Amos 8:1

1 Then the Sovereign LORD showed me another vision. In it I saw a basket filled with ripe fruit.

Amos 8:1 Meaning and Commentary

Amos 8:1

Thus hath the Lord God showed unto me
Another vision, which is the fourth, and after the following manner: and, behold, a basket of summer fruit;
not of the first ripe fruit, but of such as were gathered at the close of the summer, when autumn began. So the Targum,

``the last of the summer fruit;''

such as were fully ripe, and would not keep till winter; or, if kept, would rot; but must be eaten directly, as some sort of apples, grapes, &c. denoting the people of Israel being ripe for destruction, and would be quickly devoured by their enemies; and that, as they had had a summer of prosperity, they would now have a sharp winter of adversity.

Amos 8:1 In-Context

1 Then the Sovereign LORD showed me another vision. In it I saw a basket filled with ripe fruit.

2 “What do you see, Amos?” he asked. I replied, “A basket full of ripe fruit.” Then the LORD said, “Like this fruit, Israel is ripe for punishment! I will not delay their punishment again.

3 In that day the singing in the Temple will turn to wailing. Dead bodies will be scattered everywhere. They will be carried out of the city in silence. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken!”

4 Listen to this, you who rob the poor and trample down the needy!

5 You can’t wait for the Sabbath day to be over and the religious festivals to end so you can get back to cheating the helpless. You measure out grain with dishonest measures and cheat the buyer with dishonest scales.