Amos 5:4-15 NIV

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Amos 5:4-15

This is a message from God to the house of Israel, in which, I. They are told of their faults, that they might see what occasion there was for them to repent and reform, and that, when they were called to return, they might not need to ask, Wherein shall we return? 1. God tells them, in general (Amos 5:12), ?I know your manifold transgressions, and your mighty sins; and you shall be made to know them too.? In our penitent reflections upon our sins we must consider, as God does in his judicial... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Amos 5:4

For thus saith the Lord unto the house of Israel ,.... Or "yet" F1 כי "attamen", Grotius. , notwithstanding all this, though such judgments were threatened and denounced, and such desolations should certainly come, in case of impenitence, and an obstinate continuance in a course of sin; yet hopes are given of finding mercy and kindness upon repentance and reformation, at least to the remnant of them; see Amos 5:15 ; seek ye me ; seek my fear, as the Targum; fear and reverence,... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Amos 5:5

But seek not Bethel ,.... Do not go to Bethel, the place where one of Jeroboam's calves was set up and worshipped, to consult the oracle, idols, and priests there; or to perform religious worship, which will be your ruin, if not prevented by another course of living: nor enter into Gilgal ; another place of idolatry, where idols were set up and worshipped See Gill on Amos 4:4 ; and pass not to Beersheba ; a place in the further part of the land of Israel; it formerly belonged to... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Amos 5:6

Seek the Lord, and ye shall live ,.... This is, repeated to stir up unto it, because of their backwardness and slothfulness, and to show the importance and necessity of it. By the "Lord" may be meant the Messiah, Israel's God that was to come, and they were to prepare to meet, Amos 4:12 ; and the rather, since life spiritual and eternal is only to be had from him, and he is to be sought unto for it, and all the blessings of it, peace, pardon, righteousness, rest, and salvation as well as... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Amos 5:7

Ye who turn judgment to wormwood ,.... This seems to be spoken to kings and judges, as Aben Ezra and Kimchi observe; in whose hands is the administration of justice, and who often pervert it, as these did here addressed and complained of; that which was the most useful and salubrious, and so the most desirable to the commonwealth, namely, just judgment, was changed into the reverse, what was as bitter and as disagreeable as wormwood; or "hemlock", as it might be rendered, and as it is in ... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Amos 5:8

Seek him that maketh the seven stars ,.... Which some connect with the preceding words, without a supplement, "they leave righteousness on the ground, who maketh the seven stars"; understanding it of Christ, the Lord our righteousness, who is made unto us righteousness, whom the Jews rejected and despised, though the Maker of the heavens and the constellations in them. Some continue, and supply the words thus, and remember not him "that maketh the seven stars", as Kimchi; or forget him, as... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Amos 5:9

That strengtheneth the spoiled against the strong ,.... Such as have been taken by an enemy, who have been stripped of their armour, and spoiled of all their goods and substance, and have no friends nor allies, nor anything to help themselves with; the Lord can supply them with strength, furnish them with weapons, and send them helpers, so that they shall rise up against their conquerors and spoilers, and in their turn subdue them. The Targum is, "that strengthens the weak against the... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Amos 5:10

They hate him that rebuketh in the gate ,.... Openly and publicly in the courts of judicature: wicked judges hated the prophets of the Lord, such as Amos, who faithfully reproved them for the perversion of justice, even when they were upon the bench: or the people were so corrupt and degenerate, that they hated those faithful judges who reproved them for their vices in the open courts of justice, when they came before them, The former sense seems best, and more agreeable to the context: ... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Amos 5:11

Forasmuch therefore as your treading is upon the poor ,.... This seems to be spoken to the princes, judges, and civil magistrates, as Kimchi observes; who oppressed the poor and needy, and crushed them to the ground, trampled upon them, stripped them of the little substance they had, and left them destitute; exercising a cruel and tyrannical power over them, they having none to stand by them, and deliver them: and ye take from him burdens of wheat ; which perhaps he had been gleaning... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Amos 5:12

For I know your manifold transgressions and your mighty sins ,.... Their sins were numerous, and of the first magnitude, attended with very heavy aggravations; and these with all their circumstances were well known to the omniscient God, and therefore he determined to punish them as he had threatened. Some of their transgressions are pointed out, as follow: they afflict the just ; who are so both in a moral and evangelic sense; not comparatively only, but really; and particularly whose... read more

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Amos 5:4-15

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Amos 5:4

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Amos 5:5

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Amos 5:6

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Amos 5:7

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Amos 5:8

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Amos 5:9

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Amos 5:10

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Amos 5:11

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Amos 5:12

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