Judgment on Israel’s Neighbors
1These are the words of Amos, who was among the sheepherdersOr sheep breeders of Tekoa— what he saw concerning Israel two yearsOr during the two years before the earthquake, in the days when Uzziah was king of Judah and Jeroboam son of JehoashHebrew Joash, a variant of Jehoash was king of Israel. 2He said:
“The LORD roars from Zion
and raises His voice from Jerusalem;
the pastures of the shepherds mourn,
and the summit of Carmel withers.”
3This is what the LORD says:
“For three transgressions of Damascus, even four,
I will not revoke My judgment,Or I will not revoke the punishment; Hebrew I will not revoke it; also in verses 6, 9, 11, and 13
because they threshed Gilead
with sledges of iron.
4So I will send fire upon the house of Hazael
to consume the citadels of Ben-hadad.
5I will break down the gates of Damascus;
I will cut off the rulerOr the inhabitants from the Valley of AvenAven means wickedness.
and the one who wields the scepter in Beth-eden.
The people of Aram will be exiled to Kir,”
says the LORD.
6This is what the LORD says:
“For three transgressions of Gaza, even four,
I will not revoke My judgment,
because they exiled a whole population,
delivering them up to Edom.
7So I will send fire upon the walls of Gaza,
to consume its citadels.
8I will cut off the ruler of Ashdod
and the one who wields the scepter in Ashkelon.
I will turn My hand against Ekron,
and the remnant of the Philistines will perish,”
says the Lord GOD.
9This is what the LORD says:
“For three transgressions of Tyre, even four,
I will not revoke My judgment,
because they delivered up a whole congregation of exiles to Edom
and broke a covenant of brotherhood.
10So I will send fire upon the walls of Tyre
to consume its citadels.”
11This is what the LORD says:
“For three transgressions of Edom, even four,
I will not revoke My judgment,
because he pursued his brother with the sword
and stifled all compassion;
his anger raged continually,
and his fury flamed incessantly.
12So I will send fire upon Teman
to consume the citadels of Bozrah.”
13This is what the LORD says:
“For three transgressions of the Ammonites, even four,
I will not revoke My judgment,
because they ripped open the pregnant women of Gilead
in order to enlarge their territory.
14So I will kindle a fire in the walls of Rabbah
to consume its citadels
amid war cries on the day of battle
and a violent wind on the day of tempest.
15Their king will go into exilePossibly Milcom will go into exile; Milcom, also called Molech, was god of the Ammonites; see Leviticus 18:21 and 1 Kings 11:7. —
he and his princes together,”
says the LORD.