1
Hear this word that I take up over you as a lament, O house of Israel:
2
“Fallen, no more to rise,
Is the virgin Israel;
She lies forsaken on her land,
with no one to raise her up.”
3
For thus says the Lord GOD to the house of Israel:
“The city that goes out with a thousand shall have a hundred left in it,
and that which goes out with a hundred shall have ten left in it.”
4
For thus says the LORD to the house of Israel:
“Seek Me, and you shall live!
5
Do not seek Bethel,
do not go to Gilgal,
and do not cross over to Beersheba;
for Gilgal shall surely go into exile,
and Bethel shall come to nothing.”
6
Seek the LORD, and you shall live,
lest He break out like fire against the house of Joseph,
and it devour Bethel, with no one to quench it.
7
O you who turn justice into wormwood
and cast righteousness down to the ground!
8
He who made the Pleiades and Orion,
who turns deep darkness into morning
and makes the day dark as night;
who calls for the waters of the sea
and pours them out on the face of the earth—
the LORD is His name.
9
He who brings destruction upon the strong,
so that destruction comes upon the fortified place.
10
They hate him who reproves in the gate,
and they abhor him who speaks with integrity.
11
Therefore, because you trample on the poor
and exact grain taxes from him,
though you have built houses of hewn stone,
you shall not dwell in them;
though you have planted pleasant vineyards,
you shall not drink their wine.
12
For I know how many are your transgressions,
and how great are your sins—
you who afflict the righteous, who take a bribe,
and turn aside the needy at the gate.
13
Therefore the prudent keep silent at that time,
for it is an evil time.
14
Seek good, and not evil,
that you may live;
and so the LORD, the God of hosts, will be with you,
as you have said.
15
Hate evil, and love good,
and establish justice in the gate;
it may be that the LORD, the God of hosts, will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.
16
Therefore thus says the LORD, the God of hosts, the Lord:
“In all the squares there shall be wailing,
and in all the streets they shall say, Alas! Alas!
They shall call the farmer to mourning
and those skilled in lamentation to wailing.”
17
And in all the vineyards there shall be lamentation,
when I pass through the midst of you,”
says the LORD.
18
Woe to those who desire the day of the LORD!
What good is the day of the LORD to you?
It is darkness, and not light!
19
As when a man flees from a lion,
a bear meets him;
and when he comes home, leaning his hand against the wall,
a serpent bites him!
20
Is not the day of the LORD darkness, and not light,
gloom and no brightness?
21
“I hate, I despise your feasts,
and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies.
22
Indeed, though you offer Me burnt offerings and your grain offerings,
I will not accept them,
and the peace offerings of your fattened animals,
I will not look upon.
23
Take away from Me the noise of your songs;
I will not hear the melody of your harps.
24
But let justice roll on like waters,
and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.”
25
“Did you bring Me sacrifices and grain offerings
for forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?
26
You shall carry Sakkuth, your king, and Kiyyun, your star god,
your images that you made for yourselves,
27
and I will send you into exile beyond Damascus,”
says the LORD, whose name is the God of hosts.
⚰️🎶⚖️ Summary of Amos 5 – Lament over Israel, a Call to Repentance, and a Call to Social Justice
Amos 5 is God’s lament for His own people — like a funeral song for the dead. God does not want sacrifices or songs, but true repentance, seeking the Lord, and justice flowing like a river. This is the heart of the book of Amos and its central message for all ages: God requires justice, not empty ritual.
📌 1. Lament over Israel’s Fall (verses 1–3)
“Hear this word… a lamentation song over Israel.”
- Israel is pictured as a fallen maiden, with no one to help her
- 1,000 troops remain 100, 100 remain 10 — total ruin
🎯 Without repentance, even the chosen people can fall completely.
📌 2. A Call to Seek the Lord (verses 4–9)
“Seek Me, and you shall live!”
- Do not seek the Lord at popular places of worship that have been corrupted (Bethel, Gilgal, Beersheba)
- The Lord can be found only through true repentance and upright living
- The Lord is described in majesty:
Making the stars (the Pleiades and Orion)
Turning light into darkness
Destroying the strong
🎯 Worship does not save — only God saves.
📌 3. Social Sin: Oppressing the Weak (verses 10–13)
“They hate the one who reproves at the gate…”
- Israel does not love truth, and:
Trample the poor
Exact dishonest taxes
Build luxurious houses but will not live in them
🎯 The Lord is greatly angered by social and economic injustice. Wealth without justice is sin.
📌 4. Second Call to Repentance: Hate Evil! (verses 14–17)
“Seek good and not evil, that you may live…”
- The Lord calls for a change of heart and life:
Hate evil
Love good
Establish justice at the gate
- If there is a remnant that repents, the Lord may have mercy on them
🎯 The Lord does not want to destroy — He longs for a remnant to be saved.
📌 5. The Day of the Lord Is Not a Guarantee (verses 18–20)
“Woe to you who long for the day of the LORD!”
- Many people think “the Day of the Lord” = salvation
- But if their life is evil, it will be darkness, not light
🎯 Religious hope means nothing, if the heart is far from God.
📌 6. The Lord Rejects False Worship (verses 21–27)
“I hate… I do not delight in your feasts!”
- The Lord is sickened by:
Religious festivals
Burnt offerings
Religious songs
- Why? Because there is no justice and righteousness in the life of the people
- Golden verse:
“Let justice roll on like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.” (verse 24)
🎯 The Lord cares more about justice and righteousness than about all forms of liturgy.
📖 Main Teaching
- The Lord is not rejecting worship, but rejecting worship without a righteous life
- Justice and righteousness are at the center of true worship
- It is not enough just to “believe in God” — one must love others justly
- The Day of the Lord can be judgment, not salvation, for those who do not repent
- True repentance is seen in one’s attitude toward the weak, the poor, and the oppressed
✨ Spiritual Meaning (New Testament)
“Pure and undefiled religion… is to care for orphans and widows…”
→ Worship = real acts of love, not only ritual.
“Woe to you… you neglect justice and mercy…”
→ Jesus echoes the voice of Amos.
“To love the Lord and one’s neighbor is greater than all offerings…”
→ God prefers love and truth over ritual.
Jesus came to proclaim good news to the poor
→ The prophetic calling of Jesus is identical with Amos’ cry.
🎯 Amos 5 is the heart of the Bible’s social prophecy: do not hide behind worship if life does not reflect love and justice.
🕊️ “Seek Me, and you will live.” – Amos 5:4
🕊️ “Hate evil, love good, and establish justice…” – Amos 5:15
🕊️ “Woe to you who long for the day of the LORD!” – Amos 5:18
🕊️ “Let justice roll on like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.” – Amos 5:24
