Amos 2:7

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Amos 2:6-16

Judgment on Israel (2:6-16)Israel is corrupt, socially, morally and religiously. Judges and officials favour those who bribe them, with the result that the poor and the innocent receive unjust treatment. The rich lend to the poor, then take them as slaves when they cannot repay their debts, even though the debt may be as little as the price of a pair of sandals (6-7a).The wealthy seize the clothes of the poor as guarantees for the repayment of debts (even though the law of Moses prohibited the... read more

E.W. Bullinger

E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes - Amos 2:7

pant = crush. Hebrew. shaaph , A Homonymyn, meaning (1) to gasp or long for (Job 7:2 ; Job 36:20 , Psalms 119:131 .Ecclesiastes 1:5 .Jeremiah 2:24; Jeremiah 2:24 ); (2) to crush (like shuph i n. Genesis 3:15 Rendered "swallow up" in Amos 8:4 .Job 5:5 .Psalms 56:1 , Psalms 56:2 ; Psalms 57:3 .Ezekiel 36:3 . So here it = crush. See Oxford Gesenius p. 983, vol. 2. Render: "crush the head of the poor ones in the dust of the earth". the poor = impoverished ones. Hebrew. dal (plural) See note... read more

James Burton Coffman

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Amos 2:7

"They that pant after the dust of the earth on the head of the poor, and turn aside the way of the meek: and a man and his father go unto the same maiden, to profane my holy name."Dust of the earth on the head of the poor ..." "Dust on the head" in ancient Israel was a sign of mourning; and the desire of the oppressors in this passage would appear to be their wish to exploit to the uttermost, and hence, bring them to mourning, the poor of the land. This whole clause appears to be merely a... read more

Thomas Coke

Thomas Coke Commentary on the Holy Bible - Amos 2:7

Amos 2:7. That pant, &c.— That stamp upon, or tread upon the heads of the poor, in the dust of the earth, &c. Houbigant. read more

Robert Jamieson; A. R. Fausset; David Brown

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Amos 2:7

7. pant after . . . dust of . . . earth on . . . head of . . . poor—that is, eagerly thirst for this object, by their oppression to prostrate the poor so as to cast the dust on their heads in mourning on the earth (compare 2 Samuel 1:2; Job 2:12; Ezekiel 27:30). turn aside . . . way of . . . meek—pervert their cause (Amos 5:12; Job 24:4 [GROTIUS]; Isaiah 10:2). a man and his father—a crime "not so much as named among the Gentiles" (Isaiah 10:2- :). When God's people sin in the face of light,... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Amos 2:3-16

A. Oracles against nations 1:3-2:16An oracle is a message of judgment. Amos proceeded to deliver eight of these, seven against Israel’s neighbors, including Judah (Amos 1:3 to Amos 2:5), and one against Israel (Amos 2:6 to Amos 6:14). The order is significant. The nations mentioned first were foreign, but those mentioned next were the blood relatives of the Israelites, and Judah was its closest kin. Upon hearing this list the Israelites would have felt "a noose of judgment about to tighten... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Amos 2:6-8

Israel’s recent sins 2:6-8Not all the sins that Amos identified appear in Amos 2:6-8; two more appear in Amos 2:12. Amos named seven sins of Israel all together rather than just one, as in the previous oracles, though he continued to use the "for three transgressions and for four" formula. Seven seems to be the full measure of Israel’s sin. The idea of "the straw that broke the camel’s back" carries over from the first seven oracles into the eighth with double force. read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Amos 2:6-16

8. An oracle against Israel 2:6-16The greater length of this oracle as well as its last position in the group of oracles points to its preeminent importance. Amos 2:10, by using the second person rather than the third, suggests that all these oracles were originally spoken to Israel.There are four sections to this oracle: Israel’s recent sins, God’s past gracious activity on Israel’s behalf, Israel’s response, and Israel’s punishment. read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Amos 2:7

Second, the Israelites were perverting the legal system to exploit the poor. The courts were siding with creditors against their debtors; they were "stepping on" the poor. This was as painful and humiliating as having one trample on one’s head as it lay in the dust. The oppressors longed to see the poor reduced to extreme anguish. They may have been so greedy that they craved even the dust that the poor threw on their heads in mourning. The Mosaic Covenant called for justice in Israel’s courts... read more

John Dummelow

John Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible - Amos 2:6-16

Israel’s Sins and Ingratitude6-8. Israel is now threatened in the same form as the rest, but Amos 2:6-16 were not spoken by Amos at Bethel; they form the conclusion of the preface which he wrote after his return home.6. The unrighteous judges condemn the innocent for the sake of a bribe. A pair of shoes would have been too paltry a present, but for the fact that the shoe was a symbol of property (Ruth 4:7; Psalms 60:10). To hand over the shoes was equivalent to our delivery of title-deeds.7.... read more

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