Amos 5:20

Amos 5:20 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Shall not the day of the Lord be darkness, and not light? even very dark, and no brightness in it?
• English Standard Version (ESV)Is not the day of the Lord darkness, and not light, and gloom with no brightness in it?
• New King James Version (NKJV)Is not the day of the Lord darkness, and not light? Is it not very dark, with no brightness in it?
• New Living Translation (NLT)Yes, the day of the Lord will be dark and hopeless, without a ray of joy or hope.

Context of Amos 5:20

18Woe to you who long for the day of the Lord! Why do you long for the day of the Lord? That day will be darkness, not light. 19It will be as though a man fled from a lion only to meet a bear, as though he entered his house and rested his hand on the wall only to have a snake bite him. Will not the day of the Lord be darkness, not light— pitch-dark, without a ray of brightness? 21“I hate, I despise your religious festivals; your assemblies are a stench to me. 22Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them. Though you bring choice fellowship offerings, I will have no regard for them.

Amos 5:20 word by word

הֲלֹא־חֹ֛שֶׁךְ י֥וֹם יְהוָ֖ה וְלֹא־א֑וֹר וְאָפֵ֖ל וְלֹא־נֹ֥גַֽהּ לֽוֹ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• not the dayיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
• of the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• darknessחֹ֫שֶׁךְchôshek · darknessH2822
• and not lightאוֹר'ôr · lightH216
• even very darkאָפֵל'aphêl · gloomyH651
• and no brightnessנֹ֫גַהּnôgahh · brightnessH5051

Cross-references for Amos 5:20

• Job 3:4That day—may it turn to darkness; may God above not care about it; may no light shine on it.
• Job 10:21before I go to the place of no return, to the land of gloom and utter darkness,
• Isaiah 13:10The stars of heaven and their constellations will not show their light. The rising sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light.
• Ezekiel 34:12As a shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them, so will I look after my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on a day of clouds and darkness.
• Nahum 1:8but with an overwhelming flood he will make an end of Nineveh; he will pursue his foes into the realm of darkness.
• Matthew 22:13“Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
• Jude 1:13They are wild waves of the sea, foaming up their shame; wandering stars, for whom blackest darkness has been reserved forever.
• Revelation 16:10The fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and its kingdom was plunged into darkness. People gnawed their tongues in agony

Commentaries on Amos 5:20

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 20Shall not the Day of the Lord be darkness? - He had described that Day as a day of inevitable destruction, such its man‘s own conscience and guilty fears anticipate, and then appeals to their own consciences, “is it not so, as I have said?” People‘s consciences are truer than their intellect. However, they may employ the subtlety of their intellect to dull their conscience, they feel, in their heart of hearts, that there is a Judge, that guilt is…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 18-27Verses 18-27 Woe unto those that desire the day of the Lord's judgments, that wish for times of war and confusion; as some who long for changes, hoping to rise upon the ruins of their country! but this should be so great a desolation, that nobody could gain by it. The day of the Lord will be a dark, dismal, gloomy day to all impenitent sinners. When God makes a day dark, all the world cannot make it light. Those who are not reformed by the judgments of…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 18-27The pronouncements of sorrow in this section develop two main themes: Israel’s apostasy (turning away from God) would make the day of the Lord a day of judgment, not salvation; and Judah’s spiritual complacency (feeling satisfied and unconcerned about faithfulness to God) would also bring judgment.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-271. lamentation--an elegy for the destruction coming on you. Compare Eze 32:2, "take up," namely, as a mournful burden (Eze 19:1; 27:2).Read the comment

Topics related to Amos 5:20

• Darkness
• Judgments
• Wicked (People)

In the dictionaries

• Manifold
• Seek
• Joel (2)

Commentaries on Amos 5

• 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
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings