New King James Version
Amos 9:1
1I saw the Lord standing by the altar, and He said: “Strike the doorposts, that the thresholds may shake, And break them on the heads of them all. I will slay the last of them with the sword. He who flees from them shall not get away, And he who escapes from them shall not be delivered.
Amos 9:1 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)I saw the Lord standing upon the altar: and he said, Smite the lintel of the door, that the posts may shake: and cut them in the head, all of them; and I will slay the last of them with the sword: he that fleeth of them shall not flee away, and he that escapeth of them shall not be delivered.
- New International Version (NIV)I saw the Lord standing by the altar, and he said: “Strike the tops of the pillars so that the thresholds shake. Bring them down on the heads of all the people; those who are left I will kill with the sword. Not one will get away, none will escape.
- English Standard Version (ESV)I saw the Lord standing beside the altar, and he said: "Strike the capitals until the thresholds shake, and shatter them on the heads of all the people; and those who are left of them I will kill with the sword; not one of them shall flee away; not one of them shall escape.
- New Living Translation (NLT)Then I saw a vision of the Lord standing beside the altar. He said, “Strike the tops of the Temple columns, so that the foundation will shake. Bring down the roof on the heads of the people below. I will kill with the sword those who survive. No one will escape!
Context of Amos 9:1
I saw the Lord standing by the altar, and He said: “Strike the doorposts, that the thresholds may shake, And break them on the heads of them all. I will slay the last of them with the sword. He who flees from them shall not get away, And he who escapes from them shall not be delivered. 2“Though they dig into hell, From there My hand shall take them; Though they climb up to heaven, From there I will bring them down; 3And though they hide themselves on top of Carmel, From there I will search and take them; Though they hide from My sight at the bottom of the sea, From there I will command the serpent, and it shall bite them;
Read all of Amos 9Amos 9:1 word by word
רָאִ֨יתִי אֶת־אֲדֹנָ֜י נִצָּ֣ב עַֽל־הַמִּזְבֵּ֗חַ וַיֹּאמֶר֩ הַ֨ךְ הַכַּפְתּ֜וֹר וְיִרְעֲשׁ֣וּ הַסִּפִּ֗ים וּבְצַ֙עַם֙ בְּרֹ֣אשׁ כֻּלָּ֔ם וְאַחֲרִיתָ֖ם בַּחֶ֣רֶב אֶהֱרֹ֑ג לֹֽא־יָנ֤וּס לָהֶם֙ נָ֔ס וְלֹֽא־יִמָּלֵ֥ט לָהֶ֖ם פָּלִֽיט׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- I sawרָאָהrâ'âh · to see: seeH7200
- the Lordאֲדֹנָי'ădônây · LordH136
- standingנָצַבnâtsab · to standH5324
- upon the altarמִזְבֵּחַmizbêach · altarH4196
- and he saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- Smiteנָכָהnâkâh · to smiteH5221
- the lintel of the doorכַּפְתּוֹרkaphtôr kaphtôr · capitalH3730
- that the postsסַףsaph · thresholdH5592
- may shakeרָעַשׁrâ‛ash · to shakeH7493
- and cutבָּצַעbâtsa‛ · to cut offH1214
- them in the headרֹאשׁrô'sh · headH7218
- all of them; and I will slayהָרַגhârag · to killH2026
- the lastאַחֲרִית'achărîyth · endH319
- of them with the swordחֶ֫רֶבchereb · swordH2719
- he that fleethנוּסnûs · to fleeH5127
- and he that escapethפָּלִיטpâlîyţ pâlêyţ pâlêţ · survivorH6412
- of them shall not be deliveredמָלַטmâlaţ · to escapeH4422
Cross-references for Amos 9:1
- 2 Chronicles 18:18Then Micaiah said, “Therefore hear the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on His throne, and all the host of heaven standing on His right hand and His left.
- Isaiah 6:1In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple.
- Ezekiel 1:28Like the appearance of a rainbow in a cloud on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the brightness all around it. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. So when I saw it, I fell on my face, and I heard a voice of One speaking.
- John 1:18No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.
- Acts 26:13at midday, O king, along the road I saw a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, shining around me and those who journeyed with me.
- Revelation 1:17And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, “Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last.
- Amos 3:14“That in the day I punish Israel for their transgressions, I will also visit destruction on the altars of Bethel; And the horns of the altar shall be cut off And fall to the ground.
- Ezekiel 9:2And suddenly six men came from the direction of the upper gate, which faces north, each with his battle-ax in his hand. One man among them was clothed with linen and had a writer’s inkhorn at his side. They went in and stood beside the bronze altar.
- Ezekiel 10:4Then the glory of the Lord went up from the cherub, and paused over the threshold of the temple; and the house was filled with the cloud, and the court was full of the brightness of the Lord’s glory.
- Isaiah 6:3And one cried to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; The whole earth is full of His glory!”
- Zechariah 11:1Open your doors, O Lebanon, That fire may devour your cedars.
- Psalms 68:21But God will wound the head of His enemies, The hairy scalp of the one who still goes on in his trespasses.
- Habakkuk 3:13You went forth for the salvation of Your people, For salvation with Your Anointed. You struck the head from the house of the wicked, By laying bare from foundation to neck. Selah
- Amos 2:14Therefore flight shall perish from the swift, The strong shall not strengthen his power, Nor shall the mighty deliver himself;
- Isaiah 24:17Fear and the pit and the snare Are upon you, O inhabitant of the earth.
- Isaiah 30:16And you said, “No, for we will flee on horses”— Therefore you shall flee! And, “We will ride on swift horses”— Therefore those who pursue you shall be swift!
Commentaries on Amos 9:1
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 1I saw the Lord standing upon the altar - As this is a continuation of the preceding prophecy, the altar here may be one of those either at Dan or Beer-sheba. Smite the lintel - Either the piece of timber that binds the wall above the door, or the upper part of the door frame, in which the cheeks, or side posts, are inserted, and which corresponds to the threshold, or lower part of the door frame. And cut them in the head - Let all the lintels of all the…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1I saw the Lord - He saw God in vision; yet God no more, as before, asked him what he saw. God no longer shows him emblems of the destruction, but the destruction itself. Since Amos had just been speaking of the idolatry of Samaria, as the ground of its utter destruction, doubtless this vision of such utter destruction of the place of worship, with and upon the worshipers, relates to those same idolaters and idoltries. True, the condenmation of Israel…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 1The ruin of Israel. (1-10) The restoration of the Jews and the gospel blessing. (11-15) Verses 1-10 The prophet, in vision, saw the Lord standing upon the idolatrous altar at Bethel. Wherever sinners flee from God's justice, it will overtake them. Those whom God brings to heaven by his grace, shall never be cast down; but those who seek to climb thither by vain confidence in themselves, will be cast down and filled with shame. That which makes escape…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1I saw the Lord (see Amos 7:1): God stopped explaining how or why he would punish Israel; he was ready to act. beside the altar: Judgment must start at the center of worship (compare 1 Peter 4:17). This altar likely refers to the Bethel shrine, but it could also mean the temple in Jerusalem.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-15None can escape the coming judgment in any hiding-place: for God is omnipresent and irresistible (Am 9:1-6). As a kingdom, Israel shall perish as if it never was in covenant with Him: but as individuals the house of Jacob shall not utterly perish, nay, not one of the least of the righteous shall fall, but only all the sinners (Am 9:7-10). Restoration of the Jews finally to their own land after the re-establishment of the fallen tabernacle of David…Read the comment
Topics related to Amos 9:1
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Amos 9
- 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