Amos 5

1 Hear ye this word which I take up for a lamentation over you, O house of Israel:

Hear this word that I am bearing to you, A lamentation, O house of Israel:

2 The virgin of Israel is fallen, she shall no more rise; she is cast down upon her land, there is none to raise her up.

“Fallen, not to rise again, has the virgin of Israel, Left on her land—she has none [to] raise [her] up.”

3 For thus saith the Lord GOD: The city that went forth a thousand shall have a hundred left, and that which went forth a hundred shall have ten left, of the house of Israel.

For thus said Lord YHWH: “The city that is going out one thousand, Leaves one hundred, And that which is going out one hundred, Leaves ten to the house of Israel.”

4 For thus saith the LORD unto the house of Israel: Seek ye Me, and live;

For thus said YHWH to the house of Israel: “Seek Me, and live,

5 But seek not Beth-el, nor enter into Gilgal, and pass not to Beer-sheba; for Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Beth-el shall come to nought.

And do not seek Beth-El, and do not enter Gilgal, And do not pass through Beer-Sheba, For Gilgal utterly removes, And Beth-El becomes vanity.

6 Seek the LORD, and live — lest He break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and it devour, and there be none to quench it in Bethel —

Seek YHWH, and live, Lest He prosper as fire [against] the house of Joseph, And it has consumed, And there is no quencher for Beth-El—

7 Ye who turn judgment to wormwood, and cast righteousness to the ground;

You who are turning judgment to wormwood, And have put down righteousness to the earth!”

8 Him that maketh the Pleiades and Orion, and bringeth on the shadow of death in the morning, and darkeneth the day into night; that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth; the LORD is His name;

The Maker of the Pleiades and Orion, And He who is turning death-shade to the morning—And He has made day [as] dark [as] night—Who is calling to the waters of the sea, And pours them on the face of the earth, YHWH [is] His Name;

9 That causeth destruction to flash upon the strong, so that destruction cometh upon the fortress.

Who is brightening up the spoiled against the strong, And the spoiled comes against a fortress.

10 They hate him that reproveth in the gate, and they abhor him that speaketh uprightly.

They have hated a reprover in the gate, And they detest a plain speaker.

11 Therefore, because ye trample upon the poor, and take from him exactions of wheat; ye have built houses of hewn stone, but ye shall not dwell in them, ye have planted pleasant vineyards, but ye shall not drink wine thereof.

Therefore, because of your trampling on the poor, And the tribute of grain you take from him, Houses of hewn work you have built, And you do not dwell in them, Desirable vineyards you have planted, And you do not drink their wine.

12 For I know how manifold are your transgressions, and how mighty are your sins; ye that afflict the just, that take a ransom, and that turn aside the needy in the gate.

For I have known—many [are] your transgressions, And mighty your sins, Adversaries of the righteous, taking ransoms, And you turned aside the needy in the gate.

13 Therefore the prudent doth keep silence in such a time; for it is an evil time.

Therefore the wise is silent at that time, For it [is] an evil time.

14 Seek good, and not evil, that ye may live; and so the LORD, the God of hosts, will be with you, as ye say.

Seek good, and not evil, that you may live, and it is so; YHWH, God of Hosts, [is] with you, as you said.

15 Hate the evil, and love the good, and establish justice in the gate; it may be that the LORD, the God of hosts, will be gracious unto the remnant of Joseph.

Hate evil, and love good, And set up judgment in the gate, It may be YHWH, God of Hosts, pities the remnant of Joseph.

16 Therefore thus saith the LORD, the God of hosts, the Lord: Lamentation shall be in all the broad places, and they shall say in all the streets: 'Alas! alas!' and they shall call the husbandman to mourning, and proclaim lamentation to such as are skilful of wailing.

Therefore, thus said YHWH, God of Hosts, the Lord: “Lamentation is in all broad places, And in all out-places they say, Oh! Oh! And called the farmer to mourning, And the skillful of wailing to lamentation.

17 And in all vineyards shall be lamentation; for I will pass through the midst of thee, saith the LORD.

And in all vineyards [is] lamentation, For I pass into your midst,” said YHWH.

18 Woe unto you that desire the day of the LORD! Wherefore would ye have the day of the LORD? It is darkness, and not light.

Behold, you who are desiring the Day of YHWH, Why [is] this to you—the Day of YHWH? It is darkness, and not light,

19 As if a man did flee from a lion, and a bear met him; and went into the house and leaned his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him.

As [when] one flees from the face of the lion, And the bear has met him, And he has come into the house, And has leaned his hand on the wall, And the serpent has bitten him.

20 Shall not the day of the LORD be darkness, and not light? Even very dark, and no brightness in it?

Is not the Day of YHWH darkness and not light, Even thick darkness that has no brightness?

21 I hate, I despise your feasts, and I will take no delight in your solemn assemblies.

“I have hated—I have loathed your festivals, And I am not refreshed by your restraints.

22 Yea, though ye offer me burnt-offerings and your meal-offerings, I will not accept them; neither will I regard the peace-offerings of your fat beasts.

For though you cause burnt-offerings and your presents to ascend to Me, I am not pleased, And I do not behold the peace-offering of your fatlings.

23 Take thou away from Me the noise of thy songs; and let Me not hear the melody of thy psalteries.

Turn the noise of your songs aside from Me, Indeed, I do not hear the praise of your stringed instruments.

24 But let justice well up as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream.

And judgment rolls on as waters, And righteousness as a perennial stream.

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

Did you bring sacrifices and offerings near to Me, In a wilderness forty years, O house of Israel?

26 So shall ye take up Siccuth your king and Chiun your images, the star of your god, which ye made to yourselves.

And you bore Succoth your king, and Chiun your images, The star of your god, that you made for yourselves.

27 Therefore will I cause you to go into captivity beyond Damascus, saith He, whose name is the LORD God of hosts.

And I removed you beyond Damascus,” said YHWH—God of Hosts [is] His Name.