Amos 8:4

Amos 8:4 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Hear this, O ye that swallow up the needy, even to make the poor of the land to fail,
• New International Version (NIV)Hear this, you who trample the needy and do away with the poor of the land,
• English Standard Version (ESV)Hear this, you who trample on the needy and bring the poor of the land to an end,
• New King James Version (NKJV)Hear this, you who swallow up the needy, And make the poor of the land fail,

Context of Amos 8:4

2And he said, Amos, what seest thou? And I said, A basket of summer fruit. Then said Jehovah unto me, The end is come upon my people Israel; I will not again pass by them any more. 3And the songs of the temple shall be wailings in that day, saith the Lord Jehovah: the dead bodies shall be many; in every place shall they cast them forth with silence. Hear this, O ye that would swallow up the needy, and cause the poor of the land to fail, 5saying, When will the new moon be gone, that we may sell grain? and the sabbath, that we may set forth wheat, making the ephah small, and the shekel great, and dealing falsely with balances of deceit; 6that we may buy the poor for silver, and the needy for a pair of shoes, and sell the refuse of the wheat?

Amos 8:4 word by word

שִׁמְעוּ־זֹ֕את הַשֹּׁאֲפִ֖ים אֶבְי֑וֹן וְלַשְׁבִּ֖ית עֲנִיֵּי אָֽרֶץ׃Read the interlinear

• Hearשָׁמַעshâma‛ · to hear: hearH8085
• needyאֶבְיוֹן'ebyôn · needyH34
• landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776

Cross-references for Amos 8:4

• Amos 7:16Now therefore hear thou the word of Jehovah: Thou sayest, Prophesy not against Israel, and drop not thy word against the house of Isaac;
• 1 Kings 22:19And Micaiah said, Therefore hear thou the word of Jehovah: I saw Jehovah sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven standing by him on his right hand and on his left.
• Isaiah 1:10Hear the word of Jehovah, ye rulers of Sodom; give ear unto the law of our God, ye people of Gomorrah.
• Isaiah 28:14Wherefore hear the word of Jehovah, ye scoffers, that rule this people that is in Jerusalem:
• Jeremiah 5:21Hear now this, O foolish people, and without understanding; that have eyes, and see not; that have ears, and hear not:
• Jeremiah 28:15Then said the prophet Jeremiah unto Hananiah the prophet, Hear now, Hananiah: Jehovah hath not sent thee; but thou makest this people to trust in a lie.
• Amos 2:6Thus saith Jehovah: For three transgressions of Israel, yea, for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they have sold the righteous for silver, and the needy for a pair of shoes—
• Amos 5:11Forasmuch therefore as ye trample upon the poor, and take exactions from him of wheat: ye have built houses of hewn stone, but ye shall not dwell in them; ye have planted pleasant vineyards, but ye shall not drink the wine thereof.
• Psalms 12:5Because of the oppression of the poor, because of the sighing of the needy, Now will I arise, saith Jehovah; I will set him in the safety he panteth for.
• Psalms 14:4Have all the workers of iniquity no knowledge, Who eat up my peopleasthey eat bread, And call not upon Jehovah?
• Psalms 56:1Be merciful unto me, O God; for man would swallow me up: All the day long he fighting oppresseth me.
• Psalms 140:12I know that Jehovah will maintain the cause of the afflicted, And justice for the needy.
• Proverbs 30:14There is a generation whose teeth areasswords, and their jaw teethasknives, To devour the poor from off the earth, and the needy from among men.
• Isaiah 32:6For the fool will speak folly, and his heart will work iniquity, to practise profaneness, and to utter error against Jehovah, to make empty the soul of the hungry, and to cause the drink of the thirsty to fail.
• James 5:6Ye have condemned, ye have killed the righteous one; he doth not resist you.

Commentaries on Amos 8:4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4Hear this, O ye that swallow up the needy - Ye that bruise the poor; exact from them, and tread them under foot.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4Here ye this, ye that swallow - Or, better in the same sense, “that pant for the needy;” as Job says, “the hireling panteth for the evening” Job 7:2. They “panted for the poor,” as the wild beast for its prey; and “that to make the poor” or (better, as the Hebrew text,) “the meek”, those not poor only, but who, through poverty and affliction, are “poor in spirit” also, “to fail.” The land being divided among all the inhabitants, they, in order “to lay…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 4-10Verses 4-10 The rich and powerful of the land were the most guilty of oppression, as well as the foremost in idolatry. They were weary of the restraints of the sabbaths and the new moons, and wished them over, because no common work might be done therein. This is the character of many who are called Christians. The sabbath day and sabbath work are a burden to carnal hearts. It will either be profaned or be accounted a dull day. But can we spend our time…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4-14This section provides more details on the accusations and decisions mentioned earlier (read with Amos 2:6–6:14).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. Hear--The nobles needed to be urged thus, as hating to hear reproof. swallow up the needy--or, "gape after," that is, pant for their goods; so the word is used, Job 7:2, Margin. to make the poor ... to fail--"that they (themselves) may be placed alone in the midst of the earth" (Is 5:8).Read the comment

Topics related to Amos 8:4

• Oppression
• Poor

In the dictionaries

• Amos (1)
• Calf, Golden
• Meekness
• Poverty

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