9:10 All the sinners among my people will die by the sword –
the ones who say, ‘Disaster will not come near, it will not confront us.’
1:5 I will break the bar 3 on the gate of Damascus.
I will remove 4 the ruler 5 from Wicked Valley, 6
the one who holds the royal scepter from Beth Eden. 7
The people of Aram will be deported to Kir.” 8
The Lord has spoken!
3:6 If an alarm sounds 9 in a city, do people not fear? 10
If disaster overtakes a 11 city, is the Lord not responsible? 12
“Look, I am about to place tin among my people Israel.
I will no longer overlook their sin. 13
8:2 He said, “What do you see, Amos?” I replied, “A basket of summer fruit.” Then the Lord said to me, “The end 14 has come for my people Israel! I will no longer overlook their sins. 15
9:14 I will bring back my people, Israel; 16
they will rebuild the cities lying in rubble 17 and settle down. 18
They will plant vineyards and drink the wine they produce; 19
they will grow orchards 20 and eat the fruit they produce. 21
1 tn Heb “from [following] after.”
2 tn Heb “and the
3 sn The bar on the city gate symbolizes the city’s defenses and security.
4 tn Heb “cut off.”
5 tn Heb “the one who sits.” Some English versions take the Hebrew term in a collective sense as “inhabitants” (e.g., KJV, NKJV, NASB, NRSV). The context and the parallel in the next clause (“the one who holds the royal scepter”), however, suggest that the royal house is in view. For this term (יוֹשֵׁב, yoshev), see N. K. Gottwald, The Tribes of Yahweh, 512-30.
6 tn Heb “valley of wickedness.” Though many English versions take the Hebrew phrase בִקְעַת־אָוֶן (biq’-at ’aven) as a literal geographical place name (“Valley of Aven,” so NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT), it appears to be a derogatory epithet for Damascus and the kingdom of Aram.
7 tn Many associate the name “Beth Eden” with Bit Adini, an Aramean state located near the Euphrates River, but it may be a sarcastic epithet meaning “house of pleasure.”
8 sn According to Amos 9:7, the Arameans originally came from Kir. The
5 tn Heb “If the ram’s horn is blown.”
6 tn Or “tremble” (NASB, NIV, NCV); or “shake.”
7 tn Heb “is in”; NIV, NCV, NLT “comes to.”
8 tn Heb “has the
7 tn Heb “And I will no longer pass over him.”
9 tn There is a wordplay here. The Hebrew word קֵץ (qets, “end”) sounds like קָיִץ (qayits, “summer fruit”). The summer fruit arrived toward the end of Israel’s agricultural year; Israel’s national existence was similarly at an end.
10 tn Heb “I will no longer pass over him.”
11 tn This line can also be translated “I will restore the fortunes of my people, Israel” and is a common idiom (e.g., Deut 30:3; Jer 30:3; Hos 6:11; Zeph 3:20). This rendering is followed by several modern English versions (e.g., NEB, NRSV, NJPS).
12 tn Or “the ruined [or “desolate”] cities.”
13 tn Or “and live [in them].”
14 tn Heb “drink their wine.”
15 tn Or “gardens.”
16 tn Heb “eat their fruit.”