Amos 7 · Verse 1

Amos 7:1

Thus hath the Lord God shewed unto me; and, behold, he formed grasshoppers in the beginning of the shooting up of the latter growth; and, lo, it was the latter growth after the king’s mowings.
Amos 7:1, King James Version

Amos 7:1 in other translations

BSBThis is what the Lord GOD showed me: He was preparing swarms of locusts just after the king’s harvest, as the late spring crop was coming up.
WEBThus the Lord GOD showed me: behold, he formed locusts in the beginning of the shooting up of the latter growth; and behold, it was the latter growth after the king’s harvest.
ASVThus the Lord Jehovah showed me: and, behold, he formed locusts in the beginning of the shooting up of the latter growth; and, lo, it was the latter growth after the king’s mowings.
YLTThus hath the Lord Jehovah shewed me, and lo, He is forming locusts at the beginning of the ascending of the latter growth, and lo, the latter growth is after the mowings of the king;
DARBYThus did the Lord Jehovah shew unto me; and behold, he formed locusts in the beginning of the shooting up of the latter growth, and behold, it was the latter growth after the king's mowings.
BBEThis 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.
WebsterThus hath the Lord GOD shown to me; and behold, he formed grasshoppers in the beginning of the shooting up of the latter growth; and lo, it was the latter growth after the king's mowings.

What does Amos 7:1 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
Am. 7:1-9. The seventh, eighth, and ninth chapters contain Visions, with Their Explanations. The seventh chapter consists of two parts. First (Am 7:1-9): Prophecies Illustrated by Three Symbols: (1) A vision of grasshoppers or young locusts, which devour the grass, but are removed at Amos' entreaty; (2) Fire drying up even the deep, and withering part of the land, but removed at Amos' entreaty; (3) A plumb-line to mark the buildings for destruction. Secondly (Am 7:10-17): Narrative of Amaziah's Interruption of Amos in Consequence of the Foregoing Prophecies, and Prediction of His Doom. 1. showed ... me; and, behold--The same formula prefaces the three visions in this chapter, and the fourth in Am 8:1. grasshoppers--rather, "locusts" in the caterpillar state, from a Hebrew root, "to creep forth." In the autumn the eggs are deposited in the earth; in the spring the young come forth [Maurer]. the latter growth--namely, of grass, which comes up after the mowing. They do not in the East mow their grass and make hay of it, but cut it off the ground as they require it. the king's mowings--the first-fruits of the mown grass, tyrannically exacted by the king from the people. The literal locusts, as in Joel, are probably symbols of human foes: thus the "growth" of grass "after the king's mowings" will mean the political revival of Israel under Jeroboam II (2Ki 14:25), after it had been mown down, as it were, by Hazael and Ben-hadad of Syria (2Ki 13:3), [Grotius].

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

Adam Clarke's Commentary

Introduction

In this chapter God represents to Amos, by three several visions, the judgments he is about to bring on Israel. The first is a plague of locusts, threatening to cut of the hopes of the harvest by attacking it in the time of the second growth; the first luxuriances of the crop being probably mowed for the king's horses, Amo 7:1-3. The next vision threatens a judgment by fire, which would consume a great part, Amo 7:4-6; and the third a total overthrow of Israel, levelling it as it were by a line, Amo 7:7-9. The rest of the chapter is a denunciation of heavy judgments against Amaziah, priest of Beth-el, who had brought an accusation to the king against the prophet, Amo 7:10-17. Verse 1 Behold, he formed grasshoppers - גבי gobai is generally understood here to signify locusts. See the notes on Joel 1 (note) and Joel 2 (note). The shooting up of the latter growth - The early crop of grass had been already mowed and housed. The second crop or rowing, as it is called in some places, was not yet begun. By the king's mowings we may understand the first crop, a portion of which the king probably claimed as being the better hay; but the words may signify simply the prime crop, that which is the best of the whole. Houbigant thinks the shearing of the king's sheep is meant.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Amos 7:1-9
God bears long, but he will not bear always with a provoking people. The remembrance of the mercies we formerly received, like the produce of the earth of the former growth, should make us submissive to the will of God, when we meet with disappointments in the latter growth. The Lord has many ways of humbling a sinful nation. Whatever trouble we are under, we should be most earnest with God for the forgiveness of sin. Sin will soon make a great people small. What will become of Israel, if the hand that should raise him be stretched out against him? See the power of prayer. See what a blessing praying people are to a land. See how ready, how swift God is to show mercy; how he waits to be gracious. Israel was a wall, a strong wall, which God himself reared as a defence to his sanctuary. The Lord now seems to stand upon this wall. He measures it; it appears to be a bowing, bulging wall. Thus God would bring the people of Israel to the trial, would discover their wickedness; and the time will come, when those who have been spared often, shall be spared no longer. But the Lord still calls Israel his people. The repeated prayer and success of the prophet should lead us to seek the Saviour.

Matthew Henry, 1706 · public domain

Amos 7:1 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.

כֹּ֤הkohthusH3541
הִרְאַ֙נִי֙hir.'A.nihe showed meH7200
אֲדֹנָ֣י'a.do.Nai[the] LordH136
יְהוִ֔הYah.wehYahwehH3069
וְהִנֵּה֙ve.hi.Nehand there!H2009
יוֹצֵ֣רyo.Tzer[he was] formingH3335
גֹּבַ֔יgoyAilocustsH1462
בִּתְחִלַּ֖תbit.chi.Latat [the] beginning ofH8462
עֲל֣וֹתa.Lot[the] coming up ofH5927
הַלָּ֑קֶשׁha.La.keshthe spring-cropH3954
וְהִ֨נֵּה\־ve.Hi.neh-and there!H2009
לֶ֔קֶשׁLe.kesha spring-cropH3954
אַחַ֖ר'a.CharafterH310
גִּזֵּ֥יgi.Zei[the] mowings ofH1488
הַמֶּֽלֶךְ\׃ha.Me.lekhthe kingH4428

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

Cross references for Amos 7:1

  • Joel 1:4

    That which the palmerworm hath left hath the locust eaten; and that which the locust hath left hath the cankerworm eaten; and that which the cankerworm hath left hath the caterpiller eaten.

  • Amos 8:1

    Thus hath the Lord God shewed unto me: and behold a basket of summer fruit.

  • Nahum 3:15-17

    There shall the fire devour thee; the sword shall cut thee off, it shall eat thee up like the cankerworm: make thyself many as the cankerworm, make thyself many as the locusts. Thou hast multiplied thy merchants above the stars of heaven: the cankerworm spoileth, and flieth away. Thy crowned are as the locusts, and thy captains as the great grasshoppers, which camp in the hedges in the cold day, but when the sun ariseth they flee away, and their place is not known where they are.

  • Isaiah 33:4

    And your spoil shall be gathered like the gathering of the caterpiller: as the running to and fro of locusts shall he run upon them.

  • Joel 2:25

    And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpiller, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you.

  • Amos 4:9

    I have smitten you with blasting and mildew: when your gardens and your vineyards and your fig trees and your olive trees increased, the palmerworm devoured them: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the Lord.

  • Jeremiah 1:11-16

    Moreover the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Jeremiah, what seest thou? And I said, I see a rod of an almond tree. Then said the Lord unto me, Thou hast well seen: for I will hasten my word to perform it. And the word of the Lord came unto me the second time, saying, What seest thou? And I said, I see a seething pot; and the face thereof is toward the north. Then the Lord said unto me, Out of the north an evil shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of the land. …

  • Ezekiel 11:25

    Then I spake unto them of the captivity all the things that the Lord had shewed me.

  • Zechariah 1:20

    And the Lord shewed me four carpenters.

  • Exodus 10:12-16

    And the Lord said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, that they may come up upon the land of Egypt, and eat every herb of the land, even all that the hail hath left. And Moses stretched forth his rod over the land of Egypt, and the Lord brought an east wind upon the land all that day, and all that night; and when it was morning, the east wind brought the locusts. And the locusts went up over all the land of Egypt, and rested in all the coasts of Egypt: very grievous were they; before them there were no such locusts as they, neither after them shall be such. For they covered the face of the whole earth, so that the land was darkened; and they did eat every herb of the land, and all the fruit of the trees which the hail had left: and there remained not any green thing in the trees, or in the herbs of the field, through all the land of Egypt. …

  • Amos 7:7

    Thus he shewed me: and, behold, the Lord stood upon a wall made by a plumbline, with a plumbline in his hand.

  • Amos 7:4

    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.

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

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
1 The judgments of the grasshoppers,
4 and of the fire are diverted by the prayer of Amos.
7 By the wall of a plumbline is signified the rejection of Israel.
10 Amaziah complains of Amos.
14 Amos shews his calling;
16 and Amaziah's judgment.

shewed.
4,7; 8:1; Jer 1:11-16; 24:1; Eze 11:25; Zec 1:20
he.
4:9; Ex 10:12-16; Isa 33:4; Joe 1:4; 2:25; Na 3:15-17
grasshoppers. or, green worms.{Govai,} in Arabic {gabee,} "locusts," probably in their caterpillar state, in which they are most destructive. This is supposed to have been an emblem of the first invasion of the Assyrians.
mowings.Or rather, feedings or grazings, as the people of the East make no hay. This was probably in the month of March, which is the only time of the year that the Arabs to this day feed their horses with grass.

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

Context

  • Amos 7:1

    Thus hath the Lord God shewed unto me; and, behold, he formed grasshoppers in the beginning of the shooting up of the latter growth; and, lo, it was the latter growth after the king’s mowings.

  • Amos 7:2

    And it came to pass, that when they had made an end of eating the grass of the land, then I said, O Lord God, forgive, I beseech thee: by whom shall Jacob arise? for he is small.

Read all of Amos 7

Amos 7:1 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		ASÍ me ha mostrado el Señor Jehová: y he aquí, él criaba langostas al principio que comenzaba á crecer el heno tardío; y he aquí, era el heno tardío después de las siegas del rey.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		*Ainsi m’a fait voir le Seigneur, l’ Éternel, et voici, il forma des sauterelles, comme le regain commençait à pousser; et voici, c’était le regain après la fauche du roi.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Also ließ mich der Herr, Jehova, sehen: Siehe, er bildete Heuschrecken im Anfang des Spätgraswuchses; und siehe, es war das Spätgras nach dem Königsmähen.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Hæc ostendit mihi Dominus Deus: et ecce fictor locustæ in principio germinantium serotini imbris, et ecce serotinus post tonsionem regis.