Amos 7 · Verse 8

Amos 7:8

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:
Amos 7:8, King James Version

Amos 7:8 in other translations

BSB“Amos, what do you see?” asked the LORD. “A plumb line,” I replied. “Behold,” said the Lord, “I am setting a plumb line among My people Israel; I will no longer spare them:
WEBThe LORD said to me, “Amos, what do you see?” I said, “A plumb line.” Then the Lord said, “Behold, I will set a plumb line in the middle of my people Israel. I will not again pass by them any more.
ASVAnd 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;
YLTand Jehovah saith unto me, ‘What art thou seeing, Amos?' And I say, ‘A plumb-line;' and the Lord saith: ‘Lo, I am setting a plumb-line in the midst of My people Israel, I do not add any more to pass over to it.
DARBYAnd Jehovah said unto me, Amos, what seest thou? And I said, A plumb-line. And the Lord said, Behold, I will set a plumb-line in the midst of my people Israel: I will not again pass by them any more.
BBEAnd 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:
WebsterAnd the LORD said to 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:

What does Amos 7:8 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
8. plumb-line in ... midst of ... Israel--No longer are the symbols, as in the former two, stated generally; this one is expressly applied to Israel. God's long-suffering is worn out by Israel's perversity: so Amos ceases to intercede (compare Ge 18:33). The plummet line was used not only in building, but in destroying houses (2Ki 21:13; Is 28:17; 34:11; La 2:8). It denotes that God's judgments are measured out by the most exact rules of justice. Here it is placed "in the midst" of Israel, that is, the judgment is not to be confined to an outer part of Israel, as by Tiglath-pileser; it is to reach the very center. This was fulfilled when Shalmaneser, after a three years' siege of Samaria, took it and carried away Israel captive finally to Assyria (2Ki 17:3, 5, 6, 23). not ... pass by ... any more--not forgive them any more (Am 8:2; Pr 19:11; Mi 7:18).

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

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 8 I will set a plumbline - I will visit them by justice without any mixture of mercy.

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…

Read the full comment on Amos 7:1-9 →

Amos 7:8 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.

וַיֹּ֨אמֶרvai.Yo.merand he saidH559
יְהוָ֜הYah.wehYahwehH3068
אֵלַ֗י'e.Laito meH413
מָֽה\־mah-what?H4100
אַתָּ֤ה'a.Tah[are] youH859
רֹאֶה֙ro.'EhseeingH7200
עָמ֔וֹסa.MosO AmosH5986
וָאֹמַ֖רva.'o.Marand I saidH559
אֲנָ֑ךְ'a.NakhtinH594
וַיֹּ֣אמֶרvai.Yo.merand he saidH559
אֲדֹנָ֗י'a.do.Nai[the] LordH136
הִנְנִ֨יhi.Nihere IH2005
שָׂ֤םsam[am] about to putH7760
אֲנָךְ֙'a.noKhtinH594
בְּקֶ֙רֶב֙be.Ke.revin [the] midst ofH7130
עַמִּ֣י'a.Mipeople myH5971
יִשְׂרָאֵ֔לYis.ra.'ElIsraelH3478
לֹֽא\־lo'-notH3808
אוֹסִ֥יף'o.SifI will repeatH3254
ע֖וֹדodagainH5750
עֲב֥וֹרa.Vorto pass byH5674
לֽוֹ\׃lo<to> it

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

Cross references for Amos 7:8

  • Amos 8:2

    And he said, Amos, what seest thou? And I said, A basket of summer fruit. Then said the Lord unto me, The end is come upon my people of Israel; I will not again pass by them any more.

  • Lamentations 2:8

    The Lord hath purposed to destroy the wall of the daughter of Zion: he hath stretched out a line, he hath not withdrawn his hand from destroying: therefore he made the rampart and the wall to lament; they languished together.

  • Jeremiah 15:6

    Thou hast forsaken me, saith the Lord, thou art gone backward: therefore will I stretch out my hand against thee, and destroy thee; I am weary with repenting.

  • Ezekiel 7:2-9

    Also, thou son of man, thus saith the Lord God unto the land of Israel; An end, the end is come upon the four corners of the land. Now is the end come upon thee, and I will send mine anger upon thee, and will judge thee according to thy ways, and will recompense upon thee all thine abominations. And mine eye shall not spare thee, neither will I have pity: but I will recompense thy ways upon thee, and thine abominations shall be in the midst of thee: and ye shall know that I am the Lord. Thus saith the Lord God; An evil, an only evil, behold, is come. …

  • Isaiah 28:17

    Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place.

  • Micah 7:18

    Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy.

  • 2 Kings 21:13

    And I will stretch over Jerusalem the line of Samaria, and the plummet of the house of Ahab: and I will wipe Jerusalem as a man wipeth a dish, wiping it, and turning it upside down.

  • Zechariah 5:2

    And he said unto me, What seest thou? And I answered, I see a flying roll; the length thereof is twenty cubits, and the breadth thereof ten cubits.

  • Jeremiah 1:11-13

    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.

  • Nahum 1:8-9

    But with an overrunning flood he will make an utter end of the place thereof, and darkness shall pursue his enemies. What do ye imagine against the Lord? he will make an utter end: affliction shall not rise up the second time.

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

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Amos.
Jer 1:11-13; Zec 5:2
a plumbline.This was an emblem of strict justice; and intimated that God would now visit them according to their iniquities.
I will set.
La 2:8
I will not.
8:2; Jer 15:6; Eze 7:2-9; Mic 7:18; Na 1:8,9

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

Context

  • 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 7:8

    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:

  • Amos 7:9

    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.

Read all of Amos 7

Amos 7:8 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909
Jehová entonces me dijo: ¿Qué ves, Amós? Y dije: Una plomada de albañil. Y el Señor dijo: He aquí, yo pongo plomada de albañil en medio de mi pueblo Israel: no le pasaré más:
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885
Et l’ Éternel me dit: Que vois-tu, Amos? Et je dis: Un plomb. Et le Seigneur dit: Voici, je place un plomb au milieu de mon peuple Israël; je ne passerai plus par-dessus lui.
German
Elberfelder 1871
Und Jehova sprach zu mir: Was siehst du, Amos? Und ich sprach: Ein Senkblei. Und der Herr sprach: Siehe, ich lege ein Senkblei an mein Volk Israel, in seiner Mitte; ich werde fortan nicht mehr schonend an ihm vorübergehen.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate
Et dixit Dominus ad me: Quid tu vides, Amos? Et dixi: Trullam cæmentarii. Et dixit Dominus: Ecce ego ponam trullam in medio populi mei Israël; non adjiciam ultra superinducere eum.