^g

along with your captured horses. ^h

I caused the stench of your camp

to fill your nostrils, ⁱ

yet you did not return to Me. ^j

This is the Lord’s declaration.

¹¹I overthrew some of you

as I ^koverthrew Sodom and Gomorrah, ^l

and you were like a burning stick

snatched from a fire, ^m

yet you did not return to Me ⁿ—

this is the Lord’s declaration.

¹²Therefore, Israel, that is what I will do to you,

and since I will do that to you,

Israel, prepare to meet your God! ^o

¹³He is here:

the One who forms the mountains, ^p

creates the wind, ^q

and reveals His ^rthoughts to man, ^s

the One who makes the dawn out of darkness

and strides on the heights of the earth. ^t

Yahweh, the God of Hosts, is His name. ^u