Amos 7
Locusts, Fire and a Plumb Line
1 This is what the Sovereign Lord showed me: He was preparing swarms of locusts after the king's share had been harvested and just as the late crops were coming up.2 When they had stripped the land clean, I cried out, "Sovereign Lord, forgive! How can Jacob survive? He is so small!"
3 So the Lord relented.
"This will not happen," the Lord said.
4 This is what the Sovereign Lord showed me: The Sovereign Lord was calling for judgment by fire; it dried up the great deep and devoured the land.5 Then I cried out, "Sovereign Lord, I beg you, stop! How can Jacob survive? He is so small!"
6 So the Lord relented.
"This will not happen either," the Sovereign Lord said.
7 This is what he showed me: The Lord was standing by a wall that had been built true to plumb,t with a plumb linet in his hand.
8 And the Lord asked me, "What do you see, Amos?"
"A plumb line," I replied.
Then the Lord said, "Look, I am setting a plumb line among my people Israel; I will spare them no longer.
9 "The high places of Isaac will be destroyed
and the sanctuaries of Israel will be ruined;
with my sword I will rise against the house of Jeroboam."
Amos and Amaziah
10 Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent a message to Jeroboam king of Israel: "Amos is raising a conspiracy against you in the very heart of Israel. The land cannot bear all his words.11 For this is what Amos is saying:
"'Jeroboam will die by the sword,
and Israel will surely go into exile,
away from their native land.'"
12 Then Amaziah said to Amos, "Get out, you seer! Go back to the land of Judah. Earn your bread there and do your prophesying there.13 Don't prophesy anymore at Bethel, because this is the king's sanctuary and the temple of the kingdom."
14 Amos answered Amaziah, "I was neither a prophet nor the son of a prophet, but I was a shepherd, and I also took care of sycamore-fig trees.15 But the Lord took me from tending the flock and said to me, 'Go, prophesy to my people Israel.'16 Now then, hear the word of the Lord. You say,
"'Do not prophesy against Israel,
and stop preaching against the descendants of Isaac.'
17 "Therefore this is what the Lord says:
"'Your wife will become a prostitute in the city,
and your sons and daughters will fall by the sword.
Your land will be measured and divided up,
and you yourself will die in a pagant country.
And Israel will surely go into exile,
away from their native land.'"
AMOS 7
A Vision of Locusts
1 The [Lord] God showed me that he is going to send locustst to attack your crops. It will happen after the king has already been given his share of the grain and before the rest of the grain has been harvested.t
2 In my vision the locusts ate every crop in the land, and I said to the [Lord], “Please forgive your nation. It's so weak. How can it survive?”
3 Then the [Lord] felt sorry and answered, “I won't let it be destroyed.”A Vision of Fire
4 The [Lord] showed me that he is going to send a ball of fire to burn up everything on earth, including the ocean.t
5 Then I said, “Won't you please stop? How can our weak nation survive?”
6 Again the [Lord] felt sorry and answered, “I won't let it be destroyed.”A Vision of //a Measuring Line
7 The [Lord] showed me a vision of himself standing beside a wall and holding a string with a weight tied to the end of it. The string and weight had been used to measure the straightness of the wall.
8 Then he asked, “Amos, what do you see?”
“A measuring line,” I answered.
The [Lord] said, “I'm using this measuring line to show that my people Israel don't measure up, and I won't forgive them any more.
9 Their sacred places will be destroyed, and I will send war against the nation of King Jeroboam.”tAmos and Amaziah
10 Amaziah the priest at Bethel sent this message to King Jeroboam of Israel, “Amos is plotting against you in the very heart of Israel. Our nation cannot put up with his message for very long.
11 Here is what he is saying:
‘Jeroboam will be put to death,
and the people will be taken
to a foreign country.’ ”
12 Then Amaziah told me, “Amos, take your visions and get out! Go back to Judah and earn your living there as a prophet.
13 Don't do any more preaching at Bethel. The king worships here at our national temple.”
14 I answered:
I'm not a prophet! And I wasn't trained to be a prophet. I am a shepherd, and I take care of fig trees. 15 But the [Lord] told me to leave my herds and preach to the people of Israel. 16 And here you are, telling me not to preach!
17 Now, listen to what the [Lord] says about you:
Your wife will become
a prostitute in the city,
your sons and daughters
will be killed in war,
and your land will be divided
among others.
You will die in a country
of foreigners,
and the people of Israel
will be dragged
from their homeland.
