Amos 1–9

1The words of Amos, one of the shepherds of Tekoa^a—the vision he saw concerning Israel two years before the earthquake,^b when Uzziah^c was king of Judah and Jeroboam^d son of Jehoash^a was king of Israel.^e

²He said:

“The Lord roars^f from Zion

and thunders^g from Jerusalem;^h

the pastures of the shepherds dry up,

and the top of Carmelⁱ withers.”^j

Judgment on Israel’s Neighbors

³This is what the Lord says:

“For three sins of Damascus,^k

even for four, I will not relent.^l

Because she threshed Gilead

with sledges having iron teeth,

⁴I will send fire^m on the house of Hazaelⁿ

that will consume the fortresses^o of Ben-Hadad.^p

⁵I will break down the gate^q of Damascus;

I will destroy the king who is in^b the Valley of Aven^c

and the one who holds the scepter in Beth Eden.^r

The people of Aram will go into exile to Kir,^s”

says the Lord.^t

⁶This is what the Lord says:

“For three sins of Gaza,^u

even for four, I will not relent.^v

Because she took captive whole communities

and sold them to Edom,^w

⁷I will send fire on the walls of Gaza

that will consume her fortresses.

⁸I will destroy the king^d of Ashdod^x

and the one who holds the scepter in Ashkelon.

I will turn my hand^y against Ekron,

till the last of the Philistines^z are dead,”^a

says the Sovereign Lord.^b

⁹This is what the Lord says:

“For three sins of Tyre,^c

even for four, I will not relent.^d

Because she sold whole communities of captives to Edom,

disregarding a treaty of brotherhood,^e

¹⁰I will send fire on the walls of Tyre

that will consume her fortresses.^f”

¹¹This is what the Lord says:

“For three sins of Edom,^g

even for four, I will not relent.

Because he pursued his brother with a sword^h

and slaughtered the women of the land,

because his anger raged continually

and his fury flamed unchecked,ⁱ

¹²I will send fire on Teman^j

that will consume the fortresses of Bozrah.^k”

¹³This is what the Lord says:

“For three sins of Ammon,^l

even for four, I will not relent.

Because he ripped open the pregnant women^m of Gilead

in order to extend his borders,

¹⁴I will set fire to the walls of Rabbahⁿ

that will consume^o her fortresses

amid war cries^p on the day of battle,

amid violent winds^q on a stormy day.

¹⁵Her king^e will go into exile,

he and his officials together,^r”

says the Lord.^s

2This is what the Lord says:

“For three sins of Moab,^t

even for four, I will not relent.

Because he burned to ashes^u

the bones of Edom’s king,

²I will send fire on Moab

that will consume the fortresses of Kerioth.^av

Moab will go down in great tumult

amid war cries^w and the blast of the trumpet.^x

³I will destroy her ruler^y

and kill all her officials with him,”^z

says the Lord.^a

⁴This is what the Lord says:

“For three sins of Judah,^b

even for four, I will not relent.

Because they have rejected the law^c of the Lord

and have not kept his decrees,^d

because they have been led astray^e by false gods,^bf

the gods^c their ancestors followed,^g

⁵I will send fire^h on Judah

that will consume the fortressesⁱ of Jerusalem.^j”

Judgment on Israel

⁶This is what the Lord says:

“For three sins of Israel,

even for four, I will not relent.^k

They sell the innocent for silver,

and the needy for a pair of sandals.^l

⁷They trample on the heads of the poor

as on the dust of the ground

and deny justice to the oppressed.

Father and son use the same girl

and so profane my holy name.^m

⁸They lie down beside every altar

on garments taken in pledge.ⁿ

In the house of their god

they drink wine^o taken as fines.^p

⁹“Yet I destroyed the Amorites^q before them,

though they were tall^r as the cedars

and strong as the oaks.^s

I destroyed their fruit above

and their roots^t below.

¹⁰I brought you up out of Egypt^u

and led^v you forty years in the wilderness^w

to give you the land of the Amorites.^x

¹¹“I also raised up prophets^y from among your children

and Nazirites^z from among your youths.

Is this not true, people of Israel?”

declares the Lord.

¹²“But you made the Nazirites drink wine

and commanded the prophets not to prophesy.^a

¹³“Now then, I will crush you

as a cart crushes when loaded with grain.^b

¹⁴The swift will not escape,^c

the strong^d will not muster their strength,

and the warrior will not save his life.^e

¹⁵The archer^f will not stand his ground,

the fleet-footed soldier will not get away,

and the horseman^g will not save his life.^h

¹⁶Even the bravest warriorsⁱ

will flee naked on that day,”

declares the Lord.

Witnesses Summoned Against Israel

3Hear this word, people of Israel, the word the Lord has spoken against you^j—against the whole family I brought up out of Egypt:^k

²“You only have I chosen^l

of all the families of the earth;

therefore I will punish^m you

for all your sins.ⁿ”

³Do two walk together

unless they have agreed to do so?

⁴Does a lion roar^o in the thicket

when it has no prey?^p

Does it growl in its den

when it has caught nothing?

⁵Does a bird swoop down to a trap on the ground

when no bait^q is there?

Does a trap spring up from the ground

if it has not caught anything?

⁶When a trumpet^r sounds in a city,

do not the people tremble?

When disaster^s comes to a city,

has not the Lord caused it?^t

⁷Surely the Sovereign Lord does nothing

without revealing his plan^u

to his servants the prophets.^v

⁸The lion^w has roared^x—

who will not fear?

The Sovereign Lord has spoken—

who can but prophesy?^y

⁹Proclaim to the fortresses of Ashdod^z

and to the fortresses of Egypt:

“Assemble yourselves on the mountains of Samaria;^a

see the great unrest within her

and the oppression among her people.”

¹⁰“They do not know how to do right,^b” declares the Lord,

“who store up in their fortresses^c

what they have plundered^d and looted.”

¹¹Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“An enemy will overrun your land,

pull down your strongholds

and plunder your fortresses.^e”

¹²This is what the Lord says:

“As a shepherd rescues from the lion’s^f mouth

only two leg bones or a piece of an ear,

so will the Israelites living in Samaria be rescued,

with only the head of a bed

and a piece of fabric^a from a couch.^bg”

¹³“Hear this and testify^h against the descendants of Jacob,” declares the Lord, the Lord God Almighty.

¹⁴“On the day I punishⁱ Israel for her sins,

I will destroy the altars of Bethel;^j

the horns^k of the altar will be cut off

and fall to the ground.

¹⁵I will tear down the winter house^l

along with the summer house;^m

the houses adorned with ivoryⁿ will be destroyed

and the mansions^o will be demolished,^p”

declares the Lord.^q

Israel Has Not Returned to God

4Hear this word, you cows of Bashan^r on Mount Samaria,^s

you women who oppress the poor^t and crush the needy^u

and say to your husbands,^v “Bring us some drinks!^w”

²The Sovereign Lord has sworn by his holiness:

“The time^x will surely come

when you will be taken away^y with hooks,^z

the last of you with fishhooks.^a

³You will each go straight out

through breaches in the wall,^a

and you will be cast out toward Harmon,^b”

declares the Lord.

⁴“Go to Bethel^b and sin;

go to Gilgal^c and sin yet more.

Bring your sacrifices every morning,^d

your tithes^e every three years.^cf

⁵Burn leavened bread^g as a thank offering

and brag about your freewill offerings^h—

boast about them, you Israelites,

for this is what you love to do,”

declares the Sovereign Lord.

⁶“I gave you empty stomachs in every city

and lack of bread in every town,

yet you have not returned to me,”

declares the Lord.ⁱ

⁷“I also withheld^j rain from you

when the harvest was still three months away.

I sent rain on one town,

but withheld it from another.^k

One field had rain;

another had none and dried up.

⁸People staggered from town to town for water^l

but did not get enough^m to drink,

yet you have not returnedⁿ to me,”

declares the Lord.^o

⁹“Many times I struck your gardens and vineyards,

destroying them with blight and mildew.^p

Locusts^q devoured your fig and olive trees,^r

yet you have not returned^s to me,”

declares the Lord.

¹⁰“I sent plagues^t among you

as I did to Egypt.^u

I killed your young men^v with the sword,

along with your captured horses.

I filled your nostrils with the stench^w of your camps,

yet you have not returned to me,”^x

declares the Lord.^y

¹¹“I overthrew some of you

as I overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.^z

You were like a burning stick^a snatched from the fire,

yet you have not returned to me,”

declares the Lord.^b

¹²“Therefore this is what I will do to you, Israel,

and because I will do this to you, Israel,

prepare to meet your God.”

¹³He who forms the mountains,^c

who creates the wind,^d

and who reveals his thoughts^e to mankind,

who turns dawn to darkness,

and treads on the heights of the earth^f—

the Lord God Almighty is his name.^g

A Lament and Call to Repentance

5Hear this word, Israel, this lament^h I take up concerning you:

²“Fallen is Virginⁱ Israel,

never to rise again,

deserted in her own land,

with no one to lift her up.^j”

³This is what the Sovereign Lord says to Israel:

“Your city that marches out a thousand strong

will have only a hundred left;

your town that marches out a hundred strong

will have only ten left.^k”

⁴This is what the Lord says to Israel:

“Seek^l me and live;^m

⁵do not seek Bethel,

do not go to Gilgal,ⁿ

do not journey to Beersheba.^o

For Gilgal will surely go into exile,

and Bethel will be reduced to nothing.^ap”

⁶Seek^q the Lord and live,^r

or he will sweep through the tribes of Joseph like a fire;^s

it will devour them,

and Bethel^t will have no one to quench it.^u

⁷There are those who turn justice into bitterness^v

and cast righteousness^w to the ground.^x

⁸He who made the Pleiades and Orion,^y

who turns midnight into dawn^z

and darkens day into night,^a

who calls for the waters of the sea

and pours them out over the face of the land—

the Lord is his name.^b

⁹With a blinding flash he destroys the stronghold

and brings the fortified city to ruin.^c

¹⁰There are those who hate the one who upholds justice in court^d

and detest the one who tells the truth.^e

¹¹You levy a straw tax on the poor^f

and impose a tax on their grain.

Therefore, though you have built stone mansions,^g

you will not live in them;^h

though you have planted lush…