Amos 7:3-13

3 The Lord had mercy on this thing; It shall not be, said the Lord God.

4 The Lord God showed to me these things; and lo! the Lord God shall call doom to fire, and it shall devour much depth of water, and it ate (al)together a part. (The Lord God showed me these things; and lo! the Lord God called judgement into the fire, and it devoured a great depth of water, and it ate a part of it.)

5 And I said, Lord God, I beseech, rest thou; who shall raise Jacob, for he is little? (And I said, Lord God, I beseech thee, rest thou; for who shall raise up Jacob, for he is so small?/for they be so weak?)

6 The Lord had mercy on this thing; But also and this thing shall not be, said the Lord God. (The Lord had mercy on this thing; And also this shall not be, said the Lord God.)

7 The Lord God showed to me these things; and lo! the Lord standing on a wall pargeted, or plastered, and in the hand of him was a trowel of a mason. (The Lord God showed me these things; and lo! the Lord was standing by a plastered wall; and in his hand was a mason's trowel/was a plumb line.)

8 And the Lord said to me, What seest thou, Amos? And I said, A trowel of a mason. And the Lord said, Lo! I shall put a trowel in the middle of my people Israel; I shall no more put to, for to over-lead it; (And the Lord said to me, What seest thou, Amos? And I said, A mason's trowel/A plumb line. And the Lord said, Lo! I shall put a trowel in the midst of my people Israel/I shall put a plumb line in the midst of my people Israel; no more shall I pass them by;)

9 and the high things of idol shall be destroyed, and the hallowings of Israel shall be desolate; and I shall rise on the house of Jeroboam by sword. (and the high places, or the hill shrines, of Isaac shall be destroyed, and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be made desolate; and I shall rise against the house of Jeroboam with a sword.)

10 And Amaziah, priest of Bethel, sent to Jeroboam, king of Israel, and said, Amos rebelled against thee, in the middle of the house of Israel; the land may not sustain all his words. (And Amaziah, the priest of Bethel, sent word to Jeroboam, the king of Israel, and said, Amos is conspiring against thee in the midst of the house of Israel; the land cannot survive all his words.)

11 For Amos saith these things, Jeroboam shall die by sword, and Israel (taken) captive shall pass from his land. (For Amos saith these things; Jeroboam shall die by the sword, and the people of Israel shall be taken away captive from their own land.)

12 And Amaziah said to Amos, Thou that seest, go; flee thou into the land of Judah, and eat thou there thy bread; and there thou shalt prophesy. (And then Amaziah said to Amos, Go thou away, O seer/O prophet; flee thou into the land of Judah, and eat thy food there; and there thou shalt prophesy.)

13 And thou shalt no more put to, that thou prophesy in Bethel, for it is the hallowing of the king, and is the house of the realm. (But no more shalt thou come forth here, so that thou prophesy at Bethel, for it is the king's place of worship, and the house of the realm/for it is the sanctuary of the king, and a royal palace.)

Amos 7:3-13 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO AMOS 7

In this and the two following chapters are the visions of Amos, in number five; three of which are contained in this chapter, and with which it begins. The first is of the grasshoppers or locusts eating up the later grass of the land, which are stopped at the intercession of the prophet, Am 7:1-3; the second is of fire the Lord called for to contend by, whose devouring flames are made to cease by the same interposition, Am 7:4-6; and the other is of the plumbline, signifying the utter destruction of the people of Israel, according to the righteous judgment of God, Am 7:7-9; upon the delivery of which prophecies and visions, the priest of Bethel forms a charge against the prophet to the king; and advises Amos to flee into Judea, and prophesy there, and not at Bethel, being willing to be rid of him at any rate, Am 7:10-13; next follows the prophet's vindication of himself showing his divine call to the prophetic office, and his mission and express order he had from the Lord to prophesy unto Israel, Am 7:14,15; and concludes with a denunciation of divine judgments on the priest's family, and upon the whole land of Israel, Am 7:16,17.