⁷Then the Lord gave me a third vision. He was standing by a wall. It had been built very straight, all the way up and down. He was holding a plumb line. ⁸The Lord asked me, “What do you see, Amos?”

“A plumb line,” I replied.

Then the Lord said, “Look at what I am doing. I am hanging a plumb line next to my people Israel. It will show how crooked they are. I will no longer spare them.

⁹“The high places where Isaac’s people worship other gods will be destroyed.

The other places of worship in Israel will also be torn down.

I will use my sword

to attack Jeroboam’s royal family.”

Amaziah Tells Amos to Stop Prophesying

¹⁰Amaziah was priest of Bethel. He sent a message to Jeroboam, the king of Israel. He said, “Amos is making evil plans against you right here in Israel. The people in the land can’t stand to listen to what he’s saying. ¹¹Amos is telling them,

“ ‘Jeroboam will be killed with a sword.

The people of Israel will be taken away as prisoners.

They will be carried off from their own land.’ ”

¹²Then Amaziah said to Amos, “Get out of Israel, you prophet! Go back to the land of Judah. Earn your living there. Do your prophesying there. ¹³Don’t prophesy here at Bethel anymore. This is where the king worships. The main temple in the kingdom is located here.”

¹⁴Amos answered Amaziah, “I was not a prophet. I wasn’t even a prophet’s son. I was a shepherd. I also took care of sycamore-fig trees. ¹⁵But the Lord took me away from taking care of the flock. He said to me, ‘Go. Prophesy to my people Israel.’

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