Amos 9:1-10

Destruction of Israel

1 I saw my Lord standing by the altar and he said, "Strike the capitals so that the thresholds will shake, and shatter them on the head of all of them, and I will kill the rest of them with the sword. A fugitive belonging to them will not run away, and a survivor belonging to them will not escape.

2 If they dig into Sheol, from there my hand will take them, and [even] if they climb up [to] heaven, from there I will bring them down.

3 And [even] if they hide themselves on the top of Carmel, from there I will search and will take them, and [even] if they hide from before my eyes at the bottom of the sea, from there I will command the sea serpent and it will bite them.

4 And [even] if they go into captivity before their enemies, from there I will command the sword and it will kill them, and I will fix my eyes on them for harm and not for good."

5 And [thus will do] the Lord Yahweh of hosts, who touches the earth and it melts, and all of those living in it mourn, and all of it rises like the Nile and it sinks down like [the] Nile of Egypt,

6 who builds his upper chambers in the heavens and lays the foundation of his vault on the earth, who calls for the waters of the sea and pours them on the surface of the earth--Yahweh is his name.

7 "Are you not like the Cushites to me, O people of Israel?" {declares} Yahweh. "Did I not bring up Israel from the land of Egypt and [the] Philistines from Caphtor and {the Arameans} from Kir?

8 Look, the eyes of my Lord Yahweh [are] on the kingdom of sin, and I will destroy it from the surface of the earth. However, I will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob," {declares} Yahweh.

9 "Yes, look, I [am] going to command and I will shake the house of Israel among all the nations like one who shakes with a sieve, but not a pebble will fall [to the] ground.

10 All the sinners of my people will die by the sword, who say, 'Evil will not overtake or confront us.'

Amos 9:1-10 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO AMOS 9

This chapter contains the fifth and last vision the prophet saw; which represents the certain desolation of the land, city, and temple, and the slaughter of all sorts of persons, high and low, none should escape it, Am 9:1; be they where they would, they should be found out, whether in hell or heaven, on the tops of the highest mountains, or in the bottom of the sea, or in a foreign land, since the eyes of the Lord were upon them for evil, Am 9:2-4; nor could they hope to escape, when they considered his greatness and his power, and what he could do, and had done; and how they had behaved towards him, even though they were the people he had brought out of Egypt, Am 9:5-7; but though the sinful kingdom should be destroyed, yet not utterly, a remnant should be saved, Am 9:8-10; and the chapter is concluded with gracious promises of raising up the tabernacle of David fallen down, and of the return of the people of Israel to their own land; and of their settlement and continuance in it, never more to depart from it, Am 9:11-15.

Footnotes

• [a]. Literally "a declaration of"
• [b]. Literally "Aram"
• [c]. Literally "a declaration of"