Amos 5:7-17

5:7 The Israelites ¹  turn justice into bitterness; ² 

they throw what is fair and right ³  to the ground. ⁴ 

5:8 (But there is one who made the constellations Pleiades and Orion;

he can turn the darkness into morning

and daylight ⁵  into night.

He summons the water of the seas

and pours it out on the earth’s surface.

The Lord is his name!

5:9 He flashes ⁶  destruction down upon the strong

so that destruction overwhelms ⁷  the fortified places.)

5:10 The Israelites ⁸  hate anyone who arbitrates at the city gate; ⁹ 

they despise anyone who speaks honestly.

5:11 Therefore, because you make the poor pay taxes on their crops ¹⁰ 

and exact a grain tax from them,

you will not live in the houses you built with chiseled stone,

nor will you drink the wine from the fine ¹¹  vineyards you planted. ¹² 

5:12 Certainly ¹³  I am aware of ¹⁴  your many rebellious acts ¹⁵ 

and your numerous sins.

You ¹⁶  torment the innocent, you take bribes,

and you deny justice to ¹⁷  the needy at the city gate. ¹⁸ 

5:13 For this reason whoever is smart ¹⁹  keeps quiet ²⁰  in such a time,

for it is an evil ²¹  time.

5:14 Seek good and not evil so you can live!

Then the Lord, the God who commands armies, just might be with you,

as you claim he is.

5:15 Hate what is wrong, love what is right!

Promote ²²  justice at the city gate! ²³ 

Maybe the Lord, the God who commands armies, will have mercy on ²⁴  those who are left from ²⁵  Joseph. ²⁶ 

5:16 Because of Israel’s sins ²⁷  this is what the Lord, the God who commands armies, the sovereign One, ²⁸  says:

“In all the squares there will be wailing,

in all the streets they will mourn the dead. ²⁹ 

They will tell the field workers ³⁰  to lament

and the professional mourners ³¹  to wail.

5:17 In all the vineyards there will be wailing,

for I will pass through ³²  your midst,” says the Lord.

[5:7]  ¹ tn Heb “Those who”; the referent (the Israelites) has been specified in the translation for clarity. In light of vv. 11-13, it is also possible that the words are directed at a more limited group within the nation – those with social and economic power.

[5:7]  ² tn There is an interesting wordplay here with the verb הָפַךְ (hafakh, “overturn, turn”). Israel “turns” justice into wormwood (cf. 6:12), while the Lord “turns” darkness into morning (v. 8; cf. 4:11; 8:10). Israel’s turning is for evil, whereas the Lord’s is to demonstrate his absolute power and sovereignty.

[5:7]  ³ tn Heb “they throw righteousness.”

[5:7]  ⁴ sn In v. 7 the prophet begins to describe the guilty Israelites, but then interrupts his word picture with a parenthetical, but powerful, description of the judge they must face (vv. 8-9). He resumes his description of the sinners in v. 10.

[5:8]  ⁵ tn Heb “darkens the day into night.”

[5:9]  ⁹ tn The precise meaning of the Hebrew verb בָּלַג (balag, translated here “flashes”) is uncertain.

[5:9]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “comes upon.” Many prefer to repoint the verb as Hiphil and translate, “he brings destruction upon the fortified places.”

[5:10]  ¹³ tn Heb “they”; the referent (the Israelites) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[5:10]  ¹⁴ sn In ancient Israelite culture, legal disputes were resolved in the city gate, where the town elders met.

[5:11]  ¹⁷ tn Traditionally, “because you trample on the poor” (cf. KJV, ASV, NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT). The traditional view derives the verb from בּוּס (bus, “to trample”; cf. Isa. 14:25), but more likely it is cognate to an Akkadian verb meaning “to exact an agricultural tax” (see H. R. Cohen, Biblical Hapax Legomena [SBLDS], 49; S. M. Paul, Amos [Hermeneia], 172-73).

[5:11]  ¹⁸ tn Or “lovely”; KJV, NASB, NRSV “pleasant”; NAB “choice”; NIV “lush.”

[5:11]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “Houses of chiseled stone you built, but you will not live in them. Fine vineyards you planted, but you will not drink their wine.”

[5:12]  ²¹ tn Or “for.”

[5:12]  ²² tn Or “I know” (so most English versions).

[5:12]  ²³ tn Or “transgressions,” “sins.” See the note on the word “crimes” in 1:3 and on the phrase “covenant violations” in 2:4.

[5:12]  ²⁴ tn Heb “Those who.”

[5:12]  ²⁵ tn Heb “turn aside.” They “turn aside” the needy by denying them the justice they deserve at the city gate (where legal decisions were made, and therefore where justice should be done).

[5:12]  ²⁶ sn Legal disputes were resolved in the city gate, where the town elders met.

[5:13]  ²⁵ tn Or “the wise”; or “the prudent.” Another option is to translate “the successful, prosperous” and understand this as a reference to the rich oppressors. See G. V. Smith, Amos, 169-70. In this case the following verb will also have a different nuance, that is, the wealthy remain silent before the abuses they perpetuate. See the note on the verb translated “keeps quiet” later in this verse.

[5:13]  ²⁶ tn Or “moans, laments,” from a homonymic verbal root. If the rich oppressors are in view, then the verb (whether translated “will be silenced” or “will lament”) describes the result of God’s judgment upon them. See G. V. Smith, Amos, 170.

[5:13]  ²⁷ tn If this is a judgment announcement against the rich, then the Hebrew phrase עֵת רָעָה (’et ra’ah) must be translated, “[a] disastrous time.” See G. V. Smith, Amos, 170.

[5:15]  ²⁹ tn Heb “set up, establish.” In the ancient Near East it was the responsibility especially of the king to establish justice. Here the prophet extends that demand to local leaders and to the nation as a whole (cf. 5:24).

[5:15]  ³⁰ sn Legal disputes were resolved in the city gate (see the note in v. 12). This repetition of this phrase serves to highlight a deliberate contrast to the injustices cited in vv. 11-13.

[5:15]  ³¹ tn Or “will show favor to.”

[5:15]  ³² tn Or “the remnant of” (KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV); CEV “what’s left of your people.”

[5:15]  ³³ sn Joseph (= Ephraim and Manasseh), as the most prominent of the Israelite tribes, represents the entire northern kingdom.

[5:16]  ³³ tn Heb “Therefore.” This logical connector relates back to the accusation of vv. 10-13, not to the parenthetical call to repentance in vv. 14-15. To indicate this clearly, the phrase “Because of Israel’s sins” is used in the translation.

[5:16]  ³⁴ tn Or “the Lord.” The Hebrew term translated “sovereign One” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).

[5:16]  ³⁵ tn Heb “they will say, ‘Ah! Ah!’” The Hebrew term הוֹ (ho, “ah, woe”) is an alternate form of הוֹי (hoy), a word used to mourn the dead and express outwardly one’s sorrow. See 1 Kgs 13:30; Jer 22:18; 34:5. This wordplay follows quickly, as v. 18 begins with הוֹי (“woe”).

[5:16]  ³⁶ tn Or “farmers” (NIV, NCV, NRSV, TEV, CEV, NLT).

[5:16]  ³⁷ tn Heb “those who know lamentation.”

[5:17]  ³⁷ sn The expression pass through your midst alludes to Exod 12:12, where the Lord announced he would “pass through” Egypt and bring death to the Egyptian firstborn.