7

Thus he shewed me: and, behold, the Lord stood beside a wall made by a plumbline, with a plumbline in 8 his hand. And the LORD said unto me, Amos, what seest thou? And I said, A plumbline. Then said the Lord, Behold, I will set a plumbline in the midst of my people Israel; I will not again pass by them any more: 9 and the high places of Isaac shall be desolate, and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste; and I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword.

10

Then Amaziah the priest of Beth-el sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, Amos hath conspired against thee in the midst of the house of Israel: the land is not able to bear all his 11 words. For thus Amos saith, Jeroboam shall die by the sword, and Israel shall surely be led away cap12 tive out of his land. Also Amaziah said unto Amos, O thou seer, go, flee thee away into the land of Judah, and there eat bread, and prophesy there: 13 but prophesy not again any more at

Beth-el for it is the king's sanct14 uary, and it is a royal house!. Then

answered Amos, and said to Amaziah, I was no prophet, neither 2was I 3a prophet's son; but I was an herdman, and a dresser of sycomore 15 trees and the LORD took me from following the flock, and the LORD said unto me, Go, prophesy unto my 16 people Israel. Now therefore hear thou the word of the LORD: Thou sayest, Prophesy not against Israel, and drop not thy word against the 17 house of Isaac; therefore thus saith the LORD: Thy wife shall be 'anꞌ harlot in the city, and thy sons and thy daughters shall fall by the sword, and thy land shall be divided by line; and thou thyself shalt die in a land that is unclean', and Israel shall surely be led away captive out of his land. 8(1 Thus the Lord GOD shewed me:

and behold, a basket of summer fruit. (2 °And he said, Amos, what seest thou? And I said, A basket of summer fruit. Then said the LORD unto me, The end is come upon my people Israel; I will not again pass by them any 3) more. And the songs of the temple shall be howlings in that day, saith

4

the Lord GOD: the dead bodies shall be many; in every place shall they cast them forth with silence. Hear this, O ye that would' swallow up the needy, and cause' the poor of 5 the land to fail, saying, When will the new moon be gone, that we may sell corn? and the sabbath, that we may "set forth wheat? making the ephah small, and the shekel great, and dealing falsely with balances of deceit; (6 that we may buy the poor for 'silver, and the needy for a pair of shoes, and 7 sell the refuse of the wheat. The

LORD hath sworn by the excellency of Jacob, Surely I will never forget 8 any of their works. Shall not the land tremble for this, and every one mourn that dwelleth therein? yea!, it shall rise up wholly like the Řiver'; and it shall be troubled' and 'sink again, like the River of Egypt. 9 And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord GOD, that I will cause the sun to go down at noon, and I will darken the earth in the clear day. 10 And I will turn your feasts into mourning, and all your songs into lamentation; and I will bring up sackcloth upon all loins, and baldness upon every head; and I will make it as the mourning for an only son, and the 11 end thereof as a bitter day. Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the 12 LORD. And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east; they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, and shail 13 not find it. In that day shall the fair

virgins and the young men faint for 14 thirst. They that swear by the sin of Samaria, and say, 'As thy God, O Dan, liveth; and, As the way of Beer-sheba liveth; even they shall fall, and never rise up again. 91) I saw the Lord standing "beside the altar: and he said, Smite the Ichapiters', 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: 9there shall not lonel of them flee away, and there shall not lonel of 2 them escape. Though they dig into

6 Heb. open. 7 See ch. ii. 6.

8 Or, manner

Or, he that fleeth of them shall nat flee away, and he that escapeth of them shall not be delivered

1hell, thence shall mine hand take them; and though they climb up to heaven, thence will I bring them down. 3 °And 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 he shall bite them. 4 And 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 5 them for evil, and not for good.

Fori

the Lord, the GOD of hosts, is he 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 6 River of Egypt; it is he that buildeth his chambers in the heaven, and hath founded his Ivault upon the earth; he that calleth for the waters of the sea and poureth them out upon the face of the earth; the LORD is his 7 name. °Are ye not as the children of the Ethiopians unto me, O children of Israel? saith the LORD. Have not I brought up Israel out of the land of Egypt, and the Philistines from Caph8 tor, and the Syrians from Kir? Behold, the eyes of the Lord GOD are upon the sinful kingdom, and I will destroy it from off the face of the

earth; saving that I will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob, saith the 9 LORD. For, lo, I will command, and I will sift the house of Israel among all the nations, like as corn is sifted in a sieve, yet shall not the least grain 10 fall upon the earth. All the sinners of my people shall die by the sword, which say, The evil shall not overtake nor prevent us.

11

In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof; and I will raise up his ruins, and I will build (12 it as in the days of old; that they may possess the remnant of Edom, and all the 'nations', which are called by my name saith the LORD that doeth 13 this. Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed; and the mountains shall drop sweet wine, *(14 and all the hills shall melt. And I will bring again 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. 15 And 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 the LORD thy God.

1 THE Vision of Obadiah.

Thus saith the Lord GOD *concerning Edom: We have heard 'tidings! from the LORD, and an ambassador is sent among the 'nations, saying', Arise ye, and let us rise up against her in 2 battle. Behold, I have made thee small among the nations: thou art 3 greatly despised. The pride of thine heart hath deceived thee, O thou that dwellest in the clefts of "the rock, whose habitation is high; that saith in his heart, Who shall bring me down 4) to the ground? Though thou 'mount on high as the eagle, and though thy nest be set among the stars, I will

1 Heb. Sheol.

2 Heb. cause to move to and fro. 3 Or, Iwerel

bring thee down 'from thence, saith (5 the LORD. If thieves came to thee, if robbers by night, (how art thou cut off!) would they not steal till they had enough? if grapegatherers came to thee, would they not leave some 6 gleaning grapes? "How are the things of Esau searched out! how are his hidden treasures! sought up! 7 °All the men of thy confederacy have "brought thee on thy way, even to the border: the men that were at peace with thee have deceived thee, and prevailed against thee; they that eat thy bread lay a snare' under thee: there is none understanding 10in

(8 him. Shall I not in that day, saith the LORD, destroy the wise men out of Edom, and understanding out of 9) the mount of Esau? And thy mighty men, O Teman, shall be dismayed, to the end that every one may be cut off Ifrom the mount of Esau by slaugh10 ter. For the violence 'done to thy brother Jacob shame shall cover thee, and thou shalt be cut off for ever. (11 In the day that thou stoodest 1on the other side, in the day that strangers carried away his substance', and foreigners entered into his gates, and cast lots upon Jerusalem, even thou 12) wast as one of them. But look not thou on the day of thy brother in the day of his disaster, and rejoice not over the children of Judah in the day of their destruction; neither speak 13) proudly in the day of distress. Enter not into the gate of my people in the day of their calamity; yea, look not thou on their affliction in the day of their calamity, 'neither lay ye hands on their substance in the (14 day of their calamity. And stand

thou 'not in the crossway, to cut off those of his that escape; and deliver not up those of his that remain in the 15 day of distress. For the day of the LORD is near upon all the nations': as thou hast done, it shall be done

unto thee; thy dealing shall return (16 upon thine own head. For as ye have drunk upon my holy mountain, so shall all the nations drink continually, yea, they shall drink, and 'swallow down, and shall be as though 17 they had not been. But in mount Zion there shall be those that escape, and it shall be "holy; and the house of Jacob shall possess their 18 possessions. And the house of Jacob shall be a fire, and the house of Joseph a flame, and the house of Esau for stubble, and they shall burn among! them, and devour them: and there shall not be any remaining to the house of Esau; for the LORD hath 19 spoken it. And they of the South shall possess the mount of Esau; and they of the lowland' the Philistines: and they shall possess the field' of Ephraim, and the field of Samaria: and Benjamin shall possess Gilead. *20) And the captivity of this host of the children of Ísrael, which are among the Canaanites, shall possess even unto Zarephath; and the captivity of Jerusalem, which is in Sepharad, shall possess the cities of the 21 South. And saviours shall come up on mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau; and the kingdom shall be the LORD'S.

11

Now the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, 2 Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wicked3) ness is come up before me.

But

Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD; and he went down to Joppa, and found a ship going to Tarshish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from 4 the presence of the LORD. But the LORD sent out a great wind into the

sea, and there was a mighty tempest in the sea, so that the ship was like 5 to be broken. Then the mariners were afraid, and cried every man unto his god; and they cast forth the wares that were in the ship into the sea, to lighten it unto them. But Jonah was gone down into the 'innermost parts of the ship; and he lay, 6 and was fast asleep. So the shipmaster came to him, and said unto him, What meanest thou, O sleeper? arise, call upon thy God, if so be that

JONAH.-I. 5 of.. sides. [65]

God will think upon us, that we perish 7 not. And they said every one to his fellow, Come, and let us cast lots, that we may know for whose cause this evil is upon us. So they cast lots, 8 and the lot fell upon Jonah. Then said they unto him, Tell us, we pray thee, for whose cause this evil is upon us; what is thine occupation? and whence comest thou? what is thy country? and of what people art 9 thou? And he said unto them, I am Jan Hebrew; and I fear the LORD, the God of heaven, which hath made 10) the sea and the dry land. °Then

were the men exceedingly afraid, and said unto him, 'What is this that thou hast done? For the men knew that he fled from the presence of the LORD, because he had told them. 11 °Then said they unto him, What shall we do unto thee, that the sea may be calm unto us? for the sea grew more! 12 and more tempestuous. And he

said unto them, Take me up, and cast me forth into the sea; so shall the sea be calm unto you: for I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon 13 you. "Nevertheless the men rowed hard to get them back to the land; but they could not: for the sea grew more' and 'more tempestuous against 14 them. "Wherefore they cried unto the LORD, and said, We beseech thee, O LORD, we beseech thee, let us not perish for this man's life, and lay not upon us innocent blood: for thou, O LORD, hast done as it pleased thee. 15 So they took up Jonah, and cast him

forth into the sea: and the sea ceased

16 from her raging. "Then the men feared the LORD exceedingly; and 'they' offered a sacrifice unto the (17 LORD, and made vows. And the LORD prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah; and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three 21 nights. Then Jonah prayed unto the LORD his God out of the fish's belly. 2 And he said,

I called by reason of mine affliction unto the LORD,

And he answered' me;

Out of the belly of shell cried I,
And thou heardest my voice.

3) For thou didst cast me into the 'depth, in the heart of the seas, And the 'flood was round' about me;

7

8

9

The earth with her bars closed upon me for ever:

Yet hast thou brought up my life

from the pit, O LORD my God. When my soul fainted within me, I remembered the LORD:

And my prayer came in unto thee,
into thine holy temple.

They that 'regard' lying vanities
Forsake their own mercy.

But I will sacrifice unto thee with
the voice of thanksgiving;

I will pay that 'which I have vowed.
Salvation is of the LORD.

10 And the LORD spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land.

31 And the word of the LORD came

unto Jonah the second time, saying, 2 Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preach3 ing that I bid thee. So Jonah arose, and went unto Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceeding great city, of three 4 days' journey. And Jonah began to enter into the city a day's journey, and he cried, and said, Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown. 5 And the people of Nineveh believed God; and they proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them. (6 071 And the tidings reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and 7 sat in ashes. And he made proclamation and published through Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying, Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste any thing: let them not feed, nor drink water: 8) but let them' be covered with sackcloth, both man and beast, and let

7 Or, For word came unto the king &c.

8 Heb. said.

bring it .. wrought.. was; 17 Now compassed; 4 Then.. of thy sight; III. 5 So; 6 For word came unto

them' cry mightily unto God: yea, let them turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that is in 9 their hands. "Who knoweth whether! God will not turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that (10 we perish not? And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, which he said he would do un4(1 to them; and he did it not. But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he 2 was angry. And he prayed unto the LORD, and said, I pray thee, O Lord, was not this my saying, when I was yet in my country? Therefore I Ihasted to flee unto Tarshish for I knew that thou art a gracious God, and full of compassion', slow to anger, and 'plenteous in mercy', and 3 repentest thee of the evil. Therefore now, O LORD, take, I beseech thee, my life from me; for it is better for 4) me to die than to live. And the LORD said, 2Doest thou well to be 5 angry? Then Jonah went out of the city, and sat on the east side of the city, and there made him a booth, and sat under it in the shadow, till he

might see what would become of the *6 city. And the LORD God prepared a gourd, and made it to come up over Jonah, that it might be a shadow over his head, to deliver him from his levil case. So Jonah was exceeding glad 7 'because of the gourd. But God prepared a worm when the morning rose the next day, and it smote the 8 gourd, that it withered. And it came to pass, when the sun arose', that God prepared a sultry east wind; and the sun beat upon the head of Jonah, that he fainted, and requested for himself that he might die, and said, It is better for me to die than to 9 live. And God said to Jonah, Doest thou well to be angry for the gourd? And he said, I do well to be angry 10) even unto death. And the LORD said, Thou hast had pity on the gourd, for the which thou hast not laboured, neither madest it grow; which came up 11 in a night, and perished in a night: and should not I have pity on Nineveh, that great city; wherein are more than sixscore thousand persons that cannot discern between their right hand and their left hand; and also much cattle?

11 THE Word of the LORD that came to Micah the 'Morashtite' in the days of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, which he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem.

2)

Hear, ye peoples', all of you'; hearken, Ó earth, and all that therein is and let the Lord GOD be witness Sagainst you, the Lord from his holy 3 temple. For, behold, the LORD cometh forth out of his place, and will come down, and tread upon the high (4 places of the earth. And the mountains shall be molten under him, and the valleys shall be cleft, as wax before the fire, as waters that are poured 5 down a steep place. For the transgression of Jacob is all this, and for the sins of the house of Israel. What is the transgression of Jacob? is it

1 Or, Iwas beforehand in fleeing 2 Or, Art thou greatly angry?

not Samaria? and what are the high places of Judah? are they not Jerusa6 lem? Therefore I will make Samaria as 'an' heap of the field, and as the plantings of a vineyard: and I wil pour down the stones thereof into the valley, and I will discover the founda(7) tions thereof. And all her graven images shall be beaten to pieces, and all her hires shall be burned' with fire, and all her idols will I lay desolate: for of the hire of 'an' harlot hath she gathered them', and 'unto the hire of 'an harlot shall they return. 8) For this will I wail and howl, I will go stripped and naked: I will make a wailing like the jackals', and 'a 9 mourning like the 'ostriches!. "For her wounds are incurable for it is come leven unto Judah; 'it reacheth'

on.

4 Heb. the fulness thereof. 5 Or, lamong