Amos 1 · Verse 5

Amos 1:5

I will break also the bar of Damascus, and cut off the inhabitant from the plain of Aven, and him that holdeth the sceptre from the house of Eden: and the people of Syria shall go into captivity unto Kir, saith the Lord.
Amos 1:5, King James Version

Amos 1:5 in other translations

BSBI will break down the gates of Damascus; I will cut off the ruler of the Valley of Aven and the one who wields the scepter in Beth-eden. The people of Aram will be exiled to Kir,” says the LORD.
WEBI will break the bar of Damascus, and cut off the inhabitant from the valley of Aven, and him who holds the scepter from the house of Eden; and the people of Syria shall go into captivity to Kir,” says the LORD.
ASVAnd I will break the bar of Damascus, and cut off the inhabitant from the valley of Aven, and him that holdeth the sceptre from the house of Eden; and the people of Syria shall go into captivity unto Kir, saith Jehovah.
YLTAnd I have broken the bar of Damascus, And cut off the inhabitant from Bikat-Aven, And a holder of a sceptre from Beth-Eden, And removed have been the people of Aram to Kir, said Jehovah.
DARBYAnd I will break the bar of Damascus, and cut off the inhabitant from the valley of Aven, and him that holdeth the sceptre from Beth-Eden; and the people of Syria shall go into captivity unto Kir, saith Jehovah.
BBEAnd I will have the locks of the door of Damascus broken, and him who is seated in power cut off from the valley of Aven, and him in whose hand is the rod from the house of Eden; and the people of Aram will go away as prisoners into Kir, says the Lord.
WebsterI will break also the bar of Damascus, and cut off the inhabitant from the plain of Aven, and him that holdeth the scepter from the house of Eden: and the people of Syria shall go into captivity to Kir, saith the LORD.

What does Amos 1:5 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
5. bar of Damascus--that is, the bar of its gates (compare Jr 51:30). the inhabitant--singular for plural, "inhabitants." Henderson, because of the parallel, "him that holdeth the scepter," translates, "the ruler." But the parallelism is that of one clause complementing the other, "the inhabitant" or subject here answering to "him that holdeth the scepter" or ruler there, both ruler and subject alike being cut off. Aven--the same as Oon or Un, a delightful valley, four hours' journey from Damascus, towards the desert. Proverbial in the East as a place of delight [Josephus Abassus]. It is here parallel to "Eden," which also means "pleasantness"; situated at Lebanon. As Josephus Abassus is a doubtful authority, perhaps the reference may be rather to the valley between Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon, called El-Bekaa, where are the ruins of the Baal-bek temple of the sun; so the Septuagint renders it On, the same name as the city in Egypt bears, dedicated to the sun-worship (Ge 41:45; Heliopolis, "the city of the sun," Eze 30:17, Margin). It is termed by Amos "the valley of Aven," or "vanity," from the worship of idols in it. Kir--a region subject to Assyria (Is 22:6) in Iberia, the same as that called now in Armenian Kur, lying by the river Cyrus which empties itself into the Caspian Sea. Tiglath-pileser fulfilled this prophecy when Ahaz applied for help to him against Rezin king of Syria, and the Assyrian king took Damascus, slew Rezin, and carried away its people captive to Kir.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 5 The bar of Damascus - The gates, whose long traverse bars, running from wall to wall, were their strength. I will throw it open; and the gates were forced, and the city taken, as above. The plain of Aven - the house of Eden - These are names, says Bochart, of the valley of Damascus. The plain of Aven, or Birkath-Aven, Calmet says, is a city of Syria, at present called Baal-Bek, and by the Greeks Heliopolis; and is situated at the end of that long valley which extends from south to north, between Libanus and Anti-Libanus. The people of Syria shall go into captivity unto Kir - Kir is supposed to be the country of Cyrene in Albania, on the river Cyrus, which empties itself into the Caspian Sea. The fulfilment of this prophecy may be seen in 2Kgs 16:1-9.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Amos 1:1-15

Judgments against the Syrians, Philistines, Tyrians, Edomites, and Ammonites. --GOD employed a shepherd, a herdsman, to reprove and warn the people. Those to whom God gives abilities for his services, ought not to be despised for their origin, or their employment. Judgments are denounced against the neighbouring nations, the oppressors of God's people. The number of transgressions does not here mean that exact…

Read the full comment on Amos 1:1-15 →

Amos 1:5 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וְשָֽׁבַרְתִּי֙ve.sha.var.Tiand I will breakH7665
בְּרִ֣יחַbe.Ri.ach[the] bar ofH1280
דַּמֶּ֔שֶׂקda.Me.sekDamascusH1834
וְהִכְרַתִּ֤יve.hikh.ra.Tiand I will cut offH3772
יוֹשֵׁב֙yo.Shevinhabitant[s]H3427
מִבִּקְעַת\־mi.bik.'at-from [the] Valley ofH1237
אָ֔וֶן'A.venAvenH206
וְתוֹמֵ֥ךְve.to.Mekhand a holder ofH8551
שֵׁ֖בֶטShe.veta scepterH7626
מִבֵּ֣יתmi.Beitfrom BethH1040
עֶ֑דֶן'E.denEdenH1040
וְגָל֧וּve.ga.Luand they will go into exileH1540
עַם\־'am-[the] people ofH5971
אֲרָ֛ם'a.RamAramH758
קִ֖ירָהKi.rahKir towardsH7024
אָמַ֥ר'a.Marhe saysH559
יְהוָֽה\׃\ \פYah.wehYahwehH3068

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Amos 1:5

  • 2 Kings 16:9

    And the king of Assyria hearkened unto him: for the king of Assyria went up against Damascus, and took it, and carried the people of it captive to Kir, and slew Rezin.

  • Amos 9:7

    Are ye not as children of the Ethiopians unto me, O children of Israel? saith the Lord. Have not I brought up Israel out of the land of Egypt? and the Philistines from Caphtor, and the Syrians from Kir?

  • Jeremiah 51:30

    The mighty men of Babylon have forborn to fight, they have remained in their holds: their might hath failed; they became as women: they have burned her dwellingplaces; her bars are broken.

  • Lamentations 2:9

    Her gates are sunk into the ground; he hath destroyed and broken her bars: her king and her princes are among the Gentiles: the law is no more; her prophets also find no vision from the Lord.

  • Isaiah 43:14

    Thus saith the Lord, your redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; For your sake I have sent to Babylon, and have brought down all their nobles, and the Chaldeans, whose cry is in the ships.

  • Nahum 3:13

    Behold, thy people in the midst of thee are women: the gates of thy land shall be set wide open unto thine enemies: the fire shall devour thy bars.

  • Jeremiah 50:36

    A sword is upon the liars; and they shall dote: a sword is upon her mighty men; and they shall be dismayed.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
break.
Isa 43:14; Jer 50:36; 51:30; La 2:9; Na 3:13
the plain of Aven. or, Bikath-aven.Probably Heliopolis, now Baalbek, situated between Libanus and Antilibanus, 56 miles N. W. of Damascus, according to Antoninus, and celebrated for its temple of the sun.
the house of Eden. or, Beth-eden.Probably the village of Eden, in Mount Lebanon, marks the site of this place. It is delightfully situated by the side of a most rich and cultivated valley, contains about 400 or 500 families, and is, according to modern authorities, about 20 miles S. E. of Tripoli, and five miles from the cedars.
the people.
9:7; 2Ki 16:9

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Amos 1:4

    But I will send a fire into the house of Hazael, which shall devour the palaces of Ben–hadad.

  • Amos 1:5

    I will break also the bar of Damascus, and cut off the inhabitant from the plain of Aven, and him that holdeth the sceptre from the house of Eden: and the people of Syria shall go into captivity unto Kir, saith the Lord.

  • Amos 1:6

    Thus saith the Lord; For three transgressions of Gaza, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they carried away captive the whole captivity, to deliver them up to Edom:

Read all of Amos 1

Amos 1:5 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Y quebraré la barra de Damasco, y talaré los moradores de Bicath-aven, y los gobernadores de Beth-eden: y el pueblo de Aram será trasportado á Chîr, dice Jehová.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		et je briserai la barre de Damas, et, de la vallée d’Aven je retrancherai l’habitant, et de Beth-Éden, celui qui tient le sceptre; et le peuple de la Syrie ira en captivité à Kir, dit l’ Éternel.
German
Elberfelder 1871		und ich werde den Riegel von Damaskus zerbrechen, und den Bewohner ausrotten aus dem Tale Awen, und den, der das Scepter hält, aus Beth-Eden; und das Volk von Syrien wird nach Kir weggeführt werden, spricht Jehova.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Et conteram vectem Damasci: et disperdam habitatorem de campo idoli, et tenentem sceptrum de domo voluptatis: et transferetur populus Syriæ Cyrenen, dicit Dominus.