Amos 9

Israel Will Be Destroyed

1 I saw the Lord standing by the altar, and he said:
“Smash the top of the pillars so that even the bottom of the doors will shake.
Make the pillars fall on the people’s heads; anyone left alive I will kill with a sword.
Not one person will get away; no one will escape.

2 If they dig down as deep as the place of the dead, I will pull them up from there.
If they climb up into heaven, I will bring them down from there.

3 If they hide at the top of Mount Carmel, I will find them and take them away.
If they try to hide from me at the bottom of the sea, I will command a snake to bite them.

4 If they are captured and taken away by their enemies, I will command the sword to kill them.
I will keep watch over them, but I will keep watch to give them trouble, not to do them good.”

5 The Lord God All-Powerful touches the land, and the land shakes. Then everyone who lives in the land cries for the dead.
The whole land rises like the Nile River and falls like the river of Egypt.

6 The Lord builds his upper rooms above the skies; he sets their foundations on the earth.
He calls for the waters of the sea and pours them out on the land. The Lord is his name.

7 The Lord says,
“Israel, you are no different to me than the people of Cush.
I brought Israel out of the land of Egypt, and the Philistines from Crete, and the Arameans from Kir.

8 I, the Lord God, am watching the sinful kingdom Israel.
I will destroy it from off the earth,
but I will not completely destroy Jacob’s descendants,” says the Lord.

9 “I am giving the command to scatter the nation of Israel among all nations.
It will be like someone shaking grain through a strainer, but not even a tiny stone falls through.

10 All the sinners among my people will die by the sword—
those who say, ‘Nothing bad will happen to us.’

The Lord Promises to Restore Israel

11 “The kingdom of David is like a fallen tent, but in that day I will set it up again and mend its broken places.
I will rebuild its ruins as it was before.

12 Then Israel will take over what is left of Edom and the other nations that belong to me,”
says the Lord, who will make it happen.

13 The Lord says, “The time is coming when there will be all kinds of food.
People will still be harvesting crops when it’s time to plow again.
People will still be taking the juice from grapes when it’s time to plant again.
Wine will drip from the mountains and pour from the hills.

14 I will bring my people Israel back from captivity; they will build the ruined cities again, and they will live in them.
They will plant vineyards and drink the wine from them; they will plant gardens and eat their fruit.
15 I will plant my people on their land, and they will not be pulled out again from the land which I have given them,” says the Lord your God.

Amos 9

1 I saw the sovereign Onet standing by the altars and he said, “Strike the tops of the support pillars,t so the thresholds shake!
Knock them down on the heads of all the people,t
and I will kill the survivorst with the sword.
No one will be able to run away;t
no one will be able to escape.t

2 Even if they could dig down into the netherworld,t
my hand would pull them up from there.
Even if they could climb up to heaven,
I would drag them down from there.

3 Even if they were to hide on the top of Mount Carmel,
I would hunt them down and take them from there.
Even if they tried to hide from met at the bottom of the sea,
from theret I would command the Sea Serpents to bite them.

4 Even when their enemies drive them into captivity,t
from theret I will command the sword to kill them.
I will not let them out of my sight;
they will experience disaster, not prosperity.”t

5 The sovereign Lord who commands armies will do this.t
He touches the earth and it dissolves;t
all who live on it mourn.
The whole eartht rises like the River Nile,t
and then grows calmt like the Nile in Egypt.s

6 He builds the upper rooms of his palaces in heaven
and sets its foundation supportst on the earth.s
He summons the water of the sea
and pours it out on the earth’s surface.
The Lord is his name.

7 “You Israelites are just like the Ethiopians in my sight,”ts says the Lord.
“Certainly I brought Israel up from the land of Egypt,
but I also brought the Philistines from Caphtors and the Arameans from Kir.t

8 Look, the sovereign Lord is watchingt the sinful nation,t
and I will destroy it from the face of the earth.
But I will not completely destroy the familyt of Jacob,” says the Lord.

9 “For look, I am giving a command
and I will shake the family of Israel together with all the nations.
It will resemble a sieve being shaken,
when not even a pebble falls to the ground.t

10 All the sinners among my people will die by the sword –
the ones who say, ‘Disaster will not come near, it will not confront us.’

The Restoration of the Davidic Dynasty

11 “In that day I will rebuild the collapsing hutt of David.
I will seal itss gaps,
repair itss ruins,
and restore it to what it was like in days gone by.t

12 As a result theys will conquer those left in Edomt
and all the nations subject to my rule.”ts
The Lord, who is about to do this, is speaking!

13 “Be sure of this,t the time ist coming,” says the Lord,
“when the plowman will catch up to the reapers
and the one who stomps the grapess will overtaket the planter.s
Juice will run down the slopes,t
it will flow down all the hillsides.t

14 I will bring back my people, Israel;t
they will rebuild the cities lying in rubblet and settle down.t
They will plant vineyards and drink the wine they produce;t
they will grow orchardst and eat the fruit they produce.t

15 I will plant them on their land
and they will never again be uprooted from thet land I have given them,”
says the Lord your God.