Revised Literal Translation
Amos 5:8
8Seek him that maketh the seven stars and Orion, and turneth the shadow of death into the morning, and maketh the day dark with night: that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth: Yhwh is his name:
Amos 5:8 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Seek him that maketh the seven stars and Orion, and turneth the shadow of death into the morning, and maketh the day dark with night: that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth: The Lord is his name:
- New International Version (NIV)He who made the Pleiades and Orion, who turns midnight into dawn and darkens day into night, who calls for the waters of the sea and pours them out over the face of the land— the Lord is his name.
- English Standard Version (ESV)He who made the Pleiades and Orion, and turns deep darkness into the morning and darkens the day into night, who calls for the waters of the sea and pours them out on the surface of the earth, the Lord is his name;
- New King James Version (NKJV)He made the Pleiades and Orion; He turns the shadow of death into morning And makes the day dark as night; He calls for the waters of the sea And pours them out on the face of the earth; The Lord is His name.
Context of Amos 5:8
6Seek Yhwh, and ye shall live; lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and devour it, and there be none to quench it in Beth–el. 7Ye who turn judgment to wormwood, and leave off righteousness in the earth, Seek him that maketh the seven stars and Orion, and turneth the shadow of death into the morning, and maketh the day dark with night: that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth: Yhwh is his name: 9That strengtheneth the spoiled against the strong, so that the spoiled shall come against the fortress. 10They hate him that rebuketh in the gate, and they abhor him that speaketh uprightly.
Read all of Amos 5Amos 5:8 word by word
עֹשֵׂ֨ה כִימָ֜ה וּכְסִ֗יל וְהֹפֵ֤ךְ לַבֹּ֙קֶר֙ צַלְמָ֔וֶת וְי֖וֹם לַ֣יְלָה הֶחְשִׁ֑יךְ הַקּוֹרֵ֣א לְמֵֽי־הַיָּ֗ם וַֽיִּשְׁפְּכֵ֛ם עַל־פְּנֵ֥י הָאָ֖רֶץ יְהוָ֥ה שְׁמֽוֹ׃ סRead the interlinear
- that makethעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to makeH6213
- the seven starsכִּימָהkîymâh · PleiadesH3598
- and Orionכְּסִילkesîyl · OrionH3685
- and turnethהָפַךְhâphak · to overturnH2015
- the shadow of deathצַלְמָ֫וֶתtsalmâveth · shadowH6757
- into the morningבֹּ֫קֶרbôqer · morningH1242
- and maketh the dayיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
- darkחָשַׁךְchâshak · to darkenH2821
- with nightלַ֫יְלָהlayil lêyl layelâh · nightH3915
- that callethקָרָאqârâ' · to call: call toH7121
- for the watersמַיmayim · waterH4325
- of the seaיָםyâm · seaH3220
- and poureth them outשָׁפַךְshâphak · to pour: pourH8210
- upon the faceפָּנֶהpânîym · face: surfaceH6440
- of the earthאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
- Yhwhיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- his nameשֵׁםshêm · nameH8034
Cross-references for Amos 5:8
- Job 9:9Which maketh Arcturus, Orion, and Pleiades, and the chambers of the south.
- Job 38:31Canst thou bind the sweet influences of Pleiades, or loose the bands of Orion?
- Job 12:22He discovereth deep things out of darkness, and bringeth out to light the shadow of death.
- Job 38:12Hast thou commanded the morning since thy days; and caused the dayspring to know his place;
- Psalms 107:10Such as sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, being bound in affliction and iron;
- Matthew 4:16The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up.
- Luke 1:79To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.
- Amos 4:13For, lo, he that formeth the mountains, and createth the wind, and declareth unto man what is his thought, that maketh the morning darkness, and treadeth upon the high places of the earth, Yhwh, The God of Armies, is his name.
- Amos 8:9And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord Yhwh, that I will cause the sun to go down at noon, and I will darken the earth in the clear day:
- Exodus 10:21And Yhwh said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which may be felt.
- Exodus 14:24And it came to pass, that in the morning watch Yhwh looked unto the army of the Egyptians through the pillar of fire and of the cloud, and troubled the army of the Egyptians,
- Psalms 104:20Thou makest darkness, and it is night: wherein all the beasts of the forest do creep forth.
- Psalms 105:28He sent darkness, and made it dark; and they rebelled not against his word.
- Isaiah 59:10We grope for the wall like the blind, and we grope as if we had no eyes: we stumble at noonday as in the night; we are in desolate places as dead men.
- Amos 9:6It is he that buildeth his chambers in the heaven, and hath founded his vault in the earth; he that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth: Yhwh is his name.
- Genesis 7:11In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.
Commentaries on Amos 5:8
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 8That maketh the seven stars and Orion - Or, Hyades and Arcturus, Kimah and Kesil. See my notes on Job 9:9; Job 38:32, where the subject of this verse is largely considered. Turneth the shadow of death into the morning - Who makes day and night, light and darkness. Calleth for the waters of the sea - Raising them up by evaporation, and collecting them into clouds. And poureth them out - Causing them to drop down in showers upon the face of the earth. Who…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 8Seek Him that maketh the seven stars - Misbelief effaces the thought of God as He Is. It retains the name God, but means something quite different from the One True God. So people spoke of “the Deity,” as a sort of First Cause of all things, and did not perceive that they only meant to own that this fair harmony of things created was not (at least as it now exists,) self-existent, and that they had lost sight of the Personal God who had made known to them…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 7-17Verses 7-17 The same almighty power can, for repenting sinners, easily turn affliction and sorrow into prosperity and joy, and as easily turn the prosperity of daring sinners into utter darkness. Evil times will not bear plain dealing; that is, evil men will not. And these men were evil men indeed, when wise and good men thought it in vain even to speak to them. Those who will seek and love that which is good, may help to save the land from ruin. It…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 8-9Amos quotes another hymn fragment (see Amos 4:13; 9:5–6). The prophet highlights the difference between the cosmic God and local gods. Stars, celestial bodies, and constellations like Pleiades and Orion were seen as gods in ancient times. Amos says this is not true; the Lord created them and placed them in the sky. waters: People in ancient times observed a process they did not understand, such as evaporation and condensation (when water turns into vapor…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 88. the seven stars--literally, the heap or cluster of seven larger stars and others smaller (Job 9:9; 38:31). The former whole passage seems to have been in Amos' mind. He names the stars well known to shepherds (to which class Amos belonged), Orion as the precursor of the tempests which are here threatened, and the Pleiades as ushering in spring. shadow of death--Hebraism for the densest darkness. calleth for the waters of the sea--both to send deluges…Read the comment
Topics related to Amos 5:8
In the dictionaries
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
Revised Literal Translation — © 2018 Michael W. Jones, Sr. — GPL
Commentaries