CHAPTER 1
<<Ā‑́MŎṠ>> The words of Ā‑́mŏṡ, who was among the herd­men of Tĕ‑kō‑́ă, which he saw concerning Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl in the days of Ŭz‑zī‑́ăh king of Jûd‑́ăh, and in the days of Jĕr‑ŏ‑bō‑́ăm the son of Jō‑́ăsh king of Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl, two years before the earth­quake.
2 And he said, The LORD will roar from Zī‑́o̱n, and utter his voice from Jĕ‑rû‑́să‑lĕm; and the habitations of the shepherds shall mourn, and the top of Cär‑́mĕl shall wither.
3 Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Dă‑măs‑́cŭs, and for four, I will not turn away [the punishment] thereof; because they have threshed Gĭl‑́ĕ‑ăd with threshing instruments of iron:
4 But I will send a fire into the house of Hă‑zā‑́ĕl, which shall devour the palaces of Bĕn–hā‑́dăd.
5 I will break also the bar of Dă‑măs‑́cŭs, and cut off the inhabitant from the plain of Ā‑́vĕn, and him that holdeth the sceptre from the house of Ē‑́dĕn: and the people of Sy̆r‑́ĭ‑ă shall go into captivity unto Kĭr, saith the LORD.
6 ¶ Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Gā‑́ză, and for four, I will not turn away [the punishment] thereof; because they carried away captive the whole captivity, to deliver [them] up to Ē‑́do̱m:
7 But I will send a fire on the wall of Gā‑́ză, which shall devour the palaces thereof:
8 And I will cut off the inhabitant from Ăsh‑́dŏd, and him that holdeth the sceptre from Ăsh‑́kĕ‑lo̱n, and I will turn mine hand against Ĕk‑́rŏn: and the remnant of the Phĭl‑́ĭs‑tīneṡ shall perish, saith the Lord GOD.
9 ¶ Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Tȳ‑́rŭs, and for four, I will not turn away [the punishment] thereof; because they delivered up the whole captivity to Ē‑́do̱m, and remembered not the brotherly covenant:
10 But I will send a fire on the wall of Tȳ‑́rŭs, which shall devour the palaces thereof.
11 ¶ Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Ē‑́do̱m, 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 Tē‑́măn, which shall devour the palaces of Bŏz‑́răh.
13 ¶ Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of the children of Ăm‑́mo̱n, and for four, I will not turn away [the punishment] thereof; because they have ripped up the women with child of Gĭl‑́ĕ‑ăd, that they might enlarge their border:
14 But I will kindle a fire in the wall of Răb‑́băh, 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.
CHAPTER 2
Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Mō‑́ăb, and for four, I will not turn away [the punishment] thereof; because he burned the bones of the king of Ē‑́do̱m into lime:
2 But I will send a fire upon Mō‑́ăb, and it shall devour the palaces of Kĕr‑́ĭ‑ōth: and Mō‑́ăb shall die with tumult, with shouting, [and] with the sound of the trumpet:
3 And I will cut off the judge from the midst thereof, and will slay all the princes thereof with him, saith the LORD.
4 ¶ Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Jûd‑́ăh, and for four, I will not turn away [the punishment] thereof; because they have despised the law of the LORD, and have not kept his commandments, and their lies caused them to err, after the which their fathers have walked:
5 But I will send a fire upon Jûd‑́ăh, and it shall devour the palaces of Jĕ‑rû‑́să‑lĕm.
6 ¶ Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl, and for four, I will not turn away [the punishment] thereof; because they sold the righteous for silver, and the poor for a pair of shoes;
7 That pant after the dust of the earth on the head of the poor, and turn aside the way of the meek: and a man and his father will go in unto the [same] maid, to profane my holy name:
8 And they lay [them­selves] down upon clothes laid to pledge by every altar, and they drink the wine of the condemned [in] the house of their god.
9 ¶ Yet destroyed I the Ăm‑́ō‑rīte before them, whose height [was] like the height of the cedars, and he [was] strong as the oaks; yet I destroyed his fruit from above, and his roots from beneath.
10 Also I brought you up from the land of Ē‑́ġy̆pt, and led you forty years through the wilderness, to possess the land of the Ăm‑́ō‑rīte.
11 And I raised up of your sons for prophets, and of your young men for Năz‑́ă‑rītes. [Is it] not even thus, O ye children of Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl? saith the LORD.
12 But ye gave the Năz‑́ă‑rītes wine to drink; and commanded the prophets, saying, Prophesy not.
13 Behold, I am pressed under you, as a cart is pressed [that is] full of sheaves.
14 Therefore the flight shall perish from the swift, and the strong shall not strengthen his force, neither shall the mighty deliver him­self:
15 Neither shall he stand that handleth the bow; and [he that is] swift of foot shall not deliver [him­self]: neither shall he that rideth the horse deliver him­self.
16 And [he that is] courageous among the mighty shall flee away naked in that day, saith the LORD.
CHAPTER 3
Hear this word that the LORD hath spoken against you, O children of Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl, against the whole family which I brought up from the land of Ē‑́ġy̆pt, saying,
2 You only have I known of all the families of the earth: therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities.
3 Can two walk together, except they be agreed?
4 Will a lion roar in the forest, when he hath no prey? will a young lion cry out of his den, if he have taken nothing?
5 Can a bird fall in a snare upon the earth, where no gin [is] for him? shall [one] take up a snare from the earth, and have taken nothing at all?
6 Shall a trumpet be blown in the city, and the people not be afraid? shall there be evil in a city, and the LORD hath not done [it]?
7 Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.
8 The lion hath roared, who will not fear? the Lord GOD hath spoken, who can but prophesy?
9 ¶ Publish in the palaces at Ăsh‑́dŏd, and in the palaces in the land of Ē‑́ġy̆pt, and say, Assemble your­selves upon the mountains of Să‑mâr‑́ĭ‑ă, and behold the great tumults in the midst thereof, and the oppressed in the midst thereof.
10 For they know not to do right, saith the LORD, who store up violence and robbery in their palaces.
11 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; An adversary [there shall be] even round about the land; and he shall bring down thy strength from thee, and thy palaces shall be spoiled.
12 Thus saith the LORD; As the shepherd taketh out of the mouth of the lion two legs, or a piece of an ear; so shall the children of Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl be taken out that dwell in Să‑mâr‑́ĭ‑ă in the corner of a bed, and in Dă‑măs‑́cŭs [in] a couch.
13 Hear ye, and testify in the house of Jā‑́co̱b, saith the Lord GOD, the God of hosts,
14 That in the day that I shall visit the transgressions of Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl upon him I will also visit the altars of Bĕth–́ĕl: and the horns of the altar shall be cut off, and fall to the ground.
15 And I will smite the winter house with the summer house; and the houses of ivory shall perish, and the great houses shall have an end, saith the LORD.
CHAPTER 4
Hear this word, ye kine of Bā‑́shăn, that [are] in the mountain of Să‑mâr‑́ĭ‑ă, which oppress the poor, which crush the needy, which say to their masters, Bring, and let us drink.
2 The Lord GOD hath sworn by his holiness, that, lo, the days shall come upon you, that he will take you away with hooks, and your posterity with fish­hooks.
3 And ye shall go out at the breaches, every [cow at that which is] before her; and ye shall cast [them] into the palace, saith the LORD.
4 ¶ Come to Bĕth–́ĕl, and transgress; at Gĭl‑́găl multiply transgression; and bring your sacrifices every morning, [and] your tithes after three years:
5 And offer a sacrifice of thanks­giving with leaven, and proclaim [and] publish the free offerings: for this liketh you, O ye children of Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl, saith the Lord GOD.
6 ¶ And I also have given you cleanness of teeth in all your cities, and want of bread in all your places: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.
7 And also I have with­holden the rain from you, when [there were] yet three months to the harvest: and I caused it to rain upon one city, and caused it not to rain upon another city: one piece was rained upon, and the piece where­upon it rained not withered.
8 So two [or] three cities wandered unto one city, to drink water; but they were not satisfied: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.
9 I have smitten you with blasting and mildew: when your gardens and your vineyards and your fig trees and your olive trees increased, the palmerworm devoured [them]: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.
10 I have sent among you the pestilence after the manner of Ē‑́ġy̆pt: your young men have I slain with the sword, and have taken away your horses; and I have made the stink of your camps to come up unto your nostrils: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.
11 I have over­thrown [some] of you, as God over­threw Sŏd‑́o̱m and Gō‑mŏr‑́răh, and ye were as a fire­brand plucked out of the burning: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.
12 Therefore thus will I do unto thee, O Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl: [and] because I will do this unto thee, prepare to meet thy God, O Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl.
13 For, lo, he that formeth the mountains, and createth the wind, and declareth unto man what [is] his thought, that maketh the morning darkness, and treadeth upon the high places of the earth, The LORD, The God of hosts, [is] his name.
CHAPTER 5
Hear ye this word which I take up against you, [even] a lamentation, O house of Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl.
2 The virgin of Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl is fallen; she shall no more rise: she is forsaken upon her land; [there is] none to raise her up.
3 For thus saith the Lord GOD; The city that went out [by] a thousand shall leave an hundred, and that which went forth [by] an hundred shall leave ten, to the house of Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl.
4 ¶ For thus saith the LORD unto the house of Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl, Seek ye me, and ye shall live:
5 But seek not Bĕth–́ĕl, nor enter into Gĭl‑́găl, and pass not to Be᷍er–shē‑́bă: for Gĭl‑́găl shall surely go into captivity, and Bĕth–́ĕl shall come to nought.
6 Seek the LORD, and ye shall live; lest he break out like fire in the house of Jō‑́ṡĕph, and devour [it], and [there be] none to quench [it] in Bĕth–́ĕl.
7 Ye who turn judgment to worm­wood, and leave off righteousness in the earth,
8 [Seek him] that maketh the seven stars and Ō‑rī‑́o̱n, and turneth the shadow of death into the morning, and maketh the day dark with night: that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth: The LORD [is] his name:
9 That strengtheneth the spoiled against the strong, so that the spoiled shall come against the fortress.
10 They hate him that rebuketh in the gate, and they abhor him that speaketh uprightly.
11 Forasmuch therefore as your treading [is] upon the poor, and ye take from him burdens of wheat: ye have built houses of hewn stone, but ye shall not dwell in them; ye have planted pleasant vineyards, but ye shall not drink wine of them.
12 For I know your manifold transgressions and your mighty sins: they afflict the just, they take a bribe, and they turn aside the poor in the gate [from their right].
13 Therefore the prudent shall keep silence in that time; for it [is] an evil time.
14 Seek good, and not evil, that ye may live: and so the LORD, the God of hosts, shall be with you, as ye have spoken.
15 Hate the evil, and love the good, and establish judgment in the gate: it may be that the LORD God of hosts will be gracious unto the remnant of Jō‑́ṡĕph.
16 Therefore the LORD, the God of hosts, the Lord, saith thus; Wailing [shall be] in all streets; and they shall say in all the high­ways, Alas! alas! and they shall call the husband­man to mourning, and such as are skilful of lamentation to wailing.
17 And in all vineyards [shall be] wailing: for I will pass through thee, saith the LORD.
18 Woe unto you that desire the day of the LORD! to what end [is] it for you? the day of the LORD [is] darkness, and not light.
19 As if a man did flee from a lion, and a bear met him; or went into the house, and leaned his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him.
20 [Shall] not the day of the LORD [be] darkness, and not light? even very dark, and no brightness in it?
21 ¶ I hate, I despise your feast days, and I will not smell in your solemn assemblies.
22 Though ye offer me burnt offerings and your meat offerings, I will not accept [them]: neither will I regard the peace offerings of your fat beasts.
23 Take thou away from me the noise of thy songs; for I will not hear the melody of thy viols.
24 But let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream.
25 Have ye offered unto me sacrifices and offerings in the wilderness forty years, O house of Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl?
26 But ye have borne the tabernacle of your Mō‑́lŏc͟h and C͟hī‑́ŭn your images, the star of your god, which ye made to your­selves.
27 Therefore will I cause you to go into captivity beyond Dă‑măs‑́cŭs, saith the LORD, whose name [is] The God of hosts.
CHAPTER 6
Woe to them [that are] at ease in Zī‑́o̱n, and trust in the mountain of Să‑mâr‑́ĭ‑ă, [which are] named chief of the nations, to whom the house of Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl came!
2 Pass ye unto Căl‑́nēh, and see; and from thence go ye to Hā‑́măth the great: then go down to Găth of the Phĭl‑́ĭs‑tīneṡ: [be they] better than these kingdoms? or their border greater than your border?
3 Ye that put far away the evil day, and cause the seat of violence to come near;
4 That lie upon beds of ivory, and stretch them­selves upon their couches, and eat the lambs out of the flock, and the calves out of the midst of the stall;
5 That chant to the sound of the viol, [and] invent to them­selves instruments of musick, like Dā‑́vĭd;
6 That drink wine in bowls, and anoint them­selves with the chief ointments: but they are not grieved for the affliction of Jō‑́ṡĕph.
7 ¶ Therefore now shall they go captive with the first that go captive, and the banquet of them that stretched them­selves shall be removed.
8 The Lord GOD hath sworn by him­self, saith the LORD the God of hosts, I abhor the excellency of Jā‑́co̱b, and hate his palaces: therefore will I deliver up the city with all that is therein.
9 And it shall come to pass, if there remain ten men in one house, that they shall die.
10 And a man’s uncle shall take him up, and he that burneth him, to bring out the bones out of the house, and shall say unto him that [is] by the sides of the house, [Is there] yet [any] with thee? and he shall say, No. Then shall he say, Hold thy tongue: for we may not make mention of the name of the LORD.
11 For, behold, the LORD commandeth, and he will smite the great house with breaches, and the little house with clefts.
12 ¶ Shall horses run upon the rock? will [one] plow [there] with oxen? for ye have turned judgment into gall, and the fruit of righteousness into hemlock:
13 Ye which rejoice in a thing of nought, which say, Have we not taken to us horns by our own strength?
14 But, behold, I will raise up against you a nation, O house of Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl, saith the LORD the God of hosts; and they shall afflict you from the entering in of Hē‑́măth unto the river of the wilderness.
CHAPTER 7
Thus hath the Lord GOD shewed unto me; and, behold, he formed grasshoppers in the beginning of the shooting up of the latter growth; and, lo, [it was] the latter growth after the king’s mowings.
2 And it came to pass, [that] when they had made an end of eating the grass of the land, then I said, O Lord GOD, forgive, I beseech thee: by whom shall Jā‑́co̱b arise? for he [is] small.
3 The LORD repented for this: It shall not be, saith the LORD.
4 ¶ Thus hath the Lord GOD shewed unto me: and, behold, the Lord GOD called to contend by fire, and it devoured the great deep, and did eat up a part.
5 Then said I, O Lord GOD, cease, I beseech thee: by whom shall Jā‑́co̱b arise? for he [is] small.
6 The LORD repented for this: This also shall not be, saith the Lord GOD.
7 ¶ Thus he shewed me: and, behold, the Lord stood upon a wall [made] by a plumbline, with a plumbline in his hand.
8 And the LORD said unto me, Ā‑́mŏṡ, what seest thou? And I said, A plumbline. Then said the Lord, Behold, I will set a plumbline in the midst of my people Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl: I will not again pass by them any more:
9 And the high places of Ī‑́ṡa̅a̅c shall be desolate, and the sanctuaries of Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl shall be laid waste; and I will rise against the house of Jĕr‑ŏ‑bō‑́ăm with the sword.
10 ¶ Then Ăm‑ă‑zī‑́ăh the priest of Bĕth–́ĕl sent to Jĕr‑ŏ‑bō‑́ăm king of Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl, saying, Ā‑́mŏṡ hath conspired against thee in the midst of the house of Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl: the land is not able to bear all his words.
11 For thus Ā‑́mŏṡ saith, Jĕr‑ŏ‑bō‑́ăm shall die by the sword, and Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl shall surely be led away captive out of their own land.
12 Also Ăm‑ă‑zī‑́ăh said unto Ā‑́mŏṡ, O thou seer, go, flee thee away into the land of Jûd‑́ăh, and there eat bread, and prophesy there:
13 But prophesy not again any more at Bĕth–́ĕl: for it [is] the king’s chapel, and it [is] the king’s court.
14 ¶ Then answered Ā‑́mŏṡ, and said to Ăm‑ă‑zī‑́ăh, I [was] no prophet, neither [was] I a prophet’s son; but I [was] an herd­man, and a gatherer of sycomore fruit:
15 And the LORD took me as I followed the flock, and the LORD said unto me, Go, prophesy unto my people Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl.
16 ¶ Now therefore hear thou the word of the LORD: Thou sayest, Prophesy not against Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl, and drop not [thy word] against the house of Ī‑́ṡa̅a̅c.
17 Therefore thus saith the LORD; Thy wife shall be an harlot in the city, and thy sons and thy daughters shall fall by the sword, and thy land shall be divided by line; and thou shalt die in a polluted land: and Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl shall surely go into captivity forth of his land.
CHAPTER 8
Thus hath the Lord GOD shewed unto me: and behold a basket of summer fruit.
2 And he said, Ā‑́mŏṡ, what seest thou? And I said, A basket of summer fruit. Then said the LORD unto me, The end is come upon my people of Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl; I will not again pass by them any more.
3 And the songs of the temple shall be howlings in that day, saith the Lord GOD: [there shall be] many dead bodies in every place; they shall cast [them] forth with silence.
4 ¶ Hear this, O ye that swallow up the needy, even to make the poor of the land to fail,
5 Saying, When will the new moon be gone, that we may sell corn? and the sabbath, that we may set forth wheat, making the ē‑́phäh small, and the shē‑́kĕl great, and falsifying the balances by deceit?
6 That we may buy the poor for silver, and the needy for a pair of shoes; [yea], and sell the refuse of the wheat?
7 The LORD hath sworn by the excellency of Jā‑́co̱b, Surely I will never forget any of their works.
8 Shall not the land tremble for this, and every one mourn that dwelleth therein? and it shall rise up wholly as a flood; and it shall be cast out and drowned, as [by] the flood of Ē‑́ġy̆pt.
9 And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord GOD, that I will cause the sun to go down at noon, and I will darken the earth in the clear day:
10 And I will turn your feasts into mourning, and all your songs into lamentation; and I will bring up sack­cloth upon all loins, and baldness upon every head; and I will make it as the mourning of an only [son], and the end thereof as a bitter day.
11 ¶ Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD:
12 And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, and shall not find [it].
13 In that day shall the fair virgins and young men faint for thirst.
14 They that swear by the sin of Să‑mâr‑́ĭ‑ă, and say, Thy god, O Dăn, liveth; and, The manner of Be᷍er–shē‑́bă liveth; even they shall fall, and never rise up again.
CHAPTER 9
I saw the Lord standing upon the altar: and he said, Smite the lintel of the door, that the posts may shake: and cut them in the head, all of them; and I will slay the last of them with the sword: he that fleeth of them shall not flee away, and he that escapeth of them shall not be delivered.
2 Though they dig into hell, thence shall mine hand take them; though they climb up to heaven, thence will I bring them down:
3 And though they hide them­selves in the top of Cär‑́mĕl, I will search and take them out thence; and though they be hid from my sight in the bottom of the sea, thence will I command the serpent, and he shall bite them:
4 And though they go into captivity before their enemies, thence will I command the sword, and it shall slay them: and I will set mine eyes upon them for evil, and not for good.
5 And the Lord GOD of hosts [is] he that toucheth the land, and it shall melt, and all that dwell therein shall mourn: and it shall rise up wholly like a flood; and shall be drowned, as [by] the flood of Ē‑́ġy̆pt.
6 [It is] he that buildeth his stories in the heaven, and hath founded his troop in the earth; he that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth: The LORD [is] his name.
7 [Are] ye not as children of the Ē‑thĭ‑ō‑́pĭ‑ăns unto me, O children of Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl? saith the LORD. Have not I brought up Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl out of the land of Ē‑́ġy̆pt? and the Phĭl‑́ĭs‑tīneṡ from Căph‑́tôr, and the Sy̆r‑́ĭ‑ăns from Kĭr?
8 Behold, the eyes of the Lord GOD [are] upon the sinful kingdom, and I will destroy it from off the face of the earth; saving that I will not utterly destroy the house of Jā‑́co̱b, saith the LORD.
9 For, lo, I will command, and I will sift the house of Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl among all nations, like as [corn] is sifted in a sieve, yet shall not the least grain fall upon the earth.
10 All the sinners of my people shall die by the sword, which say, The evil shall not over­take nor prevent us.
11 ¶ In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of Dā‑́vĭd that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof; and I will raise up his ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old:
12 That they may possess the remnant of Ē‑́do̱m, and of all the heathen, which are called by my name, saith the LORD that doeth this.
13 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that the plow­man shall over­take the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed; and the mountains shall drop sweet wine, and all the hills shall melt.
14 And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Ĭṡ‑́rā‑ĕl, and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit [them]; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; they shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them.
15 And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, saith the LORD thy God.