Amos 5

1 Hear this word that I take up as a lament over you, house of Israel.

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

2 The virgin Israel has fallen; she will rise no more; she is forsaken on her land; there is no one to raise her up.

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

3 For this is what the Lord Yahweh says: “The city that went out with a thousand will have a hundred left, and the one that went out with a hundred will have ten left belonging to the house of Israel.”

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.”

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

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

5 Do not seek Bethel; nor enter Gilgal; do not journey to Beersheba. For Gilgal will surely go into captivity, and Bethel will become nothing.

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.

6 Seek Yahweh and live, or he will break out like fire in the house of Joseph. It will devour, and there will be no one to quench it in Bethel.

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.

7 Those people turn justice into a bitter thing and throw righteousness down to the ground!”

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

8 God made the Pleiades and Orion; he turns darkness into the morning; he makes the day dark with night and calls for the waters of the sea; he pours them out on the surface of the earth. Yahweh is his name!

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—

9 He brings sudden destruction on the strong so that destruction comes on the fortresses.

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

10 They hate anyone who corrects them in the city gate, and they abhor anyone who speaks the truth.

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

11 Because you trample down the poor and take portions of wheat from him— although you have built houses of worked stone, you will not live in them. You have delightful vineyards, but you will not drink their wine.

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.

12 For I know how many are your offenses and how great are your sins— you who afflict the just, take bribes, and turn aside the needy in the city gate.

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.

13 Therefore any prudent person is silent at such a time, for it is an evil time.

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

14 Seek good and not evil, so that you may live. So Yahweh, the God of hosts, will really be with you, as you say he is.

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

15 Hate evil, love good, establish justice in the city gate. Perhaps Yahweh, the God of hosts, will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.

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.”

16 Therefore, this is what Yahweh says, the God of hosts, the Lord, “Wailing will be in all the squares, and they will say in all the streets, 'Woe! Woe!' They will call the farmers to mourning and the mourners to wail.

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.

17 In all vineyards there will be wailing, for I will pass through your midst,” says Yahweh.

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

18 Woe to you who desire the day of Yahweh! Why do you long for the day of Yahweh? It will be darkness and not light,

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.

19 as when a man flees from a lion and a bear meets him, or he goes in a house and puts his hand on the wall and a snake bites him.

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.

20 Will not the day of Yahweh be darkness and not light? Gloom and no brightness?

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

21 “I hate, I despise your festivals, I take no delight in your solemn assemblies.

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

22 Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them, neither will I look at the fellowship offerings of your fattened animals.

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.

23 Remove from me the noise of your songs; I will not listen to the sound of your harps.

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

24 Instead, let justice flow like water, and righteousness like a constantly flowing stream.

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

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

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

26 You have lifted up the images of Sikkuth, your king, and Kaiwan, your star god, which you made for yourselves.

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

27 Therefore I will exile you beyond Damascus,” says Yahweh, whose name is the God of hosts.

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