Amos 1:4

1:4 So I will set Hazael’s house ¹  on fire;

fire ²  will consume Ben Hadad’s ³  fortresses.

Amos 1:7

1:7 So I will set Gaza’s city wall ⁴  on fire;

fire ⁵  will consume her fortresses.

Amos 1:10

1:10 So I will set fire to Tyre’s city wall; ⁶ 

fire ⁷  will consume her fortresses.”

Amos 1:12

1:12 So I will set Teman ⁸  on fire;

fire ⁹  will consume Bozrah’s ¹⁰  fortresses.”

Amos 2:5

2:5 So I will set Judah on fire,

and it will consume Jerusalem’s fortresses.” ¹¹ 

Amos 5:17

5:17 In all the vineyards there will be wailing,

for I will pass through ¹²  your midst,” says the Lord.

Amos 9:1

9:1 I saw the sovereign One ¹³  standing by the altar ¹⁴  and he said, “Strike the tops of the support pillars, ¹⁵  so the thresholds shake!

Knock them down on the heads of all the people, ¹⁶ 

and I will kill the survivors ¹⁷  with the sword.

No one will be able to run away; ¹⁸ 

no one will be able to escape. ¹⁹ 

[1:4]  ¹ tn “Hazael’s house” (“the house of Hazael”) refers to the dynasty of Hazael.

[1:4]  sn Hazael took the throne of Aram in 843 b.c. and established a royal dynasty. See 2 Kgs 8:7-15 and W. Pitard, Ancient Damascus, 145-60.

[1:4]  ² tn Heb “it”; the referent (the fire mentioned in the previous line) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[1:4]  ³ sn Ben-hadad may refer to Hazael’s son and successor (2 Kgs 13:3, 24) or to an earlier king (see 1 Kgs 20), perhaps the ruler whom Hazael assassinated when he assumed power.

[1:7]  ⁴ sn The city wall symbolizes the city’s defenses and security.

[1:7]  ⁵ tn Heb “it”; the referent (the fire mentioned in the previous line) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[1:10]  ⁶ sn The city wall symbolizes the city’s defenses and security.

[1:10]  ⁷ tn Heb “it”; the referent (the fire mentioned in the previous line) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[1:12]  ⁸ sn Teman was an important region (or perhaps city) in Edom.

[1:12]  ⁹ tn Heb “it”; the referent (the fire mentioned in the previous line) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[1:12]  ¹⁰ sn Bozrah was a city located in northern Edom.

[2:5]  ¹¹ map For the location of Jerusalem see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[5:17]  ¹² sn The expression pass through your midst alludes to Exod 12:12, where the Lord announced he would “pass through” Egypt and bring death to the Egyptian firstborn.

[9:1]  ¹³ tn Or “the Lord.” The Hebrew term translated “sovereign One” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).

[9:1]  ¹⁴ sn The altar is perhaps the altar at Bethel.

[9:1]  ¹⁵ tn Or “the capitals.” The Hebrew singular form is collective.

[9:1]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “cut them off on the head of all of them.” The translation assumes the objective suffix on the verb refers to the tops of the pillars and that the following prepositional phrase refers to the people standing beneath. Another option is to take this phrase as referring to the pillars, in which case one could translate, “Knock all the tops of the pillars off.”

[9:1]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “the remnant of them.” One could possibly translate, “every last one of them” (cf. NEB “to the last man”). This probably refers to those who survive the collapse of the temple, which may symbolize the northern kingdom.

[9:1]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “a fugitive belonging to them will not run away.”

[9:1]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “a survivor belonging to them will not escape.”