Keluaran 22:22

22:22 “You must not afflict ¹  any widow or orphan.

Ayub 24:9

24:9 The fatherless child is snatched ²  from the breast, ³ 

the infant of the poor is taken as a pledge. ⁴ 

Amos 4:1

4:1 Listen to this message, you cows of Bashan ⁵  who live on Mount Samaria!

You ⁶  oppress the poor;

you crush the needy.

You say to your ⁷  husbands,

“Bring us more to drink!” ⁸ 

[22:22]  ¹ tn The verb “afflict” is a Piel imperfect from עָנָה (’anah); it has a wide range of meanings: “afflict, oppress, humiliate, rape.” These victims are at the mercy of the judges, businessmen, or villains. The righteous king and the righteous people will not mistreat them (see Isa 1:17; Job 31:16, 17, 21).

[24:9]  ² tn The verb with no expressed subject is here again taken in the passive: “they snatch” becomes “[child] is snatched.”

[24:9]  ³ tn This word is usually defined as “violence; ruin.” But elsewhere it does mean “breast” (Isa 60:16; 66:11), and that is certainly what it means here.

[24:9]  ⁴ tc The MT has a very brief and strange reading: “they take as a pledge upon the poor.” This could be taken as “they take a pledge against the poor” (ESV). Kamphausen suggested that instead of עַל (’al, “against”) one should read עוּל (’ul, “suckling”). This is supported by the parallelism. “They take as pledge” is also made passive here.

[4:1]  ⁵ sn The expression cows of Bashan is used by the prophet to address the wealthy women of Samaria, who demand that their husbands satisfy their cravings. The derogatory language perhaps suggests that they, like the livestock of Bashan, were well fed, ironically in preparation for the coming slaughter. This phrase is sometimes cited to critique the book’s view of women.

[4:1]  ⁶ tn Heb “the ones who” (three times in this verse).

[4:1]  ⁷ tn Heb “their.”

[4:1]  ⁸ sn Some commentators relate this scene to the description of the marzeah feast of 6:3-6, in which drinking played a prominent part (see the note at 6:6).