The Meaning of Amos 9:1 Explained

Amos 9:1

KJV: I saw the Lord standing upon the altar: and he said, Smite the lintel of the door, that the posts may shake: and cut them in the head, all of them; and I will slay the last of them with the sword: he that fleeth of them shall not flee away, and he that escapeth of them shall not be delivered.

YLT: I have seen the Lord standing by the altar, and He saith: 'Smite the knob, and the thresholds shake, And cut them off by the head -- all of them, And their posterity with a sword I do slay, Not flee to them doth the fleer, Nor escape to them doth a fugitive.

Darby: I saw the Lord standing upon the altar; and he said, Smite the chapiter that the thresholds may shake; and break all of them in pieces, in the head; and I will slay the last of them with the sword: he that fleeth of them shall not get away by flight, and he that escapeth of them shall not be delivered.

ASV: I 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.

Discover Amos 9:1

CONTEXT: What is the Context of Amos 9:1?

MEANING: What does Amos 9:1 Mean?

WORDS: What do the individual words in Amos 9:1 mean?

RELATIONS: What do the major concepts mean in Amos 9:1?

What is the context of Amos 9:1?

KJV Reverse Interlinear

I saw the Lord standing upon the altar: and he said, Smite the lintel of the door, that the posts may shake: and cut them in the head, all of them; and I will slay the last of them with the sword: he that fleeth of them shall not flee away, and he that escapeth of them shall not be delivered.

What does Amos 9:1 Mean?

Study Notes

standing
The position of the Lord (Adonai) is significant. The altar speaks properly of mercy because of judgement executed upon an interposed sacrifice, but when altar and sacrifice are despised the altar becomes a place of judgment. Cf. John 12:31 .

Verse Meaning

In the final vision that Amos recorded, he saw Yahweh standing beside an altar. The altar at Bethel is probably in view since Bethel was the worship site in view in most of this book and since Amos" encounter with Amaziah occurred there ( Amos 7:10-17). Another possibility is that any and every Israelite shrine might be in view. ^[1] The Lord gave a command that someone (an angel?) would strike the capitals that supported the roof of the temple there with such force that its foundation stones would shake and the whole structure would fall down (cf. Judges 16:29-30; Isaiah 6:4; Ezekiel 40:6). The Lord also said He would slay with the sword the rest of the priests and worshippers who survived being killed by the collapse of the temple. No one would escape with his or her life.

"The temple was not a literal temple, for the collapse of such a building would affect only a few. Rather it represents the religion of the northern kingdom, which, in the end, brought about the destruction of its adherents. The decay of the social structure that resulted from their cold externalism could lead only to national ruin. The gross sin of idolatry could lead only to judgment." ^[2]

Context Summary

Amos 9:1-15 - The Day Of Restoration

The guilty will certainly be punished. If they enter the sacred place of worship, even that will not shelter them, Amos 9:1. Flight and concealment will be in vain. Let them climb ever so high, or burrow ever so deep; let them scale the loftiest hills, or dive into the deepest seas-the consequences of their sins will overtake them, Amos 9:2-3. How can sinners hope to escape from Him whose chambers are built in the heavens and whose voice governs the tides, Amos 9:6? The great desolations of the past prove the exactness and severity of His judgments, Amos 9:7-8. How remarkably Amos 9:9 has been fulfilled? Notwithstanding their scatterings, the Hebrew people have been preserved as a race.

The final paragraph, Amos 9:11-15, is very reassuring. It is a burst of noble anticipation, quoted by the Apostle James, Acts 15:14-17. The promises made to Abraham and David are yet to be fulfilled. The derision of their foes, of whom Edom was the ringleader, will be silenced. Through the parted curtain, we descry the golden age of the future. There is a divine plan working to its conclusion, and Israel shall yet come again to the land given to their fathers [source]

Chapter Summary: Amos 9

¹ The certainty of the desolation
¹¹ The restoring of the tabernacle of David

What do the individual words in Amos 9:1 mean?

I saw - the Lord standing by the altar and He said Strike the doorposts that may shake the thresholds and break them on the heads of them all and the last of them with the sword I will slay not He who flees from them shall get away and not shall be delivered from them he who escapes

רָאִ֨יתִי אֶת־ אֲדֹנָ֜י נִצָּ֣ב עַֽל־ הַמִּזְבֵּ֗חַ וַיֹּאמֶר֩ הַ֨ךְ הַכַּפְתּ֜וֹר וְיִרְעֲשׁ֣וּ הַסִּפִּ֗ים וּבְצַ֙עַם֙ בְּרֹ֣אשׁ כֻּלָּ֔ם וְאַחֲרִיתָ֖ם בַּחֶ֣רֶב אֶהֱרֹ֑ג לֹֽא־ יָנ֤וּס לָהֶם֙ נָ֔ס וְלֹֽא־ יִמָּלֵ֥ט לָהֶ֖ם פָּלִֽיט

רָאִ֨יתִי	I saw
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, first person common singular Root: רָאָה Sense: to see, look at, inspect, perceive, consider.
אֶת־	-
Parse: Direct object marker Root: אֹות Sense: sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative.
אֲדֹנָ֜י	the Lord
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular Root: אֲדֹנָי Sense: my lord, lord.
נִצָּ֣ב	standing
Parse: Verb, Nifal, Participle, masculine singular Root: הֻצַּב Sense: to stand, take one’s stand, stand upright, be set (over), establish.
הַמִּזְבֵּ֗חַ	the altar
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular Root: מִזְבֵּחַ Sense: altar.
וַיֹּאמֶר֩	and He said
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular Root: אָמַר Sense: to say, speak, utter.
הַ֨ךְ	Strike
Parse: Verb, Hifil, Imperative, masculine singular Root: נָכָה Sense: to strike, smite, hit, beat, slay, kill.
הַכַּפְתּ֜וֹר	the doorposts
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular Root: כַּפְתֹּור Sense: bulb, knob, capital, capital of a pillar.
וְיִרְעֲשׁ֣וּ	that may shake
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive imperfect, third person masculine plural Root: רָעַשׁ Sense: to quake, shake.
הַסִּפִּ֗ים	the thresholds
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine plural Root: סַף Sense: a spreading out, basin, goblet, bowl.
וּבְצַ֙עַם֙	and break them
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Imperative, masculine singular, third person masculine plural Root: בָּצַע Sense: to cut off, break off, gain by unrighteous violence, get, finish, be covetous, be greedy.
בְּרֹ֣אשׁ	on the heads
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular construct Root: רֹאשׁ Sense: head, top, summit, upper part, chief, total, sum, height, front, beginning.
כֻּלָּ֔ם	of them all
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, third person masculine plural Root: כֹּל Sense: all, the whole.
וְאַחֲרִיתָ֖ם	and the last of them
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, feminine singular construct, third person masculine plural Root: אַחֲרִית Sense: after part, end.
בַּחֶ֣רֶב	with the sword
Parse: Preposition-b, Article, Noun, feminine singular Root: חֶרֶב Sense: sword, knife.
אֶהֱרֹ֑ג	I will slay
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, first person common singular Root: הָרַג Sense: to kill, slay, murder, destroy, murderer, slayer, out of hand.
יָנ֤וּס	He who flees
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine singular Root: נוּס Sense: to flee, escape.
לָהֶם֙	from them
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine plural
נָ֔ס	shall get away
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine singular Root: נוּס Sense: to flee, escape.
וְלֹֽא־	and not
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Adverb, Negative particle Root: הֲלֹא Sense: not, no.
יִמָּלֵ֥ט	shall be delivered
Parse: Verb, Nifal, Imperfect, third person masculine singular Root: מָלַט Sense: to slip away, escape, deliver, save, be delivered.
לָהֶ֖ם	from them
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine plural
פָּלִֽיט	he who escapes
Parse: Noun, masculine singular Root: פָּלִיט Sense: refugee, fugitive, escaped one.

What are the major concepts related to Amos 9:1?

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