Amos 1–6

CHAPTER 1

Amos’ Vision of Yahweh’s Fire

¹The words of Amos, who was among the ^asheepherders from ^bTekoa, which he beheld in visions concerning Israel in the days of ^cUzziah king of Judah, and in the days of ^dJeroboam son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the ^eearthquake.

²And he said,

“^1aYahweh roars from Zion

And from Jerusalem He gives forth His voice;

And the shepherds’ ^bpasture grounds mourn,

And the ^2ctop of Carmel dries up.”

³Thus says Yahweh,

“For ^athree transgressions of ^bDamascus and for four

I will not turn back its punishment

Because they threshed Gilead with implements of sharp iron.

⁴“So I will send fire upon the house of Hazael,

And it will consume the citadels of ^aBen-hadad.

⁵“I will also ^abreak the gate bar of Damascus

And cut off the inhabitant from the ¹valley of Aven

And him who holds the scepter from Beth-eden;

So the people of Aram will go into exile to ^bKir,”

Says Yahweh.

⁶Thus says Yahweh,

“For three transgressions of ^aGaza and for four

I will not turn back its punishment

Because they took away into exile the whole community of exiles

To ^bdeliver it up to Edom.

⁷“So I will send fire upon the wall of Gaza,

And it will consume her citadels.

⁸“I will also cut off the inhabitant from ^aAshdod

And him who holds the scepter from ^bAshkelon;

I will even turn My hand against Ekron,

And the remnant of the ^cPhilistines will perish,”

Says Lord Yahweh.

⁹Thus says Yahweh,

“For three transgressions of ^aTyre and for four

I will not turn back its punishment

Because they delivered up the whole community of exiles to Edom

And did not remember the covenant of ^1bbrotherhood.

¹⁰“So I will ^asend fire upon the wall of Tyre,

And it will consume her citadels.”

¹¹Thus says Yahweh,

“For three transgressions of ^aEdom and for four

I will not turn back its punishment

Because he ^bpursued his brother with the sword

While he corrupted his compassion;

And his anger also ^ctore continually,

And he kept his wrath forever.

¹²“So I will send fire upon ^aTeman,

And it will consume the citadels of Bozrah.”

¹³Thus says Yahweh,

“For three transgressions of the sons of ^aAmmon and for four

I will not turn back its punishment

Because they ^bripped open the pregnant women of Gilead

In order to ^cenlarge their borders.

¹⁴“So I will kindle a fire on the wall of ^aRabbah,

And it will consume her citadels

Amid a ^bloud shout on the day of battle

And a ^cstorm on the day of tempest.

¹⁵“And their ^aking will go into exile,

He and his princes together,”

Says Yahweh.

CHAPTER 2

¹Thus says Yahweh,

“For three transgressions of ^aMoab and for four

I will not turn back its punishment

Because he ^bburned the bones of the king of Edom to lime.

²“So I will send fire upon Moab,

And it will consume the citadels of ^aKerioth;

And Moab will die amid great ^brumbling,

Amid a loud shout and the sound of a trumpet.

³“I will also cut off the ^1ajudge from her midst

And kill all her ^bprinces with him,” says Yahweh.

Punishment of Judah and Israel

⁴Thus says Yahweh,

“For three transgressions of ^aJudah and for four

I will not turn back its punishment

Because they ^brejected the law of Yahweh

And have not kept His statutes;

Their ^1cfalsehood also has led them astray,

That which their ^dfathers walked after.

⁵“So I will ^asend fire upon Judah,

And it will consume the citadels of Jerusalem.”

⁶Thus says Yahweh,

“For three transgressions of ^aIsrael and for four

I will not turn back its punishment

Because they ^bsell the righteous for money

And the needy for a pair of sandals.

⁷“These who ¹pant after the very dust of the earth on the head of the ^apoor

Also ^bturn aside the way of the humble;

And a ^cman and his father go to the same ²young woman

In order to profane My holy name.

⁸“On garments ^ataken as pledges they stretch out beside ^bevery altar,

And in the house of their God they ^cdrink the wine of those who have been fined.

⁹“Yet it was I who destroyed the ^aAmorite before them,

¹Though his ^bheight was like the height of cedars,

And he was strong as the oaks;

I even destroyed his ^cfruit above and his root below.

¹⁰“And it was I who ^abrought you up from the land of Egypt,

And I led you in the wilderness ^bforty years

¹That you might take possession of the land of the ^cAmorite.

¹¹“Then I ^araised up some of your sons to be prophets

And some of your choice men to be ^bNazirites.

Is this not so, O sons of Israel?” declares Yahweh.

¹²“But you made the Nazirites drink wine,

And you commanded the prophets saying, ‘You ^ashall not prophesy!’

¹³“Behold, I am ^1aweighted down beneath you

As a wagon ²is weighted down when filled with sheaves.

¹⁴“^aSo ¹flight will perish from the swift,

And the strong will not instill his power with courage,

Nor will the ^bmighty man make his ²life escape.

¹⁵“He who ^agrasps the bow will not stand his ground,

The swift of foot will not escape,

Nor will he who rides the ^bhorse make his ¹life escape.

¹⁶“Even the ¹most courageous of heart among the mighty men will ^aflee naked in that day,” declares Yahweh.

CHAPTER 3

Yahweh Speaks Against Israel

¹Hear this word which Yahweh has spoken against you, sons of Israel, against the entire ^1afamily which ²He brought up from the land of Egypt, saying,

²“^aYou only have I known among all the families of the earth;

Therefore I will ^1bpunish you for all your iniquities.”

³Do two men walk together unless they have made an ¹appointment?

⁴Does a ^alion roar in the forest when it has no prey?

Does a young lion give forth its voice from its den unless it has captured something?

⁵Does a bird fall into a trap on the ground when there is no ¹bait in it?

Does a trap spring up from the earth when it captures nothing at all?

⁶If a ^atrumpet is blown in a city will not the people tremble?

If a ^bcalamity happens in a city has not Yahweh done it?

⁷¹Surely Lord Yahweh does nothing

Unless He ^areveals His secret counsel

To His slaves the prophets.

⁸A ^alion has roared! Who will not fear?

^bLord Yahweh has spoken! ^cWho can but prophesy?

⁹Make it heard on the citadels in ^aAshdod and on the citadels in the land of Egypt and say, “Gather yourselves on the ^bmountains of Samaria and see the great confusions within her and the ^coppressions in her midst.

¹⁰“But they ^ado not know how to do what is right,” declares Yahweh, “these who ^bhoard up ¹violence and devastation in their citadels.”

¹¹Therefore, thus says Lord Yahweh,

“An ^aadversary, even one surrounding the land,

Will pull down your ¹strength from you,

And your ^bcitadels will be plundered.”

¹²Thus says Yahweh,

“Just as the shepherd ^adelivers from the lion’s mouth a couple of legs or a piece of an ear,

So will the sons of Israel inhabiting Samaria be delivered—

With the ^bcorner of a bed and the ^1ccover of a couch!

¹³“Hear and ^atestify against the house of Jacob,”

Declares Lord Yahweh, the God of hosts.

¹⁴“For on the day that I punish Israel’s transgressions,

I will also punish the altars of ^aBethel;

The horns of the altar will be cut in pieces,

And they will fall to the ground.

¹⁵“I will also strike the ^1awinter house together with the ^bsummer house;

The houses of ^2civory will also perish,

And the ^dgreat houses will come to an end,”

Declares Yahweh.

CHAPTER 4

Yet You Have Not Returned to Me

¹Hear this word, you cows of ^aBashan who are on the ^bmountain of Samaria,

Who ^coppress the poor, who crush the needy,

Who say to their ¹husbands, “Bring now, that we may ^ddrink!”

²Lord Yahweh has ^asworn by His ^bholiness that,

“Behold, the days are coming upon you,

And ¹they will take you away with ^cmeat hooks,

And the last of you with ^dfish hooks.

³“And you will ^ago out through breaches in the walls,

Each one straight before her,

And you ¹will be cast to Harmon,” declares Yahweh.

⁴“Enter Bethel and transgress;

In Gilgal multiply transgression!

^aBring your sacrifices every morning,

Your tithes every three days.

⁵“¹And offer a ^athank offering also from that which is leavened,

And call for ^bfreewill offerings; cause them to be heard about.

For so you ^clove to do, you sons of Israel,”

Declares Lord Yahweh.

⁶“But I gave you also ^acleanness of teeth in all your cities

And lack of bread in all your places,

Yet you have ^bnot returned to Me,” declares Yahweh.

⁷“And I also ^awithheld the rain from you

While there were still three months until harvest.

Then I would send rain on one city,

And on ^banother city I would not send rain;

One portion would be rained on,

While the portion not rained on would dry up.

⁸“So two or three cities would wander around to another city to drink ^awater,

But would ^bnot be satisfied;

Yet you have ^cnot returned to Me,” declares Yahweh.

⁹“I ^astruck you with scorching wind and mildew;

And the ^bgnawing locust was devouring

Your many gardens and vineyards, fig trees, and olive trees;

Yet you have ^cnot returned to Me,” declares Yahweh.

¹⁰“I sent a ^apestilence among you after the manner of Egypt;

I ^bkilled your choice men by the sword along with your ^ccaptured horses,

And I made the ^dstench of your camp rise up even in your nostrils;

Yet you have ^enot returned to Me,” declares Yahweh.

¹¹“I overthrew you as ^aGod overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah,

And you were like a ^bfirebrand ¹delivered from a blaze;

Yet you have ^cnot returned to Me,” declares Yahweh.

¹²“Therefore thus I will do to you, O Israel;

Because I will do this to you,

Prepare to ^ameet your God, O Israel.”

¹³For behold, He who ^aforms mountains and ^bcreates the wind

And ^cdeclares to man what are His thoughts,

He who ^dmakes dawn into gloom

And ^etreads on the high places of the earth,

^fYahweh God of hosts is His name.

CHAPTER 5

Seek Me That You May Live

¹Hear this word which I take up for you as a funeral ^alament, O house of Israel:

²She has fallen; she will ^anot rise again—

The ^bvirgin Israel.

She lies abandoned on her land;

There is ^cnone to raise her up.

³For thus says Lord Yahweh,

“The city which goes forth one thousand strong

Will have one ^ahundred left,

And the one which goes forth one hundred strong

Will have ^bten left to the house of Israel.”

⁴For thus says Yahweh to the house of Israel,

“^aSeek Me ^bthat you may live.

⁵“But do not seek ^aBethel,

And do not come…