Amos 8:1-3

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Amos 8:1-3

The great reason why sinners defer their repentance de die in diem?from day to day, is because they think God thus defers his judgments, and there is no song wherewith they so effectually sing themselves asleep as that, My Lord delays his coming; and therefore God, by his prophets, frequently represents to Israel the day of his wrath not only as just and certain, but as very near and hastening on apace; so he does in these verses. I. The approach of the threatened ruin is represented by a... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Amos 8:1

Thus hath the Lord God showed unto me ,.... Another vision, which is the fourth, and after the following manner: and, behold, a basket of summer fruit ; not of the first ripe fruit, but of such as were gathered at the close of the summer, when autumn began. So the Targum, "the last of the summer fruit;' such as were fully ripe, and would not keep till winter; or, if kept, would rot; but must be eaten directly, as some sort of apples, grapes, &c.; denoting the people of Israel... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Amos 8:2

And he said, Amos, what seest thou ?.... To quicken his attention, who might disregard it as a common thing; and in order to lead him into the design of it, and show him what it was an emblem of: and I said, a basket of summer fruit ; some render it "a hook" F23 כלוב "unicuus", V. L. , such as they pull down branches with to gather the fruit; and the word so signifies in the Arabic language F24 "ferramentum incurvum, seu uncus ex quo de sella commeatum suspendit viator",... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Amos 8:3

And the songs of the temple shall be howlings in that day , saith the Lord God ,.... Not the songs sung by the Levites in the temple of Jerusalem, this prophecy respects the ten tribes only; but those in imitation of them, sung in the temple at Bethel, and other idol temples; or profane songs in the palaces of princes and nobles; that is, instead of these, there should be howlings for the calamities come upon them. So the Targum, "they shall howl, instead of a song, in their houses... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Amos 8:1

A basket of summer fruit - As summer fruit was not proper for preserving, but must be eaten as soon as gathered, so the Lord intimates by this symbol that the kingdom of Israel was now ripe for destruction, and that punishment must descend upon it without delay. Some think the prophet means the fruits at the end of autumn. And as after the autumn no fruit could be expected, so Israel's summer is gone by, her autumn is ended, and she shall yield no more fruit. Or, the autumn of her iniquity... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Amos 8:2

A basket of summer fruit - קיץ כלוב kelub kayits , the end is come - הקץ בא ba hakkets : here is a paronomasia or play upon the words kayits , summer fruit, and kets , the end, both coming from similar roots. See the note on Ezekiel 7:2 ; (note), where there is a similar play on the same word. I will not again pass by them any more - I will be no longer their Guardian. read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Amos 8:3

The songs of the temple - Instead of שירות shiroth , songs, Houbigant reads שורות shoroth , the singing women; and Newcome follows him: "And the singing women of the palace shall howl in that day." Instead of joyous songs, they shall have nothing but lamentation. They shall cast them forth with silence - Every place shall be filled with the dead, and a dreadful silence shall reign universally; the few that remain being afraid either to speak or complain, or even to chant a... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Amos 8:1

Verse 1 By these words or by this vision the Prophet confirms what we have already observed — that paternal chastisements would no longer be exercised towards the people of Israel. God indeed, as it is well known, had so treated that people, that he ever spared them even in their greatest calamities. It was with a suspended hand that God ever struck that people, until after many trials they at length seemed so refractory, as not to be benefited by such remedies. This subject then Amos now... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Amos 8:2

Verse 2 Now follows the exposition of the vision, Jehovah said to me, Come has the end on my people Israel We perceive, then, the meaning of the Prophet to be, — that the people had hitherto been warned by moderate punishments; but that as they had become hardened, extreme vengeance was nigh at hand, when God would no longer perform the part of a father or of a physician, but would utterly destroy those whom he had long borne with. We indeed know that most grievous calamities had happened to... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Amos 8:3

Verse 3 The Prophet touches the Israelites here, in an indirect way, for taking such delight in their superstitions as to sing in their prosperity, as though God was favorable to them; for the unbelieving are wont to misconstrue both the hatred and the favor of God by the present appearance of things. When the Turks enjoy prosperity, they boast that God is on their side: we see also that the Papists draw the same conclusion. It is the disposition of men not to look so much on themselves as on... read more

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