translation_id: net-engnet

book_id: AMO

label: NET translator note

text: Or “the Lord.” The Hebrew term translated “sovereign One” here is אֲדֹנָי (’ adonay ).


text: Or “the capitals.” The Hebrew singular form is collective.


text: Heb “cut them off on the head of all of them.” The translation assumes the objective suffix on the verb refers to the tops of the pillars and that the following prepositional phrase refers to the people standing beneath. Another option is to take this phrase as referring to the pillars, in which case one could translate, “Knock all the tops of the pillars off.”


text: Heb “the remnant of them.” One could possibly translate, “every last one of them” (cf. NEB “to the last man”). This probably refers to those who survive the collapse of the temple, which may symbolize the northern kingdom.


text: Heb “a fugitive belonging to them will not run away.”


text: Heb “a survivor belonging to them will not escape.”


text: Heb “into Sheol” (so ASV, NASB, NRSV), that is, the land of the dead localized in Hebrew thought in the earth’s core or the grave. Cf. KJV “hell”; NCV, NLT “the place of the dead”; NIV “the depths of the grave.”


text: Heb “from before my eyes.”


text: Or perhaps simply, “there,” if the מ ( mem ) prefixed to the adverb is dittographic (note the preceding word ends in mem ).


text: Heb “Even if they go into captivity before their enemies.”


text: Heb “I will set my eye on them for disaster, not good.”


text: The words “will do this” are supplied in the translation for clarification.


text: Or “melts.” The verb probably depicts earthquakes and landslides. See v. 5 b.


text: Heb “all of it.”


text: Heb “the Nile.” The word “River” is supplied in the translation for clarity.


text: Or “sinks back down.”


label: NET textual note

text: The MT reads “his steps.” If this is correct, then the reference may be to the steps leading up to the heavenly temple or the throne of God (cf. 1 Kgs 10:19-20 ). The prefixed מ ( mem ) may be dittographic (note the preceding word ends in mem ). The translation assumes an emendation to עֲלִיָּתוֹ (’ aliyyato , “his upper rooms”).


text: Traditionally, “vault” (so ASV, NAB, NRSV). The precise meaning of this word in this context is unclear. Elsewhere it refers to objects grouped or held together. F. I. Andersen and D. N. Freedman ( Amos [AB], 845-46) suggest the foundational structure of a building is in view.


text: The Hebrew text has a rhetorical question, “Are you children of Israel not like the Cushites to me?” The rhetorical question has been converted to an affirmative statement in the translation for clarity. See the comment at 8:8 . sn Though Israel was God’s special covenant people (see 3:2 a), the Lord emphasizes they are not inherently superior to the other nations subject to his sovereign rule.


text: The second half of v. 7 is also phrased as a rhetorical question in the Hebrew text, “Did I not bring Israel up from the land of Egypt, and the Philistines from Caphtor, and Aram from Kir?” The translation converts the rhetorical question into an affirmation for clarity.


text: Heb “the eyes of the sovereign Lord are on.”


text: Or “kingdom.”


text: Heb “house” (also in the following verse).


text: Heb “like being shaken with a sieve, and a pebble does not fall to the ground.” The meaning of the Hebrew word צְרוֹר ( tsÿror ), translated “pebble,” is unclear here. In 2 Sam 17:13 it appears to refer to a stone. If it means “pebble,” then the sieve described in v. 6 allows the grain to fall into a basket while retaining the debris and pebbles. However, if one interprets צְרוֹר as a “kernel of grain” (cf. NASB, NIV, NKJV, NLT) then the sieve is constructed to retain the grain and allow the refuse and pebbles to fall to the ground. In either case, the simile supports the last statement in v. 8 by making it clear that God will distinguish between the righteous (the grain) and the wicked (the pebbles) when he judges, and will thereby preserve a remnant in Israel. Only the sinners will be destroyed (v. 10 ).


text: The phrase translated “collapsing hut” refers to a temporary shelter (cf. NASB, NRSV “booth”) in disrepair and emphasizes the relatively weakened condition of the once powerful Davidic dynasty. Others have suggested that the term refers to Jerusalem, while still others argue that it should be repointed to read “Sukkoth,” a garrison town in Transjordan. Its reconstruction would symbolize the rebirth of the Davidic empire and its return to power (e.g., M. E. Polley, Amos and the Davidic Empire , 71-74).


text: The MT reads a third feminine plural suffix, which could refer to the two kingdoms (Judah and Israel) or, more literally, to the breaches in the walls of the cities that are mentioned in v. 4 (cf. 4:3 ). Some emend to third feminine singular, since the “hut” of the preceding line (a feminine singular noun) might be the antecedent. In that case, the final nun ( ן ) is virtually dittographic with the vav ( ו ) that appears at the beginning of the following word.


text: The MT reads a third masculine singular suffix, which could refer back to David. However, it is possible that an original third feminine singular suffix ( יה -, yod-hey ) has been misread as masculine ( יו -, yod-vav ). In later Hebrew script a ה ( he ) resembles a יו - ( yod-vav ) combination.


text: Heb “and I will rebuild as in days of antiquity.”


text: Heb “take possession of the remnant of Edom”; NASB, NIV, NRSV “possess the remnant of Edom.”


text: Heb “nations over whom my name is proclaimed.” The Hebrew idiom indicates ownership, sometimes as a result of conquest. See 2 Sam 12:28 . sn This verse envisions a new era of Israelite rule, perhaps patterned after David’s imperialistic successes (see 2 Sam 8-10 ). At the same time, however, the verse does not specify how this rule is to be accomplished. Note that the book ends with a description of peace and abundance, and its final reference to God (v. 15 ) does not include the epithet “the Lord who commands armies,” which has militaristic overtones. This is quite a different scene than what the book began with: nations at war and standing under the judgment of God.


text: Heb “behold” or “look.”


text: Heb “the days are.”


text: The verb is omitted here in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation from the parallel line.


text: Or “hills,” where the vineyards were planted.


text: Heb “and all the hills will melt.”


text: This line can also be translated “I will restore the fortunes of my people, Israel” and is a common idiom (e.g., Deut 30:3 ; Jer 30:3 ; Hos 6:11 ; Zeph 3:20 ). This rendering is followed by several modern English versions (e.g., NEB, NRSV, NJPS).


text: Or “the ruined [or “desolate”] cities.”


text: Or “and live [in them].”


text: Heb “drink their wine.”


text: Or “gardens.”


text: Heb “eat their fruit.”


text: Heb “their.” The pronoun was replaced by the English definite article in the translation for stylistic reasons.