Amos 9

I Saw the Lord Standing beside the Altar

1I saw the Lord
standing beside the altar,
and he said:

“Strike the capitals
so that the thresholds shake,
and break them upon the heads
of all of them.
The last of them
I will kill with the sword.
No fugitive among them will escape,
and no survivor among them
will get away. 2Though they dig into Sheol,
from there my hand will take them.
Though they climb up to the heavens,
from there I will bring them down. 3Though they hide themselves
on the summit of Carmel,
from there I will search them out
and take them.
Though they hide from my eyes
at the bottom of the sea,
from there I will command the serpent,
and it will bite them. 4Though they go into captivity
before their enemies,
from there I will command the sword,
and it will kill them.
I will set my eyes upon them
for harm
and not for good.”

The Lord GOD of Hosts Touches the Earth

5The Lord GOD of Hosts—
the one who touches the earth
and it melts,
and all who live in it mourn;
all of it rises like the Nile
and sinks again
like the Nile of Egypt; 6the one who builds
his upper chambers in the heavens
and establishes his vault
upon the earth;
who calls for the waters of the sea
and pours them out
upon the face of the earth—
the LORD is his name.

Are You Not Like the Children of Cush to Me?

7“Are you not like the children of Cush to me,
children of Israel?”
says the LORD.

“Did I not bring Israel up
from the land of Egypt,
and the Philistines from Caphtor,
and Aram from Kir?

I Will Sift the House of Israel

8Look, the eyes of the Lord GOD
are upon the sinful kingdom,
and I will destroy it
from the face of the ground—
except that I will not utterly destroy
the house of Jacob,”
says the LORD. 9“For look, I am commanding,
and I will shake the house of Israel
among all the nations
as one shakes with a sieve,
yet not a pebble
will fall to the ground. 10By the sword
all the sinners of my people will die,
those who say,
‘Disaster will not approach
or come around us.’

I Will Raise Up David’s Fallen Booth

11“On that day
I will raise up
the fallen booth of David.
I will repair its breaches,
raise up its ruins,
and rebuild it
as in the days of old, 12so that they may possess
the remnant of Edom
and all the nations
who are called by my name,”
says the LORD,
who does this.

The Plowman Will Overtake the Reaper

13“Look, days are coming,”
says the LORD,

“when the plowman will overtake the reaper
and the one who treads grapes
the one who sows seed.
The mountains will drip sweet wine,
and all the hills
will flow with it. 14I will restore
the fortunes of my people Israel.
They will rebuild desolate cities
and live in them.
They will plant vineyards
and drink their wine;
they will make gardens
and eat their fruit. 15I will plant them
upon their ground,
and they will never again be uprooted
from their ground
that I have given them,”
says the LORD your God.