The _Prologue_ to the Prophecies of Amos consists of a series of denunciations of the surrounding peoples. The ground of the awful threatenings is the word of Jehovah made known to the prophet. The reason for the doom predicted on such high authority, is the resistance and cruelty that were offered... [ Continue Reading ]
ROAR. — The prolonged thunder-peal, or lion’s roar, of the Divine voice, reverberates from the theocratic metropolis of Zion, to the luxuriant slopes of the noble Carmel, which forms the southern promontory of the Bay of Acre. The “pastures of the Shepherds” remind us of Psalms 23, and refers us to... [ Continue Reading ]
CURSE ON DAMASCUS. (3) THREE TRANSGRESSIONS... — This form of transgression, which occurs eight times in the prologue, is not an arithmetical, but a strongly idiomatic phrase, signifying “multiplied or repeated delinquencies” (_Henderson_). TURN AWAY... — Rather, _will not turn it back — i.e.,_ th... [ Continue Reading ]
I WILL SEND A FIRE... — Compare Jeremiah 49:27, where this language is repeated at a time when punishment had fallen for a while on Damascus, and she had become, as Isaiah predicted, “a ruinous heap” (Isaiah 17:1).... [ Continue Reading ]
I WILL BREAK... — The “bar_”_ means the bolt of iron or brass with which the city was defended. But it is possible that it may be used of persons, _i.e.,_ princes or leaders (comp. Hosea 4:18; Hosea 11:6); and this seems confirmed by the parallelism. The plain or valley cleft between Libanus and Ant... [ Continue Reading ]
CURSE ON PHILISTIA. (6-8) The marginal reading is more literal, and points to the special bitterness of the proceedings of Philistia, here represented by Gaza as the principal city (comp. 2 Chronicles 21:16, which implies a veritable sack of Jerusalem). The extreme barbarity from which Judah suffere... [ Continue Reading ]
CURSE ON TYRUS. (9) THE BROTHERLY COVENANT. — The _“covenant of brethren_” (margin) was the league made between Hiram and David, and afterwards between Hiram and Solomon (2 Samuel 5:11; 1 Kings 5:1; 1 Kings 5:12). This ancient covenant was forgotten in Phœnicia’s mercantile cupidity, and Tyre was t... [ Continue Reading ]
CURSE ON EDOM. (11) EDOM. — Comp. the prophecy of Obadiah and Isaiah 34:5. See also _Dict. of the Bible,_ art. “Edom.” All through their history Edom sided with the enemies of Israel. (Comp. 1 Samuel 14:47; 2 Samuel 8:14; Psalms 60:9; and 2 Chronicles 21:8.) CAST OFF. — It would be better to render... [ Continue Reading ]
TEMAN. — According to Genesis 36:11, a name for a grandson of Esau. The district and chief town of this name are often referred to in the Prophets (Jeremiah 49:7; Ezekiel 25:13; Habakkuk 3:3; Obadiah 1:8). The wisdom and might of the Temanites were well known, and Eliphaz the Temanite was one of the... [ Continue Reading ]
CURSE ON AMMON. (13) AMMON. — See art. in Smith’s _Dict. of the Bible._ The precise event of atrocious cruelty is not mentioned in the historical books; but the barbarous modes of warfare which prevailed in those days are darkly conveyed in 1 Samuel 11:2; 2 Kings 15:16; Hosea 13:16, &c., and in Ass... [ Continue Reading ]
Jeremiah gives a vivid account of the impending doom of Ammon, quoting and expanding this very passage (Jeremiah 49:1).... [ Continue Reading ]
THEIR KING. — Not as Syrian and Vulg. read the original, _Malcam_ or _Milcom, i.e.,_ Moloch. E.V. is supported by LXX., Targ., and context of the passage. So far we find the prophet denouncing the sin which trifles with blood, covenants, and ancient agreements, and recognising the responsibilities o... [ Continue Reading ]