Amos 5

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

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

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

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 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.”

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

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

5 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.

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 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—

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

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

8 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;

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

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

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

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

11 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.

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 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.

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

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

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

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

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 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.

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

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

18 Behold, you who are desiring the Day of YHWH, Why [is] this to you—the Day of YHWH? It is darkness, 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 [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.

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

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

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

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

22 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.

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

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

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

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

25 Did you bring sacrifices and offerings near to Me, In a wilderness forty years, 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 And you bore Succoth your king, and Chiun your images, The star of your god, that you made for yourselves.

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

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

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