Bible in Basic English
The Lord, changing his purpose about this, said, It will not be.
This is what the Lord let me see: and I saw that the Lord God sent for a great fire to be the instrument of his punishment; and, after burning up the great deep, it was about to put an end to the Lord's heritage.
Then said I, O Lord God, let there be an end: how will Jacob be able to keep his place? for he is small.
The Lord, changing his purpose about this, said, And this will not be.
This is what he let me see: and I saw the Lord stationed by a wall made straight by a weighted line, and he had a weighted line in his hand.
And the Lord said to me, Amos, what do you see? And I said, A weighted line. Then the Lord said, See, I will let down a weighted line among my people Israel; never again will my eyes be shut to their sin:
And the high places of Isaac will be unpeopled, and the holy places of Israel will be made waste; and I will come up against the family of Jeroboam with the sword.
Then Amaziah, the priest of Beth-el, sent to Jeroboam, king of Israel, saying, Amos has made designs against you among the people of Israel: the land is troubled by his words.
For Amos has said, Jeroboam will be put to the sword, and Israel will certainly be taken away as a prisoner out of his land.
And Amaziah said to Amos, O seer, go in flight into the land of Judah, and there get your living by working as a prophet:
But be a prophet no longer at Beth-el: for it is the holy place of the king, and the king's house.
Then Amos in answer said to Amaziah, I am no prophet, or one of the sons of the prophets; I am a herdman and one who takes care of sycamore-trees:
And the Lord took me from the flock, and the Lord said to me, Go, be a prophet to my people Israel.
Now then, give ear to the word of the Lord: You say, Be no prophet to Israel, and say not a word against the people of Isaac.
So this is what the Lord has said: Your wife will be a loose woman in the town, and your sons and your daughters will be put to the sword, and your land will be cut up into parts by a line; and you yourself will come to your end in an unclean land, and Israel will certainly be taken away a prisoner out of his land.
— Amos 7:3-1964, Bible in Basic English
“The Lord repented for this: It shall not be, saith the Lord. Thus hath the Lord God shewed unto me: and, behold, the Lord God called to contend by fire, and it devoured the great deep, and did eat up a part. Then said I, O Lord God, cease, I beseech thee: by whom shall Jacob arise? for he is small. The Lord repented for this: This also shall not be, saith the Lord God. Thus he shewed me: and, behold, the Lord stood upon a wall made by a plumbline, with a plumbline in his hand. And the Lord said unto me, Amos, what seest thou? And I said, A plumbline. Then said the Lord, Behold, I will set a plumbline in the midst of my people Israel: I will not again pass by them any more: And the high places of Isaac shall be desolate, and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste; and I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword. Then Amaziah the priest of Beth–el sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, Amos hath conspired against thee in the midst of the house of Israel: the land is not able to bear all his words. For thus Amos saith, Jeroboam shall die by the sword, and Israel shall surely be led away captive out of their own land. Also Amaziah said unto Amos, O thou seer, go, flee thee away into the land of Judah, and there eat bread, and prophesy there: But prophesy not again any more at Beth–el: for it is the king’s chapel, and it is the king’s court. Then answered Amos, and said to Amaziah, I was no prophet, neither was I a prophet’s son; but I was an herdman, and a gatherer of sycomore fruit: And the Lord took me as I followed the flock, and the Lord said unto me, Go, prophesy unto my people Israel. Now therefore hear thou the word of the Lord: Thou sayest, Prophesy not against Israel, and drop not thy word against the house of Isaac. Therefore thus saith the Lord; Thy wife shall be an harlot in the city, and thy sons and thy daughters shall fall by the sword, and thy land shall be divided by line; and thou shalt die in a polluted land: and Israel shall surely go into captivity forth of his land. ”
“Jehovah repented concerning this: It shall not be, saith Jehovah. Thus the Lord Jehovah showed me: and, behold, the Lord Jehovah called to contend by fire; and it devoured the great deep, and would have eaten up the land. Then said I, O Lord Jehovah, cease, I beseech thee: how shall Jacob stand? for he is small. Jehovah repented concerning this: This also shall not be, saith the Lord Jehovah. Thus he showed me: and, behold, the Lord stood beside a wall made by a plumb-line, with a plumb-line in his hand. And Jehovah said unto me, Amos, what seest thou? And I said, A plumb-line. Then said the Lord, Behold, I will set a plumb-line in the midst of my people Israel; I will not again pass by them any more; and the high places of Isaac shall be desolate, and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste; and I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword. Then Amaziah the priest of Beth-el sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, Amos hath conspired against thee in the midst of the house of Israel: the land is not able to bear all his words. For thus Amos saith, Jeroboam shall die by the sword, and Israel shall surely be led away captive out of his land. Also Amaziah said unto Amos, O thou seer, go, flee thou away into the land of Judah, and there eat bread, and prophesy there: but prophesy not again any more at Beth-el; for it is the king’s sanctuary, and it is a royal house. Then answered Amos, and said to Amaziah, I was no prophet, neither was I a prophet’s son; but I was a herdsman, and a dresser of sycomore-trees: and Jehovah took me from following the flock, and Jehovah said unto me, Go, prophesy unto my people Israel. Now therefore hear thou the word of Jehovah: Thou sayest, Prophesy not against Israel, and drop not thy word against the house of Isaac; therefore thus saith Jehovah: Thy wife shall be a harlot in the city, and thy sons and thy daughters shall fall by the sword, and thy land shall be divided by line; and thou thyself shalt die in a land that is unclean, and Israel shall surely be led away captive out of his land. ”
“The LORD decided not to do this.“It will not happen,” the LORD said. The Sovereign LORD showed me this: I saw the Sovereign LORD summoning a shower of fire. It consumed the great deep and devoured the fields. I said,“Sovereign LORD, stop! How can Jacob survive? He is too weak!” The LORD decided not to do this. The Sovereign LORD said,“This will not happen either.” He showed me this: I saw the Lord standing by a tin wall holding tin in his hand. The LORD said to me,“What do you see, Amos?” I said,“Tin.” The Lord then said,“Look, I am about to place tin among my people Israel. I will no longer overlook their sin. Isaac’s centers of worship will become desolate; Israel’s holy places will be in ruins. I will attack Jeroboam’s dynasty with the sword.” Amos Confronts a Priest Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent this message to King Jeroboam of Israel:“Amos is conspiring against you in the very heart of the kingdom of Israel! The land cannot endure all his prophecies. As a matter of fact, Amos is saying this:‘Jeroboam will die by the sword and Israel will certainly be carried into exile away from its land.’” Amaziah then said to Amos,“Leave, you visionary! Run away to the land of Judah! Earn your living and prophesy there! Don’t prophesy at Bethel any longer, for a royal temple and palace are here!” Amos replied to Amaziah,“I was not a prophet by profession. No, I was a herdsman who also took care of sycamore fig trees. Then the LORD took me from tending flocks and gave me this commission,‘Go! Prophesy to my people Israel!’ So now listen to the LORD’s message! You say,‘Don’t prophesy against Israel! Don’t preach against the family of Isaac!’ “Therefore this is what the LORD says:‘Your wife will become a prostitute in the streets and your sons and daughters will die violently. Your land will be given to others and you will die in a foreign land. Israel will certainly be carried into exile away from its land.’””
This is what the Lord God let me see: and I saw that, when the growth of the late grass was starting, he made locusts; it was the late growth after the king's cutting was done.
And it came about that after they had taken all the grass of the land, I said, O Lord God, have mercy: how will Jacob be able to keep his place? for he is small.
The Lord, changing his purpose about this, said, It will not be.
This is what the Lord let me see: and I saw that the Lord God sent for a great fire to be the instrument of his punishment; and, after burning up the great deep, it was about to put an end to the Lord's heritage.
Then said I, O Lord God, let there be an end: how will Jacob be able to keep his place? for he is small.
The Lord, changing his purpose about this, said, And this will not be.
This is what he let me see: and I saw the Lord stationed by a wall made straight by a weighted line, and he had a weighted line in his hand.
And the Lord said to me, Amos, what do you see? And I said, A weighted line. Then the Lord said, See, I will let down a weighted line among my people Israel; never again will my eyes be shut to their sin:
And the high places of Isaac will be unpeopled, and the holy places of Israel will be made waste; and I will come up against the family of Jeroboam with the sword.
Then Amaziah, the priest of Beth-el, sent to Jeroboam, king of Israel, saying, Amos has made designs against you among the people of Israel: the land is troubled by his words.
For Amos has said, Jeroboam will be put to the sword, and Israel will certainly be taken away as a prisoner out of his land.
And Amaziah said to Amos, O seer, go in flight into the land of Judah, and there get your living by working as a prophet:
But be a prophet no longer at Beth-el: for it is the holy place of the king, and the king's house.
Then Amos in answer said to Amaziah, I am no prophet, or one of the sons of the prophets; I am a herdman and one who takes care of sycamore-trees:
And the Lord took me from the flock, and the Lord said to me, Go, be a prophet to my people Israel.
Now then, give ear to the word of the Lord: You say, Be no prophet to Israel, and say not a word against the people of Isaac.
So this is what the Lord has said: Your wife will be a loose woman in the town, and your sons and your daughters will be put to the sword, and your land will be cut up into parts by a line; and you yourself will come to your end in an unclean land, and Israel will certainly be taken away a prisoner out of his land.