Amos 1
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
I. Editorial Introduction
Chapter 1
1 The words of Amos, who was one of the sheepbreeders from Tekoa,(A) which he received in a vision concerning Israel in the days of Uzziah, king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam, son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the earthquake.[a] 2 He said:
The Lord roars from Zion,[b]
and raises his voice from Jerusalem;
The pastures of the shepherds languish,
and the summit of Carmel withers.(B)
II. Oracles Against the Nations[c]
Aram
3 Thus says the Lord:
For three crimes of Damascus, and now four—[d]
I will not take it back—
Because they threshed Gilead
with sledges of iron,
4 I will send fire upon the house of Hazael,
and it will devour the strongholds of Ben-hadad.[e](C)
5 I will break the barred gate of Damascus;
From the Valley of Aven[f] I will cut off the one enthroned,
And the sceptered ruler from Beth-eden;
the people of Aram shall be exiled to Kir,(D) says the Lord.
Philistia
6 Thus says the Lord:
For three crimes of Gaza, and now four—
I will not take it back—
Because they exiled an entire population,
handing them over to Edom,
7 I will send fire upon the wall of Gaza,
and it will devour its strongholds;
8 From Ashdod I will cut off the one enthroned
and the sceptered ruler from Ashkelon;
I will turn my hand against Ekron,
and the last of the Philistines shall perish,
says the Lord God.
Tyre
9 Thus says the Lord:
For three crimes of Tyre, and now four—
I will not take it back—
Because they handed over an entire population to Edom,
and did not remember their covenant of brotherhood,[g]
10 I will send fire upon the wall of Tyre,
and it will devour its strongholds.
Edom
11 Thus says the Lord:
For three crimes of Edom, and now four—
I will not take it back—
Because he pursued his brother[h] with the sword,
suppressing all pity,
Persisting in his anger,
his wrath raging without end,
12 I will send fire upon Teman,
and it will devour the strongholds of Bozrah.[i]
Ammon
13 Thus says the Lord:
For three crimes of the Ammonites, and now four—
I will not take it back—
Because they ripped open pregnant women in Gilead,(E)
in order to extend their territory,
14 I will kindle a fire upon the wall of Rabbah,[j]
and it will devour its strongholds
Amid war cries on the day of battle,
amid stormwind on the day of tempest.
15 Their king shall go into exile,
he and his princes with him, says the Lord.
Footnotes
- 1:1 The earthquake: a major earthquake during the reign of Uzziah (ca. 783–742 B.C.), so devastating that it was remembered long afterwards (cf. Zec 14:5). See the description of an earthquake in Amos’s final vision (9:1).
- 1:2 Significantly, the roar comes to the Northern Kingdom from Jerusalem. This verse, perhaps an editorial remark, sets the tone of Amos’s message.
- 1:3–2:16 All the nations mentioned here may have been part of the ideal empire of David-Solomon (cf. 1 Kgs 5:1; 2 Kgs 14:25). Certain standards of conduct were expected not only in their relations with Israel but also with one another.
- 1:3 For three crimes…and now four: this formula (n, n + 1) is frequent in poetry (e.g., Prv 6:16–19; 30:18–19). The progression “three” followed by “four” here suggests a climax. The fourth crime is one too many and exhausts the Lord’s forbearance.
- 1:4 Hazael…Ben-hadad: kings of the Arameans whose capital was Damascus (v. 5); they fought against Israel (2 Kgs 13:3) and had long occupied the region of Gilead (v. 3) in Transjordan.
- 1:5 Valley of Aven: lit., “valley of wickedness,” perhaps a distortion of a place name in Aramean territory, identity unknown. Beth-eden: an Aramean city-state on the Euphrates, about two hundred miles northeast of Damascus, called Bit-adini in Assyro-Babylonian texts. Kir: cf. 9:7; probably to be identified with the city of Emar on the Euphrates, a major Aramean center in the Late Bronze Age. One text from this site calls the king of Emar “the king of the people of the land of Kir.”
- 1:9 Did not remember their covenant of brotherhood: standard diplomatic language of this period, meaning “violated the treaty.” The violation may not have been against Israel itself but against a fellow “subject” nation of the ideal Davidic-Solomonic empire (cf. 2:1).
- 1:11 Pursued his brother: “brother” here may denote a fellow vassal or subject of Israel.
- 1:12 Teman…Bozrah: two of the chief cities of Edom; cf. Jer 49:20.
- 1:14 Rabbah: now called Amman, the modern capital of Jordan.
Amos 1
Schlachter 2000
Das unabwendbare Gericht Gottes über Israels Nachbarvölker
1 Dies sind die Worte, welche Amos, der unter den Hirten von Tekoa war, über Israel geschaut hat in den Tagen von Ussija, dem König von Juda, und in den Tagen von Jerobeam, dem Sohn des Joas, dem König von Israel, zwei Jahre vor dem Erdbeben.
2 Er sprach: Der Herr wird brüllen aus Zion und seine Stimme erschallen lassen von Jerusalem her; da werden die Auen der Hirten trauern, und der Gipfel des Karmel wird verdorren.
3 So spricht der Herr: Wegen drei und wegen vier Übertretungen von Damaskus werde ich es nicht abwenden, nämlich weil sie Gilead mit eisernen Dreschschlitten[a] zerdroschen haben;
4 darum will ich ein Feuer in das Haus Hasaels senden, und es wird die Paläste Benhadads verzehren;
5 und ich will den Riegel von Damaskus zerbrechen und den, der auf dem Thron sitzt, aus dem Tal Awen[b] ausrotten samt dem, der das Zepter in Beth-Eden[c] hält; und das Volk von Aram soll nach Kir in die Verbannung wandern!, spricht der Herr.
6 So spricht der Herr: Wegen drei und wegen vier Übertretungen von Gaza werde ich es nicht abwenden: Weil sie eine ganze Bevölkerung in die Gefangenschaft abgeführt und an Edom ausgeliefert haben;
7 darum will ich ein Feuer in die Mauern von Gaza senden, das seine Paläste verzehren soll;
8 und ich will den, der [auf dem Thron] sitzt[d], aus Asdod ausrotten und den, der in Askalon das Zepter hält, und will meine Hand gegen Ekron wenden; und der Überrest der Philister soll zugrunde gehen!, spricht Gott, der Herr[e].
9 So spricht der Herr: Wegen drei und wegen vier Übertretungen von Tyrus werde ich es nicht abwenden: Weil sie eine ganze Bevölkerung an Edom ausgeliefert und an den Bruderbund nicht gedacht haben.
10 Darum will ich ein Feuer in die Mauern von Tyrus senden, das ihre Paläste verzehren soll.
11 So spricht der Herr: Wegen drei und wegen vier Übertretungen Edoms werde ich es nicht abwenden: Weil er seinen Bruder mit dem Schwert verfolgt und sein Erbarmen abgetötet hat, und weil sein Zorn stets zerfleischt und er seinen Grimm allezeit behalten hat;
12 darum will ich ein Feuer nach Teman senden, das die Paläste von Bozra verzehren soll.
13 So spricht der Herr: Wegen drei und wegen vier Übertretungen der Ammoniter werde ich es nicht abwenden: Weil sie die Schwangeren in Gilead aufgeschlitzt haben, um ihr eigenes Gebiet zu erweitern;
14 darum will ich ein Feuer in den Mauern von Rabba anzünden, das ihre Paläste verzehren soll, unter Kriegsgeschrei am Tag der Schlacht und im Sturm am Tag des Unwetters.
15 Und ihr König muss in die Gefangenschaft ziehen und seine Fürsten samt ihm!, spricht der Herr.
Amos 1
King James Version
1 The words of Amos, who was among the herdmen of Tekoa, which he saw concerning Israel in the days of Uzziah king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash king of Israel, two years before the earthquake.
2 And he said, The Lord will roar from Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the habitations of the shepherds shall mourn, and the top of Carmel shall wither.
3 Thus saith the Lord; For three transgressions of Damascus, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they have threshed Gilead with threshing instruments of iron:
4 But I will send a fire into the house of Hazael, which shall devour the palaces of Benhadad.
5 I will break also the bar of Damascus, and cut off the inhabitant from the plain of Aven, and him that holdeth the sceptre from the house of Eden: and the people of Syria shall go into captivity unto Kir, saith the Lord.
6 Thus saith the Lord; For three transgressions of Gaza, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they carried away captive the whole captivity, to deliver them up to Edom:
7 But I will send a fire on the wall of Gaza, which shall devour the palaces thereof:
8 And I will cut off the inhabitant from Ashdod, and him that holdeth the sceptre from Ashkelon, and I will turn mine hand against Ekron: and the remnant of the Philistines shall perish, saith the Lord God.
9 Thus saith the Lord; For three transgressions of Tyrus, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they delivered up the whole captivity to Edom, and remembered not the brotherly covenant:
10 But I will send a fire on the wall of Tyrus, which shall devour the palaces thereof.
11 Thus saith the Lord; For three transgressions of Edom, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because he did pursue his brother with the sword, and did cast off all pity, and his anger did tear perpetually, and he kept his wrath for ever:
12 But I will send a fire upon Teman, which shall devour the palaces of Bozrah.
13 Thus saith the Lord; For three transgressions of the children of Ammon, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they have ripped up the women with child of Gilead, that they might enlarge their border:
14 But I will kindle a fire in the wall of Rabbah, and it shall devour the palaces thereof, with shouting in the day of battle, with a tempest in the day of the whirlwind:
15 And their king shall go into captivity, he and his princes together, saith the Lord.
Amos 1
New King James Version
Judgments on Israel’s Neighbors
1 The words of Amos, who was among the (A)sheepbreeders of (B)Tekoa, which he saw concerning Israel in the days of (C)Uzziah king of Judah, and in the days of (D)Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the (E)earthquake.
2 And he said:
“The Lord (F)roars from Zion,
And utters His voice from Jerusalem;
The pastures of the shepherds mourn,
And the top of (G)Carmel withers.”
Judgment on the Nations
3 Thus says the Lord:
“For three transgressions of (H)Damascus, and for four,
I will not turn away its punishment,
Because they have (I)threshed Gilead with implements of iron.
4 (J)But I will send a fire into the house of Hazael,
Which shall devour the palaces of (K)Ben-Hadad.
5 I will also break the gate (L)bar of Damascus,
And cut off the inhabitant from the Valley of Aven,
And the one who [a]holds the scepter from [b]Beth Eden.
The people of Syria shall go captive to Kir,”
Says the Lord.
6 Thus says the Lord:
“For three transgressions of (M)Gaza, and for four,
I will not turn away its punishment,
Because they took captive the whole captivity
To deliver them up to Edom.
7 (N)But I will send a fire upon the wall of Gaza,
Which shall devour its palaces.
8 I will cut off the inhabitant (O)from Ashdod,
And the one who holds the scepter from Ashkelon;
I will (P)turn My hand against Ekron,
And (Q)the remnant of the Philistines shall perish,”
Says the Lord God.
9 Thus says the Lord:
“For three transgressions of (R)Tyre, and for four,
I will not turn away its punishment,
Because they delivered up the whole captivity to Edom,
And did not remember the covenant of brotherhood.
10 But I will send a fire upon the wall of Tyre,
Which shall devour its palaces.”
11 Thus says the Lord:
“For three transgressions of (S)Edom, and for four,
I will not turn away its punishment,
Because he pursued his (T)brother with the sword,
And cast off all pity;
His anger tore perpetually,
And he kept his wrath forever.
12 But (U)I will send a fire upon Teman,
Which shall devour the palaces of Bozrah.”
13 Thus says the Lord:
“For three transgressions of (V)the people of Ammon, and for four,
I will not turn away its punishment,
Because they ripped open the women with child in Gilead,
That they might enlarge their territory.
14 But I will kindle a fire in the wall of (W)Rabbah,
And it shall devour its palaces,
(X)Amid shouting in the day of battle,
And a tempest in the day of the whirlwind.
15 (Y)Their king shall go into captivity,
He and his princes together,”
Says the Lord.
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.
Copyright © 2000 by Geneva Bible Society
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
