Amos 8 8

Amos 8:8 kjv

Shall not the land tremble for this, and every one mourn that dwelleth therein? and it shall rise up wholly as a flood; and it shall be cast out and drowned, as by the flood of Egypt.

Amos 8:8 nkjv

Shall the land not tremble for this, And everyone mourn who dwells in it? All of it shall swell like the River, Heave and subside Like the River of Egypt.

Amos 8:8 niv

"Will not the land tremble for this, and all who live in it mourn? The whole land will rise like the Nile; it will be stirred up and then sink like the river of Egypt.

Amos 8:8 esv

Shall not the land tremble on this account, and everyone mourn who dwells in it, and all of it rise like the Nile, and be tossed about and sink again, like the Nile of Egypt?"

Amos 8:8 nlt

The earth will tremble for your deeds,
and everyone will mourn.
The ground will rise like the Nile River at floodtime;
it will heave up, then sink again.

Amos 8 verses

Amos 8 8 meaning

Amos 8:8 proclaims a profound and pervasive divine judgment upon the land and its inhabitants due to their deep-seated sins. It vividly describes a cosmic disruption where the earth itself trembles and everyone within it mourns. The judgment is likened to an overwhelming flood, specifically comparing it to the forceful and engulfing rise and fall of the Nile River. This imagery signifies a comprehensive, irresistible, and inescapable destruction that will engulf the entire nation, leaving no aspect untouched. It portrays God's justice as a force of nature, reacting to the severe moral corruption and social injustice prevalent among His people.

Amos 8 8 Context

Amos 8:8 falls within the prophet Amos's prophecies against the northern kingdom of Israel (Samaria) during the reign of Jeroboam II (mid-8th century BCE), a period marked by economic prosperity but extreme social injustice, religious hypocrisy, and moral decay. The verse specifically follows Amos's third vision, that of a basket of summer fruit (qayiṣ), which God declares signifies the "end" (qēṣ) of Israel. This is not a casual prediction, but a divinely ordained, imminent judgment.

The chapter describes various impending judgments: a famine of hearing the words of the Lord, widespread wailing instead of celebration, and total darkness. Verse 8 graphically illustrates the physical manifestation of this judgment on the very land and its people. The lament and the shaking earth are direct consequences of the exploitative practices detailed earlier in the chapter (e.g., shorting measures, corrupting scales, selling the needy for silver). The historical context is a society ripe for collapse, under the distant but looming threat of the Assyrian empire, which God would use as an instrument of His wrath. The imagery is drawn from the immediate experience of the Israelites – a fertile but seismically active land, and the well-known powerful floods of Egypt.

Amos 8 8 Word analysis

• "Shall not the land" (הַעַ֨ל־זֹ֜את לֹֽא־תֶחֱרַ֣ד הָאָ֗רֶץ – Haʿal-zoʾt loʾ-techered hāʾāreṣ)
  • "Land" (hāʾāreṣ, הָאָ֗רֶץ): Refers to the physical territory of Israel, the ground itself, not just its inhabitants. In the biblical worldview, the land is intrinsically linked to the people and can react to their covenant faithfulness or unfaithfulness. It signifies a comprehensive judgment affecting the entire nation's domain. The anthropomorphism of the land "trembling" highlights the cosmic scope of God's displeasure.
• "tremble for this" (לֹֽא־תֶחֱרַ֣ד הָאָ֗רֶץ – loʾ-techered hāʾāreṣ)
  • "Tremble" (techered, תֶחֱרַ֣ד): From the root חרד (ch-r-d), meaning "to fear," "quake," "shudder," "tremble." It implies a deep, involuntary shaking or disturbance. This is not just metaphorical fear but suggests physical seismic activity, such as an earthquake, which Amos references (Amos 1:1) as a known destructive force. It communicates divine power disrupting the natural order.
  • "for this" (ʿal-zoʾt, עַל־זֹאת): Points to the previously mentioned injustices and abominations of the people in the preceding verses of Amos 8 – the oppression of the poor, cheating, and spiritual depravity. God’s judgment is a direct consequence of their sin.
• "and every one mourn that dwelleth therein?" (וְהִתְאַבֵּ֖ל כׇּל־יוֹשֵׁ֣ב בָּ֑הּ – vəhittəʾabbēl kol-yôšēḇ bāh)
  • "Mourn" (hittəʾabbēl, וְהִתְאַבֵּ֖ל): From אבל (ʾa-b-l), meaning "to lament," "to express sorrow or grief." This refers to profound human sorrow and public mourning, characteristic of dire national catastrophe (e.g., famine, war, death). It signifies universal distress.
  • "every one that dwelleth therein" (kol-yôšēḇ bāh, כׇּל־יוֹשֵׁ֣ב בָּ֑הּ): Emphasizes the totality and universality of the impact. No inhabitant will be exempt from the pain and grief.
• "and it shall rise up wholly as a flood; and it shall be cast out and drowned, as by the flood of Egypt."
  • "it shall rise up wholly as a flood" (וְעָֽלְתָ֤ה כַיְאֹר֙ כֻּלָּהּ֙ – vəʿāləṯâ kaîʾôr kullāh)
    • "Rise up" (ʿāləṯâ, וְעָֽלְתָ֤ה): From עלה (ʿa-l-h), "to ascend," "to go up." Refers to the overwhelming surge of water.
    • "wholly" (kullāh, כֻּלָּהּ֙): Means "all of it," "entirely." This reinforces the comprehensive nature of the destruction. The entire land, or the events unfolding, will be entirely engulfed.
    • "as a flood" (kaîʾôr, כַיְאֹר֙): This is a critical simile. "יאור" (yeʾor) specifically refers to the Nile River in Egypt. The annual Nile flood was known for its power – essential for life and fertility but devastating when excessive and uncontrolled. Here, it is an image of an overwhelming, irresistible force of judgment.
  • "it shall be cast out and drowned" (וְנִגְרְשָׁ֖ה וְנִגְרְשָׁה֙ – vəniḡrəšâ v'niḡrəšâ)
    • "Cast out and drowned" (vəniḡrəšâ v'niḡrəšâ): From גרש (g-r-š), meaning "to drive out," "to expel," "to overflow," or "to subside." The repetition (a stylistic feature of prophetic language, sometimes interpreted as a dual process or emphasis) indicates an active expulsion and subsequent complete submersion/disappearance, like water receding and leaving devastation. Some translations capture this as the land "tossing about and sinking," or "swelling up and subsiding." The imagery is of an initial overwhelming rise, followed by a violent receding or being swept away.
  • "as by the flood of Egypt" (כִּיאֹ֣ר מִצְרָֽיִם – kiʾôr Miṣrayim)
    • "flood of Egypt" (kîʾôr Miṣrayim): This explicitly refers back to the Nile. The Nile's predictable but powerful cycle of rising and falling is leveraged. The judgment is not merely a single deluge but an event with stages, much like the Nile’s inundation that overwhelms the banks and then recedes, leaving a changed landscape. This strong, vivid image, familiar to all in the Ancient Near East, conveys inevitability and devastating power.

  Commentary

  Amos 8:8 graphically portrays the comprehensive and inescapable nature of God's judgment against Israel's pervasive sin. It begins with rhetorical questions ("Shall not the land tremble... and everyone mourn...?") which powerfully underscore the certainty of the impending doom. The land itself, in an anthropomorphic sense, will physically convulse (likely through earthquakes, a known phenomenon and metaphor for divine wrath), and its inhabitants will suffer collective and profound grief. The double simile of the Nile River is central to the verse's intensity. First, the judgment is described as rising up entirely like an overwhelming flood, engulfing everything. Then, it details the dynamic: it will be swept away or submerged and recede, like the Nile’s powerful but ultimately subsiding waters, leaving behind desolation. This implies not just a momentary disaster but a complete, transformative disruption, echoing the primeval flood (Gen 6-9) as an archetype of divine cleansing and judgment. The reference to Egypt also carries an ironic weight: a place Israel sought refuge in (Isa 30:2) and from which God delivered them, now provides the very metaphor for their destruction, reversing its life-giving reputation to one of overwhelming death.

  Bonus section

  The rhetorical question structure at the beginning of Amos 8:8 ("Shall not...?") is a common prophetic device designed to evoke immediate agreement and emphasize the certainty and righteousness of the impending judgment. It implies that the sins of the people are so egregious that the consequence is undeniable and utterly justified. This intensifies the prophetic message, moving it beyond a mere prediction to an unchallengeable divine decree. The anthropomorphism of the "land trembling" is a potent theological statement; it demonstrates that human sin affects not just humanity but also the created order. The land is presented as an almost conscious participant in lament, groaning under the weight of injustice and idolatry, aligning with similar themes of creation groaning (Rom 8:22) under the effects of sin. The ironic use of the Nile imagery transforms a symbol of life-sustaining provision and power (critical to Egypt's prosperity and survival) into a metaphor for destructive judgment for Israel, twisting a positive symbol into one of dire foreboding, underscoring the completeness of the reversal in their fortunes.

Amos 8 8 Bonus section

Amos 8 8 Commentary