Amos 5 · Verse 16

Amos 5:16

Therefore the Lord, the God of hosts, the Lord, saith thus; Wailing shall be in all streets; and they shall say in all the highways, Alas! alas! and they shall call the husbandman to mourning, and such as are skilful of lamentation to wailing.
Amos 5:16, King James Version

Amos 5:16 in other translations

BSBTherefore this is what the LORD, the God of Hosts, the Lord, says: “There will be wailing in all the public squares and cries of ‘Alas! Alas!’ in all the streets. The farmer will be summoned to mourn, and the mourners to wail.
WEBTherefore the LORD, the God of Armies, the Lord, says: “Wailing will be in all the wide ways. They will say in all the streets, ‘Alas! Alas!’ They will call the farmer to mourning, and those who are skillful in lamentation to wailing.
ASVTherefore thus saith Jehovah, the God of hosts, the Lord: Wailing shall be in all the broad ways; and they shall say in all the streets, Alas! alas! and they shall call the husbandman to mourning, and such as are skilful in lamentation to wailing.
YLTTherefore, thus said Jehovah, God of Hosts, the Lord, In all broad places is lamentation, And in all out-places they say, ‘Alas, alas,' And called the husbandman to mourning, And to lamentation the skilful of wailing.
DARBYTherefore thus saith Jehovah, the God of hosts, the Lord: Wailing shall be in all broadways; and they shall say in all the streets, Alas! alas! And they shall call the husbandman to mourning, and such as are skilful of lamentation to wailing.
BBESo these are the words of the Lord, the God of armies, the Lord: There will be weeping in all the open spaces; and in all the streets they will say, Sorrow! sorrow! and they will get in the farmer to the weeping, and the makers of sad songs to give cries of grief.
WebsterTherefore the LORD, the God of hosts, the Lord, saith thus; Wailing shall be in all streets; and they shall say in all the highways, Alas! alas! and they shall call the husbandman to mourning, and such as are skillful in lamentation to wailing.

What does Amos 5:16 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
16. Therefore--resumed from Am 5:13. God foresees they will not obey the exhortation (Am 5:14, 15), but will persevere in the unrighteousness stigmatized (Am 5:7, 10, 12). the Lord--Jehovah. the God of hosts, the Lord--an accumulation of titles, of which His lordship over all things is the climax, to mark that from His judgment there is no appeal. streets ... highways--the broad open spaces and the narrow streets common in the East. call the husbandman to mourning--The citizens shall call the inexperienced husbandmen to act the part usually performed by professional mourners, as there will not be enough of the latter for the universal mourning which prevails. such as are skilful of lamentation--professional mourners hired to lead off the lamentations for the deceased; alluded to in Ec 12:5; generally women (Jr 9:17-19).

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

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 16 They shall call the husbandman to mourning - Because the crops have failed, and the ground has been tilled in vain. Such as are skillful of lamentation - See the note on Jer 9:17.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Amos 5:7-17

The same almighty power can, for repenting sinners, easily turn affliction and sorrow into prosperity and joy, and as easily turn the prosperity of daring sinners into utter darkness. Evil times will not bear plain dealing; that is, evil men will not. And these men were evil men indeed, when wise and good men thought it in vain even to speak to them. Those who will seek and love that which is good, may help to save…

Read the full comment on Amos 5:7-17 →

Amos 5:16 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.

לָ֠כֵןLa.khen<to> thereforeH3651
כֹּֽה\־koh-thusH3541
אָמַ֨ר'a.Marhe saysH559
יְהוָ֜הYah.wehYahwehH3068
אֱלֹהֵ֤י'e.lo.HeiGod ofH430
צְבָאוֹת֙tze.va.'OthostsH6635
אֲדֹנָ֔י'a.do.Nai[the] LordH136
בְּכָל\־be.khol[will be] in allH3605
רְחֹב֣וֹתre.cho.Vot[the] open placesH7339
מִסְפֵּ֔דmis.PedwailingH4553
וּבְכָל\־u.ve.Khol-and in allH3605
חוּצ֖וֹתchu.Tzot[the] streetsH2351
יֹאמְר֣וּyo.me.Rupeople will sayH559
הוֹ\־hov-alas!H1930
ה֑וֹhoalas!H1930
וְקָרְא֤וּve.ka.re.'Uand people will callH7121
אִכָּר֙'i.Kara farmerH406
אֶל\־'el-toH413
אֵ֔בֶל'E.velmourningH60
וּמִסְפֵּ֖דu.mis.Pedand wailingH4553
אֶל\־'el-toH413
י֥וֹדְעֵיYod.'ei[those who] knowH3045
נֶֽהִי\׃Ne.hi<of> lamentationH5092

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

Cross references for Amos 5:16

  • Joel 1:11

    Be ye ashamed, O ye husbandmen; howl, O ye vinedressers, for the wheat and for the barley; because the harvest of the field is perished.

  • Jeremiah 9:17-20

    Thus saith the Lord of hosts, Consider ye, and call for the mourning women, that they may come; and send for cunning women, that they may come: And let them make haste, and take up a wailing for us, that our eyes may run down with tears, and our eyelids gush out with waters. For a voice of wailing is heard out of Zion, How are we spoiled! we are greatly confounded, because we have forsaken the land, because our dwellings have cast us out. Yet hear the word of the Lord, O ye women, and let your ear receive the word of his mouth, and teach your daughters wailing, and every one her neighbour lamentation.

  • Jeremiah 9:10

    For the mountains will I take up a weeping and wailing, and for the habitations of the wilderness a lamentation, because they are burned up, so that none can pass through them; neither can men hear the voice of the cattle; both the fowl of the heavens and the beast are fled; they are gone.

  • Revelation 18:15-16

    The merchants of these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing, And saying, Alas, alas, that great city, that was clothed in fine linen, and purple, and scarlet, and decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls!

  • Micah 1:8

    Therefore I will wail and howl, I will go stripped and naked: I will make a wailing like the dragons, and mourning as the owls.

  • Isaiah 15:2-5

    He is gone up to Bajith, and to Dibon, the high places, to weep: Moab shall howl over Nebo, and over Medeba: on all their heads shall be baldness, and every beard cut off. In their streets they shall gird themselves with sackcloth: on the tops of their houses, and in their streets, every one shall howl, weeping abundantly. And Heshbon shall cry, and Elealeh: their voice shall be heard even unto Jahaz: therefore the armed soldiers of Moab shall cry out; his life shall be grievous unto him. My heart shall cry out for Moab; his fugitives shall flee unto Zoar, an heifer of three years old: for by the mounting up of Luhith with weeping shall they go it up; for in the way of Horonaim they shall raise up a cry of destruction.

  • Jeremiah 4:31

    For I have heard a voice as of a woman in travail, and the anguish as of her that bringeth forth her first child, the voice of the daughter of Zion, that bewaileth herself, that spreadeth her hands, saying, Woe is me now! for my soul is wearied because of murderers.

  • Amos 8:10

    And I will turn your feasts into mourning, and all your songs into lamentation; and I will bring up sackcloth upon all loins, and baldness upon every head; and I will make it as the mourning of an only son, and the end thereof as a bitter day.

  • Revelation 18:10

    Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come.

  • Amos 3:13

    Hear ye, and testify in the house of Jacob, saith the Lord God, the God of hosts,

  • Micah 2:4

    In that day shall one take up a parable against you, and lament with a doleful lamentation, and say, We be utterly spoiled: he hath changed the portion of my people: how hath he removed it from me! turning away he hath divided our fields.

  • Joel 1:14

    Sanctify ye a fast, call a solemn assembly, gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land into the house of the Lord your God, and cry unto the Lord,

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

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
the Lord.
27; 3:13
Wailing.
8:10; Isa 15:2-5,8; 22:12; Jer 4:31; 9:10,18-20; Joe 1:8,11,14
Mic 1:8; 2:4; Re 18:10,15,16,19
such.
Jer 9:17-19

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

Context

  • Amos 5:15

    Hate the evil, and love the good, and establish judgment in the gate: it may be that the Lord God of hosts will be gracious unto the remnant of Joseph.

  • Amos 5:16

    Therefore the Lord, the God of hosts, the Lord, saith thus; Wailing shall be in all streets; and they shall say in all the highways, Alas! alas! and they shall call the husbandman to mourning, and such as are skilful of lamentation to wailing.

  • Amos 5:17

    And in all vineyards shall be wailing: for I will pass through thee, saith the Lord.

Read all of Amos 5

Amos 5:16 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909
Por tanto, así ha dicho Jehová Dios de los ejércitos, el Señor: En todas las plazas habrá llanto, y en todas las calles dirán, ¡Ay! ¡ay! y al labrador llamarán á lloro, y á endecha á los que endechar supieren.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885
C’est pourquoi, ainsi dit l’ Éternel, le Dieu des armées, le Seigneur: Dans toutes les places, la lamentation! et dans toutes les rues, on dira: Hélas, hélas! Et on appellera le laboureur au deuil, et à la lamentation ceux qui s’entendent aux chants de douleur.
German
Elberfelder 1871
Darum spricht Jehova, der Gott der Heerscharen, der Herr, also: Auf allen Plätzen Wehklage! Und auf allen Gassen wird man sagen: Wehe, wehe! und man wird den Ackermann zur Trauer rufen, und die des Klageliedes Kundigen zur Wehklage;
Latin
Clementine Vulgate
Propterea hæc dicit Dominus Deus exercituum, dominator: In omnibus plateis planctus; et in cunctis quæ foris sunt, dicetur: Væ, væ! et vocabunt agricolam ad luctum, et ad planctum eos qui sciunt plangere.