Amos 8:4-14

4 Hear this, you who ¹trample the needy, to do away with the humble of the land,

5 saying, "When will the ²new moon be over, So that we may sell grain, And the ³sabbath, that we may open the wheat market, To make the bushel smaller and the shekel bigger, And to ⁴cheat with dishonest scales,

6 So as to ⁵buy the helpless for money And the needy for a pair of sandals, And that we may sell the refuse of the wheat?"

7 The LORD has ⁶sworn by the ⁷pride of Jacob, "Indeed, I will ⁸never * forget any of their deeds.

8 "Because of this will not the land ⁹quake And everyone who dwells in it ¹⁰mourn? Indeed, all of it will ¹¹rise up like the Nile, And it will be tossed about And subside like the Nile of Egypt.

9 "It will come about in that day," declares the Lord GOD, "That I will make the ¹²sun go down at noon And ¹³make the earth dark in broad daylight *.

10 "Then I will ¹⁴turn your festivals into mourning And all your songs into lamentation; And I will bring ¹⁵sackcloth on everyone's loins And baldness on every head. And I will make it ¹⁶like a time of mourning for an only son, And the end of it will be like a bitter day.

11 "Behold, days are coming," declares the Lord GOD, "When I will send a famine on the land, Not a famine for bread or a thirst for water, But rather * ¹⁷for hearing the words of the LORD.

12 "People will stagger from sea to sea And from the north even to the east; They will go to and fro to ¹⁸seek the word of the LORD, But they will not find it.

13 "In that day the beautiful ¹⁹virgins And the young men will ²⁰faint from thirst.

14 "As for those who swear by the ²¹guilt of Samaria, Who say, 'As your god lives, O ²²Dan,' And, 'As the way of ²³Beersheba lives,' They will fall and ²⁴not rise again."

Amos 8:4-14 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO AMOS 8

In this chapter a fourth vision is delivered, the vision of a "basket of summer fruit"; signifying the destruction of the ten tribes, for which they were ripe, and which would quickly come upon them, Am 8:1-3; the rich are reproved for their oppression of the poor, their covetousness and earthly mindedness, Am 8:4-6; for which they are threatened with entire ruin, sudden calamities, and very mournful times, instead of light, joy, and gladness, Am 8:7-10; and particularly with a famine of hearing the word of God, Am 8:11,12; the consequence of which would be, a fainting of the young men and virgins for thirst, and the utter and irrecoverable ruin of all idolaters, Am 8:13,14.

Cross References

• 1. Psalms 14:4; Proverbs 30:14; Amos 2:7; Amos 5:11, 12
• 2. Numbers 28:11; 2 Kings 4:23
• 3. Exodus 31:13-17; Nehemiah 13:15
• 4. Hosea 12:7; Micah 6:11
• 5. Amos 2:6
• 6. Amos 4:2
• 7. Deuteronomy 33:26, 29; Psalms 68:34; Amos 6:8
• 8. Psalms 10:11; Hosea 7:2; Hosea 8:13
• 9. Psalms 18:7; Psalms 60:2; Isaiah 5:25
• 10. Hosea 4:3
• 11. Jeremiah 46:7, 8; Amos 9:5
• 12. Job 5:14; Isaiah 13:10; Jeremiah 15:9; Micah 3:6
• 13. Isaiah 59:9, 10; Amos 4:13; Amos 5:8
• 14. Job 20:23; Amos 5:21
• 15. Isaiah 15:2, 3; Jeremiah 48:37; Ezekiel 7:18; Ezekiel 27:31
• 16. Jeremiah 6:26; Zechariah 12:10
• 17. 1 Samuel 3:1; 2 Chronicles 15:3; Psalms 74:9; Ezekiel 7:26; Micah 3:6
• 18. Ezekiel 20:3, 31
• 19. Lamentations 1:18; Lamentations 2:21
• 20. Isaiah 41:17; Hosea 2:3
• 21. Hosea 8:5
• 22. 1 Kings 12:28, 29
• 23. Amos 5:5
• 24. Amos 5:2

Footnotes

• [a]. Or "snap at"
• [b]. Lit "pass by"
• [c]. Lit "ephah"
• [d]. Lit "balances of deception"
• [e]. Lit "silver"
• [f]. Lit "a day of light"
• [g]. Or "a dirge"
• [h]. Or "Ashimah"