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A Warning to Moab

This is what the Lord says:

“For three transgressions of Moab
because they[a] cremated the bones of the king of Edom,
    burning them[b] to lime.
So I will send down fire upon Moab,
    and it will devour the fortified citadels of Kerioth.
Moab will die in the uproar of battle,[c]
    with a war cry
        and with the trumpeting of the ram’s horn.
I will execute their rulers among them,
    killing all of their officials as well,”
        says the Lord.

A Warning to Judah

This is what the Lord says:

“For three transgressions of Judah
    —and now for a fourth—
        I will not turn away;
because they[d] rejected the Law of the Lord
    and did not keep his statutes.
Their own lies made them wander off,
    following along the same path their ancestors walked.
So I will send down fire upon Judah,
    and it will devour the fortified citadels of Jerusalem.”

A Warning to Israel

This is what the Lord says:

“For three transgressions of Israel
    —and now for a fourth—
        I will not turn away;
because they sold the righteous for money,
    and the poor for sandals,
moving quickly[e] to rub the face[f] of the needy in the dirt.
Corrupting[g] the ways of the humble,
    a man and his father go to the same woman,
        deliberately defiling my holy name.
They lay down beside every altar,
    on garments pledged as collateral,[h]
drinking wine paid for through fines
    imposed by the temple of their gods.
Yet it was I who destroyed the Amorites in front of them,
    though their height seemed like a cedar,[i]
    though their strength seemed like an oak,
but whose fruit I destroyed from above
    and the roots from beneath.
10 Furthermore, I brought you up from the land of Egypt,
    leading you in the wilderness for 40 years,
        to take possession of the land of the Amorites.
11 I also raised up your sons to be prophets,
    and from your young men I raised up Nazirites.[j]
Is this not true, people of Israel?”
    declares the Lord.
12 “But you forced the Nazirites to drink wine,
    and commanded the prophets,
        ‘You are not to prophesy!’

13 “Oh, how I am burdened down with you,
    as a wagon is overloaded with harvested grain!
14 So the swift runner will not escape,[k]
    the valiant will not fortify his strength,
        and the mighty warrior will not save his life.
15 The skilled archer will not be able to stand,
    the swift runner will not survive,
        and the mounted rider will not preserve his own life.
16 Even the bravest of elite troops will run away naked at that time,”
    declares the Lord.

Footnotes

  1. Amos 2:1 Lit. he; i.e. the nation personified as an individual
  2. Amos 2:1 The Heb. lacks burning them
  3. Amos 2:2 The Heb. lacks of battle
  4. Amos 2:4 Lit. he; i.e. the nation personified as an individual
  5. Amos 2:7 Lit. They chase
  6. Amos 2:7 Lit. head
  7. Amos 2:7 Lit. turning aside
  8. Amos 2:8 I.e. violating Deut 24:10-13 in addition to idolatry
  9. Amos 2:9 I.e. a genus of coniferous evergreen in the family Pinaceae
  10. Amos 2:11 I.e. men who make a special vow with God (cf. Num 6:1-21)
  11. Amos 2:14 Lit. So flight will escape the swift runner

This is what the Lord says:

“For three sins of Moab,(A)
    even for four, I will not relent.
Because he burned to ashes(B)
    the bones of Edom’s king,
I will send fire on Moab
    that will consume the fortresses of Kerioth.[a](C)
Moab will go down in great tumult
    amid war cries(D) and the blast of the trumpet.(E)
I will destroy her ruler(F)
    and kill all her officials with him,”(G)
says the Lord.(H)

This is what the Lord says:

“For three sins of Judah,(I)
    even for four, I will not relent.
Because they have rejected the law(J) of the Lord
    and have not kept his decrees,(K)
because they have been led astray(L) by false gods,[b](M)
    the gods[c] their ancestors followed,(N)
I will send fire(O) on Judah
    that will consume the fortresses(P) of Jerusalem.(Q)

Judgment on Israel

This is what the Lord says:

“For three sins of Israel,
    even for four, I will not relent.(R)
They sell the innocent for silver,
    and the needy for a pair of sandals.(S)
They trample on the heads of the poor
    as on the dust of the ground
    and deny justice to the oppressed.
Father and son use the same girl
    and so profane my holy name.(T)
They lie down beside every altar
    on garments taken in pledge.(U)
In the house of their god
    they drink wine(V) taken as fines.(W)

“Yet I destroyed the Amorites(X) before them,
    though they were tall(Y) as the cedars
    and strong as the oaks.(Z)
I destroyed their fruit above
    and their roots(AA) below.
10 I brought you up out of Egypt(AB)
    and led(AC) you forty years in the wilderness(AD)
    to give you the land of the Amorites.(AE)

11 “I also raised up prophets(AF) from among your children
    and Nazirites(AG) from among your youths.
Is this not true, people of Israel?”
declares the Lord.
12 “But you made the Nazirites drink wine
    and commanded the prophets not to prophesy.(AH)

13 “Now then, I will crush you
    as a cart crushes when loaded with grain.(AI)
14 The swift will not escape,(AJ)
    the strong(AK) will not muster their strength,
    and the warrior will not save his life.(AL)
15 The archer(AM) will not stand his ground,
    the fleet-footed soldier will not get away,
    and the horseman(AN) will not save his life.(AO)
16 Even the bravest warriors(AP)
    will flee naked on that day,”
declares the Lord.

Footnotes

  1. Amos 2:2 Or of her cities
  2. Amos 2:4 Or by lies
  3. Amos 2:4 Or lies