Amos 5:12 Study Bible: For I know how many your offenses, and how great are your sins--you who afflict the just, who take a bribe, and who turn aside the needy in the courts.

◄ Amos 5:12 ►

For I know that your transgressions are many and your sins are numerous. You oppress the righteous by taking bribes; you deprive the poor of justice in the gate.

Study Bible

For I know that your transgressions are many and your sins are numerous.
This phrase highlights God's omniscience and His awareness of the moral and spiritual state of Israel. The repetition of "many" and "numerous" emphasizes the extent of Israel's sinfulness. In the context of Amos, a prophet from Judah sent to the Northern Kingdom of Israel, this statement underscores the rampant idolatry, social injustice, and moral decay prevalent in the society. The sins of Israel are not hidden from God, reflecting the biblical theme that nothing is concealed from His sight (Hebrews 4:13). This also connects to the broader biblical narrative of Israel's repeated disobedience and the call for repentance (Isaiah 1:4).

You oppress the righteous by taking bribes;
This phrase addresses the corruption and injustice within the judicial system of Israel. The righteous, those who live according to God's laws, are being oppressed by those in power. The taking of bribes indicates a perversion of justice, where decisions are influenced by wealth rather than truth and fairness. This is a direct violation of the Mosaic Law, which commands judges to be impartial and not accept bribes (Deuteronomy 16:19). The historical context reveals a society where the wealthy and powerful exploit the vulnerable, a theme echoed in other prophetic books like Micah 3:11 and Isaiah 1:23.

You deprive the poor of justice in the gate.
The "gate" refers to the city gate, a place where legal matters were traditionally settled in ancient Israelite society. It was a public space where elders and judges would convene to hear cases and render decisions. Depriving the poor of justice indicates a systemic failure to protect the rights of the marginalized, contrary to the biblical mandate to care for the poor and needy (Proverbs 31:9). This reflects a broader theme in the prophetic literature, where God condemns social injustice and calls for righteousness and equity (Isaiah 58:6-7). The failure to uphold justice for the poor is seen as a direct affront to God's character and His covenant with Israel.

Persons / Places / Events

1. Amos
A prophet from Tekoa, a small town in Judah, who was called by God to deliver messages of judgment and repentance to the Northern Kingdom of Israel.

2. Israel
The Northern Kingdom, which was experiencing prosperity but also moral and spiritual decay during Amos's time.

3. The Gates
In ancient Israel, city gates were places of legal and civic activity, where justice was to be administered.

4. The Righteous and the Poor
Individuals who were being oppressed and deprived of justice by the corrupt leaders and wealthy elite of Israel.

5. Bribery and Injustice
The specific sins highlighted by Amos, indicating systemic corruption and moral failure among Israel's leaders.

Teaching Points

God's Awareness of Sin
God is fully aware of our actions and the state of our hearts. We cannot hide our transgressions from Him.

The Importance of Justice
Justice is a central theme in God's character and His expectations for His people. We are called to uphold justice in our communities.

The Dangers of Corruption
Corruption and bribery lead to societal decay and are detestable to God. We must strive for integrity in all areas of life.

Advocacy for the Oppressed
As followers of Christ, we are called to stand up for the oppressed and ensure that justice is served, especially for the marginalized.

Repentance and Restoration
God offers a path to repentance and restoration. We must turn from our sinful ways and seek His forgiveness and guidance.

Bible Study Questions

1. How does the context of Amos's message to Israel relate to the societal issues we face today?

2. In what ways can we ensure that justice is upheld in our communities, especially for the marginalized?

3. How can we guard against the influence of corruption and bribery in our personal and professional lives?

4. What steps can we take to become advocates for the oppressed, following the example of Christ?

5. How does understanding God's awareness of our sins impact our daily walk with Him and our pursuit of righteousness?

Connections to Other Scriptures

Micah 6:8
This verse emphasizes what God requires of His people: to act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with Him. It connects to Amos 5:12 by highlighting the failure of Israel to live up to these divine expectations.

Isaiah 1:17
Calls for seeking justice, encouraging the oppressed, and defending the cause of the fatherless and widow, paralleling the themes of justice and righteousness in Amos.

James 5:1-6
Warns the rich about the consequences of exploiting the poor, similar to the injustices Amos condemns.

Proverbs 21:3
States that doing what is right and just is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice, aligning with Amos's message that God desires justice over ritualistic worship.

People

Places

Beersheba, Bethel, Damascus, Gilgal, Gomorrah

Topics

Accept, Adversaries, Afflict, Aside, Bribe, Bribes, Cause, Courts, Deprive, Distress, Evil-doing, Gate, Increased, Justice, Manifold, Mighty, Needy, Offenses, Oppress, Poor, Public, Ransom, Ransoms, Rewards, Righteous, Sins, Sins-ye, Strong, Taking, Transgressions, Troublers, Turn, Upright, Wrong

Dictionary of Bible Themes

Amos 5:12

     1020   God, all-knowing
     5027   knowledge, God's of humanity
     5238   bribery
     5349   injustice, examples
     5824   cruelty, examples
     6025   sin, and God's character
     6206   offence
     7150   righteous, the
     7233   Israel, northern kingdom
     8158   righteousness, of believers

Amos 5:4-15

5541 society, negative

Amos 5:7-12

5383 lawsuits

Amos 5:7-15

5270 court
8783 neglect

Amos 5:11-12

     5350   injustice, hated by God
     5554   status
     6134   coveting, prohibition
     8791   oppression, nature of

Library

April 15 Morning
Their Redeemer is strong.--JER. 50:34. I know your manifold transgressions and your mighty sins.--I have laid help upon one that is mighty.--The Lord. . . thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty one of Jacob.--Mighty to save.--Able to keep you from falling.--Where sin abounded, grace did much more abound. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.--He is able . . . to save them …
Anonymous—Daily Light on the Daily Path

The Sins of Society
'For thus saith the Lord unto the house of Israel, Seek ye Me, and ye shall live: 5. But seek not Beth-el, nor enter into Gilgal, and pass not to Beer-sheba: for Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Beth-el shall come to nought. 6. Seek the Lord, and ye shall live; lest He break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and devour it, and there be none to quench it in Beth-el. 7. Ye who turn judgment to wormwood, and leave off righteousness in the earth, 8. Seek Him that maketh the seven stars …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Evidences Internal and Experimental.
1. The external evidences of revealed religion are, in their proper place and sphere, of the highest importance. Christianity rests not upon theory, but upon historical facts sustained by an overwhelming mass of testimony. It is desirable that every Christian, so far as he has opportunity, should make himself acquainted with this testimony for the strengthening of his own faith and the refutation of gainsayers. Nevertheless, many thousands of Christians are fully established in the faith of the gospel …
E. P. Barrows—Companion to the Bible

Whether, by Penance, Man is Restored to his Former Dignity?
Objection 1: It would seem that man is not restored by Penance to his former dignity: because a gloss on Amos 5:2, "The virgin of Israel is cast down," observes: "It is not said that she cannot rise up, but that the virgin of Israel shall not rise; because the sheep that has once strayed, although the shepherd bring it back on his shoulder, has not the same glory as if it had never strayed." Therefore man does not, through Penance, recover his former dignity. Objection 2: Further, Jerome says: "Whoever …
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica

The Kingdom of Judah.
II K. 18-25; II Chron. 28-36. Note: This period covers the time from the fail of Israel to the fall of Judah. It begins in the sixth year of the reign of Hezekiah, whose name is given as the first king of the period since most of his reign was in this instead of the former period. The Kings of this Period. 13. Hezekiah, 2 K. 18:1-20-21; 2 Chron. 29:1-32:33. Reigned 29 years and died. 14. Manasseh, 2 K. 21:1-18; 2 Chron. 33:1-20. Reigned 55 year and died. 15. Amon, 2 K. 21:19-26; 2 Chron. 33:20-25. …
Josiah Blake Tidwell—The Bible Period by Period

The Greater Prophets.
1. We have already seen (Chap. 15, Nos. 11 and 12) that from Moses to Samuel the appearances of prophets were infrequent; that with Samuel and the prophetical school established by him there began a new era, in which the prophets were recognized as a distinct order of men in the Theocracy; and that the age of written prophecy did not begin till about the reign of Uzziah, some three centuries after Samuel. The Jewish division of the latter prophets--prophets in the more restricted sense of the …
E. P. Barrows—Companion to the Bible

Whether the Old Law Should have Been Given to the Jews Alone?
Objection 1: It would seem that the Old Law should not have been given to the Jews alone. For the Old Law disposed men for the salvation which was to come through Christ, as stated above ([2065]AA[2],3). But that salvation was to come not to the Jews alone but to all nations, according to Is. 49:6: "It is a small thing that thou shouldst be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to convert the dregs of Israel. Behold I have given thee to be the light of the Gentiles, that thou mayest be …
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica

Degrees of Sin
Are all transgressions of the law equally heinous? Some sins in themselves, and by reason of several aggravations, are more heinous in the sight of God than others. He that delivered me unto thee, has the greater sin.' John 19: 11. The Stoic philosophers held that all sins were equal; but this Scripture clearly holds forth that there is a gradual difference in sin; some are greater than others; some are mighty sins,' and crying sins.' Amos 5: 12; Gen 18: 21. Every sin has a voice to speak, but some …
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments

The Books of the Old Testament as a Whole. 1 the Province of Particular Introduction is to Consider the Books of the Bible Separately...
CHAPTER XVIII. THE BOOKS OF THE OLD TESTAMENT AS A WHOLE. 1. The province of Particular Introduction is to consider the books of the Bible separately, in respect to their authorship, date, contents, and the place which each of them holds in the system of divine truth. Here it is above all things important that we begin with the idea of the unity of divine revelation--that all the parts of the Bible constitute a gloriously perfect whole, of which God and not man is the author. No amount of study devoted …
E. P. Barrows—Companion to the Bible

Ripe for Gathering
'Thus hath the Lord God shewed unto me: and behold a basket of summer fruit. 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. 3. And the songs of the temple shall be howlings in that day, saith the Lord God: there shall be many dead bodies in every place; they shall cast them forth with silence. 4. Hear this, O ye that swallow up the needy, even to make the poor …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Arguments Usually Alleged in Support of Free Will Refuted.
1. Absurd fictions of opponents first refuted, and then certain passages of Scripture explained. Answer by a negative. Confirmation of the answer. 2. Another absurdity of Aristotle and Pelagius. Answer by a distinction. Answer fortified by passages from Augustine, and supported by the authority of an Apostle. 3. Third absurdity borrowed from the words of Chrysostom. Answer by a negative. 4. Fourth absurdity urged of old by the Pelagians. Answer from the works of Augustine. Illustrated by the testimony …
John Calvin—The Institutes of the Christian Religion

Journey to Jerusalem. Ten Lepers. Concerning the Kingdom.
(Borders of Samaria and Galilee.) ^C Luke XVII. 11-37. ^c 11 And it came to pass, as they were on their way to Jerusalem, that he was passing along the borders of Samaria and Galilee. [If our chronology is correct, Jesus passed northward from Ephraim about forty miles, crossing Samaria (here mentioned first), and coming to the border of Galilee. He then turned eastward along that border down the wady Bethshean which separates the two provinces, and crossed the Jordan into Peræa, where we soon …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

The Prophecy of Obadiah.
We need not enter into details regarding the question as to the time when the prophet wrote. By a thorough argumentation, Caspari has proved, that he occupies his right position in the Canon, and hence belongs to the earliest age of written prophecy, i.e., to the time of Jeroboam II. and Uzziah. As bearing conclusively against those who would assign to him a far later date, viz., the time of the exile, there is not only the indirect testimony borne by the place which this prophecy occupies in …
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament

The Lord Coming to his Temple
The LORD , whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to His temple; even the messenger of the covenant in whom ye delight: Behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts. But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? For he is like a refiner's fire, and like a fuller's soap, -- and he shall purify the sons of Levi -- that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness. W hereunto shall we liken the people of this generation? and to what are they like? (Luke 7:31) …
John Newton—Messiah Vol. 1

Scriptures Showing the Sin and Danger of Joining with Wicked and Ungodly Men.
Scriptures Showing The Sin And Danger Of Joining With Wicked And Ungodly Men. When the Lord is punishing such a people against whom he hath a controversy, and a notable controversy, every one that is found shall be thrust through: and every one joined with them shall fall, Isa. xiii. 15. They partake in their judgment, not only because in a common calamity all shares, (as in Ezek. xxi. 3.) but chiefly because joined with and partakers with these whom God is pursuing; even as the strangers that join …
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning

An Exhortation to Love God
1. An exhortation. Let me earnestly persuade all who bear the name of Christians to become lovers of God. "O love the Lord, all ye his saints" (Psalm xxxi. 23). There are but few that love God: many give Him hypocritical kisses, but few love Him. It is not so easy to love God as most imagine. The affection of love is natural, but the grace is not. Men are by nature haters of God (Rom. i. 30). The wicked would flee from God; they would neither be under His rules, nor within His reach. They fear God, …
Thomas Watson—A Divine Cordial

Being Made Archbishop of Armagh, He Suffers Many Troubles. Peace Being Made, from Being Archbishop of Armagh He Becomes Bishop of Down.
[Sidenote: 1129] 19. (12). Meanwhile[365] it happened that Archbishop Cellach[366] fell sick: he it was who ordained Malachy deacon, presbyter and bishop: and knowing that he was dying he made a sort of testament[367] to the effect that Malachy ought to succeed him,[368] because none seemed worthier to be bishop of the first see. This he gave in charge to those who were present, this he commanded to the absent, this to the two kings of Munster[369] and to the magnates of the land he specially enjoined …
H. J. Lawlor—St. Bernard of Clairvaux's Life of St. Malachy of Armagh

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