Amo 5 | HCSB | STEP | Listen to this message that I am singing for you, a lament , house of Israel :

‏ Amos 5

Lamentation for Israel

1 Listen to this message that I am singing for you, a lament, ^a house of Israel:

2 She has fallen;
Virgin Israel ^b will never rise again. ^c
She lies abandoned on her land,
with no one to raise her up. ^d

3 For the Lord God says:

The city that marches out a thousand strong
will have only a hundred left, ^e
and the one that marches out a hundred strong
will have only ten left ^f in the house of Israel.

Seek God and Live

4 For the Lord says to the house of Israel:

Seek Me and live! ^g
5 Do not seek Bethel ^h
or go to Gilgal ⁱ
or journey to Beer-sheba, ^j
for Gilgal will certainly go into exile,
and Bethel will come to nothing.
6 Seek ^{▼▼Yahweh/Yah: Or The Lord; the personal name of God in Hebrew; "Yah" is the shortened form of the name.}Yahweh ^l and live,
or He will spread like fire ^m
throughout the house of Joseph;
it will consume everything,
with no one at Bethel to extinguish it. ⁿ
7 Those who turn justice into ^{▼▼wormwood: A small shrub used as a medicinal herb, noted for its bitter taste}wormwood ^p
throw righteousness to the ground.

8 The One who made the Pleiades and Orion, ^q
who turns darkness ^{▼▼Or turns the shadow of death} into dawn ^s
and darkens day into night, ^t
who summons the waters of the sea ^u
and pours them out over the face of the earth ^v –
Yahweh is His name. ^w
9 He brings destruction ^{▼▼Hb obscure} on the strong, ^{▼▼Or stronghold
,} ^z
and it falls on the stronghold. ^aa

10 They hate the one who convicts the ^{▼▼guilt/guilty: The liability to be punished for a fault, a sin, an act, or an omission unless there is forgiveness or atonement; the term normally concerns an objective fact, not a subjective feeling.}guilty ^ac
at the city ^{▼▼gate(s): The center for community discussions, political meetings, and trying of court cases}gate
and despise ^ae the one who speaks with integrity.
11 Therefore, because you trample on the poor ^af
and exact a grain tax from him,
you will never live in the houses of cut stone ^ag
you have built;
you will never drink the wine
from the lush vineyards
you have planted. ^ah
12 For I know your crimes are many
and your sins innumerable.
They oppress the righteous, ^ai take a bribe,
and deprive the poor of justice ^aj at the gates.
13 Therefore, the wise person will keep silent ^{▼▼Or the prudent will perish
,} ^al
at such a time,
for the days are evil.

14 Seek good and not evil
so that you may live,
and the Lord, the God of ^{▼▼Hosts/hosts: Military forces consisting of God's angels, sometimes including the sun, moon, and stars, and occasionally, Israel}Hosts,
will be with you,
as you have claimed. ^an
15 Hate evil and love good; ^ao
establish justice in the gate. ^ap
Perhaps the Lord, the God of Hosts, will be gracious ^aq
to the remnant of Joseph. ^ar

16 Therefore Yahweh, the God of Hosts, the Lord, says:

There will be wailing in all the public squares; ^as
they will cry out in anguish ^{▼▼Lit will say, “Alas! Alas!”} in all the streets.
The farmer will be called on to mourn, ^au
and professional mourners ^{▼▼Lit and those skilled in lamentation
,} ^aw to wail.
17 There will be wailing in all the vineyards, ^ax
for I will pass among you. ^ay
The Lord has spoken.

The Day of the Lord

18 Woe to you who long for the Day of the Lord! ^az
What will the Day of the Lord be for you?
It will be darkness and not light. ^ba
19 It will be like a man who flees from a lion ^bb
only to have a bear confront him.
He goes home and rests his hand against the wall
only to have a snake bite him.
20 Won’t the Day of the Lord
be darkness rather than light, ^bc
even gloom without any brightness in it? ^bd
21 I hate, I despise your feasts! ^be
I can’t stand the stench
of your solemn assemblies. ^bf
22 Even if you offer Me
your ^{▼▼burnt offering(s): Or holocaust, an offering completely burned to ashes; it was used in connection with worship, seeking God's favor, expiating sin, or averting judgment.}burnt offerings and ^{▼▼grain offering(s): An offering given along with animal sacrifices or given by itself. A portion was burnt and the priests and participant ate the remainder.}grain offerings, ^bi
I will not accept them; ^bj
I will have no regard
for your ^{▼▼fellowship sacrifice(s) or offering(s): An animal offering was given to maintain and strengthen a person's relationship with God. It was not required as a remedy for impurity or sin but was an expression of thanksgiving for various blessings. An important function of this sacrifice was to provide meat for the priests and the participants in the sacrifice; it was also called the peace offering or the sacrifice of well-being.}fellowship offerings of fattened cattle. ^bl
23 Take away from Me the noise of your songs!
I will not listen to the music of your harps. ^bm
24 But let justice flow like water,
and righteousness, like an unfailing stream. ^bn

25 “House of Israel, was it sacrifices and grain offerings that you presented to Me during the 40 years in the wilderness? ^bo 26 But you have taken up ^{▼▼Or you will lift up} Sakkuth ^{▼▼LXX, Sym, Syr, Vg read the tent; Ac 7:43
,} ^{▼▼Probably a Mesopotamian war god also called Adar or Ninurta} your king ^{▼▼LXX reads up the tent of Molech and Rephan; Ac 7:43} and Kaiwan ^{▼▼Probably a Mesopotamian god identified with Saturn} your star god, images you have made for yourselves. ^bu 27 So I will send you into exile beyond Damascus.” ^bv Yahweh, the God of Hosts, is His name. ^bw He has spoken.