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Amos 1

Amos announces YHWH’s judgment against surrounding nations for atrocities, broken bonds, and violence pursued without pity.

Amos, a herdsman from Tekoa, reports what he saw concerning Israel during the reigns of Uzziah in Judah and Jeroboam son of Joash in Israel, two years before an earthquake. YHWH’s voice roars from Zion, withering pastures and Carmel’s summit. Then come judgments against Damascus, Gaza, Tyre, Edom, and Ammon. Each accusation names violence or betrayal, and each sentence announces devastation: fire consumes palaces, rulers fall, and captors face captivity.

injustice and angersermon or Bible study notes
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1The words of Amos, who was among the herdsmen of Tekoa, which he saw concerning Israel in the days of Uzziah king of Judah and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the earthquake.
2He said: “The LORD will roar from Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the pastures of the shepherds will mourn, and the top of Carmel will wither.”
3The LORD says: “For three transgressions of Damascus, yes, for four, I will not turn away its punishment, because they have threshed Gilead with threshing instruments of iron;
4but I will send a fire into the house of Hazael, and it will devour the palaces of Ben Hadad.
5I will break the bar of Damascus, and cut off the inhabitant from the valley of Aven, and him who holds the scepter from the house of Eden; and the people of Syria shall go into captivity to Kir,” says the LORD.
6The LORD says: “For three transgressions of Gaza, yes, for four, I will not turn away its punishment, because they carried away captive the whole community, to deliver them up to Edom;
7but I will send a fire on the wall of Gaza, and it will devour its palaces.
8I will cut off the inhabitant from Ashdod, and him who holds the scepter from Ashkelon; and I will turn my hand against Ekron; and the remnant of the Philistines will perish,” says the Lord GOD.
9The LORD says: “For three transgressions of Tyre, yes, for four, I will not turn away its punishment; because they delivered up the whole community to Edom, and didn’t remember the brotherly covenant;
10but I will send a fire on the wall of Tyre, and it will devour its palaces.”
11The LORD says: “For three transgressions of Edom, yes, for four, I will not turn away its punishment, because he pursued his brother with the sword and cast off all pity, and his anger raged continually, and he kept his wrath forever;
12but I will send a fire on Teman, and it will devour the palaces of Bozrah.”
13The LORD says: “For three transgressions of the children of Ammon, yes, for four, I will not turn away its punishment, because they have ripped open the pregnant women of Gilead, that they may enlarge their border.
14But I will kindle a fire in the wall of Rabbah, and it will devour its palaces, with shouting in the day of battle, with a storm in the day of the whirlwind;
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Key verses
Amos 1:2YHWH’s roar from Zion establishes his authority and the destructive force of the judgments that follow.
Amos 1:3The charge against Damascus introduces the repeated judgment formula and names brutal violence as grounds for punishment.
Amos 1:11Edom’s offense brings kinship into focus: relentless anger and abandoned pity turn a brother into a target.
Where this chapter reaches

Joel shares the image of YHWH roaring from Zion and speaking from Jerusalem, a voice whose force reaches beyond the city. Jeremiah and Ezekiel also pronounce judgment against neighboring nations, including Edom and Ammon, for violence and hostility.

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After reading the whole chapter

What do the accusations against these nations show you about the wrongs God takes seriously?

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How does the opening roar shape your reading of the judgments that follow?

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Questions people ask about Amos 1

Who was Amos in Amos 1?

The opening verse identifies Amos as a man among the herdsmen of Tekoa who received visions concerning Israel. It places his words during the reigns of Uzziah of Judah and Jeroboam son of Joash of Israel, two years before an earthquake. This chapter gives no account of his call.

What does “For three transgressions” mean in Amos 1?

The repeated phrase “For three transgressions” followed by “yes, for four” expresses accumulated wrongdoing reaching its limit. Each oracle then names a particular offense rather than listing four separate sins. The pattern stresses the weight of the nations’ guilt and YHWH’s declared resolve to carry out punishment.

What was the brotherly covenant in Amos 1:9?

Tyre is accused of handing an entire community over to Edom and disregarding a bond described as “the brotherly covenant”. The chapter does not identify the treaty, its date, or its parties. The charge adds covenant betrayal to the offense of delivering people into another nation’s hands.

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Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).