Amos 4:9 - Exposition

The third chastisement is occasioned by blight ( Deuteronomy 28:22 ) and palmerworm ( Deuteronomy 28:39 , Deuteronomy 28:42 ). Blasting ; the scorching east wind spoken of by Isaiah ( Isaiah 27:8 ) and Ezekiel ( Ezekiel 17:10 ). Vulgate, in vento urente ; Septuagint, ἐν πυρώσει , "with parching;" Aquila, Symmachus, and Theodotion, ἀνεμοφθρία . Mildew ; a blight, under the influence of which the ears of corn turned yellow and became unfruitful. "Blasting and mildew" are mentioned together in Moses' curse ( Deuteronomy 28:22 ) and in Solomon's dedication prayer ( 1 Kings 8:37 ; comp. Haggai 2:17 ). The LXX . has, ἐν ἰκτέρῳ , "with jaundice." When your gardens … increased. It is better to take this sentence as the English margin, "The multitude of your gardens … hath the palmerworm devoured." So the Vulgate, Multitudinem hortorum tuorum … comedit eruca. Gardens included orchards, herbaries, and pleasure grounds. The palmerworm; gazam ; Se ptuagint, κάμπη : Vulgate, eruca. The word occurs in Joel 1:4 ; Joel 2:25 , and is taken by many commentators to mean some kind of locust; but it is more probable that the Greek and Latin translators are right in regarding it as "a caterpillar" (see Smith, 'Dict. of the Bible,' 2:696, etc.; 'Bible Educator,' 4:293). Amos seems to be referring to the visitation in Joel's time, if we take gazam ("biter") to be a kind of locust.