Ezekiel 45:9-10

45:9 “‘This is what the sovereign Lord says: Enough, you princes of Israel! Put away violence and destruction, and do what is just and right. Put an end to your evictions of my people, ¹  declares the sovereign Lord. 45:10 You must use just balances, ²  a just dry measure (an ephah), ³  and a just liquid measure (a bath). ⁴ 

Amos 3:10

3:10 “They do not know how to do what is right.” (The Lord is speaking.)

“They store up ⁵  the spoils of destructive violence ⁶  in their fortresses.

Amos 8:4-6

8:4 Listen to this, you who trample ⁷  the needy,

and do away with ⁸  the destitute in the land.

8:5 You say,

“When will the new moon festival ⁹  be over, ¹⁰  so we can sell grain?

When will the Sabbath end, ¹¹  so we can open up the grain bins? ¹² 

We’re eager ¹³  to sell less for a higher price, ¹⁴ 

and to cheat the buyer with rigged scales! ¹⁵ 

8:6 We’re eager to trade silver for the poor, ¹⁶ 

a pair of sandals ¹⁷  for the needy!

We want to mix in some chaff with the grain!” ¹⁸ 

[45:9]  ¹ sn Evictions of the less fortunate by the powerful are described in 1 Kgs 21:1-16; Jer 22:1-5, 13-17; Ezek 22:25.

[45:10]  ² sn Previous legislation regarding this practice may be found in Lev 19:35-36; Deut 25:13-16; Mic 6:10-12.

[45:10]  ³ tn Heb “ephah,” which was 1/2 bushel.

[45:10]  ⁴ tn Heb “bath,” a liquid measure, was 5 1/2 gallons.

[3:10]  ³ tn Heb “those who.”

[3:10]  ⁴ tn Heb “violence and destruction.” The expression “violence and destruction” stand metonymically for the goods the oppressors have accumulated by their unjust actions.

[8:4]  ⁴ tn See the note on the word “trample” in 2:7.

[8:4]  ⁵ tn Or “put an end to”; or “exterminate.”

[8:5]  ⁵ sn Apparently work was prohibited during the new moon festival, just as it was on the Sabbath.

[8:5]  ⁶ tn Heb “pass by.”

[8:5]  ⁷ tn The verb, though omitted in the Hebrew text, is supplied in the translation from the parallel line.

[8:5]  ⁸ tn Heb “sell grain.” Here “grain” could stand by metonymy for the bins where it was stored.

[8:5]  ⁹ tn Here and in v. 6 the words “we’re eager” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[8:5]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “to make small the ephah and to make great the shekel.” The “ephah” was a unit of dry measure used to determine the quantity purchased, while the “shekel” was a standard weight used to determine the purchase price. By using a smaller than standard ephah and a heavier than standard shekel, these merchants were able to increase their profit (“sell less for a higher price”) by cheating the buyer.

[8:5]  ¹¹ tn Heb “and to cheat with deceptive scales”; NASB, NIV “dishonest scales”; NRSV “false balances.”

[8:6]  ⁶ tn Heb “to buy the poor for silver.”

[8:6]  ⁷ tn See the note on the word “sandals” in 2:6.

[8:6]  ⁸ tn Heb “The chaff of the grain we will sell.”