Episode 221: Like a mighty stream

Amos 1-5

For three or four things

1 ¹ These are the words of Amos, a shepherd of Tekoa, during the days of King Uzziah of Judah and King Jeroboam II of Israel, two years before the earthquake.

He said:

² God will roar from Zion, and the top of Mount Carmel will wither.

³ This is what God says,

I'll punish Damascus for three or four things.

⁴ I'll set a fire in the house of Hazael, break the bar of Damascus, cut off the inhabitants from the plain of Aven, and force the people of Syria into captivity.

⁶ I'll punish Gaza for three or four things.

^7-8 I'll set a fire in Gaza, cut off Ashdod, Ashkelon, and Ekron, and kill what's left of the Philistines.

⁹ I'll punish Tyrus for three or four things.

¹⁰ I'll set a fire in Tyrus.

¹¹ I'll punish Edom for three or four things.

¹² I'll set a fire in Teman.

¹³ I'll punish Ammon for three or four things.

¹⁴ I'll set a fire in Rabbah.

2 ¹ I'll punish Moab for three or four things.

For burning the bones of the king of Edom.

² I'll set a fire in Moab.

³ I'll cut off the judge and kill all the princes

⁴ I'll punish Judah for three or four things.

⁵ I'll set a fire in Judah, and it will burn the palaces in Jerusalem.

⁶ I'll punish Israel for three or four things.

Because they sold righteous people for silver and poor people for a pair of shoes.

⁷ And a man and his father will have sex with the same young woman to profane my holy name.

⁹ Yet I killed Amorites for them, who were taller than cedars and as strong as oaks.

¹⁶ And whoever is courageous among the mighty will run away naked.

Shall there be evil in a city that doesn't come from God?

3 ¹ Listen, Israel, to what God has said about you.

I brought you out of Egypt.

² You're the only people on earth that I've ever known. Therefore, I'm punishing you for all your iniquities.

⁶ Shall there be evil in a city that doesn't come from God?

¹² As the shepherd takes two legs or a piece of an ear out of a lion's mouth, so will Israel be taken out of Samaria's bed or Damascus's couch.

¹⁴ In that day, I'll punish him (Samaria or Damascus) and cut off the altar horns in Bethel.

¹⁵ I'll smite the winter house with the summer house. And the ivory houses and the great houses will perish.

The fat cows of Samaria

4 ¹ Listen to me, you fat cows of Samaria! You oppress the poor and then say, "Let's drink."

² God has sworn by his holiness that he'll drag you away with hooks, and your children with fishhooks.

What is wrong with people?

⁶ God says:

I've starved you in your cities, yet you haven't returned to me.

⁷ I've stopped the rain, destroying your crops and making you thirsty.

⁸ Yet you haven't returned to me.

⁹ I've plagued you with blasting, mildew, and palmerworms, ruining your vineyards, fig and olive trees. Yet you haven't returned to me.

¹⁰ I sent you the pestilence, killed your young men with the sword, stole your horses, and made the stink of your camps come up to your noses. Yet you haven't returned to me.

¹¹ I destroyed you like you were Sodom and Gomorrah, yet you haven't returned to me.

¹² I've done what I could do. So prepare to meet your God, Israel.

Seek me (or I'll burn you to death)

5 ² The virgin of Israel has fallen. She'll never stand up again.

³ I'll kill 90% of your population.

⁴ But if you seek me, I'll let you live.

⁶ So seek me, or I'll burn you to death.

⁸ Seek the one who made the seven stars and Orion.

Like a mighty stream

¹⁴ Do good, avoid evil.

¹⁵ Hate evil and love the good.

¹⁶ People will wail in the streets and say, "Alas!"

¹⁷ The vineyards will wail when I pass by.

¹⁸ Woe to you who look forward to the day of the Lord! The day of the Lord is darkness, not light.

¹⁹ It'll be like a man who ran from a lion and was attacked by a bear. Or like someone who put his hand on a wall and was bitten by a snake.

²¹ I hate your feasts, and I won't smell your solemn assemblies.

²² I won't accept your burnt and meat offerings. Or your peace offerings from your fat beasts.

²³ I don't want to listen to your songs or music.

²⁴ Let justice run down like water, and righteousness like a mighty stream.

²⁷ Therefore, I'll make you slaves beyond Damascus. My name is The Lord God of hosts.