Amos 4

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 ¹your husbands, “Bring now, that we may ^ddrink!”

²The Lord ¹God has ^asworn by His ^bholiness,

“Behold, the days are coming upon you

When ²they will take you away with ^cmeat hooks,

And the last of you with ^dfish hooks.

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

Each one straight before her,

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

⁴“Enter Bethel and transgress;

In Gilgal multiply transgression!

^aBring your sacrifices every morning,

Your tithes every three days.

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

And proclaim ^bfreewill offerings, make them known.

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

Declares the Lord God.

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 the Lord.

⁷“Furthermore, I ^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 part would be rained on,

While the part not rained on would dry up.

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

But would ^bnot be satisfied;

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

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

And the ^bcaterpillar was devouring

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

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

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

I ^bslew your young men by the sword along with your ^ccaptured horses,

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

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

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

And you were like a ^bfirebrand snatched from a blaze;

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

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 darkness

And ^etreads on the high places of the earth,

^fThe Lord God of hosts is His name.