During the wilderness wanderings the Israelites had also carried shrines of their king. This may refer to unauthorized shrines honoring Yahweh or, more probably, shrines honoring other deities (cf. Acts 7:42-43). "Sikkuth, your king," probably refers to Sakkut, the Assyrian war god also known as Adar. "Kiyyun, your images," probably refers to the Assyrian astral deity also known as Kaiwan or Saturn. Amos evidently ridiculed these gods by substituting the vowels of the Hebrew word for "abomination," (shiqqus) in their names. [1] "The star of your gods [2]" probably refers to the planet Saturn that represented Kiyyun. Stephen"s quotation of this verse in Acts 7:42-43 was from the Septuagint, which interpreted these names as references to pagan idols. The worshippers may have carried pedestals for their images of various idols including astral deities. Many scholars believe the Israelites conceived of the golden calf as a representation of that on which Yahweh rode, a visible support for their invisible God. Another view is that the golden calf represented Yahweh Himself. The bull in Egyptian iconography was a symbol of strength and power. Jeroboam I had erected bulls at Dan and Bethel in Israel and had revived this idolatrous form of worship. Amos pointed out that Israel had always mixed idolatry with the worship of Yahweh, so Israel"s worship of Him had been hypocritical throughout her history. Certainly at times the Israelites worshipped God exclusively and wholeheartedly, but throughout their history there had been these instances of syncretistic hypocrisy. Do we still carry our idols around with us?[source]
Another description of inevitable judgment5:27[source]
Because of this hypocritical worship, Yahweh, the God of armies, promised that the Israelites would go into exile beyond Damascus. They did go into exile in Assyria, to the northeast of Damascus, after722 B.C. (cf. Amos 4:3). [source][source][source]
"The horror of "exile" was more than the ruin of defeat and the shame of capture. For Israel, it meant being removed from the land of promise, the land of God"s presence. Exile, in effect, was excommunication." [3][source]
Context Summary
Amos 5:16-27 - A Dark Day For Hypocrites
Mighty sins had been committed, and mighty judgments were at hand. The oppression of the poor, Amos 5:11; the erection of elegant dwellings from unrighteous exactions, Amos 5:11; the acceptance of bribes to betray the needy, Amos 5:12 all these must be reckoned with. But if the guilty nation would not seek God and establish judgment in the gate, where magistrates sat to dispense justice, the streets would be filled with wailing, and the husbandmen and vine-dressers would be equally affected by the widespread desolation as the dwellers in the cities.
Moreover, bad as Israel's present condition was, it would become infinitely worse, as though a man fleeing from a lion rushed into the arms of a bear, or, taking refuge in a house, was stung by a serpent that lay hid in a cranny of the wall. Of what avail are religious rites, when the heart is alienated from God, Amos 5:21, etc.? Let us heed well the exhortation of Amos 5:23-24. The martyr Stephen quoted Amos 5:25-27, which accuse the people of carrying about little shrines and pocket-idols, to serve as amulets averting disaster, Acts 7:43. But they might as well have built a bank of sand to arrest an overflowing flood! The one thing which is going to help us is repentance toward God and faith in our Savior Jesus Christ. [source]
Chapter Summary: Amos 5
1A lamentation for Israel 4An exhortation to repentance 21God rejects their hypocritical service
What do the individual words in Amos 5:26 mean?
and You carried-Sikkuthyour kingandChiunyour idolsthe starof your godswhichyou madefor yourselves
Parse: Direct object marker
Root: אֹות
Sense: sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative.
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, second person masculine plural
Root: מֹלֶךְ
Sense: the god of the Ammonites and Phoenicians to whom some Israelites sacrificed their infants in the valley of Hinnom.
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: כִּיּוּן
Sense: probably a statue of the Assyrian-Babylonian god of the planet Saturn and used to symbolise Israelite apostasy.