Hear ye this word which I take up for a lamentation over you, O house of Israel.
The virgin of Israel is fallen; she shall no more rise: she {Or, lieth forsaken}is cast down upon her land; there is none to raise her up.
For thus saith the Lord Jehovah: The city that went forth a thousand shall have a hundred left, and that which went forth a hundred shall have ten left, to the house of Israel.
For thus saith Jehovah unto the house of Israel, Seek ye me, and ye shall live;
but seek not Beth-el, nor enter into Gilgal, and pass not to Beer-sheba: for Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Beth-el shall {Or, become vanity (Hebrew: Aven)}come to nought.
Seek Jehovah, and ye shall live; lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and it devour, and there be none to quench it in Beth-el.
Ye who turn justice to wormwood, and cast down righteousness to the earth,
seek him that maketh the Pleiades and Orion, and turneth {Or, deep darkness}the shadow of death into the morning, and maketh the day dark with night; that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth (Jehovah is his name);
that {Or, causeth destruction to flash forth}bringeth sudden destruction upon the strong, so that destruction cometh upon the fortress.
They hate him that reproveth in the gate, and they abhor him that speaketh uprightly.
Forasmuch therefore as ye trample upon the poor, and take exactions from him of wheat: ye have built houses of hewn stone, but ye shall not dwell in them; ye have planted pleasant vineyards, but ye shall not drink the wine thereof.
For I know how manifold are your transgressions, and how mighty are your sins— ye that afflict the just, that take a bribe, and that turn aside the needy in the gate from their right.
Therefore he that is prudent shall keep silence in such a time; for it is an evil time.
Seek good, and not evil, that ye may live; and so Jehovah, the God of hosts, will be with you, as ye say.
Hate the evil, and love the good, and establish justice in the gate: it may be that Jehovah, the God of hosts, will be gracious unto the remnant of Joseph.
Therefore thus saith Jehovah, the God of hosts, the Lord: Wailing shall be in all the broad ways; and they shall say in all the streets, Alas! alas! and they shall call the husbandman to mourning, {Hebrew: and proclaim wailing to such as are skillful in lamentation.}and such as are skilful in lamentation to wailing.
And in all vineyards shall be wailing; for I will pass through the midst of thee, saith Jehovah.
Woe unto you that desire the day of Jehovah! Wherefore would ye have the day of Jehovah? It is darkness, and not light.
As if a man did flee from a lion, and a bear met him; {Or, and}or went into the house and leaned his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him.
Shall not the day of Jehovah be darkness, and not light? even very dark, and no brightness in it?
I hate, I despise your feasts, and I {Hebrew: will not smell a savor.}will take no delight in your solemn assemblies.
Yea, though ye offer me {Or, burnt-offerings with your meal-offerings}your burnt-offerings and meal-offerings, I will not accept them; neither will I regard the {Or, ever-flowing}peace-offerings of your fat beasts.
Take thou away from me the noise of thy songs; for I will not hear the melody of thy viols.
But let justice roll down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream.
Did ye bring unto me sacrifices and {Or, meal-offerings}offerings in the wilderness forty years, O house of Israel?
Yea, ye {Or, shall take up…And I will cause &c.}have borne the tabernacle of your king and the shrine of your images, the star of your god, which ye made to yourselves.
Therefore will I cause you to go into captivity beyond Damascus, saith Jehovah, whose name is the God of hosts.
Querverweise zu Amos 5,6 Amos 5,6
For thus saith Jehovah unto the house of Israel, Seek ye me, and ye shall live;
If fire break out, and catch in thorns, so that the shocks of grain, or the standing grain, or the field are consumed; he that kindled the fire shall surely make restitution.
that drink {Hebrew: in bowls of wine.}wine in bowls, and anoint themselves with the chief oils; but they are not grieved for the affliction of Joseph.
And the strong shall be as tow, and his work as a spark; and they shall both burn together, and none shall quench them.
Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord Jehovah, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?
And Israel beheld Joseph's sons, and said, Who are these?
And Joseph said unto his father, They are my sons, whom God hath given me here. And he said, Bring them, I pray thee, unto me, and I will bless them.
Now the eyes of Israel were dim for age, so that he could not see. And he brought them near unto him; and he kissed them, and embraced them.
And Israel said unto Joseph, I had not thought to see thy face: and, lo, God hath let me see thy seed also.
And Joseph brought them out from between his knees; and he bowed himself with his face to the earth.
And Joseph took them both, Ephraim in his right hand toward Israel's left hand, and Manasseh in his left hand toward Israel's right hand, and brought them near unto him.
And Israel stretched out his right hand, and laid it upon Ephraim's head, who was the younger, and his left hand upon Manasseh's head, {Or, crossing his hands}guiding his hands wittingly; for Manasseh was the first-born.
And he blessed Joseph, and said, The God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk, the God who hath fed me all my life long unto this day,
the angel who hath redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.
And when Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand upon the head of Ephraim, it displeased him: and he held up his father's hand, to remove it from Ephraim's head unto Manasseh's head.
And Joseph said unto his father, Not so, my father; for this is the first-born; put thy right hand upon his head.
And his father refused, and said, I know it, my son, I know it. He also shall become a people, and he also shall be great: howbeit his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his seed shall become {Hebrew: fullness.}a multitude of nations.
And he blessed them that day, saying, {Or, By}In thee will Israel bless, saying, God make thee as Ephraim and as Manasseh: and he set Ephraim before Manasseh.
Circumcise yourselves to Jehovah, and take away the foreskins of your heart, ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem; lest my wrath go forth like fire, and burn so that none can quench it, because of the evil of your doings.
And they shall divide it into seven portions: Judah shall abide in his border on the south, and the house of Joseph shall abide in their border on the north.
Therefore thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, mine anger and my wrath shall be poured out upon this place, upon man, and upon beast, and upon the trees of the field, and upon the fruit of the ground; and it shall burn, and shall not be quenched.
And the house of Joseph, they also went up against Beth-el; and Jehovah was with them.
and say to the forest of the South, Hear the word of Jehovah: Thus saith the Lord Jehovah, Behold, I will kindle a fire in thee, and it shall devour every green tree in thee, and every dry tree: the flaming flame shall not be quenched, and all faces from the south to the north shall be burnt thereby.
And the house of Joseph sent to spy out Beth-el. (Now the name of the city beforetime was Luz.)
And all flesh shall see that I, Jehovah, have kindled it; it shall not be quenched.
For thy servant doth know that I have sinned: therefore, behold, I am come this day the first of all the house of Joseph to go down to meet my lord the king.
And if thy hand cause thee to stumble, cut it off: it is good for thee to enter into life maimed, rather than having thy two hands to go into {Greek: Gehenna.}hell, into the unquenchable fire. {Verse 44 and 46 (which are identical with verse 48) are omitted by the ancient authorities.}
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And if thy foot cause thee to stumble, cut it off: it is good for thee to enter into life halt, rather than having thy two feet to be cast into {Greek: Gehenna.}hell.
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And if thine eye cause thee to stumble, cast it out: it is good for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into {Greek: Gehenna.}hell;
where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.
And the man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valor; and Solomon saw the young man that he was industrious, and he gave him charge over all the {Hebrew: burden.}labor of the house of Joseph.
say unto them, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his companions; and I will put them {Or, together with him unto (or, to be) the stock of Judah}with it, even with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in my hand.
And I will strengthen the house of Judah, and I will save the house of Joseph, and I will {Or, cause them to dwell}bring them back; for I have mercy upon them; and they shall be as though I had not cast them off: for I am Jehovah their God, and I will hear them.