1Thus hath the Lord GOD shewed unto me; and, behold, he formed grasshoppers in the beginning of the shooting up of the latter growth; and, lo, it was the latter growth after the king’s mowings.7.1 grasshoppers: or, green worms 2And it came to pass, that when they had made an end of eating the grass of the land, then I said, O Lord GOD, forgive, I beseech thee: by whom shall Jacob arise? for he is small.7.2 by…: or, who of (or, for,) Jacob shall stand? 3The LORD repented for this: It shall not be, saith the LORD.
4¶ Thus hath the Lord GOD shewed unto me: and, behold, the Lord GOD called to contend by fire, and it devoured the great deep, and did eat up a part. 5Then said I, O Lord GOD, cease, I beseech thee: by whom shall Jacob arise? for he is small.7.5 by…: or, who of (or, for,) Jacob shall stand? 6The LORD repented for this: This also shall not be, saith the Lord GOD.
7¶ Thus he shewed me: and, behold, the Lord stood upon a wall made by a plumbline, with a plumbline in his hand. 8And the LORD said unto me, Amos, what seest thou? And I said, A plumbline. Then said the Lord, Behold, I will set a plumbline in the midst of my people Israel: I will not again pass by them any more: 9And the high places of Isaac shall be desolate, and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste; and I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword.
10¶ Then Amaziah the priest of Beth-el sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, Amos hath conspired against thee in the midst of the house of Israel: the land is not able to bear all his words. 11For thus Amos saith, Jeroboam shall die by the sword, and Israel shall surely be led away captive out of their own land. 12Also Amaziah said unto Amos, O thou seer, go, flee thee away into the land of Judah, and there eat bread, and prophesy there: 13But prophesy not again any more at Beth-el: for it is the king’s chapel, and it is the king’s court.7.13 chapel: or, sanctuary7.13 king’s court: Heb. house of the kingdom
14¶ Then answered Amos, and said to Amaziah, I was no prophet, neither was I a prophet’s son; but I was an herdman, and a gatherer of sycomore fruit:7.14 sycomore…: or, wild figs 15And the LORD took me as I followed the flock, and the LORD said unto me, Go, prophesy unto my people Israel.7.15 as…: Heb. from behind
16¶ Now therefore hear thou the word of the LORD: Thou sayest, Prophesy not against Israel, and drop not thy word against the house of Isaac. 17Therefore thus saith the LORD; Thy wife shall be an harlot in the city, and thy sons and thy daughters shall fall by the sword, and thy land shall be divided by line; and thou shalt die in a polluted land: and Israel shall surely go into captivity forth of his land.
Amos Has Visions of Locusts, Fire and a Plumb Line
1The Lord and King gave me a vision. He was bringing large numbers of locusts on the land. The king’s share had already been harvested. Now the later crops were coming up. 2The locusts stripped the land clean. Then I cried out, “Lord and King, forgive Israel! How can Jacob’s people continue? They are such a weak nation!”
3So the Lord had pity on them.
“I will let them continue for now,” he said.
4The Lord and King gave me a second vision. He was using fire to punish his people. It dried up the deep waters. It burned the land up. 5Then I cried out, “Lord and King, please stop! How can Jacob’s people continue? They are such a weak nation!”
6So the Lord had pity on them.
“I will let them continue for now,” the Lord and King said.
7Then the Lord gave me a third vision. He was standing by a wall. It had been built very straight, all the way up and down. He was holding a plumb line. 8The Lord asked me, “What do you see, Amos?”
“A plumb line,” I replied.
Then the Lord said, “Look at what I am doing. I am hanging a plumb line next to my people Israel. It will show how crooked they are. I will no longer spare them.
9“The high places where Isaac’s people worship other gods will be destroyed.
The other places of worship in Israel will also be torn down.
I will use my sword to attack Jeroboam’s royal family.”
Amaziah Tells Amos to Stop Prophesying
10Amaziah was priest of Bethel. He sent a message to Jeroboam, the king of Israel. He said, “Amos is making evil plans against you right here in Israel. The people in the land can’t stand to listen to what he’s saying. 11Amos is telling them,
“ ‘Jeroboam will be killed by a sword.
The people of Israel will be taken away as prisoners.
They will be carried off from their own land.’ ”
12Then Amaziah said to Amos, “Get out of Israel, you prophet! Go back to the land of Judah. Earn your living there. Do your prophesying there. 13Don’t prophesy here at Bethel anymore. This is where the king worships. The main temple in the kingdom is located here.”
14Amos answered Amaziah, “I was not a prophet. I wasn’t even the son of a prophet. I was a shepherd. I also took care of sycamore-fig trees. 15But the Lord took me away from taking care of the flock. He said to me, ‘Go. Prophesy to my people Israel.’ 16Now then, listen to the Lord’s message. You say,
“ ‘Don’t prophesy against Israel.
Stop preaching against the people of Isaac.’
17“But the Lord says,
“ ‘Your wife will become a prostitute
in the city of Bethel.
Your sons and daughters will be killed by swords.
Your land will be measured and divided up.
And you yourself will die in another country.
The people of Israel will surely be taken away as prisoners.
They will be carried off from their own land.’ ”
