Amós 7

¹ Thus hath the Lord GOD shewed unto me; and, behold, he formedTo devour the land: and he alludes to the invading of the enemies.grasshoppers in the beginning of the shooting up of the latter growth; and, lo, [it was] the latter growthAfter the public commandment for mowing was given: or as some read, when the kings sheep were shorn.after the king's mowings.

² And when they had made an ende of eating the grasse of the land, then I saide, O Lorde God, spare, I beseeche thee: who shal raise vp Iaakob? for he is small.

³ The LORDThat is, stopped this plague at my prayer.repented for this: It shall not be, saith the LORD.

⁴ Thus hath the Lord GOD shewed unto me: and, behold, the Lord GOD called to contend by fire,Meaning, that God's indignation was inflamed against the stubbornness of this people.and it devoured the great deep, and did eat up a part.

⁵ Then said I, O Lord God, cease, I beseeche thee: who shal raise vp Iaakob? for he is small.

⁶ So the Lord repented for this. This also shal not be, saith the Lord God.

⁷ Thus he shewed me: and, behold, the Lord stood upon a wall [made] by a plumbline,Signifying that this would be the last measuring of the people, and that he would defer his judgment no longer.with a plumbline in his hand.

⁸ And the Lorde saide vnto me, Amos, what seest thou? And I said, A line. Then said the Lord, Beholde, I wil set a line in the middes of my people Israel, and wil passe by them no more.

⁹ And the hye places of Izhak shalbe desolate, and the temples of Israel shalbe destroyed: and I wil rise against the house of Ieroboam with the sworde.

¹⁰ That is, when Amos had prophesied that the king would be destroyed: for the wicked priest more for hatred he had for the Prophet than for love toward the king, thought this accusation sufficient to condemn him. However, only what the Prophet said could take place.Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, Amos hath conspired against thee in the midst of the house of Israel: the land is not able to bear all his words.

¹¹ For thus Amos saith, Ieroboam shal die by the sworde, and Israel shalbe led away captiue out of their owne land.

¹² AlsoWhen this instrument of Satan was not able to accomplish his purpose by the king, he tried by another practice, that was, to scare the Prophet, that he might depart, and not reprove their idolatry there openly, and so hinder his profit.Amaziah said unto Amos, O thou seer, go, flee thee away into the land of Judah, and there eat bread, and prophesy there:

¹³ But prophecie no more at Beth-el: for it is the Kings chappel, and it is the Kings court.

¹⁴ Then answered Amos, and said to Amaziah, I [was] noThus he shows by his extraordinary calling, that God had given him a charge, which he must necessarily execute.prophet, neither [was] I a prophet's son; but I [was] an herdman, and a gatherer of sycomore fruit:

¹⁵ And the Lord tooke me as I followed the flocke, and the Lord said vnto me, Go, prophecie vnto my people Israel.

¹⁶ Now therefore heare thou the word of the Lord. Thou sayest, Prophecie not against Israel, & speake nothing against the house of Izhak.

¹⁷ Therefore thus saith the LORD;In this way God used to approve the authority of his Prophets, by his plagues and judgments against those who were malicious enemies as in (Jer_28:12-17; Jer_29:21-26), as this day he does against those that persecute the ministers of his Gospel.Thy wife shall be an harlot in the city, and thy sons and thy daughters shall fall by the sword, and thy land shall be divided by line; and thou shalt die in a polluted land: and Israel shall surely go into captivity forth of his land.