Amos 8:13

Amos 8:13 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)In that day shall the fair virgins and young men faint for thirst.
• New International Version (NIV)“In that day “the lovely young women and strong young men will faint because of thirst.
• English Standard Version (ESV)"In that day the lovely virgins and the young men shall faint for thirst.
• New King James Version (NKJV)“In that day the fair virgins And strong young men Shall faint from thirst.

Context of Amos 8:13

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. 12People 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. In 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 8:13 word by word

בַּיּ֨וֹם הַה֜וּא תִּ֠תְעַלַּפְנָה הַבְּתוּלֹ֧ת הַיָּפ֛וֹת וְהַבַּחוּרִ֖ים בַּצָּמָֽא׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• In that dayיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
• shall the fairיָפֶהyâpheh · beautifulH3303
• virginsבְּתוּלָהbethûlâh · virginH1330
• and young menבָּחוּרbâchûr bâchûr · youthH970
• faintעָלַף‛âlaph · to enwrapH5968
• for thirstצָמָאtsâmâ' · thirstH6772

Cross-references for Amos 8:13

• Deuteronomy 32:25Outside the sword will bereave, And inside [the chambers] terror— For both young man and virgin, For the nursing child and the man of gray hair.
• Psalms 63:1O God, You are my God; with deepest longing I will seek You; My soul [my life, my very self] thirsts for You, my flesh longs and sighs for You, In a dry and weary land where there is no water.
• Psalms 144:12Let our sons in their youth be like plants full grown, And our daughters like corner pillars fashioned for a palace;
• Isaiah 40:30Even youths grow weary and tired, And vigorous young men stumble badly,
• Isaiah 41:17“The poor and needy are seeking water, but there is none; Their tongues are parched with thirst. I, the Lord, will answer them Myself; I, the God of Israel, will not neglect them.
• Jeremiah 48:18Come down from your glory, O Daughter living in Dibon, And sit on the parched ground [among the thirsty]! For the destroyer of Moab has advanced against you; He has destroyed your strongholds.
• Lamentations 1:18“The Lord is righteous and just; For I have rebelled against His commandment (His word). Hear now, all you peoples, And look at my pain; My virgins and my young men Have gone into captivity.
• Lamentations 2:10The elders of the Daughter of Zion Sit on the ground keeping silent; They have thrown dust on their heads, They have covered themselves with sackcloth. The virgins of Jerusalem Have bowed their heads to the ground.
• Hosea 2:3Or I will strip her naked And expose her as on the day she was born, And make her like a wilderness And make her like a parched land And slay her with thirst.
• Zechariah 9:17For how great is God’s goodness and how great is His beauty! And how great [He will make Israel’s] goodliness and [Israel’s] beauty! Grain and new wine will make the young men and virgins flourish.

Commentaries on Amos 8:13

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 13In this hopelessness as to all relief, those too shall fail and sink under their sufferings, in whom life is freshest and strongest and hope most buoyant. Hope mitigates any sufferings. When hope is gone, the powers of life, which it sustains, give way. “They shall faint for thirst,” literally, “shall be mantled over, covered”, as, in fact, one fainting seems to feel as if a veil came over his brow and eyes. “Thirst,” as it is an intenser suffering than…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. 11-14a famine of hearing the words of the LORD: God sent prophets to Israel to speak directly to them, but Israel told the prophets not to prophesy (Amos 2:11–12). Now they had what they wanted, but the silence was more terrible than God's roar and thunder. God became distant (see Ezekiel 7:26; 20:3; Micah 3:4, 7). The time for speaking was over; the time of judgment had come.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1313. faint for thirst--namely, thirst for hearing the words of the Lord, being destitute of all other comfort. If even the young and strong faint, how much more the infirm (Is 40:30, 31)!Read the comment

Topics related to Amos 8:13

• Hunger
• Thirst
• Word of God

In the dictionaries

• That Day
• Faint

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