About Amos

Amos, a shepherd called to prophesy, denounced social injustice and religious hypocrisy in prosperous Israel.

Author: AmosWritten: c. 760-750 BCReading time: ~2 minVerses: 15
JusticeSocial RighteousnessJudgmentPrivilege and ResponsibilityDay of the LordRestoration

King James Version

Amos 9

15 verses with commentary

Israel to Be Destroyed

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. lintel: or, chapiter, or, knop cut: or, wound them

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>I saw the Lord standing upon the altar</strong> (רָאִיתִי אֶת־אֲדֹנָי נִצָּב עַל־הַמִּזְבֵּחַ)—Amos's fifth and final vision shows Yahweh Himself standing <em>al ha-mizbeach</em> (upon the altar), likely the idolatrous altar at Bethel where Israel corrupted worship. The verb <em>nitsav</em> (נִצָּב, "standing") implies judicial authority, not priestly service—He stands to pronounce sentenc...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

IX. (1) The last vision is transferred to the shrine at Bethel, the seat of the calf-worship. The prophet sees Jehovah Himself standing in pomp by the altar of burnt offering, and by His side the angel of His presence, to whom now, as on many other occasions, the mission of destruction has been entrusted. To him the words of Jehovah are addressed (so Aben Ezra, Kimchi). It is doubtful what is mean...
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Though they dig into hell, thence shall mine hand take them; though they climb up to heaven, thence will I bring them down:

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>Though they dig into hell, thence shall mine hand take them; though they climb up to heaven, thence will I bring them down</strong> (אִם־יַחְתְּרוּ בִשְׁאוֹל מִשָּׁם יָדִי תִקָּחֵם וְאִם־יַעֲלוּ הַשָּׁמַיִם מִשָּׁם אוֹרִידֵם)—this verse articulates God's absolute sovereignty over all creation. <em>Sheol</em> (שְׁאוֹל), the realm of the dead, represents the deepest conceivable depth, while ...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(2) **Dig.**—For this expression *break* should be substituted. “Hell,” or rather, *Hades* (*Sheôl*), the dark abode of the gathered dead, is contrasted with “heaven,” the abode of light. Escape from the universal Lord is impossible.

And though they hide themselves in the top of Carmel, 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:

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>Though they hide themselves in the top of Carmel, I will search and take them out thence</strong> (וְאִם־יֵחָבְאוּ בְּרֹאשׁ הַכַּרְמֶל מִשָּׁם אֲחַפֵּשׂ וּלְקַחְתִּים)—Mount Carmel, a densely forested mountain range, provided countless hiding places in caves and thickets. The verb <em>chapes</em> (חָפַשׂ, "search") describes thorough, determined seeking that will succeed. <strong>Though th...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(3) **Serpent.—**On this expression, *i.e.,* the “waterserpent,” comp. Isaiah 27:1.

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.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>Though they go into captivity before their enemies, thence will I command the sword, and it shall slay them</strong> (וְאִם־יֵלְכוּ בַשְּׁבִי לִפְנֵי אֹיְבֵיהֶם מִשָּׁם אֲצַוֶּה אֶת־הַחֶרֶב וַהֲרָגָתַם)—even exile, which might seem escape from covenant land under judgment, offers no safety. The <em>cherev</em> (חֶרֶב, sword) personified as God's agent will slay them <em>sham</em> (there), ...
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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 Egypt.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>The Lord GOD of hosts is he that toucheth the land, and it shall melt</strong> (וַאֲדֹנָי יְהוִה הַצְּבָאוֹת הַנּוֹגֵעַ בָּאָרֶץ וַתָּמוֹג)—this doxology (9:5-6) interrupts the judgment sequence to ground it in God's cosmic sovereignty. The title <em>Adonai Yahweh Tseva'ot</em> (Lord GOD of hosts) emphasizes supreme authority over heavenly and earthly armies. The verb <em>naga</em> (נָגַע,...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(5, 6) Accumulate in grand imagery the majesty, power, and irresistible resources of the Lord, who has at length become their enemy. The very world itself melts, as Sinai did, at His touch. The word “is” should be omitted in the rendering. The predicate “Jehovah (the Lord) is His name” (Amos 9:6) stands at the end of a series of attributive clauses. **Like a flood** . . .—The sentence should run t...
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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. stories: or, spheres: Heb. ascensions troop: or, bundle

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>It is he that buildeth his stories in the heaven, and hath founded his troop in the earth</strong> (הַבּוֹנֶה בַשָּׁמַיִם מַעֲלוֹתָו וַאֲגֻדָּתוֹ עַל־אֶרֶץ יְסָדָהּ)—the verb <em>banah</em> (בָּנָה, build) describes God as cosmic architect. The <em>ma'alot</em> (מַעֲלוֹת, stories/chambers/stairs) refers to heavenly dwelling-places or stories (some translate "upper chambers"). The <em>agudd...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**28. I am their inheritance--**(Nu 18:20; De 10:9; 18:1; Jos 13:14, 32).

Are ye not as children of the Ethiopians unto me, O children of Israel? saith the LORD. Have not I brought up Israel out of the land of Egypt? and the Philistines from Caphtor, and the Syrians from Kir?

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KJV Study Commentary

God's stunning question deflates Israel's ethnic pride: 'Are ye not as children of the Ethiopians unto me, O children of Israel? saith the LORD. Have not I brought up Israel out of the land of Egypt? and the Philistines from Caphtor, and the Syrians from Kir?' The comparison to Ethiopians (Cushites—distant, dark-skinned people) and the assertion that God orchestrated pagan migrations (Philistines ...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(7) **Ethiopians**.—Israel had presumed on the special favour of Jehovah. The prophet asks them whether, after all, they are better or safer than the Ethiopians, whom they despised. He who led Israel from Egypt also brought the Philistines from Caphtor, and the Syrians from *Kir.* Caphtor is mentioned in the table of races, Genesis 10:14 (where the clause referring to the Philistines should probab...
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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 Jacob, saith the LORD.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>Behold, the eyes of the Lord GOD are upon the sinful kingdom</strong> (הִנֵּה עֵינֵי אֲדֹנָי יְהוִה בַּמַּמְלָכָה הַחַטָּאָה)—after the terrifying escape-proof judgment (vv. 1-4) and cosmic doxology (vv. 5-6), verse 8 pivots to hope. God's <em>eynei</em> (עֵינֵי, eyes) focus on <em>ha-mamlakhah ha-chatta'ah</em> (הַמַּמְלָכָה הַחַטָּאָה, the sinful kingdom)—specifically the northern kingdo...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(8) **Sinful nation**.—The kingdom of the ten tribes which had so utterly revolted from the true centre and spiritual ideas of the worship of Jehovah.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**30. give ... priest the first ... that he may cause the blessing to rest--**(Pr 3:9, 10; Mal 3:10).

For, lo, I will command, and I will sift the house of Israel among all nations, like as corn is sifted in a sieve, yet shall not the least grain fall upon the earth. sift: Heb. cause to move grain: Heb. stone

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>For, lo, I will command, and I will sift the house of Israel among all nations</strong> (כִּי־הִנֵּה אָנֹכִי מְצַוֶּה וַהֲנִעוֹתִי בְכָל־הַגּוֹיִם אֶת־בֵּית יִשְׂרָאֵל)—the verb <em>tsavah</em> (צָוָה, command) shows sovereign control: exile isn't random calamity but God's ordained purpose. The verb <em>nu'ah</em> (נוּעַ, sift/shake) describes vigorous sifting. <strong>Like as corn is sift...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(9, 10) **Sift.—**Literally, *shake to and fro.* That which is not chaff shall be preserved and dispersed as seed. The race shall live, though the kingdom be destroyed. This peculiar judgment is threatened in Leviticus 26:33; Deuteronomy 28:64. (Comp. Hosea 9:17.) The prediction is very remarkable, as pointing to the indestructible vitality of the race, and its wide diffusion among all nations. **...
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All the sinners of my people shall die by the sword, which say, The evil shall not overtake nor prevent us.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>All the sinners of my people shall die by the sword</strong> (בַּחֶרֶב יָמוּתוּ כֹּל חַטָּאֵי עַמִּי)—the sifting process (v. 9) has a grim conclusion for the unrepentant. The <em>chatta'ei ammi</em> (חַטָּאֵי עַמִּי, sinners of my people) are distinguished from the faithful remnant—they're <em>in</em> covenant community but not <em>of</em> it, professing externally but unregenerate intern...
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Israel's Restoration

In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David 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: close: Heb. hedge, or, wall

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David 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.</strong> After eight chapters of unrelenting judgment, Amos pivots to stunning restoration prophecy. "In that day" (<em>bayom hahu</em>, בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא) points to eschatological fulfillment—the Day of the LORD whic...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(11, 12) These verses present some difficulties, as the quotation of the passage in Acts 15:15-17 is a free reproduction by St. James of the rendering of the LXX. The apostle uses it to show that there was a prophetic promise that after the dispersion of Israel the power and throne of David should be so re-established that it might be a rallying-place of the rest of the nations, “that the residue ...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

CHAPTER 45 Eze 45:1-25. Allotment of the Land for the Sanctuary, the City, and the Prince. **1. offer an oblation--**from a Hebrew root to "heave" or "raise"; when anything was offered to God, the offerer raised the hand. The special territorial division for the tribes is given in the forty-seventh and forty-eighth chapters. Only Jehovah's portion is here subdivided into its three parts: (1) that...
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That they may possess the remnant of Edom, and of all the heathen, which are called by my name, saith the LORD that doeth this. which: Heb. upon whom my name is called

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>That they may possess the remnant of Edom, and of all the heathen, which are called by my name</strong> (לְמַעַן יִירְשׁוּ אֶת־שְׁאֵרִית אֱדוֹם וְכָל־הַגּוֹיִם אֲשֶׁר־נִקְרָא שְׁמִי עֲלֵיהֶם)—this verse comes within Amos's restoration prophecy (9:11-15), following the devastating judgment oracles. The verb <em>yarash</em> (יָרַשׁ, possess/inherit) indicates sovereign claim, not merely mili...
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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. soweth: Heb. draweth forth sweet: or, new

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>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.</strong> This verse paints an astonishing picture of agricultural superabundance in the restored kingdom. The phrase "the plowman shall overtake the reaper" (<em>nigash horesh ba-qotser</em>...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(13) **Shall overtake the reaper.—**So rapidly will the harvest follow the ploughing. These closing verses foreshadow the glories of the restored kingdom of David (comp. Hosea 3:5), wherein we see the germ of the great Messianic prophecies of Isaiah. Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers Text Courtesy of BibleSupport.com. Used by Permission. Bible Hub

And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel, 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.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel</strong> (וְשַׁבְתִּי אֶת־שְׁבוּת עַמִּי יִשְׂרָאֵל, <em>v'shavti et-sh'vut ami Yisrael</em>)—After chapters of unrelenting judgment, Amos concludes with restoration promise. The verb שׁוּב (<em>shuv</em>, 'to return, restore') signals covenant renewal. <strong>And they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit them</strong> (וּבָ...
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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.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>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</strong> (וּנְטַעְתִּים עַל־אַדְמָתָם וְלֹא יִנָּתְשׁוּ עוֹד מֵעַל אַדְמָתָם אֲשֶׁר נָתַתִּי לָהֶם אָמַר יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ, <em>un'ta'tim al-admatam v'lo yinat'shu od me'al admatam asher natati lahem amar YHWH Eloheicha</em>)—The metaphor shifts from b...
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