*H The words of Amos, who was among the herdsmen of Thecua: which he saw concerning Israel in the days of Ozias king of Juda, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joas king of Israel two years before the earthquake.
Ver. 1. Herdsmen. S. Jerom's MSS. after Aquila, have "pastorals," (H.) pastoralibus. C. — Theodotion retains Nokedim. Sept. read Accarim, (H.) substituting r for d, (S. Jer.) and perhaps á for n. H. — They have also "Jerusalem," for Israel, though the prophecy regard the latter. The country south of Thecua has no towns, and is solely for pasture. S. Jer. — Amos might have many flocks, like Mesa and king Dejotarus. 4 K. iii. 4. C. — David was taken from the flocks to be king, and Amos to be a prophet. W. — King. These two lived long in prosperity. C. — Earthquake. Many understand this of a great earthquake, which, they say, was felt at the time that king Ozias attempted to offer incense in the temple. But the best chronologists prove that the earthquake here spoken of must have been before that time: because Jeroboam the second, under whom Amos prophesied, was dead long before that attempt of Ozias. Ch. — This is asserted by Usher. Yet his arguments are not conclusive. If the attempt and earthquake happened in the 23d year of Ozias, Amos might commence A. 3215, six years before the death of Jeroboam. 4 K. xv. 5. Zac. xi. 15. C. — Josephus (ix. 1.) fixes upon the former period. Jeroboam, however, died in the 38th of Ozias, who was deposed 14 years later. W.
* Footnote ** Zacharias 14 : 5
And you shall flee to the valley of those mountains, for the valley of the mountains shall be joined even to the next, and you shall flee as you fled from the face of the earthquake in the days of Ozias king of Juda: and the Lord my God shall come, and all the saints with him.*H And he said: The Lord will roar from Sion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem: and the beautiful places of the shepherds have mourned, and the top of Carmel is withered.
Ver. 2. Carmel. "God's vineyard," may denote any fruitful mountain. Amos refers to pastoral affairs. C.
* Footnote * Jeremias 25 : 30
And thou shalt prophesy unto them all these words, and thou shalt say to them: I The Lord shall roar from on high, and shall utter his voice from his holy habitation: roaring he shall roar upon the place of his beauty: the shout as it were of them that tread grapes shall be given out against all the inhabitants of the earth.* Footnote * Joel 3 : 16
And the Lord shall roar out of Sion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem: and the heavens and the earth shall be moved, and the Lord shall be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel.*H Thus saith the Lord: For three crimes of Damascus, and for four I will not convert it: because they have thrashed Galaad with iron wains.
Ver. 3. Three...four. That is, for their many unrepented of crimes. Ch. — Three is the first number of which we can say "many or all." Four denotes excess. Thus God forgives many sins, yet punishes when they become excessive. W. — Thus profane authors say, (C.)
*H And I will break the bar of Damascus: and I will cut off the inhabitants from the plain of the idol, and him that holdeth the sceptre from the house of pleasure: and the people of Syria shall be carried away to Cyrene, saith the Lord.
Ver. 5. Plain. The city "Bikhath-Aven," or the latter word, probably denotes Baal, as the Syrians style Baal-Bek, the city which the Greeks call Heliopolis. The valley between the two mountains extending northward, is still called Bucca. — Pleasure. Heb. "Beth Heden." We find Eden in a delightful part of Libanus. — Cyrene, not in Africa, but on the river Cyrus, in Albania. 4 K. xv. 29.
*H Thus saith the Lord: For three crimes of Gaza, and for four I will not convert it: because they have carried away a perfect captivity to shut them up in Edom.
Ver. 6. Edom. the Philistines and Tyrians (v. 9.) exercised this inhumanity on the Idomeans, probably before they had thrown off the yoke of Juda, under Joram, (4 K. viii. 21.) as the Lord seems concerned for them; (C.) or they sold the captive Israelites to Edom, to increase their misery. S. Jer. — Sept. "the captivity of Solomon," or the subjects of that monarch. But the Heb. word means also perfect, (H.) or absolute, (Jer. xiii. 19. C.) or "pacific," seizing the citizens in times of peace. H.
*H And I will send a fire on the wall of Gaza, and it shall devour the houses thereof.
Ver. 7. Gaza. Ozias, Ezechias, and Psammetichus, ravaged the country. 2 Par. xxvi. 6. and 4 K. xviii. 8. Is. xiv. 29. The Philistines recovered strength; but Nabuchodonosor, Alexander, and the Machabees conquered them again.
*H Thus saith the Lord: For three crimes of Tyre, and for four I will not convert it: because they have shut up an entire captivity in Edom, and have not remembered the covenant of brethren.
Ver. 9. Brethren; for Edom and the Jews sprung from the same stock. Some think that he alludes to the alliance between the king of Tyre and David. But that had long ceased, and was not agreeable to the law; (Ex. xxii. 32. and 3 K. ix. 13. C.) at least when it was attended with much danger. H.
*H And I will send a fire upon the wall of Tyre, and it shall devour the houses thereof.
Ver. 10. Thereof. Salmanasar besieged it five years (Menander) and Nabuchodonosor thirteen, when he destroyed Tyre. Ezec. xxvi.
*H Thus saith the Lord: For three crimes of Edom, and for four I will not convert him: because he hath pursued his brother with the sword, and hath cast off all pity, and hath carried on his fury, and hath kept his wrath to the end.
Ver. 11. Sword. Edom was subdued by David, and remained tributary till Joram. It attempted to recover its liberty under Josaphat, though the Heb. text have improperly Aram. 2 Par. xx. 2, 23. The two nations were often at variance. C. — Cast off. Sept. "violated the womb, or the mother on the earth."
*H I will send a fire into Theman: and it shall devour the houses of Bosra.
Ver. 12. Houses, &c. Sept. "its foundations," (H.) or the fortified country. S. Jer. — Bosor lay towards Philadelphia, in the ancient territory of Edom. Their strong places were seized by Ozias, by the Chaldeans, and by the Machabees.
*H Thus saith the Lord: For three crimes of the children of Ammon, and for four I will not convert him: because he hath ripped up the women with child of Galaad to enlarge his border.
Ver. 13. Border. They pretended that Galaad belonged to them. Judg. xi. 12. David subdued Ammon; but after the division of the kingdom, they recovered their independence, and took occasion to commit these cruelties, while Israel had to contend with Syria. Jeremias (xlix. 1.) speaks of a later period.
*H And I will kindle a fire in the wall of Rabba: and it shall devour the houses thereof with shouting in the day of battle, and with a whirlwind in the day of trouble.
Ver. 14. Rabba, the capital, called also Philadelphia. Ozias and Joatham attacked the people with advantage. C.
*H And Melchom shall go into captivity, both he, and his princes together, saith the Lord.
Ver. 15. Melchom, the god or idol of the Ammonites, otherwise called Moloch, and Melech; which, in Heb. signifies a king, or Melchom their king. Ch. — He assumed the title of "their king." Judg. xi. 14. Jer. xlix. 3. H. — Blind people, who could not see the vanity of such impotent gods! C. — Both he. Sept. "and their priests." H.