Amos 7

Thus hath the Lord GOD shewed unto me; and, behold, he formed grasshoppers in the beginning of the shooting up of the latter growth; and, lo, it was the latter growth after the king’s mowings.

1This is what the Lord GOD showed me. He was getting a huge swarm of locusts ready. Locusts are bugs that eat up every green plant. The king had already taken his share of the hay. The new grass was just starting to grow again.

NoteThe KJV says "grasshoppers," but the word means locusts. Locusts travel in huge swarms and can strip a whole field bare.

2And it came to pass, that when they had made an end of eating the grass of the land, then I said, O Lord GOD, forgive, I beseech thee: by whom shall Jacob arise? for he is small.

2The locusts ate every green plant in the land. Then I said, "Lord GOD, please forgive your people. How can Jacob's family, the people of Israel, stand up again? They are so small and weak."

3The LORD repented for this: It shall not be, saith the LORD.

3So the LORD changed his mind about doing this. "It will not happen," he said.

Note"The LORD repented" in the KJV does not mean God did something wrong. It means he changed his mind and did not do what he had planned.

4Thus hath the Lord GOD shewed unto me: and, behold, the Lord GOD called to contend by fire, and it devoured the great deep, and did eat up a part.

4This is what the Lord GOD showed me. He was calling for fire to punish the land. The fire dried up the deep waters below. Then it started to burn up the land itself.

5Then said I, O Lord GOD, cease, I beseech thee: by whom shall Jacob arise? for he is small.

5Then I said, "Lord GOD, please stop. How can Jacob's family stand up again? They are so small and weak."

6The LORD repented for this: This also shall not be, saith the Lord GOD.

6So the LORD changed his mind about doing this too. "This will not happen either," said the Lord GOD.

7Thus he shewed me: and, behold, the LORD stood upon a wall made by a plumbline, with a plumbline in his hand.

7This is what he showed me. The Lord was standing beside a wall that was perfectly straight. He held a plumb line in his hand. A plumb line is a string with a weight on the end. Builders use it to check if a wall is straight.

NoteA plumb line is a builder's tool: a string with a weight tied to the bottom. Hold it up and the string hangs perfectly straight, so you can see if a wall leans.

8And the LORD said unto me, Amos, what seest thou? And I said, A plumbline. Then said the LORD, Behold, I will set a plumbline in the midst of my people Israel: I will not again pass by them any more:

8The LORD asked me, "Amos, what do you see?" I said, "A plumb line." Then the Lord said, "Look, I am setting a plumb line among my people Israel. I am checking them, and I will not let them off any longer.

9And the high places of Isaac shall be desolate, and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste; and I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword.

9The places on the hills where Isaac's family worships will be empty. The holy places of Israel will be knocked down. I will come against King Jeroboam's family with a sword."

10Then 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.

10Amaziah was the priest at Bethel, a leader who served at the worship place there. He sent a message to Jeroboam, the king of Israel. He said, "Amos is making plans against you right here in Israel. The land cannot put up with everything he says.

11For thus Amos saith, Jeroboam shall die by the sword, and Israel shall surely be led away captive out of their own land.

11Here is what Amos has been saying: 'Jeroboam will die by the sword. And Israel will surely be taken away from their own land as prisoners.'"

12Also Amaziah said unto Amos, O thou seer, go, flee thee away into the land of Judah, and there eat bread, and prophesy there:

12Amaziah also said to Amos, "Go away, you seer! A seer is someone who sees messages from God. Run off to the land of Judah. Earn your bread there. Do your speaking for God there.

13But prophesy not again any more at Bethel: for it is the king’s chapel, and it is the king’s court.

13But never speak for God at Bethel again. This is the king's own worship place. This is the temple of the kingdom."

NoteThe KJV calls Bethel "the king's chapel." It was the king's own temple, the main worship place of the kingdom, not a small side room.

14Then answered Amos, and said to Amaziah, I was no prophet, neither was I a prophet’s son; but I was an herdman, and a gatherer of sycomore fruit:

14Then Amos answered Amaziah. He said, "I was not a prophet, someone trained to speak God's words. My father was not a prophet either. I took care of animals. I also picked figs from sycamore trees.

15And the LORD took me as I followed the flock, and the LORD said unto me, Go, prophesy unto my people Israel.

15But the LORD took me away from following my sheep. The LORD said to me, 'Go and speak my words to my people Israel.'

16Now therefore hear thou the word of the LORD: Thou sayest, Prophesy not against Israel, and drop not thy word against the house of Isaac.

16So now listen to what the LORD says. You tell me, 'Do not speak against Israel. Do not say a word against Isaac's family.'

17Therefore thus saith the LORD; 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.

17So this is what the LORD says. 'Your wife will become a prostitute in the city. Your sons and daughters will be killed by the sword. Your land will be measured out and split up among others. And you will die in an unclean land, far from home. Israel will surely be taken away from their own land as prisoners.'