Amos 5

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

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

2 'Fallen, not again to rise, hath the virgin of Israel, Left on her land — she hath no raiser up.'

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

3 For thus said the Lord Jehovah: The city that is going out a thousand, Doth leave an hundred, And that which is going out an hundred, Doth leave ten to the house of Israel.

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.

4 For thus said Jehovah to the house of Israel: Seek ye Me, and live,

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

5 And seek not Beth-El, and Gilgal enter not, And Beer-Sheba pass not through, For Gilgal doth utterly remove, And Beth-El doth become vanity.

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.

6 Seek ye Jehovah, and live, Lest He prosper as fire [against] the house of Joseph, And it hath consumed, And there is no quencher for Beth-El.

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.

7 Ye who are turning to wormwood judgment, And righteousness to the earth have put down,

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

8 The maker of Kimah and Kesil, And the turner to morning of death-shade, And day [as] night He hath made dark, Who is calling to the waters of the sea, And poureth them on the face of the earth, Jehovah [is] His name;

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.

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

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

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

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

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

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.

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

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.

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

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

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

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

15 Hate evil, and love good, And set up judgment in the gate, It may be Jehovah, God of Hosts, doth pity the remnant of Joseph.

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.

16 Therefore, thus said Jehovah, God of Hosts, the Lord, In all broad places [is] lamentation, And in all out-places they say, 'Alas, alas,' And called the husbandman to mourning, And to lamentation the skilful of wailing.

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.

17 And in all vineyards [is] lamentation, For I pass into thy midst, said Jehovah.

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

18 Ho, ye who are desiring the day of Jehovah, Why [is] this to you — the day of Jehovah? It is darkness, and not light,

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.

19 As [when] one fleeth from the face of the lion, And the bear hath met him, And he hath come in to the house, And hath leant his hand on the wall, And the serpent hath bitten him.

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.

20 Is not the day of Jehovah darkness and not light, Even thick darkness that hath no brightness?

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

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

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

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

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.

23 Turn aside from Me the noise of thy songs, Yea, the praise of thy psaltery I hear not.

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

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

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

25 Sacrifices and offering did ye bring nigh to Me, In a wilderness forty years, O house of Israel?

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

26 And ye bare Succoth your king, and Chiun your images, The star of your god, that ye made for yourselves.

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

27 And I removed you beyond Damascus, Said Jehovah, God of Hosts [is] His name.

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