Amos 4

Expanded Bible

You ·take things from [oppress] the poor
    and crush people who are in need.
Then you command your husbands,
    “Bring us something to drink!”
² The Lord God has ·promised [sworn] this:
    “Just as surely as I am a holy God,
the time will come
    when you will be taken away ·by hooks [or in baskets],
    and what is left of you with fishhooks.
³ You will go straight out of the city
    through ·holes [breaches] in the walls,
and you will be thrown ·on the garbage dump [on the dung heap; or out toward Harmon],” says the Lord.

⁴ “Come to the city of Bethel and ·sin [rebel; transgress];
    come to Gilgal and ·sin [rebel; transgress] even more [^CBethel and Gilgal were important worship centers in Israel].
Offer your sacrifices every morning,
    and bring ·one-tenth of your crops [your tithes] every three days.
⁵ Offer bread made with yeast as a sacrifice to show your thanks,
    and ·brag about [publicly announce] the ·special [voluntary; freewill] offerings you bring,
because this is what you love to do, ·Israelites [^Lsons/^Tchildren of Israel],” says the Lord God.

⁶ “I ·did not give you any food [^Lgave you cleanness of teeth; ^Can idiom meaning “empty stomachs” and indicating starvation] in your cities,
    and there was not enough to eat in any of your towns,
    but you did not come back to me,” says the Lord.
⁷ “I held back the rain from you
    three months before harvest time.
Then I let it rain on one city
    but not on another.
Rain fell on one field,
    but another field got none and dried up.
⁸ ·People weak from thirst went from town to town [^LTwo or three cities wandered to one] for water,
    but they could not get enough to drink.
    Still you did not come back to me,” says the Lord.
⁹ “I ·made your crops die from [^Lstruck you with] ·disease [blight] and mildew.
    When your gardens and your vineyards got larger,
locusts ·ate [devoured] your fig and olive trees.
    But still you did not come back to me,” says the Lord.
¹⁰ “I sent ·disasters [a plague/pestilence] against you,
    as I did to Egypt.
I killed your young men with swords,
    and your horses were taken from you.
I made ·you smell the stink from all the dead bodies [^Lthe stench of your camp rise into your nostrils],
    but still you did not come back to me,” says the Lord.
¹¹ “I ·destroyed [overthrew] some of you
    as I destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah [Gen. 19].
You were like a burning stick pulled from a fire,
    but still you did not come back to me,” says the Lord.

¹² “So this is what I will do to you, Israel;
    because I will do this to you,
get ready to meet your God, Israel.”

¹³ [^LFor look/^Tbehold] He is the one who ·makes [forms] the mountains
    and creates the wind
    and makes his thoughts known to people.
He changes the dawn into darkness
    and ·walks [treads; marches] ·over the mountains [on the heights] of the earth.
His name is the Lord God ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; ^Tof hosts].