Amos 6:13

6:13 You are happy because you conquered Lo-Debar. ¹ 

You say, “Did we not conquer Karnaim ²  by our own power?”

Amos 7:15

7:15 Then the Lord took me from tending ³  flocks and gave me this commission, ⁴  ‘Go! Prophesy to my people Israel!’

Amos 9:2

9:2 Even if they could dig down into the netherworld, ⁵ 

my hand would pull them up from there.

Even if they could climb up to heaven,

I would drag them down from there.

Amos 5:12

5:12 Certainly ⁶  I am aware of ⁷  your many rebellious acts ⁸ 

and your numerous sins.

You ⁹  torment the innocent, you take bribes,

and you deny justice to ¹⁰  the needy at the city gate. ¹¹ 

Amos 9:3

9:3 Even if they were to hide on the top of Mount Carmel,

I would hunt them down and take them from there.

Even if they tried to hide from me ¹²  at the bottom of the sea,

from there ¹³  I would command the Sea Serpent ¹⁴  to bite them.

Amos 5:11

5:11 Therefore, because you make the poor pay taxes on their crops ¹⁵ 

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 ¹⁶  vineyards you planted. ¹⁷ 

[6:13]  ¹ tn Heb “those who rejoice over Lo-Debar.”

[6:13]  ² sn Karnaim was also located across the Jordan River. The name in Hebrew means “double horned.” Since an animal’s horn was a symbol of strength (see Deut 33:17), the Israelites boasted in this victory over a town whose very name symbolized military power.

[7:15]  ³ tn Heb “from [following] after.”

[7:15]  ⁴ tn Heb “and the Lord said to me.”

[9:2]  ⁵ tn Heb “into Sheol” (so ASV, NASB, NRSV), that is, the land of the dead localized in Hebrew thought in the earth’s core or the grave. Cf. KJV “hell”; NCV, NLT “the place of the dead”; NIV “the depths of the grave.”

[5:12]  ⁷ tn Or “for.”

[5:12]  ⁸ tn Or “I know” (so most English versions).

[5:12]  ⁹ 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]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “Those who.”

[5:12]  ¹¹ 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]  ¹² sn Legal disputes were resolved in the city gate, where the town elders met.

[9:3]  ⁹ tn Heb “from before my eyes.”

[9:3]  ¹⁰ tn Or perhaps simply, “there,” if the מ (mem) prefixed to the adverb is dittographic (note the preceding word ends in mem).

[9:3]  ¹¹ sn If the article indicates a definite serpent, then the mythological Sea Serpent, symbolic of the world’s chaotic forces, is probably in view. See Job 26:13 and Isa 27:1 (where it is also called Leviathan). Elsewhere in the OT this serpent is depicted as opposing the Lord, but this text implies that even this powerful enemy of God is ultimately subject to his sovereign will.

[5:11]  ¹¹ 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]  ¹² tn Or “lovely”; KJV, NASB, NRSV “pleasant”; NAB “choice”; NIV “lush.”

[5:11]  ¹³ 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.”