Amos 5

1 Heare ye this worde, which I lift vp vpon you, euen a lamentation of the house of Israel.

Hear ye this word, which, I, am taking up concerning you—even a dirge, O house of Israel.

2 The virgine Israel is fallen, and shall no more rise: shee is left vpon her lande, and there is none to raise her vp.

She hath fallen—she cannot again rise, the virgin, Israel, —she lieth forsaken on her soil, there is none to raise her up.

3 For thus saith ye Lord God, The citie which went out by a thousand, shall leaue an hundreth: and that which went forth by an hundreth, shall leaue ten to the house of Israel.

For, thus, saith My Lord, Yahweh, The city that goeth out a thousand strong, shall have left it a hundred, —And, that which goeth out a hundred strong, shall have left it ten, belonging to the house of Israel.

4 For thus saith the Lord vnto the house of Israel, Seeke ye me, and ye shall liue.

For, thus, saith Yahweh, to the house of Israel, —Seek me, and live;

5 But seeke not Beth-el, nor enter into Gilgal, and go not to Beer-sheba: for Gilgal shall goe into captiuitie, and Beth-el shall come to nought.

Then do not seek Bethel, and, Gilgal, shall ye not enter, and, unto Beer-sheba, shall ye not cross over, For, Gilgal, shall, surely go into exile, and, Bethel, shall become a trouble.

6 Seeke the Lord, and yee shall liue, least he breake out like fire in the house of Ioseph and deuoure it, and there be none to quench it in Beth-el.

Seek ye Yahweh, and live, —lest he break forth, like a fire, upon the house of Joseph, and it devour with none to quench it, for Bethel.

7 They turne iudgement to wormewood, and leaue off righteousnes in the earth.

Ye who turn, into, wormwood, justice, and, righteousness—to the ground have let fall.

8 He maketh Pleiades, and Orion, and he turneth the shadowe of death into the morning, and he maketh the day darke as night: he calleth the waters of the sea, and powreth them out vpon the open earth: the Lord is his Name.

[Seek him] who made the Cluster and the Giant, and turneth, into morning, the shadow of death, and who, day into night, doth darken, Him who calleth to the waters of the sea, and poureth them out on the face of the land, Yahweh, is his name:

9 He strengtheneth the destroyer against the mightie: and the destroyer shall come against the fortresse.

Him who flasheth force on the strong, —and, force, on the fortress, alighteth!

10 They haue hated him, that rebuked in the gate: and they abhorred him that speaketh vprightly.

They hate the man who, in the gate, rebuketh, —and, him who speaketh truthfully, they abhor.

11 Forasmuch then as your treading is vpon the poore, and yee take from him burdens of wheate, ye haue built houses of hewen stone, but ye shall not dwel in them: ye haue plated pleasant vineyards, but ye shall not drinke wine of them.

Therefore—because ye have trampled on the poor, and, the gift of corn, ye would take away from him, though, houses of hewn stone, ye have built, Yet shall ye not dwell in them, —Though, delightful vineyards, ye have planted, Yet shall ye not drink the wine of them.

12 For I know your manifold transgressions, and your mightie sinnes: they afflict the iust, they take rewards, and they oppresse the poore in ye gate.

For I know how numerous are your transgressions, and how surpassing your sins, —ye adversaries of the righteous! ye acceptors of a bribe! Even the needy in the gate, have they turned away!

13 Therefore the prudent shall keepe silence in that time, for it is an euill time.

Therefore, the prudent man, at that time, will be dumb, —Because an evil time, it is!

14 Seeke good and not euil, that ye may liue: and the Lord God of hostes shalbe with you, as you haue spoken.

Seek ye right and not wrong, that ye nay live, —that, so, Yahweh God of hosts, may be with you, as ye have said.

15 Hate the euil, and loue the good, and establish iudgement in the gate: it may bee that the Lord God of hostes will be mercifull vnto the remnant of Ioseph.

Hate wrong, and love right, and station, Justice, in the gate, —Peradventure, Yahweh, God of hosts, will be gracious unto the remnant of Joseph.

16 Therfore the Lord God of hosts, the Lord saith thus, Mourning shalbe in all streetes: and they shall say in al the hie wayes, Alas, alas: and they shall call the husbandman to lamentation, and such as can mourne, to mourning.

Therefore, thus, saith Yahweh, God of hosts, My Lord, In all broadways, shall be lamentation, and, in all streets, shall they say, Alas! Alas! And they shall call the husbandman unto the mourning, and, unto the lamentation, them who know a wailing song;

17 And in al the vines shalbe lamentation: for I wil passe through thee, saith the Lord.

Ye, in all vineyards, lamentation, —For I will pass along through thy midst, saith Yahweh.

18 Woe vnto you, that desire the day of the Lord: what haue you to do with it? the day of the Lord is darkenes and not light.

Alas for them who are longing for the day of Yahweh, —What good to you, is the day of Yahweh? it, being darkness and not light:

19 As if a man did flee from a lyon, and a beare met him: or went into the house, and leaned his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him.

As if a man should flee from the face of a lion, and there should meet him—a bear! or he should have entered the house, and leaned his hand upon the wall, and there should bite him—a serpent!

20 Shal not the day of the Lord be darkenes, and not light? euen darkenes and no light in it?

Shall not the day of Yahweh be, darkness, and not light? yea, thick darkness and no brightness in it?

21 I hate and abhorre your feast dayes, and I wil not smelll in your solemne assemblies.

I hate, I despise your festivals, —and can scent no fragrance in your solemn feasts.

22 Though ye offer me burnt offrings and meat offrings, I wil not accept them: neither will I regard the peace offrings of your fat beasts.

Nay, though ye cause to ascend unto me ascending-sacrifices, and your meal-offerings, I will not accept [them], —nor, the peace-offering of your fat heifers, will I regard.

23 Take thou away from me the multitude of thy songs (for I wil not heare the melodie of thy violes)

Take thou away from me, the noise of thy songs, —Even the melody of thy harps, will I not hear.

24 And let iudgement runne downe as waters, and righteousnesse as a mightie riuer.

But let, justice, roll along like water, —and, righteousness, as a torrent over flowing.

25 Haue ye offered vnto me sacrifices and offrings in the wildernesse fourtie yeeres, O house of Israel?

The sacrifices and meal-offering, ye brought near unto me, in the desert, for forty years O house of Israel;

26 But you haue borne Siccuth your King, and Chiun your images, and the starre of your gods, which ye made to your selues.

But ye carried the tent of your king-idol, and your Saturn-images, —the star of your gods, which ye made for yourselves:

27 Therefore wil I cause you to goe into captiuitie beyond Damascus, saith the Lord, whose Name is the God of hostes.

Therefore will I carry you into exile beyond Damascus, —saith Yahweh, God of hosts, is his name.