Amos 2:1

2:1 This is what the Lord says:

“Because Moab has committed three crimes ¹  –

make that four! ²  – I will not revoke my decree of judgment. ³ 

They burned the bones of Edom’s king into lime. ⁴ 

Amos 9:12

9:12 As a result they ⁵  will conquer those left in Edom ⁶ 

and all the nations subject to my rule.” ⁷ 

The Lord, who is about to do this, is speaking!

[2:1]  ¹ tn Traditionally, “transgressions” (KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV) or “sins” (NIV). For an explanation of the atrocities outlined in this oracle as treaty violations of God’s mandate to Noah in Gen 9:5-7, see the note on the word “violations” in 1:3.

[2:1]  ² tn Heb “Because of three violations of Moab, even because of four.”

[2:1]  ³ tn Heb “I will not bring it [or “him”] back.” The translation understands the pronominal object to refer to the decree of judgment that follows; the referent (the decree) has been specified in the translation for clarity. For another option see the note on the word “judgment” in 1:3.

[2:1]  ⁴ sn The Moabites apparently desecrated the tomb of an Edomite king and burned his bones into a calcined substance which they then used as plaster (cf. Deut 27:2, 4). See S. M. Paul, Amos (Hermeneia), 72. Receiving a proper burial was very important in this culture. Desecrating a tomb or a deceased individual’s bones was considered an especially heinous act.

[9:12]  ⁵ sn They probably refers to the Israelites or to the Davidic rulers of the future.

[9:12]  ⁶ tn Heb “take possession of the remnant of Edom”; NASB, NIV, NRSV “possess the remnant of Edom.”

[9:12]  ⁷ tn Heb “nations over whom my name is proclaimed.” The Hebrew idiom indicates ownership, sometimes as a result of conquest. See 2 Sam 12:28.