Amos 5:8

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

he can turn the darkness into morning

and daylight ¹  into night.

He summons the water of the seas

and pours it out on the earth’s surface.

The Lord is his name!

Amos 9:6

9:6 He builds the upper rooms of his palace ²  in heaven

and sets its foundation supports ³  on the earth. ⁴ 

He summons the water of the sea

and pours it out on the earth’s surface.

The Lord is his name.

Amos 9:8

9:8 Look, the sovereign Lord is watching ⁵  the sinful nation, ⁶ 

and I will destroy it from the face of the earth.

But I will not completely destroy the family ⁷  of Jacob,” says the Lord.

[5:8]  ¹ tn Heb “darkens the day into night.”

[9:6]  ² tc The MT reads “his steps.” If this is correct, then the reference may be to the steps leading up to the heavenly temple or the throne of God (cf. 1 Kgs 10:19-20). The prefixed מ (mem) may be dittographic (note the preceding word ends in mem). The translation assumes an emendation to עֲלִיָּתוֹ (’aliyyato, “his upper rooms”).

[9:6]  ³ tn Traditionally, “vault” (so ASV, NAB, NRSV). The precise meaning of this word in this context is unclear. Elsewhere it refers to objects grouped or held together. F. I. Andersen and D. N. Freedman (Amos [AB], 845-46) suggest the foundational structure of a building is in view.

[9:6]  ⁴ sn Verse 6a pictures the entire universe as a divine palace founded on the earth and extending into the heavens.

[9:8]  ³ tn Heb “the eyes of the sovereign Lord are on.”

[9:8]  ⁴ tn Or “kingdom.”

[9:8]  ⁵ tn Heb “house” (also in the following verse).