Amos 8:12

Amos 8:12 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)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 shall not find it.
• New International Version (NIV)People will stagger from sea to sea and wander from north to east, searching for the word of the Lord, but they will not find it.
• English Standard Version (ESV)They shall wander from sea to sea, and from north to east; they shall run to and fro, to seek the word of the Lord, but they shall not find it.
• New King James Version (NKJV)They shall wander from sea to sea, And from north to east; They shall run to and fro, seeking the word of the Lord, But shall not find it.

Context of Amos 8:12

10And I shall turn your festivals and feasts into mourning And all your songs into dirges (funeral poems to be sung); And I shall cause sackcloth to be put on everyone’s loins And baldness on every head [shaved for mourning]. And I shall make that time like a time of mourning for an only son [who has died], And the end of it shall be like a bitter day. 11“Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord God, “When I will send hunger over the land, Not hunger for bread or a thirst for water, But rather [a hunger] for hearing the words of the Lord. People shall stagger from sea to sea [to the very ends of the earth] And from the north even to the east; They will roam here and there to seek the word of the Lord [longing for it as essential for life], But they will not find it. 13In that day the beautiful virgins And [even the vigorous] young men shall faint from thirst. 14Those who swear [their oaths] by the sin (guilt) of Samaria or Ashimah (a pagan goddess), Who say, ‘By the life of your god [the golden calf], O Dan!’ And [swear], ‘By the life of the way of [idolatrous] Beersheba,’ They shall fall and not rise again.”

Amos 8:12 word by word

וְנָעוּ֙ מִיָּ֣ם עַד־יָ֔ם וּמִצָּפ֖וֹן וְעַד־מִזְרָ֑ח יְשֽׁוֹטְט֛וּ לְבַקֵּ֥שׁ אֶת־דְּבַר־יְהוָ֖ה וְלֹ֥א יִמְצָֽאוּ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And they shall wanderנוּעַnûa‛ · to shakeH5128
• from seaיָםyâm · seaH3220
• and from the northצָפוֹןtsâphôn tsâphôn · northH6828
• even to the eastמִזְרָחmizrâch · eastH4217
• they shall run to and froשׁוּטshûţ · to roveH7751
• to seekבָּקַשׁbâqash · to seekH1245
• the wordדָּבָרdâbâr · wordH1697
• of the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• and shall not findמָצָאmâtsâ' · to findH4672

Cross-references for Amos 8:12

• Proverbs 14:6A scoffer seeks wisdom and finds none [for his ears are closed to wisdom], But knowledge is easy for one who understands [because he is willing to learn].
• Daniel 12:4But as for you, Daniel, conceal these words and seal up the scroll until the end of time. Many will go back and forth and search anxiously [through the scroll], and knowledge [of the purpose of God as revealed by His prophets] will [greatly] increase.”
• Matthew 11:25At that time Jesus said, “I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth [I openly and joyfully acknowledge Your great wisdom], that You have hidden these things [these spiritual truths] from the wise and intelligent and revealed them to infants [to new believers, to those seeking God’s will and purpose].
• Matthew 12:30He who is not with Me [once and for all on My side] is against Me; and he who does not [unequivocally] gather with Me scatters.
• Matthew 24:23Then if anyone says to you [during the great tribulation], ‘Look! Here is the Christ,’ or ‘There He is,’ do not believe it.
• Romans 9:31whereas Israel, [though always] pursuing the law of righteousness, did not succeed in fulfilling the law.
• Romans 11:7What then? Israel failed to obtain what it was seeking [that is, God’s favor by obedience to the Law], but the elect [those chosen few] obtained it, while the rest of them became hardened and callously indifferent;
• 2 Timothy 3:6For among them are those who worm their way into homes and captivate morally weak and spiritually-dwarfed women weighed down by [the burden of their] sins, easily swayed by various impulses,

Commentaries on Amos 8:12

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 12They shall wander front sea to sea - From the Mediterranean to the Dead Sea or from west to east, and from north to south, to seek the word of the Lord; to find a prophet, or any person authorized by God to show them the end of their calamities. In this state they shall continue, because they have rejected Him who is the bread of life.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 12They shall wander - Literally, “reel.” The word is used of the reeling of drunkards, of the swaying to and fro of trees in the wind, of the quivering of the lips of one agitated, and then of the unsteady seeking of persons bewildered, looking for what they know not where to find. “From sea to sea,” from the sea of Galilee to the Mediterranean, that is, from east to west, “and from the north even to the sunrising,” round again to the east, from where their…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 11-14Verses 11-14 Here was a token of God's highest displeasure. At any time, and most in a time of trouble, a famine of the word of God is the heaviest judgment. To many this is no affliction, yet some will feel it very much, and will travel far to hear a good sermon; they feel the loss of the mercies others foolishly sin away. But when God visits a backsliding church, their own plans and endeavours to find out a way of salvation, will stand them in no stead…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 12from sea to sea: Israel's natural boundaries stretch from sea to sea. The Mediterranean Sea is on the west, and the Dead Sea is on the east. The other borders are simply called the north and the east.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1212. they shall wander from sea to sea--that is, from the Dead Sea to the Mediterranean, from east to west. from ... north ... to ... east--where we might expect "from north to south." But so alienated was Israel from Judah, that no Israelite even then would think of repairing southward, that is, to Jerusalem for religious information. The circuit is traced as in Nu 34:3, &c., except that the south is omitted. Their "seeking the word of the Lord" would not…Read the comment

Topics related to Amos 8:12

• Hunger
• Seekers
• Thirst
• Word of God

In the dictionaries

• Vision

Commentaries on Amos 8

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings