2:8 They stretch out on clothing seized as collateral;
they do so right 1 beside every altar!
They drink wine bought with the fines they have levied;
they do so right in the temple 2 of their God! 3
5:6 Seek the Lord so you can live!
Otherwise he will break out 4 like fire against Joseph’s 5 family; 6
the fire 7 will consume
and no one will be able to quench it and save Bethel. 8
9:4 Even when their enemies drive them into captivity, 9
from there 10 I will command the sword to kill them.
I will not let them out of my sight;
they will experience disaster, not prosperity.” 11
9:6 He builds the upper rooms of his palace 12 in heaven
and sets its foundation supports 13 on the earth. 14
He summons the water of the sea
and pours it out on the earth’s surface.
The Lord is his name.
1 tn The words “They do so right” are supplied twice in the translation of this verse for clarification.
2 tn Heb “house.”
3 tn Or “gods.” The Hebrew term אֱלֹהֵיהֶם (’elohehem) may be translated “their gods” (referring to pagan gods), “their god” (referring to a pagan god, cf. NAB, NIV, NLT), or “their God” (referring to the God of Israel, cf. NASB, NRSV).
4 tn Heb “rush.” The verb depicts swift movement.
5 sn Here Joseph (= Ephraim and Manasseh), as the most prominent of the Israelite tribes, represents the entire northern kingdom.
6 tn Heb “house.”
7 tn Heb “it”; the referent (the fire mentioned in the previous line) has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
8 tn Heb “to/for Bethel.” The translation assumes that the preposition indicates advantage, “on behalf of.” Another option is to take the preposition as vocative, “O Bethel.”
9 tn Heb “Even if they go into captivity before their enemies.”
10 tn Or perhaps simply, “there,” if the מ (mem) prefixed to the adverb is dittographic (note the preceding word ends in mem).
11 tn Heb “I will set my eye on them for disaster, not good.”
12 tc The MT reads “his steps.” If this is correct, then the reference may be to the steps leading up to the heavenly temple or the throne of God (cf. 1 Kgs 10:19-20). The prefixed מ (mem) may be dittographic (note the preceding word ends in mem). The translation assumes an emendation to עֲלִיָּתוֹ (’aliyyato, “his upper rooms”).
13 tn Traditionally, “vault” (so ASV, NAB, NRSV). The precise meaning of this word in this context is unclear. Elsewhere it refers to objects grouped or held together. F. I. Andersen and D. N. Freedman (Amos [AB], 845-46) suggest the foundational structure of a building is in view.
14 sn Verse 6a pictures the entire universe as a divine palace founded on the earth and extending into the heavens.