Amos 9

1I saw the Lord standing beside the altar: and he said, Smite the capitals, that the thresholds may shake; and break them in pieces on the head of all of them; and I will slay the last of them with the sword: there shall not one of them flee away, and there shall not one of them escape.

1I saw the Lord standing by the altar, and he said, 'Strike the tops of the pillars so that the foundations shake! Break them into pieces on the heads of all the people. I will kill those who are left with the sword; not one will get away, and not one will escape.'

2Though they dig into Sheol, thence shall my hand take them; and though they climb up to heaven, thence will I bring them down.

2Even if they dig deep into the world of the dead, my hand will pull them out from there. Even if they climb up to heaven, I will bring them down from there.

3And though they hide themselves in the top of Carmel, I will search and take them out thence; and though they be hid from my sight in the bottom of the sea, thence will I command the serpent, and it shall bite them.

3Though they hide on the top of Mount Carmel, I will track them down and take them. Even if they hide from me at the bottom of the ocean, I will command the sea serpent to bite them.

4And though they go into captivity before their enemies, thence will I command the sword, and it shall slay them: and I will set mine eyes upon them for evil, and not for good.

4Even if they are captured and driven away by their enemies, I will command the sword to kill them there. I will keep my eye on them to bring disaster and not good.

5For the Lord, Jehovah of hosts, ishe that toucheth the land and it melteth, and all that dwell therein shall mourn; and it shall rise up wholly like the River, and shall sink again, like the River of Egypt;

5The Lord, the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, touches the earth and it melts, and everyone living in it mourns. The whole land rises like the Nile River and then sinks like the river of Egypt.

6it is he that buildeth his chambers in the heavens, and hath founded his vault upon the earth; he that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth; Jehovah is his name.

6He builds his upper rooms in the heavens and places the foundation of his sky over the earth. He calls for the water of the sea and pours it out over the surface of the land. The LORD is his name.

7Are ye not as the children of the Ethiopians unto me, O children of Israel? saith Jehovah. Have not I brought up Israel out of the land of Egypt, and the Philistines from Caphtor, and the Syrians from Kir?

7'Are you Israelites not just like the Ethiopians to me?' asks the LORD. 'Did I not bring Israel up from Egypt, the Philistines from Caphtor, and the Syrians from Kir?'

8Behold, the eyes of the Lord Jehovah are upon the sinful kingdom, and I will destroy it from off the face of the earth; save that I will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob, saith Jehovah.

8'Look, the eyes of the Lord GOD are on this sinful kingdom. I will wipe it off the face of the earth. However, I will not completely destroy the family of Jacob,' says the LORD.

9For, lo, I will command, and I will sift the house of Israel among all the nations, like as grain is sifted in a sieve, yet shall not the least kernel fall upon the earth.

9'For I am giving the command, and I will shake the people of Israel among all the nations like grain in a sifter, yet not even the smallest pebble will fall to the ground.'

10All the sinners of my people shall die by the sword, who say, The evil shall not overtake nor meet us.

10'All the sinners among my people will die by the sword—all those who say, "Disaster will never catch up to us or even reach us."'

11In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof; and I will raise up its ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old;

11'On that day I will restore the fallen tent of David. I will repair its broken walls and rebuild its ruins, making it as it used to be in the past.'

12that they may possess the remnant of Edom, and all the nations that are called by my name, saith Jehovah that doeth this.

12'They will take what is left of Edom and all the nations that belong to me,' says the LORD, who will make these things happen.

13Behold, the days come, saith Jehovah, that the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed; and the mountains shall drop sweet wine, and all the hills shall melt.

13'The time is coming,' says the LORD, 'when the plowman will catch up to the reaper, and the one treading grapes will catch up to the one planting seeds. New wine will drip from the mountains and flow from all the hills.'

14And I will bring back the captivity of my people Israel, and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; they shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them.

14'I will bring my people Israel back from their exile. They will rebuild the ruined cities and live in them. They will plant vineyards and drink the wine; they will plant gardens and eat the fruit.'

15And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be plucked up out of their land which I have given them, saith Jehovah thy God.

15'I will plant them in their own land, and they will never again be uprooted from the land I have given them,' says the LORD your God.