Amos 9:2

2 Though they dig down to the depths below, from there my hand will take them. Though they climb up to the heavens above, from there I will bring them down.

Amos 9:2 in Other Translations

King James Version (KJV)
2 Though they dig into hell, thence shall mine hand take them; though they climb up to heaven, thence will I bring them down:
English Standard Version (ESV)
2 "If they dig into Sheol, from there shall my hand take them; if they climb up to heaven, from there I will bring them down.
New Living Translation (NLT)
2 “Even if they dig down to the place of the dead, I will reach down and pull them up. Even if they climb up into the heavens, I will bring them down.
The Message Bible (MSG)
2 If they dig their way down into the underworld, I'll find them and bring them up. If they climb to the stars, I'll find them and bring them down.
American Standard Version (ASV)
2 Though they dig into Sheol, thence shall my hand take them; and though they climb up to heaven, thence will I bring them down.
GOD'S WORD Translation (GW)
2 Even if they dig their way into Sheol, my hand will take them from there. Even if they go up to heaven, I will bring them down from there.
Holman Christian Standard Bible (CSB)
2 If they dig down to Sheol, from there My hand will take them; if they climb up to heaven, from there I will bring them down.
New International Reader's Version (NIRV)
2 They might dig down to the deepest parts of the grave. But my powerful hand will take them out of there. They might climb up to the heavens. But I will bring them down from there.

Amos 9:2 Meaning and Commentary

Amos 9:2

Though they dig into hell, thence shall mine hand take them,
&c.] That is, they that endeavour to make their escape from their enemies, though they seek for places of the greatest secrecy and privacy; not hell, the place of the damned; nor the grave, the repository of the dead; neither of which they chose to he in, but rather sought to escape them; but the deepest and darkest caverns, the utmost recesses of the earth, the very centre of it; which, could they get into, would not secure them from the power and providence of God, and from their enemies in pursuit of them, by his permission: though they climb up to heaven, thence will I bring them down;
the summit of the highest mountains, and get as near to heaven, and at as great a distance from men, as can be, and yet all in vain. The Targum is,

``if they think to be hid as it were in hell, from thence their enemies shall take them by my word; and if they ascend the high mountains, to the top of heaven, thence will I bring them;''
see ( Psalms 139:8 ) .

Amos 9:2 In-Context

1 I saw the Lord standing by the altar, and he said: “Strike the tops of the pillars so that the thresholds shake. Bring them down on the heads of all the people; those who are left I will kill with the sword. Not one will get away, none will escape.
2 Though they dig down to the depths below, from there my hand will take them. Though they climb up to the heavens above, from there I will bring them down.
3 Though they hide themselves on the top of Carmel, there I will hunt them down and seize them. Though they hide from my eyes at the bottom of the sea, there I will command the serpent to bite them.
4 Though they are driven into exile by their enemies, there I will command the sword to slay them. “I will keep my eye on them for harm and not for good.”
5 The Lord, the LORD Almighty— he touches the earth and it melts, and all who live in it mourn; the whole land rises like the Nile, then sinks like the river of Egypt;

Cross References 3

  • 1. S Job 7:9; S Ezekiel 26:20; Psalms 139:8
  • 2. Jeremiah 51:53
  • 3. Obadiah 1:4
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