Amos 7–8

Chapter 7

Warning Through Visions

¹Thus the Lord ¹God showed me, and behold, He was forming a ^alocust-swarm ²when the spring crop began to sprout. And behold, the spring crop was after the king’s ³mowing.

²And it came about, ¹when it had ^afinished eating the vegetation of the land, that I said,

“^bLord God, please pardon!

²How can Jacob stand,

For he is ^csmall?”

³The Lord ^1achanged His mind about this.

“It shall not be,” said the Lord.

⁴Thus the Lord God showed me, and behold, the Lord God was calling to contend with them by ^afire, and it consumed the great deep and began to consume the ¹farm land.

⁵Then I said,

“^aLord God, please stop!

^bHow can Jacob stand, for he is small?”

⁶The Lord ^1achanged His mind about this.

“This too shall not be,” said the Lord God.

⁷Thus He showed me, and behold, the Lord was standing ¹by a ²vertical wall with a plumb line in His hand.

⁸The Lord said to me, “^aWhat do you see, Amos?” And I said, “A plumb line.” Then the Lord said,

“Behold I am about to put a ^bplumb line

In the midst of My people Israel.

I will ^1cspare them no longer.

⁹“The ^ahigh places of Isaac will be desolated

And the ^bsanctuaries of Israel laid waste.

Then I will ^crise up against the house of Jeroboam with the sword.”

Amos Accused, Answers

¹⁰Then Amaziah, the ^apriest of Bethel, sent word to ^bJeroboam king of Israel, saying, “Amos has ^cconspired against you in the midst of the house of Israel; the land is unable to endure all his words.

¹¹“For thus Amos says, ‘Jeroboam will die by the sword and Israel will certainly go from its land into exile.’ ”

¹²Then Amaziah said to Amos, “^aGo, you seer, flee away to the land of Judah and there eat bread and there do your prophesying!

¹³“But ^ano longer prophesy at Bethel, for it is a ^bsanctuary of the king and a royal ¹residence.”

¹⁴Then Amos replied to Amaziah, “I am not a prophet, nor am I the ^ason of a prophet; for I am a herdsman and a ¹grower of sycamore figs.

¹⁵“But the Lord took me from ¹following the flock and the Lord said to me, ‘Go ^aprophesy to My people Israel.’

¹⁶“Now hear the word of the Lord: you are saying, ‘You ^ashall not prophesy against Israel ^bnor shall you ¹speak against the house of Isaac.’

¹⁷“Therefore, thus says the Lord, ‘Your ^awife will become a harlot in the city, your ^bsons and your daughters will fall by the sword, your land will be parceled up by a measuring line and you yourself will die ¹upon ^cunclean soil. Moreover, Israel will certainly go from its land into exile.’ ”

Chapter 8

Basket of Fruit and Israel’s Captivity

¹Thus the Lord ¹God showed me, and behold, there was a basket of summer fruit.

²He said, “What do you see, Amos?” And ^aI said, “A basket of summer fruit.” Then the Lord said to me, “The ^bend has come for My people Israel. I will ^1cspare them no longer.

³“¹The ^asongs of the palace will turn to ^bwailing in that day,” declares the Lord God. “Many will be the ^ccorpses; in every place ²they will cast them forth ³in silence.”

⁴Hear this, you who ^1atrample the needy, to do away with the humble of the land,

⁵saying,

“When will the ^anew moon ¹be over,

So that we may sell grain,

And the ^bsabbath, that we may open the wheat market,

To make the ²bushel smaller and the shekel bigger,

And to ^ccheat with ³dishonest scales,

⁶So as to ^abuy the helpless for ¹money

And the needy for a pair of sandals,

And that we may sell the refuse of the wheat?”

⁷The Lord has ^asworn by the ^bpride of Jacob,

“Indeed, I will ^cnever forget any of their deeds.

⁸“Because of this will not the land ^aquake

And everyone who dwells in it ^bmourn?

Indeed, all of it will ^crise up like the Nile,

And it will be tossed about

And subside like the Nile of Egypt.

⁹“It will come about in that day,” declares the Lord God,

“That I will make the ^asun go down at noon

And ^bmake the earth dark in ¹broad daylight.

¹⁰“Then I will ^aturn your festivals into mourning

And all your songs into ¹lamentation;

And I will bring ^bsackcloth on everyone’s loins

And baldness on every head.

And I will make it ^clike a time of mourning for an only son,

And the end of it will be like a bitter day.

¹¹“Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord God,

“When I will send a famine on the land,

Not a famine for bread or a thirst for water,

But rather ^afor hearing the words of the Lord.

¹²“People will stagger from sea to sea

And from the north even to the east;

They will go to and fro to ^aseek the word of the Lord,

But they will not find it.

¹³“In that day the beautiful ^avirgins

And the young men will ^bfaint from thirst.

¹⁴“As for those who swear by the ^1aguilt of Samaria,

Who say, ‘As your god lives, O ^bDan,’

And, ‘As the way of ^cBeersheba lives,’

They will fall and ^dnot rise again.”