Amos 8:5-7

8:5 You say,

“When will the new moon festival ¹  be over, ²  so we can sell grain?

When will the Sabbath end, ³  so we can open up the grain bins? ⁴ 

We’re eager ⁵  to sell less for a higher price, ⁶ 

and to cheat the buyer with rigged scales! ⁷ 

8:6 We’re eager to trade silver for the poor, ⁸ 

a pair of sandals ⁹  for the needy!

We want to mix in some chaff with the grain!” ¹⁰ 

8:7 The Lord confirms this oath ¹¹  by the arrogance of Jacob: ¹² 

“I swear ¹³  I will never forget all you have done! ¹⁴ 

[8:5]  ¹ sn Apparently work was prohibited during the new moon festival, just as it was on the Sabbath.

[8:5]  ² tn Heb “pass by.”

[8:5]  ³ tn The verb, though omitted in the Hebrew text, is supplied in the translation from the parallel line.

[8:5]  ⁴ tn Heb “sell grain.” Here “grain” could stand by metonymy for the bins where it was stored.

[8:5]  ⁵ tn Here and in v. 6 the words “we’re eager” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[8:5]  ⁶ tn Heb “to make small the ephah and to make great the shekel.” The “ephah” was a unit of dry measure used to determine the quantity purchased, while the “shekel” was a standard weight used to determine the purchase price. By using a smaller than standard ephah and a heavier than standard shekel, these merchants were able to increase their profit (“sell less for a higher price”) by cheating the buyer.

[8:5]  ⁷ tn Heb “and to cheat with deceptive scales”; NASB, NIV “dishonest scales”; NRSV “false balances.”

[8:6]  ⁸ tn Heb “to buy the poor for silver.”

[8:6]  ⁹ tn See the note on the word “sandals” in 2:6.

[8:6]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “The chaff of the grain we will sell.”

[8:7]  ¹¹ tn Or “swears.”

[8:7]  ¹² sn In an oath one appeals to something permanent to emphasize one’s commitment to the promise. Here the Lord sarcastically swears by the arrogance of Jacob, which he earlier had condemned (6:8), something just as enduring as the Lord’s own life (see 6:8) or unchanging character (see 4:2). Other suggestions include that the Lord is swearing by the land, his most valuable possession (cf. Isa 4:2; Ps 47:4 [47:5 HT]); that this is a divine epithet analogous to “the Glory of Israel” (1 Sam 15:29); or that an ellipsis should be understood here, in which case the meaning is the same as that of 6:8 (“The Lord has sworn [by himself] against the arrogance of Jacob”).

[8:7]  ¹³ tn The words “I swear” are not in the Hebrew text, but have been supplied in the translation because a self-imprecation is assumed in oaths of this type.

[8:7]  ¹⁴ tn Or “I will never forget all your deeds.”