New King James Version
Amos 3:2
2“You only have I known of all the families of the earth; Therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities.”
Amos 3:2 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)You only have I known of all the families of the earth: therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities.
- New International Version (NIV)“You only have I chosen of all the families of the earth; therefore I will punish you for all your sins.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)"You only have I known of all the families of the earth; therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities.
- New Living Translation (NLT)“From among all the families on the earth, I have been intimate with you alone. That is why I must punish you for all your sins.”
Context of Amos 3:2
1Hear this word that the Lord has spoken against you, O children of Israel, against the whole family which I brought up from the land of Egypt, saying: “You only have I known of all the families of the earth; Therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities.” 3Can two walk together, unless they are agreed? 4Will a lion roar in the forest, when he has no prey? Will a young lion cry out of his den, if he has caught nothing?
Read all of Amos 3Amos 3:2 word by word
רַ֚ק אֶתְכֶ֣ם יָדַ֔עְתִּי מִכֹּ֖ל מִשְׁפְּח֣וֹת הָאֲדָמָ֑ה עַל־כֵּן֙ אֶפְקֹ֣ד עֲלֵיכֶ֔ם אֵ֖ת כָּל־עֲוֹנֹֽתֵיכֶֽם׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Amos 3:2
- Exodus 19:5Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine.
- Deuteronomy 7:6“For you are a holy people to the Lord your God; the Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for Himself, a special treasure above all the peoples on the face of the earth.
- Deuteronomy 10:15The Lord delighted only in your fathers, to love them; and He chose their descendants after them, you above all peoples, as it is this day.
- Deuteronomy 26:18Also today the Lord has proclaimed you to be His special people, just as He promised you, that you should keep all His commandments,
- Deuteronomy 32:9For the Lord’s portion is His people; Jacob is the place of His inheritance.
- Psalms 147:19He declares His word to Jacob, His statutes and His judgments to Israel.
- Isaiah 63:19We have become like those of old, over whom You never ruled, Those who were never called by Your name.
- Genesis 10:32These were the families of the sons of Noah, according to their generations, in their nations; and from these the nations were divided on the earth after the flood.
- Jeremiah 1:15For behold, I am calling All the families of the kingdoms of the north,” says the Lord; “They shall come and each one set his throne At the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem, Against all its walls all around, And against all the cities of Judah.
- Jeremiah 10:25Pour out Your fury on the Gentiles, who do not know You, And on the families who do not call on Your name; For they have eaten up Jacob, Devoured him and consumed him, And made his dwelling place desolate.
- Nahum 3:4Because of the multitude of harlotries of the seductive harlot, The mistress of sorceries, Who sells nations through her harlotries, And families through her sorceries.
- Zechariah 14:17And it shall be that whichever of the families of the earth do not come up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, on them there will be no rain.
- Acts 17:26And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings,
- Ezekiel 9:6Utterly slay old and young men, maidens and little children and women; but do not come near anyone on whom is the mark; and begin at My sanctuary.” So they began with the elders who were before the temple.
- Ezekiel 20:36Just as I pleaded My case with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so I will plead My case with you,” says the Lord God.
- Daniel 9:12And He has confirmed His words, which He spoke against us and against our judges who judged us, by bringing upon us a great disaster; for under the whole heaven such has never been done as what has been done to Jerusalem.
Commentaries on Amos 3:2
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 2You only have I known - I have taken no other people to be my own people. I have approved of you, loved you, fed, sustained, and defended you; but because you have forsaken me, have become idolatrous and polluted, therefore will I punish you. And the punishment shall be in proportion to the privileges you have enjoyed, and the grace you have abused.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 2You only have I known of all the families of the earth; therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities - Such is the one law of God. The nearer anyone is brought unto God, the worse is his fall, and, his trial over, the more heavily is he punished. Nearness to God is a priceless, but an awesome gift. The most intense blessing becomes, by the abuse of free will, the most dreadful woe. For the nearer God places anyone to His own light, the more…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 2The word translated as have known suggests a deep, personal understanding that goes beyond just knowing facts. It can mean formal recognition (Exodus 1:8; 5:2), personal experience (Genesis 2:17), or sexual relations (Genesis 4:1). This word often describes God's relationship with Israel (Hosea 5:3) and the ideal relationship Israel should have with God (Hosea 2:20). Because of Israel's special status, God would hold them accountable for all their sins…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 22. You only have I known--that is, acknowledged as My people, and treated with peculiar favor (Ex 19:5; De 4:20). Compare the use of "know," Psa 1:6; 144:3; Joh 10:14; 2Ti 2:19. therefore I will punish--the greater the privileges, the heavier the punishment for the abuse of them; for to the other offenses there is added, in this case, ingratitude. When God's people do not glorify Him, He glorifies Himself by punishing them.Read the comment
Topics related to Amos 3:2
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Amos 3
- 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
New King James Version — © 1982 Thomas Nelson, Inc
Commentaries