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1–17. Convicting Israel for violating the truth and announcing punishment. 18–20. Day of the Lord. 21–27. Reproof for hypocritical service to God. Am.5:1. Hear this word in which I will cry out for you, O house of Israel. From ch. V-th new speech begins, in which the prophet denounces Israel for violating the truth and announces the judgment of God. The prophet already sees this judgment as having arrived in his spirit; Israel has already fallen. Therefore, the prophet raises a lament for the house of Israel. - “Lamentation”, Heb. kinah - a lamentable song about the death of a hero or about the destruction of a city. The Jews, like other peoples, had the custom of composing similar lamentable songs, and examples of them are preserved in the Bible: this is David’s elegy on the death of Saul and Jonathan (2 Samuel 1.17–27), as well as a whole book known as the “Lamentation of Jeremiah.” Lamentations or kinoth were composed by biblical writers in accordance with a special meter, which is usually called kinameter (Budde. Das Voikslied Israels im Munde d. Propheten. Zeit. AIt. Wiss. II, 1). The essence of the kinemeter is that the song is presented in the form of two-term verses, with the second term always shorter than the first, as if depending on the grief that filled the poet’s soul. The mournful song of the prophet Amos also uses cinematic meter. – The words “house of Israel”, which make up the address, in the text of LXX are taken in the meaning of the subject, the predicate for which is found in Art. 2nd (επεσεν, fell); from here to glory “The house of Israel has fallen.” Am.5:2. The virgin of Israel has fallen and rises no more! she is cast down on her earth, and there is no one to raise her up. The prophet calls the people of Israel the Virgin of Israel. The personification of a nation or the inhabitants of a city under the image of a maiden was common in ancient writing; such personification conveys the idea that the city or people have not yet been defeated or conquered (Novak). In the prophet Amos, the personification of Israel under the image of a virgin has, according to the interpretation of church teachers, another meaning: “the people of Israel are called virgins not because they were in moral purity, but because they were once, like a virgin, in union with the Lord. And the prophet is commanded to raise a lament over him, because he will never return to his former state of virginity” (Blessed Theodoret). Am.5:3. For thus says the Lord God: The city that marched out with a thousand will remain with only a hundred, and the city that marched with a hundred will remain with ten against the house of Israel. In Art. The 3rd indicates the basis of the prophet’s lamentable song in the extreme decrease in the number of inhabitants of the kingdom that is coming to Israel. The city that spoke (hajjozeth) with a thousand: ch. jazah (to march) means going to war. A decrease in the number of soldiers fielded by cities by 10 implies a corresponding decrease in the entire population of the country. The subsequent history of the ten-tribe kingdom confirmed the words of the prophet (2 Kings 14:26, 17:26). Am.5:4. For thus says the Lord to the house of Israel: Seek Me, and you will live. In Art. 4–13 the prophet proves the justice of divine punishment for Israel. The name of the house of Israel in v. 4 was used by the prophet not about all the chosen people, as in Am 3.1, but only about the ten-tribe kingdom, to whose inhabitants the invitation was addressed to seek the Lord. Am.5:5. Do not seek Bethel, and do not go to Gilgal, and do not travel to Beersheba, for all of Gilgal will go into captivity and Bethel will be reduced to nothing. The prophet points to deviation from the path of Jehovah, to service in Bethel, Gilgal and Beersheba. Bethel and Gilgal were centers of ministry to the bulls. A special cult in Bathsheba is mentioned in Hosea 4.15 and Am 8.14. The city of Bathsheba belonged to the kingdom of Judah and was located on the southern border of this kingdom, 20 miles away. south of Hebron, on the site of present-day Ber es-Seba. Bathsheba is first mentioned in the history of the patriarchs (Gen. 21:33, 26:23–25, 46:1). Here Abraham entered into an alliance with King Abimelech of Gerar and called on the name of the Lord God everlasting (Gen. 21.33). Isaac, having received the epiphany in Bathsheba, built an altar there (Gen. 26.25). It is also reported about Jacob that, having come to Beersheba, he offered sacrifices here to the God of his father Isaac (Gen. 46.1). Bathsheba, sacred according to the memories of patriarchal times, during the existence of the ten-tribe kingdom became a place of cult of the heights (2 Kings 23.8). Mentioning his wanderings to distant Bathsheba, the prophet wants to more clearly demonstrate the futility of the people’s zeal. Some commentators (Gonaker) consider the words “and do not wander to Bathsheba” as a later insertion, since the inhabitants of the ten-tribe kingdom, to whom the prophet speaks, could not supposedly have anything to do with Bathsheba. But due to the lack of detailed information about the religious life of the ten-tribe kingdom, there is hardly any reason to accept this opinion. – In LXX, Bathsheba’s own name is replaced by the common noun τὸ φρέαρ τοῦ ὅρχοv; in glory: “and do not go to the treasury of oaths.” Am.5:6. Seek the Lord, and you will live, so that He does not rush upon the house of Joseph like a fire that will consume it, and there will be no one to extinguish it in Bethel. The prophet exhorts the people to seek the Lord so as not to perish. – “The House of Joseph” is a ten-tribe kingdom, in which the tribe of Ephraim (son of Joseph) has always prevailed. - “And there will be no one to extinguish it at Bethel”: LXX, obviously finding a mention of Bethel in v. 6th incomprehensible ones, instead of the name of Bethel they put the words: τῶ οἴχψ Ισραὴλ, glory. "house of Israel". But all ancient texts agree with Heb. and read the name of Bethel in the place in question. The newest commentators consider the word a later glossa (Novak). Am.5:7. Oh, you who turn judgment into poison and throw truth to the ground! The prophet points out why the ministry in Bethel, Beersheba and Gilgal cannot be considered seeking the Lord: Israel “turned judgment into poison” (laanah proper bitterness, bitter plant) and “threw down righteousness to the ground.” LXX, in view of Art. 8th, understood 7th Art. about God and translated: ὁ Κύριος ὁ ποιῶν εἰς ὔψος κρίμα καὶ δικαιοσύνην εἰς γῆν ἔθηκεν, slav. “The Lord execute judgment on high, and place righteousness on the earth.” According to some commentators (Valeton, Goonaker), the LXX read a text different from the Masoretic one (chophech lemaalah mischschaphat), according to others (Jungers), they erroneously conveyed the current Hebrew. Am.5:8. Who created the seven stars and Orion, and transforms the shadow of death into a clear morning, and makes the day dark as night, calls on the waters of the sea and pours them over the face of the earth? - The Lord is His name! In order to highlight the gravity of the transgression of God's laws, the prophet points to the omnipotence of God. There is no reason to understand the prophet’s expression, together with Keil and others, in a figurative sense: the prophet speaks specifically about the creative omnipotence of God. - “Who created (oseh - creator) the seven stars (chimah) and Orion” (chesil): chinah and chesil, the names of two constellations - Ursa Major and Orion (cf. Job 9:9, 38:31). - “Calls down the waters of the sea and pours them over the face of the earth”: probably this refers to devastating floods. LXX translated the words chimah and chesil in Job 9.9 and Job 38.31 as proper names (ἀρκτοῦρον καὶ πλειάδας), and in the verse in question they were translated as common nouns; from here to glory “do everything and implement it.” At the end of the verse, instead of the words Lord, His name is to glory. according to LXX it reads with the addition: “The Lord God Almighty is His name.” Am.5:9. He strengthens the desolator against the strong, and the devastator enters the fortress. Meaning of Ch. hammablig, which begins Art. 9th, it is not known exactly, since balag is άπαξ λεγὸμ. In Russian text of Art. The 9th is transmitted presumably and is transmitted differently by other translators. Assuming in Art. 9. direct continuation of the thought of Art. On the 8th, Hoffmann gives the translation: “The one that causes the constellation Vola (schor instead of schod mazor. t.) to rise after Capella (ez instead of az) and (the constellation) Vola to set after. This translation cannot be accepted: it gives an image too weak to express the idea of ​​omnipotence; besides, neither in euro. t., nor in other ancient texts in Art. The 9th is not named after any constellation. According to Goonaker Art. The 9th should translate: “He makes salvation shine on the unfortunate, and fortresses He threatens destruction.” According to Yungerov: “He intensifies the death of the strong, and death enters the fortress.” According to the accepted Russian In the text, the prophet’s thought is that the Lord, as the Almighty, against a strong people boasting of their fortresses, can raise up an even stronger devastator; So. arr., the punishment sent by God to Israel, no one can avert. The same idea about the omnipotence of God is expressed in glory. text of Art. 9th: “divide contrition into the fortress, and bring disaster upon the stronghold” (in LXX ' ο διαιρῶν συντριμμὸν ἐπὶ ἰσχυν, καὶ ταλαιπωρὶαν ἐπὶ ᾿οχυρωμα ἐπάγων ). Am.5:10. And they hate the one who rebukes at the gate and abhor those who speak the truth. The Prophet continues in v. 10–13 exposure of violation of justice. - “And they hate the accuser (mochicha) at the gate”: the accuser at the gate is the one who seeks to prove the truth during legal proceedings, which usually took place at the gates of the city (cf. Job 13:15, 15:3). - “And they abhor those who speak the truth,” that is, who speak in court. Am.5:11. So, because you trample on the poor and take gifts of bread from him, you will build houses of hewn stones, but you will not live in them; you will plant beautiful vineyards, but you will not drink wine from them. “You trample on the poor”: to glory. according to LXX - “with your palms you beat the wretched.” - “And you take gifts of bread from him,” Heb. umaseathbar tikchü bar means selected varieties of bread (Gen. 41.35; Ps. 71.16) and in general the best, selected (Job 11.4; Song 6.9–10); hence, in glory: “and the chosen gifts were received.” The prophet speaks not only about the unrighteous gifts that the judges demanded, but also about the exploitation of the poor in general. At the same time, the prophet threatens that the oppressors will not benefit from the fruits of exploitation. Am.5:12. For I know how numerous are your crimes and how grave are your sins: you are enemies of what is right, taking bribes and perverting the affairs of the poor in court. “Take bribes”: in the LXX the word kopher (ransom, bribes) is transferred to the next word. ' ἄλλαγμα (change); from here to glory “accepting changes.” – “And you pervert the affairs of the poor in court”: Russian. translators conveyed the meaning of the prophet’s words closer to the letter of the original; in glory “and the wretched one withdraws from the gates.” Am.5:13. Therefore, the reasonable person remains silent at this time, for this is an evil time. “Therefore the wise man is silent at this time”: the prophet speaks of his time; reasonable - one who knows his own interest. The prophet does not give advice or praise anyone (cf. Sir 20.7), but only states a fact. Am.5:14. Seek good and not evil, so that you may live, and then the Lord God of hosts will be with you, as you say. Am.5:15. Hate evil and love good, and bring justice to the gates; Perhaps the Lord God of hosts will have mercy on the remnant of Joseph. The prophet repeats the exhortation to the people to love goodness and truth. - “The remnant of Joseph” - that small part of the population of the kingdom of Israel that will survive the disasters that will befall the kingdom. The opening words of Art. 15th are understood by LXX as the words of the Israelis, and not as the invitation of the prophet addressed to the Israelis; from here to glory. “I hate the evil and love the good.” Am.5:16. Therefore, thus says the Lord God of Hosts, the Almighty: There will be weeping in all the streets, and on all the roads they will cry out, “Alas, alas!” Am.5:17. and there will be mourning in all the vineyards, for I will pass through your midst, says the Lord. Not hoping to arouse the people to goodness with exhortations alone, the prophet also adds a threat. The prophet announces the coming of a time when there will be universal mourning. Explaining the reason for this crying, the prophet on behalf of the Lord says: “For I will walk among you” (v. 17). The image is taken from Ex. 12:12–30; the prophet wants to remind them of the tenth plague of Egypt. Consequently, according to the prophet, general mourning will be caused by a large number of deaths - both from diseases and from wars. Am.5:18. Woe to those who long for the day of the Lord! Why do you need this day of the Lord? he is darkness, not light, Am.5:19. the same as if someone ran away from a lion and a bear came across him, or if he came home and leaned his hand on the wall, and a snake bit him. Am.5:20. Is the day of the Lord not darkness, but light? he is darkness, and there is no shine in him.: As can be seen from Art. On the 18th, Amos’ contemporaries not only did not fear the day of God’s judgment, but, on the contrary, looked forward to it, hoping that for them, as those who belonged to the chosen people, the day of judgment would be a day of special prosperity. The prophet destroys these false hopes. According to his image, the day of judgment will be a day of mortal dangers, so that if someone escaped from one danger, he would fall into another, and having gotten rid of this, he would be exposed to a new one. Am.5:21. I hate, I reject your holidays and I do not smell the sacrifices during your solemn assemblies. Israel's false hopes and perseverance were based on the conviction that with its sacrifices and performance of rituals it pleased God. The Prophet reveals the fallacy of such a belief and shows the insufficiency of external service to God alone during the solemn meetings of your glories. "in your company"; euro beazzerotheichem can be understood both in the sense of festive gatherings in general (2 Chronicles 7.9), and as the name of the final gatherings on the last day of the great holidays (Deut. 16.8; Lev. 23.36; Num. 29.35). Am.5:22. If you offer Me a burnt offering and a grain offering, I will not accept them, nor will I consider a thanksgiving offering from your fat bulls. The Prophet lists the victims (oloth uminchotheichem) in the order of Lev. 1–3. Instead of the words “and I will not despise the thanksgiving sacrifice (schelem) from your fat calves” (meriejchem) in glory. reads: “and I will not despise your saving manifestation”: LXX probably understood schelem in the general sense - peace, salvation (σωτηρίους), and the word meriejchem (meri - fat cattle) was derived from mareh appearance, appearance and translated ἐπιφανείας ᾿υμῶν. Am.5:23. Take away from Me the noise of your songs, for I will not listen to the sound of your harps. According to the connection of speech, it should be concluded that the prophet is talking about music and singing during sacrifices or during the meals that followed the sacrifices. Am.5:24. Let judgment flow like water, and righteousness like a mighty stream! The prophet's thought in v. The 24th is understood differently. Some commentators (Hitzig, Keil, Goonaker) see in the verse a speech about the Justice of God and a prediction about the punishment of Israel. Others (Novak, Yungerov) understand the words of the prophet as a call addressed to Israel to restore justice. The words mischapat (judgment) and zedakah (truth), also used about Divine Justice, by the prophet Amos in Amos 5:7, 15, are used in an ethical sense, about human truth. In this sense, it is better to understand these words in Art. 24th. Like a strong stream: Heb. nachal ethan means a stream that flows both in summer and winter. Likewise, justice should not be a random and temporary impulse, but should be a permanent norm of life. LXX, apparently, understood the 24th art. about the judgment of God; from here to glory: “and it will fall (καὶ κυλισθήσεται - it will roll) like judgment water, and truth like an impassable stream.” Am.5:25. Did you bring Me sacrifices and grain gifts in the wilderness for forty years, O house of Israel? The meaning of Art. The 25th and its connection with the previous one are understood differently. According to most commentators, the prophet assumes the answer to his question is negative: the Israelites did not bring sacrifices and grain gifts in the desert for forty years. For what purpose does the prophet point out this? According to some, in order to expose the futility of Israel’s hopes for numerous sacrifices (Jungers), to show the unimportance of the sacrifices themselves by referring to the fact that during the heyday of the theocratic system, Israel did not make sacrifices, and nevertheless enjoyed the special favor of God. According to other commentators, on the contrary, the prophet in v. 25 denounces the Israelites precisely because they did not make sacrifices in the wilderness, and in the next verse explains this neglect of sacrifices by the Israelis’ deviation into paganism. The first understanding is more consistent with the context of the speech: in Art. 22–24, the prophet speaks of the uselessness of sacrifices that are not connected with moral life; therefore it is difficult directly beyond Art. 22–24 expect reproach for not making sacrifices. Obviously, with your question in Art. 25 the prophet means to point out the unimportance of sacrifices in themselves. But the prophet hardly assumes a negative answer to his question, since in the desert Israel actually made sacrifices (cf. Exodus 24.5; Lev. 7:14–21, 9:8–24). The prophet’s train of thought, apparently, was different, and to his question he, as Goonaker believes, assumed a positive answer. The prophet wanted to say that despite making sacrifices, Israel still had to wander in the desert for forty years and be under the wrath of God. From here, the prophet’s listeners had to conclude that sacrifices alone were insufficient to receive God’s mercy. Am.5:26. You wore the tabernacle of Moloch and the star of your god Remphan, images that you made for yourself. Art. The 26th is translated in our text only tentatively. The verse represents one of the darkest and most controversial passages in the Old Testament books. Commentators have different understandings of individual expressions of the verse, its general meaning, and its connection with the previous one. The beginning of the verse unesathem is translated: “you carried” (Russian t.), “didn’t you carry” (Yungerov), “you will carry” (Novak, Goonaker). The next words of Art. On the 26th el sikkuth malkohem, according to the LXX translation (σκηνὴν τοῦ Μολόχ), our text conveys: “the tabernacle of Moloch” (i.e. sikkuth is taken as a common noun, and melech as a proper one). The newest commentators, however, consider sikkuth or sakkuth to be the proper name of the Assyrian god Adar, and the word malkchem is understood in the common sense; the whole expression is therefore translated: Sakkuta (Adara), your king (Novak, Mitchell, Goonaker). Further words of the prophet in v. 26th Veet kijun zaimechem kochav elogechem LXX translated: καὶ τὸ ἄστρον τοῦ θεοῦ ὑμῶν ᾿Ραιφαν, τους τύπους. Accordingly, in Russian it reads: “and the star of your god Remphan, the images that you made for yourself.” Translation LXX and Russian. glory the texts imply a different arrangement of words from the arrangement of the original. Heb. kijjun, rendered in the LXX by the word ΄ Ραιφαν, represents ἅπαξ λεγόμ and its meaning is controversial. According to the usual understanding, kijjun, corresponding to the Arabic kaivan, (Ραιφαν – Καινα n) to the Assyrian kaavanu, is the name of the planet Saturn, as well as the god Adar, whose symbol is Saturn. Thus, sikkuth and kijjun are two names of the same deity, also found in Assyrian hymns (Gonaker). According to the newest commentators, the entire verse should be translated: “you will bear Sakkut your king and the star of your god (your star god) Kevan, your idols which you have made for yourselves” (Novak, Goonaker). With this translation, it turns out that the prophet denounces his contemporaries for the veneration of Assyrian deities and threatens with the capture of these deities, powerless to save their admirers. The prophet wants to say that just as in the past making sacrifices in the desert did not save the people from punishment, so now sacrifices to the Assyrian deities will not save the people from captivity. The stated interpretation of Art. On the 26th, however, he encounters difficulties: 1) Amos nowhere denounces his contemporaries of pagan service to foreign deities; 2) the bearing of gods among the Old Testament writers is usually adopted by the victors, and not by the vanquished (Hosea 10.5; Isa 46.1; Jer 48.7; Jer 49.3); therefore, threatening captivity, the prophet could not tell the Israelis - you will suffer Sakkut, etc.; 3) in LXX in Acts 7.42–43, in the speech of the archd. Stephen, the words of the prophet are interpreted as a denunciation of the Jews’ service to pagan deities during their stay in the desert. In the latter sense, Art. 26th and our domestic interpreters of the book. Amos - bishop Palladium and prof. P. A. Yungerov. The Tabernacle of Moloch is a special tent in which images of Moloch were carried. - The star (kochav) of your god - that is, your star god or - your god worshiped in the form of a star. Remphan is the name of the star deity, perhaps Saturn, who was depicted hieroglyphically on Egyptian monuments: repanneteru. (Yungerov). The service to Molech during the Jews' stay in the desert is mentioned in the Pentateuch (Lev. 18:21, 20:2–3). The service of the star deity Remphan at the same time is first mentioned only by the prophet Amos. But already the second commandment of the Decalogue presupposes the Jews’ familiarity with the veneration of the heavenly bodies and an inclination towards this veneration (Exodus 20.4; Deut. 4.19). The Jews could get acquainted with the star cult in Egypt, since, according to the testimony of Herodotus and (II, 42, 145) Diodorus (I, 11, 25), the Egyptians revered the sun, moon and stars. With this interpretation, the connection of Art. On the 26th there will be no direct line with the previous one. Am.5:27. Therefore I will remove you beyond Damascus, says the Lord; The God of Hosts is His name! “Therefore I will resettle you beyond Damascus”: the prophet does not directly indicate the place of resettlement of the Israelis, but, obviously, he means Assyro-Babylonia. Completing the words of the prophet, arch. Stephen said in his speech: God turned away and left them to serve the army of heaven, as it is written in the book of the prophets: the house of Israel! Did you bring slaughter and sacrifices to Me for forty years in the wilderness? You took the tabernacle of Moloch and the star of your god Remphan, the images that you made to worship them: and I will remove you beyond Babylon (Acts 7:42–43). You might be interested in: