Amos 5

1 Hear this word, O house of Israel, this lamentation I take up against you:

Listen to the words of the funeral song I am singing for you, Israel:

2 “Fallen is Virgin Israel, never to rise again. She lies abandoned on her land, with no one to raise her up.”

Fallen, no more to rise, is the virgin Israel! Hurled down upon her own soil she lies, with no one to lift her up!

3 This is what the Lord GOD says: “The city that marches out a thousand strong will only see a hundred return, and the one that marches out a hundred strong will have but ten left in the house of Israel.”

For the Lord God says this: The city that marches out with a thousand soldiers has only a hundred left, and the one that marches out with a hundred has only ten left.

4 For this is what the LORD says to the house of Israel: “Seek Me and live!

For the Lord says this to Israel: Seek me and live,

5 Do not seek Bethel or go to Gilgal; do not journey to Beersheba, for Gilgal will surely go into exile, and Bethel will come to nothing.

But do not seek Bethel, do not enter Gilgal, do not go over to Beer-sheba. For Gilgal will enter exile, and Bethel will go to destruction.

6 Seek the LORD and live, or He will sweep like fire through the house of Joseph; it will devour everything, with no one at Bethel to extinguish it.

Seek the Lord and live, or he will cast fire on the house of Joseph, and it will devour and there will be no one to quench it for Bethel.

7 There are those who turn justice into wormwood and cast righteousness to the ground.

You who turn judgment to bitter wormwood, and cast righteousness into the dirt:

8 He who made the Pleiades and Orion, who turns darkness into dawn and darkens day into night, who summons the waters of the sea and pours them over the face of the earth— the LORD is His name—

He who made the Pleiades and Orion, who turns deep darkness into dawn, who darkens day again into night, who summons the waters of the sea, and pours them out on the earth’s surface, the Lord is his name!

9 He flashes destruction on the strong, so that fury comes upon the stronghold.

He causes destruction to burst over the strong. He brings devastation on the fortress.

10 There are those who hate the one who reproves in the gate and despise him who speaks with integrity.

You who hate the arbiters at the city gate, and abhor anyone who speaks the truth:

11 Therefore, because you trample on the poor and exact from him a tax of grain, you will never live in the stone houses you have built; you will never drink the wine from the lush vineyards you have planted.

Because you trample on the weak, and tax their grain, although you have built houses of hewn stone, you will not live in them, although you have planted charming vineyards, you will not drink their wine.

12 For I know that your transgressions are many and your sins are numerous. You oppress the righteous by taking bribes; you deprive the poor of justice in the gate.

For I know how many are your crimes, and how great are your sins! You persecutors of the righteous, takers of bribes! You deny the poor their justice at the city gate.

13 Therefore, the prudent keep silent in such times, for the days are evil.

It would be wise to keep quiet in such an evil time.

14 Seek good, not evil, so that you may live. And the LORD, the God of Hosts, will be with you, as you have claimed.

Seek good and not evil, that you may live, so the Lord, God of hosts, may be with you, as you have claimed he is.

15 Hate evil and love good; establish justice in the gate. Perhaps the LORD, the God of Hosts, will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.”

Hate evil and love good, establish justice at the city gate. Perhaps the Lord, the God of hosts, will be gracious to a surviving remnant of Joseph.

16 Therefore this is what the LORD, the God of Hosts, the Lord, says: “There will be wailing in all the public squares and cries of ‘Alas! Alas!’ in all the streets. The farmer will be summoned to mourn, and the mourners to wail.

Therefore the Lord, the God of hosts, says: In all the public squares there will be wailing, in every street the sound of mourning. They will summon the farmers to mourning, and professional mourners to wailing.

17 There will be wailing in all the vineyards, for I will pass through your midst,”

In all vineyards there will be lamenting, when I pass through your midst, says the Lord.

18 Woe to you who long for the Day of the LORD! What will the Day of the LORD be for you? It will be darkness and not light.

Fools who long for the day of the Lord! What does the day of the Lord mean to you? It is darkness, and not light.

19 It will be like a man who flees from a lion, only to encounter a bear, or who enters his house and rests his hand against the wall, only to be bitten by a snake.

It is as when one flees from a lion, and is attacked by a bear, as when one reaches home, leans his hand on the wall, and a snake bites him.

20 Will not the Day of the LORD be darkness and not light, even gloom with no brightness in it?

Won’t the Lord’s day be darkness and not light, murky darkness without a ray of light in it?

21 “I hate, I despise your feasts! I cannot stand the stench of your solemn assemblies.

I hate, I despise your feasts, I will not smell the savor of your festivals,

22 Even though you offer Me burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them; for your peace offerings of fattened cattle I will have no regard.

I will not be pleased with your burnt offerings, your grain offerings, I will not accept the peace offerings of your fattened calves.

23 Take away from Me the noise of your songs! I will not listen to the music of your harps.

Spare me the noise of your songs, I will not listen to the melody of your lyres.

24 But let justice roll on like a river, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.

But let justice roll on as a flood of waters, and righteousness like an unfailing stream.

25 Did you bring Me sacrifices and offerings forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?

Was it only sacrifices and grain offerings you brought me during the forty years in the wilderness, Israel?

26 You have taken along Sakkuth your king and Kaiwan your star god, the idols you made for yourselves.

But now you will lift up your “king” Sikkuth and “star god” Kiyyun, your idols which you have made for yourselves,

27 Therefore I will send you into exile beyond Damascus,” says the LORD, whose name is the God of Hosts.

as I drive you into exile beyond Damascus, says the Lord, whose name is the God of hosts.