Archers ¹  will not hold their ground; ²  fast runners will not save their lives, nor will those who ride horses. ³ 

Does a lion roar in the woods if he has not cornered his prey? ¹  Does a young lion bellow from his den if he has not caught something?

If an alarm sounds ¹  in a city, do people not fear? ²  If disaster overtakes a ³  city, is the Lord not responsible? ⁴ 

Therefore,” says the sovereign Lord, “an enemy will encircle the land. ¹  He will take away your power; ²  your fortresses will be looted.”

People from ¹  two or three cities staggered into one city to get ²  water, but remained thirsty. ³  Still you did not come back to me.” The Lord is speaking!

We’re eager to trade silver for the poor, ¹  a pair of sandals ²  for the needy! We want to mix in some chaff with the grain!” ³ 

Therefore, because you make the poor pay taxes on their crops ¹  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 ²  vineyards you planted. ³ 

They say to the people: ¹  “Journey over to Calneh and look at it! Then go from there to Hamath-Rabbah! ²  Then go down to Gath of the Philistines! Are they superior to our two ³  kingdoms? Is their territory larger than yours?” ⁴ 

Amaziah the priest of Bethel ¹  sent this message ²  to King Jeroboam of Israel: “Amos is conspiring against you in the very heart of the kingdom of Israel! ³  The land cannot endure all his prophecies. ⁴ 

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 

These are the ones who now take oaths ¹  in the name of the sinful idol goddess ²  of Samaria. They vow, ³  ‘As surely as your god ⁴  lives, O Dan,’ or ‘As surely as your beloved one ⁵  lives, O Beer Sheba!’ But they will fall down and not get up again.”

He builds the upper rooms of his palace ¹  in heaven and sets its foundation supports ²  on the earth. ³  He summons the water of the sea and pours it out on the earth’s surface. The Lord is his name.

“Be sure of this, ¹  the time is ²  coming,” says the Lord, “when the plowman will catch up to the reaper ³  and the one who stomps the grapes ⁴  will overtake ⁵  the planter. ⁶  Juice will run down the slopes, ⁷  it will flow down all the hillsides. ⁸ 

Bravehearted ¹  warriors will run away naked in that day.” The Lord is speaking!

A lion has roared! ¹  Who is not afraid? The sovereign Lord has spoken! Who can refuse to prophesy? ² 

Justice must flow like torrents of water, righteous actions ¹  like a stream that never dries up.

Because of Israel’s sins ¹  this is what the Lord, the God who commands armies, the sovereign One, ²  says: “In all the squares there will be wailing, in all the streets they will mourn the dead. ³  They will tell the field workers ⁴  to lament and the professional mourners ⁵  to wail.

Amaziah then said to Amos, “Leave, you visionary! ¹  Run away to the land of Judah! Earn your living ²  and prophesy there!