Amos 2
Good News Translation
Moab
2 (A)The Lord says, “The people of Moab have sinned again and again, and for this I will certainly punish them. They dishonored the bones of the king of Edom by burning them to ashes. 2 I will send fire upon the land of Moab and burn down the fortresses of Kerioth. The people of Moab will die in the noise of battle while soldiers are shouting and trumpets are sounding. 3 I will kill the ruler of Moab and all the leaders of the land.”
Judah
4 The Lord says, “The people of Judah have sinned again and again, and for this I will certainly punish them. They have despised my teachings and have not kept my commands. They have been led astray by the same false gods that their ancestors served. 5 So I will send fire upon Judah and burn down the fortresses of Jerusalem.”
God's Judgment on Israel
6 The Lord says, “The people of Israel have sinned again and again, and for this I will certainly punish them. They sell into slavery honest people who cannot pay their debts, the poor who cannot repay even the price of a pair of sandals. 7 They trample[a] down the weak and helpless and push the poor out of the way. A man and his father have intercourse with the same slave woman, and so profane my holy name. 8 At every place of worship people sleep on clothing that they have taken from the poor as security for debts. In the temple of their God they drink wine which they have taken from those who owe them money.
9 (B)“And yet, my people, it was for your sake that I totally destroyed the Amorites, who were as tall as cedar trees and as strong as oaks. 10 I brought you out of Egypt, led you through the desert for forty years, and gave you the land of the Amorites to be your own. 11 (C)I chose some of your sons to be prophets and some of your young men to be nazirites.[b] Isn't this true, people of Israel? I, the Lord, have spoken. 12 But you made the nazirites drink wine, and ordered the prophets not to speak my message. 13 And now I will crush you to the ground, and you will groan like a cart loaded with grain. 14 Not even fast runners will escape; strong men will lose their strength, and soldiers will not be able to save their own lives. 15 Archers will not stand their ground, fast runners will not get away, and men on horses will not escape with their lives. 16 On that day even the bravest soldiers will drop their weapons and run.” The Lord has spoken.
Amos 2
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 2
For Three Crimes of Moab
1 Thus says the Lord:
For three crimes of Moab, and for four,
I will not revoke my decree.
Because they incinerated to ashes
the bones of the king of Edom,[a]
2 I will send down fire on Moab
to devour the palaces of Kerioth.
Moab will perish amid the uproar,
amid war cries and the sound of trumpets.
3 I will destroy its rulers
and slaughter all of his officials with him.
For Three Crimes of Judah
4 Thus says the Lord:
For three crimes of Judah, and for four,
I will not revoke my decree.
Because they have spurned the law of the Lord
and have not observed his statutes,
having been led astray
by the lies which their fathers followed,
5 I will send fire down on Judah
to devour the palaces of Jerusalem.
The Trial of Israel
For Three Crimes of Israel
6 Thus says the Lord:
For three crimes of Israel, and for four,
I will not revoke my decree.
They sell righteous people for silver
and the poor for a pair of sandals.
7 They have trampled the heads of the poor
into the dust of the earth
and thrust the lowly out of their way.
Father and son lie with the same prostitute,
profaning my holy name.
8 They lie down beside every altar
upon garments acquired as surety,[b]
while drinking in the house of their God
the wine purchased with the fines they impose.
9 Yet I was the one
who destroyed the Amorites[c] before them;
they were as tall as the cedars
and as strong as the oaks.
I was the one
who destroyed their fruit above
and their roots below.
10 I was the one
who brought you up from the land of Egypt
and for forty years led you through the desert
to take possession of the land of the Amorites.
11 I was the one
who raised up some of your sons to be prophets
and some of your young men to be Nazirites.
Is this not indeed true, O Israelites?
says the Lord.
12 But you forced the Nazirites to drink wine
and commanded the prophets, “Do not prophesy!”
13 Therefore, I will crush you
just as a cart crushes when it is fully laden.
14 The swift will be unable to take flight;
the strong man will not retain his strength,
and the warrior will be unable to save his life.
15 The archer will not stand his ground;
the swift of foot will not escape,
nor will the horseman save his life.
16 Even the bravest of warriors
will flee away naked on that day,
says the Lord.
Footnotes
- Amos 2:1 In the view of the ancients, the refusal of proper burial meant leaving the dead person in an unhappy situation; this was regarded as the height of immorality.
- Amos 2:8 Surety: according to the law (Ex 22:25; Deut 24:12), a garment taken as a pledge must be restored before nightfall.
- Amos 2:9 The Amorites represent the Canaanites, the inhabitants of Palestine.
Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.
