Amos 3:4

3:4 Does a lion roar in the woods if he has not cornered his prey? ¹ 

Does a young lion bellow from his den if he has not caught something?

Amos 3:7

3:7 Certainly the sovereign Lord does nothing without first revealing his plan to his servants the prophets.

Amos 6:2

6:2 They say to the people: ² 

“Journey over to Calneh and look at it!

Then go from there to Hamath-Rabbah! ³ 

Then go down to Gath of the Philistines!

Are they superior to our two ⁴  kingdoms?

Is their territory larger than yours?” ⁵ 

Amos 6:12

6:12 Can horses run on rocky cliffs?

Can one plow the sea with oxen? ⁶ 

Yet you have turned justice into a poisonous plant,

and the fruit of righteous actions into a bitter plant. ⁷ 

Amos 7:2

7:2 When they had completely consumed the earth’s vegetation, I said,

“Sovereign Lord, forgive Israel! ⁸ 

How can Jacob survive? ⁹ 

He is too weak!” ¹⁰ 

Amos 9:4

9:4 Even when their enemies drive them into captivity, ¹¹ 

from there ¹²  I will command the sword to kill them.

I will not let them out of my sight;

they will experience disaster, not prosperity.” ¹³ 

[3:4]  ¹ tn Heb “without having prey [or “food”].”

[6:2]  ² tn The words “They say to the people” are interpretive and supplied in the translation for clarification. The translation understands v. 2 as the boastful words, which the leaders (described in v. 1) spoke to those who came to them (v. 1b). Some interpret v. 2 differently, understanding the words as directed to the leaders by the prophet. Verse 2b would then be translated: “Are you (i.e., Israel and Judah) better than these kingdoms (i.e., Calneh, etc.)? Is your border larger than their border?” (This reading requires an emendation of the Hebrew text toward the end of the verse.) In this case the verse is a reminder to Judah/Israel that they are not superior to other nations, which have already fallen victim to military conquest. Consequently Judah/Israel should not expect to escape the same fate. Following this line of interpretation, some take v. 2 as a later addition since the Assyrians under Tiglath-pileser III conquered Calneh, Hamath, and Gath after the time of Amos’ ministry. However, this conclusion is not necessary since the kingdoms mentioned here had suffered military setbacks prior to Amos’ time as well. See S. M. Paul, Amos (Hermeneia), 201-4.

[6:2]  ³ tn Or “Great Hamath” (cf. NIV); or “Hamath the great” (cf. KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV); the word “rabbah” means “great” in Hebrew.

[6:2]  ⁴ tn Heb “to these,” referring to Judah and Israel (see v. 1a).

[6:2]  ⁵ tn Both rhetorical questions in this verse expect the answer “no.” If these words do come from the leaders, then this verse underscores their self-delusion of power (compare 6:13). The prophet had no such mistaken sense of national grandeur (7:2, 5).

[6:12]  ⁶ tc Heb “Does one plow with oxen?” This obviously does not fit the parallelism, for the preceding rhetorical question requires the answer, “Of course not!” An error of fusion has occurred in the Hebrew, with the word יָם (yam, “sea”) being accidentally added as a plural ending to the collective noun בָּקָר (baqar, “oxen”). A proper division of the consonants produces the above translation, which fits the parallelism and also anticipates the answer, “Of course not!”

[6:12]  ⁷ sn The botanical imagery, when juxtaposed with the preceding rhetorical questions, vividly depicts and emphasizes how the Israelites have perverted justice and violated the created order by their morally irrational behavior.

[7:2]  ⁸ tn “Israel” is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[7:2]  ⁹ tn Heb “stand” (so ASV, NAB, NASB, NRSV).

[7:2]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “small.”

[9:4]  ¹¹ tn Heb “Even if they go into captivity before their enemies.”

[9:4]  ¹² tn Or perhaps simply, “there,” if the מ (mem) prefixed to the adverb is dittographic (note the preceding word ends in mem).

[9:4]  ¹³ tn Heb “I will set my eye on them for disaster, not good.”