Amos 5

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

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

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

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.

3 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.

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

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

For thus saith Jehovah unto the house of Israel, Seek ye me, and ye shall live;

5 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.

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.

6 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.

Seek Jehovah, and ye shall live; lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and it devour, and there be none to quench it in Beth-el.

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

Ye who turn justice to wormwood, and cast down righteousness to the earth,

8 [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:

[seek him] that maketh the Pleiades and Orion, and turneth the shadow of death into the morning, and maketh the day dark with night; that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth (Jehovah is his name);

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

that bringeth sudden destruction upon the strong, so that destruction cometh upon the fortress.

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

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

11 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.

Forasmuch therefore as ye trample upon the poor, and take exactions from him 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 the wine thereof.

12 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!

For I know how manifold are your transgressions, and how mighty are your sins—ye that afflict the just, that take a bribe, and that turn aside the needy in the gate [from their right].

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

Therefore he that is prudent shall keep silence in such a time; for it is an evil time.

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

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

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

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

16 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;

Therefore thus saith Jehovah, the God of hosts, the Lord: Wailing shall be in all the broad ways; and they shall say in all the streets, Alas! alas! and they shall call the husbandman to mourning, and such as are skilful in lamentation to wailing.

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

And in all vineyards shall be wailing; for I will pass through the midst of thee, saith Jehovah.

18 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:

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

19 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!

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

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

Shall not the day of Jehovah be darkness, and not light? even very dark, and no brightness in it?

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

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

22 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.

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

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

Take thou away from me the noise of thy songs; for I will not hear the melody of thy viols.

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

But let justice roll down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream.

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

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

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

Yea, ye have borne the tabernacle of your king and the shrine of your images, the star of your god, which ye made to yourselves.

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

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