Isaiah 29:21

29:21 those who bear false testimony against a person, ¹ 

who entrap the one who arbitrates at the city gate ² 

and deprive the innocent of justice by making false charges. ³ 

Lamentations 3:35

3:35 to deprive a person ⁴  of his rights ⁵ 

in the presence of the Most High,

Amos 2:7

2:7 They trample ⁶  on the dirt-covered heads of the poor; ⁷ 

they push the destitute away. ⁸ 

A man and his father go to the same girl; ⁹ 

in this way they show disrespect ¹⁰  for my moral purity. ¹¹ 

Amos 5:11-12

5:11 Therefore, because you make the poor pay taxes on their crops ¹² 

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 ¹³  vineyards you planted. ¹⁴ 

5:12 Certainly ¹⁵  I am aware of ¹⁶  your many rebellious acts ¹⁷ 

and your numerous sins.

You ¹⁸  torment the innocent, you take bribes,

and you deny justice to ¹⁹  the needy at the city gate. ²⁰ 

Malachi 3:5

3:5 “I ²¹  will come to you in judgment. I will be quick to testify against those who practice divination, those who commit adultery, those who break promises, ²²  and those who exploit workers, widows, and orphans, ²³  who refuse to help ²⁴  the immigrant ²⁵  and in this way show they do not fear me,” says the Lord who rules over all.

[29:21]  ¹ tn Heb “the ones who make a man a sinner with a word.” The Hiphil of חָטָא (khata’) here has a delocutive sense: “declare a man sinful/guilty.”

[29:21]  ² sn Legal disputes were resolved at the city gate, where the town elders met. See Amos 5:10.

[29:21]  ³ tn Heb “and deprive by emptiness the innocent.”

[3:35]  ⁴ tn The speaking voice is still that of the גֶּבֶר (gever, “man”), but the context and line are more universal in character.

[3:35]  ⁵ tn Heb “to turn away a man’s justice,” that is, the justice or equitable judgment he would receive. See the previous note regarding the “man.”

[2:7]  ⁶ tn Most scholars now understand this verb as derived from the root II שָׁאַף (sha’af, “to crush; to trample”), an alternate form of שׁוּף (shuf), rather than from I שָׁאַף (sha’af, “to pant, to gasp”; cf. KJV, ASV, NASB).

[2:7]  ⁷ tn Heb “those who stomp on the dirt of the ground on the head of the poor.” It is possible to render the line as “they trample the heads of the poor into the dust of the ground,” thereby communicating that the poor are being stepped on in utter contempt (see S. M. Paul, Amos [Hermeneia], 79-80). The participial form הַשֹּׁאֲפִים (hasho’afim) is substantival and stands in apposition to the pronominal suffix on מִכְרָם (mikhram, v. 6b).

[2:7]  ⁸ tn Heb “they turn aside the way of the destitute.” Many interpreters take “way” to mean “just cause” and understand this as a direct reference to the rights of the destitute being ignored. The injustice done to the poor is certainly in view, but the statement is better taken as a word picture depicting the powerful rich pushing the “way of the poor” (i.e., their attempt to be treated justly) to the side. An even more vivid picture is given in Amos 5:12, where the rich are pictured as turning the poor away from the city gate (where legal decisions were made, and therefore where justice should be done).

[2:7]  ⁹ sn Most interpreters see some type of sexual immorality here (cf. KJV, NASB, NIV, NCV, NRSV, TEV, CEV, NLT), even though the Hebrew phrase הָלַךְ אֶל (halakh ’el, “go to”) never refers elsewhere to sexual intercourse. (The usual idiom is בוֹא אֶל [bo’ ’el]. However, S. M. Paul (Amos [Hermeneia], 82) attempts to develop a linguistic case for a sexual connotation here.) The precise identification of the “girl” in question is not clear. Some see the referent as a cultic prostitute (cf. NAB; v. 8 suggests a cultic setting), but the term נַעֲרָה (na’arah) nowhere else refers to a prostitute. Because of the contextual emphasis on social oppression, some suggest the exploitation of a slave girl is in view. H. Barstad argues that the “girl” is the hostess at a pagan מַרְזֵחַ (marzeakh) banquet (described at some length in 6:4-7). In his view the sin described here is not sexual immorality, but idolatry (see H. Barstad, The Religious Polemics of Amos [VTSup], 33-36). In this case, one might translate, “Father and son go together to a pagan banquet.” In light of this cultic context, F. I. Andersen and D. N. Freedman argue that this is a reference to a specific female deity (“the Girl”) and correlate this verse with 8:14 (Amos [AB], 318-19).

[2:7]  ¹⁰ tn Or “pollute”; “desecrate”; “dishonor.”

[2:7]  ¹¹ tn Heb “my holy name.” Here “name” is used metonymically for God’s moral character or reputation, while “holy” has a moral and ethical connotation.

[5:11]  ¹² 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]  ¹³ tn Or “lovely”; KJV, NASB, NRSV “pleasant”; NAB “choice”; NIV “lush.”

[5:11]  ¹⁴ 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]  ¹⁵ tn Or “for.”

[5:12]  ¹⁶ tn Or “I know” (so most English versions).

[5:12]  ¹⁷ 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]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “Those who.”

[5:12]  ¹⁹ 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]  ²⁰ sn Legal disputes were resolved in the city gate, where the town elders met.

[3:5]  ²¹ tn The first person pronoun (a reference to the Lord) indicates that the Lord himself now speaks (see also v. 1). The prophet speaks in vv. 2-4 (see also 2:17).

[3:5]  ²² tn Heb “those who swear [oaths] falsely.” Cf. NIV “perjurers”; TEV “those who give false testimony”; NLT “liars.”

[3:5]  ²³ tn Heb “and against the oppressors of the worker for a wage, [the] widow and orphan.”

[3:5]  ²⁴ tn Heb “those who turn aside.”

[3:5]  ²⁵ tn Or “resident foreigner”; NIV “aliens”; NRSV “the alien.”