Amos Contemporary English Version (CEV)

chapter 1

1I am Amos. And I raised sheep near the town of Tekoa when Uzziah was king of Judah and Jeroboam son of Jehoash was king of Israel. Two years before the earthquake, the LORD gave me several messages about Israel, 2 and I said: When the LORD roars from Jerusalem,pasturelands and Mount Carmeldry up and turn brown.Judgment on Syria 3The LORD said: I will punish Syria for countless crimes, and I won't change my mind. They dragged logs with spikes over the people of Gilead. 4Now I will burn down the palaces and fortresses of King Hazael and of King Benhadad. 5I will break through the gates of Damascus. I will destroy the people of Wicked Valley and the ruler of Beth-Eden. Then the Syrians will be dragged as prisoners to Kir. I, the LORD, have spoken! Judgment on Philistia 6The LORD said: I will punish Philistia for countless crimes, and I won't change my mind. They dragged off my people from town after town to sell them as slaves to the Edomites. 7That's why I will burn down the walls and fortresses of the city of Gaza. 8I will destroy the king of Ashdod and the ruler of Ashkelon. I will strike down Ekron, and that will be the end of the Philistines. I, the LORD, have spoken! Judgment on Phoenicia 9The LORD said: I will punish Phoenicia for countless crimes, and I won't change my mind. They broke their treaty and dragged off my people from town after town to sell them as slaves to the Edomites. 10That's why I will send flames to burn down the city of Tyre along with its fortresses. Judgment on Edom 11The LORD said: I will punish Edom for countless crimes, and I won't change my mind. They killed their own relatives and were so terribly furious that they showed no mercy. 12Now I will send fire to wipe out the fortresses of Teman and Bozrah. Judgment on Ammon 13The LORD said: I will punish Ammon for countless crimes, and I won't change my mind. In Gilead they ripped open pregnant women, just to take the land. 14Now I will send fire to destroy the walls and fortresses of Rabbah. Enemies will shout and attack like a whirlwind. 15Ammon's king and leaders will be dragged away. I, the LORD, have spoken!

chapter 2

Judgment on Moab 1The LORD said: I will punish Moab for countless crimes, and I won't change my mind. They made lime from the bones of the king of Edom. 2Now I will send fire to destroy the fortresses of Kerioth. Battle shouts and trumpet blasts will be heard as I destroy Moab 3with its king and leaders. I, the LORD, have spoken! Judgment on Judah 4The LORD said: I will punish Judah for countless crimes, and I won't change my mind. They have rejected my teachings and refused to obey me. They were led astray by the same false gods their ancestors worshiped. 5Now I will send fire on Judah and destroy the fortresses of Jerusalem. Judgment on Israel 6The LORD said: I will punish Israel for countless crimes, and I won't change my mind. They sell honest people for money, and the needy are sold for the price of sandals. 7They smear the poor in the dirt and push aside those who are helpless. My holy name is dishonored, because fathers and sons sleep with the same young women. 8They lie down beside altars on clothes taken as security for loans. And they drink wine in my temple, wine bought with the money they received from fines. 9Israel, the Amorites were there when you entered Canaan. They were tall as cedars and strong as oaks. But I wiped them out-- I destroyed their branches and their roots. 10I had rescued you from Egypt, and for forty years I had led you through the desert. Then I gave you the land of the Amorites. 11I chose some of you to be prophets and others to be Nazirites. People of Israel, you know this is true. I, the LORD, have spoken! 12But you commanded the prophets not to speak their message, and you pressured the Nazirites into drinking wine. 13And so I will crush you, just as a wagon full of grain crushes the ground. 14No matter how fast you run, you won't escape. No matter how strong you are, you will lose your strength and your life. 15Even if you are an expert with a bow and arrow, you will retreat. And you won't get away alive, not even if you run fast or ride a horse. 16You may be brave and strong, but you will run away, stripped naked. I, the LORD, have spoken!

chapter 3

1People of Israel, I rescued you from Egypt. Now listen to my judgment against you. 2Of all nations on earth, you are the only one I have chosen. That's why I will punish you because of your sins. The Work of a Prophet 3Can two people walk together without agreeing to meet? 4Does a lion roar in the forest unless it has caught a victim? Does it growl in its den unless it is eating? 5How can anyone catch a bird without using a net? Does a trap spring shut unless something is caught? 6Isn't the whole city frightened when the trumpet signals an attack? Isn't it the LORD who brings disaster on a city? 7Whatever the LORD God plans to do, he tells his servants, the prophets. 8Everyone is terrified when a lion roars-- and ordinary people become prophets when the LORD God speaks. Samaria Is Doomed 9Here is a message for the leaders of Philistia and Egypt-- tell everyone to come together on the hills of Samaria. Let them see the injustice and the lawlessness in that city. 10The LORD has said that they don't even know how to do right. They have become rich from violence and robbery. 11And so the LORD God has sworn that they will be surrounded. Enemies will break through their defenses and steal their treasures. 12The LORD has promised that only a few from Samaria will escape with their lives and with some broken pieces of their beds and couches. It will be like when a shepherd rescues two leg bones and part of a sheep's ear from the jaws of a lion. The Altars at Bethel 13The LORD God All-Powerful told me to speak this message against Jacob's descendants: 14When I, the LORD, punish Israel for their sins, I will destroy the altars at Bethel. Even the corners of the altar will be left in the dirt. 15I will tear down winter homes and summer homes. Houses decorated with ivory and all other mansions will be gone forever. I, the LORD, have spoken!

chapter 4

The Women of Samaria The LORD said: 1You women of Samaria are fat cows! You mistreat and abuse the poor and needy, then you say to your husbands, "Bring us more drinks!" 2I, the LORD God, have sworn by my own name that your time is coming. Not one of you will be left-- you will be taken away by sharp hooks. 3You will be dragged through holes in your city walls, and you will be thrown toward Harmon. I, the LORD, have spoken! Israel Refuses To Obey The LORD said: 4Come to Bethel and Gilgal. Sin all you want! Offer sacrifices the next morning and bring a tenth of your crops on the third day. 5Bring offerings to show me how thankful you are. Gladly bring more offerings than I have demanded. You really love to do this. I, the LORD God, have spoken! How the LORD Warned Israel 6I, the LORD, took away the food from every town and village, but still you rejected me. 7Three months before harvest, I kept back the rain. Sometimes I would let it fall on one town or field but not on another, and pastures dried up. 8People from two or three towns would go to a town that still had water, but it wasn't enough. Even then you rejected me. I, the LORD, have spoken! 9I dried up your grain fields; your gardens and vineyards turned brown. Locusts ate your fig trees and olive orchards, but even then you rejected me. I, the LORD, have spoken! 10I did terrible things to you, just as I did to Egypt-- I killed your young men in war; I let your horses be stolen, and I made your camp stink with dead bodies. Even then you rejected me. I, the LORD, have spoken! 11I destroyed many of you, just as I did the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. You were a burning stick I rescued from the fire. Even then you rejected me. I, the LORD, have spoken! 12Now, Israel, I myself will deal with you. Get ready to face your God! 13I created the mountains and the wind. I let humans know what I am thinking. I bring darkness at dawn and step over hills. I am the LORD God All-Powerful!

chapter 5

Turn Back to the LORD 1Listen, nation of Israel, to my mournful message: 2You, dearest Israel, have fallen, never to rise again-- you lie deserted in your own land, with no one to help you up. 3The LORD God has warned, "From every ten soldiers only one will be left; from a thousand troops, only a hundred will survive." 4The LORD keeps saying, "Israel, turn back to me and you will live! 5Don't go to Gilgal or Bethel or even to Beersheba. Gilgal will be dragged away, and Bethel will end up as nothing." 6Turn back to the LORD, you descendants of Joseph, and you will live. If you don't, the LORD will attack like fire. Bethel will burn to the ground, and no one can save it. 7You people are doomed! You twist the truth and stomp on justice. 8But the LORD created the stars and put them in place. He turns darkness to dawn and daylight to darkness; he scoops up the ocean and empties it on the earth. 9God destroys mighty soldiers and strong fortresses. Choose Good Instead of Evil! The LORD said: 10You people hate judges and honest witnesses; 11you abuse the poor and demand heavy taxes from them. You have built expensive homes, but you won't enjoy them; you have planted vineyards, but you will get no wine. 12I am the LORD, and I know your terrible sins. You cheat honest people and take bribes; you rob the poor of justice. 13Times are so evil that anyone with good sense will keep quiet. 14If you really want to live, you must stop doing wrong and start doing right. I, the LORD God All-Powerful, will then be on your side, just as you claim I am. 15Choose good instead of evil! See that justice is done. Maybe I, the LORD All-Powerful, will be kind to what's left of your people. Judgment Is Coming 16This is what the LORD has sworn: Noisy crying will be heard in every town and street. Even farmers will be told to mourn for the dead, together with those who are paid to mourn. 17Your vineyards will be filled with crying and weeping, because I will punish you. I, the LORD, have spoken! When the LORD Judges 18You look forward to the day when the LORD comes to judge. But you are in for trouble! It won't be a time of sunshine; all will be darkness. 19You will run from a lion, only to meet a bear. You will escape to your house, rest your hand on the wall, and be bitten by a snake. 20The day when the LORD judges will be dark, very dark, without a ray of light. What the LORD Demands 21I, the LORD, hate and despise your religious celebrations and your times of worship. 22I won't accept your offerings or animal sacrifices-- not even your very best. 23No more of your noisy songs! I won't listen when you play your harps. 24But let justice and fairness flow like a river that never runs dry. 25Israel, for forty years you wandered in the desert, without bringing offerings or sacrifices to me. 26Now you will have to carry the two idols you made-- Sakkuth, the one you call king, and Kaiwan, the one you built in the shape of a star. 27I will force you to march as captives beyond Damascus. I, the LORD God All-Powerful, have spoken!

chapter 6

Israel Will Be Punished 1Do you rulers in Jerusalem and in the city of Samaria feel safe and at ease? Everyone bows down to you, and you think you are better than any other nation. But you are in for trouble! 2Look what happened to the cities of Calneh, powerful Hamath, and Gath in Philistia. Are you greater than any of those kingdoms? 3You are cruel, and you forget the coming day of judgment. 4You rich people lounge around on beds with ivory posts, while dining on the meat of your lambs and calves. 5You sing foolish songs to the music of harps, and you make up new tunes, just as David used to do. 6You drink all the wine you want and wear expensive perfume, but you don't care about the ruin of your nation. 7So you will be the first to be dragged off as captives; your good times will end. 8The LORD God All-Powerful has sworn by his own name: "You descendants of Jacob make me angry by your pride, and I hate your fortresses. And so I will surrender your city and possessions to your enemies." 9If only ten of you survive by hiding in a house you will still die. 10As you carry out a corpse to prepare it for burial, your relative in the house will ask, "Are there others?" You will answer, "No!" Then your relative will reply, "Be quiet! Don't dare mention the name of the LORD." 11At the LORD's command, houses great and small will be smashed to pieces. 12Horses can't gallop on rocks; oceans can't be plowed. But you have turned justice and fairness into bitter poison. 13You celebrate the defeat of Lo-Debar and Karnaim, and you boast by saying, "We did it on our own." 14But the LORD God All-Powerful will send a nation to attack you people of Israel. They will capture Lebo-Hamath in the north, Arabah Creek in the south, and everything in between.

chapter 7

A Vision of Locusts 1The LORD God showed me that he is going to send locusts 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. 2In my vision the locusts ate every crop in the land, and I said to the LORD, "Forgive me for asking, but how can the nation survive? It's so weak." 3Then the LORD felt sorry and answered, "I won't let it be destroyed." A Vision of Fire 4The LORD showed me that he is going to send a ball of fire to burn up everything on earth, including the ocean. 5Then I said, "Won't you please stop? How can our weak nation survive?" 6Again the LORD felt sorry and answered, "I won't let it be destroyed." A Vision of a Measuring Line 7The 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. 8Then 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. 9Their sacred places will be destroyed, and I will send war against the nation of King Jeroboam." Amos and Amaziah 10Amaziah 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. 11Here is what he is saying: `Jeroboam will be put to death, and the people will be taken to a foreign country.' " 12Then Amaziah told me, "Amos, take your visions and get out! Go back to Judah and earn your living there as a prophet. 13Don't do any more preaching at Bethel. The king worships here at our national temple." 14I 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. 15But the LORD told me to leave my herds and preach to the people of Israel. 16And here you are, telling me not to preach! 17Now, 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.

chapter 8

A Basket of Fruit 1The LORD God showed me a basket of ripe fruit 2and asked, "Amos, what do you see?" "A basket of ripe fruit," I replied. Then he said, "This is the end for my people Israel. I won't forgive them again. 3Instead of singing in the temple, they will cry and weep. Dead bodies will be everywhere. So keep silent! I, the LORD, have spoken!" Israel Is Doomed The LORD said: 4You people crush those in need and wipe out the poor. 5You say to yourselves, "How much longer before the end of the New Moon Festival? When will the Sabbath be over? Our wheat is ready, and we want to sell it now. We can't wait to cheat and charge high prices for the grain we sell. We will use dishonest scales 6and mix dust in the grain. Those who are needy and poor don't have any money. We will make them our slaves for the price of a pair of sandals." 7I, the LORD, won't forget any of this, though you take great pride in your ancestor Jacob. 8Your country will tremble, and you will mourn. It will be like the Nile River that rises and overflows, then sinks back down. 9On that day, I, the LORD God, will make the sun go down at noon, and I will turn daylight into darkness. 10Your festivals and joyful singing will turn into sorrow. You will wear sackcloth and shave your heads, as you would at the death of your only son. It will be a horrible day. 11I, the LORD, also promise you a terrible shortage, but not of food and water. You will hunger and thirst to hear my message. 12You will search everywhere-- from north to south, from east to west. You will go all over the earth, seeking a message from me, the LORD. But you won't find one. 13Your beautiful young women and your young men will faint from thirst. 14You made promises in the name of Ashimah, the goddess of Samaria. And you made vows in my name at the shrines of Dan and Beersheba. But you will fall and never get up.

chapter 9

Judgment on Israel 1I saw a vision of the LORD standing by the temple altar, and he said, "Shake the columns until the tops fall loose, and the doorposts crumble. Then make the pieces fall on the people below. I will take a sword and kill anyone who escapes. 2"If they dig deep into the earth or climb to the sky, I'll reach out and get them. 3If they escape to the peaks of Mount Carmel, I'll search and find them. And if they hide from me at the bottom of the ocean, I'll command a sea monster to bite them. 4I'll send a sword to kill them, wherever their enemies drag them off as captives. I'm determined to hurt them, not to help them." His Name Is the LORD 5When the LORD God All-Powerful touches the earth, it melts, and its people mourn. God makes the earth rise and then fall, just like the Nile River. 6He built his palace in the heavens and let its foundations rest on the earth. He scoops up the ocean and empties it on the earth. His name is the LORD. The LORD Is God 7Israel, I am the LORD God, and the Ethiopians are no less important to me than you are. I brought you out of Egypt, but I also brought the Philistines from Crete and the Arameans from Kir. 8My eyes have seen what a sinful nation you are, and I'll wipe you out. But I will leave a few of Jacob's descendants. I, the LORD, have spoken! 9At my command, all of you will be sifted like grain. Israelites who remain faithful will be scattered among the nations. And the others will be trapped like trash in a sifter. 10Some of you are evil, and you deny that you will ever get caught. But you will be killed. The LORD's Promise to Israel 11In the future, I will rebuild David's fallen kingdom. I will build it from its ruins and set it up again, just as it used to be. 12Then you will capture Edom and the other nations that are mine. I, the LORD, have spoken, and my words will come true. 13You will have such a harvest that you won't be able to bring in all of your wheat before plowing time. You will have grapes left over from season to season; your fruitful vineyards will cover the mountains. 14I'll make Israel prosper again. You will rebuild your towns and live in them. You will drink wine from your own vineyards and eat the fruit you grow. 15I'll plant your roots deep in the land I have given you, and you won't ever be uprooted again. I, the LORD God, have spoken!