Amos 5

¹Hear ye this word which I take up against you, even a lamentation, O house of Israel.

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

³For thus saith the Lord God; The city that went out by a thousand shall leave an hundred, and that which went forth by an hundred shall leave ten, to the house of Israel.

⁴For thus saith the Lord unto the house of Israel, Seek ye me, and ye shall live:

⁵But 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.

⁶Seek the Lord, and ye shall live; lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and devour it, and there be none to quench it in Beth–el.

⁷Ye who turn judgment to wormwood, and leave off righteousness in the earth,

⁸Seek him that maketh the seven stars 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: The Lord is his name:

⁹That strengtheneth the spoiled against the strong, so that the spoiled shall come against the fortress.

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

¹¹Forasmuch therefore as your treading is upon the poor, and ye take from him burdens 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 of them.

¹²For I know your manifold transgressions and your mighty sins: they afflict the just, they take a bribe, and they turn aside the poor in the gate from their right.

¹³Therefore the prudent shall keep silence in that time; for it is an evil time.

¹⁴Seek good, and not evil, that ye may live: and so the Lord, the God of hosts, shall be with you, as ye have spoken.

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

¹⁶Therefore the Lord, the God of hosts, the Lord, saith thus; Wailing shall be in all streets; and they shall say in all the highways, Alas! alas! and they shall call the husbandman to mourning, and such as are skilful of lamentation to wailing.

¹⁷And in all vineyards shall be wailing: for I will pass through thee, saith the Lord.

¹⁸Woe unto you that desire the day of the Lord! to what end is it for you? the day of the Lord is darkness, and not light.

¹⁹As 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.

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

²¹I hate, I despise your feast days, and I will not smell in your solemn assemblies.

²²Though ye offer me burnt offerings and your meat offerings, I will not accept them: neither will I regard the peace offerings of your fat beasts.

²³Take thou away from me the noise of thy songs; for I will not hear the melody of thy viols.

²⁴But let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream.

²⁵Have ye offered unto me sacrifices and offerings in the wilderness forty years, O house of Israel?

²⁶But ye have borne the tabernacle of your Moloch and Chiun your images, the star of your god, which ye made to yourselves.

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

Amos 5

¹Hear this word, a lamentation, which I take up against you, O house of Israel.

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

³For 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, for the house of Israel.

⁴For thus saith Jehovah unto the house of Israel: Seek ye me, and ye shall live.

⁵And seek not Bethel, neither go to Gilgal, and pass not to Beer-sheba; for Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Bethel shall come to nought.

⁶Seek Jehovah, and ye shall live; lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and devour [it], and there be none to quench [it] in Bethel.

⁷Ye who turn judgment to wormwood, and cast down righteousness to the earth,

⁸[seek him] that made 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.

⁹He causeth destruction to break forth suddenly upon the strong, and bringeth destruction upon the fortress.

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

¹¹Forasmuch, therefore, as ye trample upon the poor, and take from him presents of wheat: ye have built houses of hewn stone, but ye shall not dwell in them; ye have planted pleasant vineyards, and ye shall not drink the wine of them.

¹²For I know how manifold are your transgressions and your sins mighty: they afflict the just, they take a bribe, and they turn aside [the right of] the needy in the gate.

¹³Therefore the prudent shall keep silence in this time; for it is an evil time.

¹⁴Seek good, and not evil, that ye may live; and so Jehovah, theGod of hosts, shall be with you, as ye say.

¹⁵Hate evil, and love good, and establish judgment in the gate: it may be that Jehovah, theGod of hosts, will be gracious unto the remnant of Joseph.

¹⁶Therefore thus saith Jehovah, theGod of hosts, the Lord: Wailing shall be in all broadways; and they shall say in all the streets, Alas! alas! And they shall call the husbandman to mourning, and such as are skilful of lamentation to wailing.

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

¹⁸Woe unto you that desire the day of Jehovah! To what end is the day of Jehovah for you? It shall be darkness and not light:

¹⁹as if a man fled 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.

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

²¹I hate, I despise your feasts, and I will not smell [a sweet odour] in your solemn assemblies.

²²For if ye offer up unto me burnt-offerings and your oblations, I will not accept [them]; neither will I regard the peace-offerings of your fatted beasts.

²³Take away from me the noise of thy songs, and I will not hear the melody of thy lutes;

²⁴but let judgment roll down as waters, and righteousness as an ever-flowing stream.

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

²⁶Yea, ye took up the tabernacle of your Moloch, and Chiun your images, the star of yourgod, which ye had made to yourselves;

²⁷and I will cause you to go into captivity beyond Damascus, saith Jehovah, whose name is theGod of hosts.