TSK · Amos 4:1

“You must not wrong a resident foreigner nor oppress him, for you were foreigners in the land of Egypt.

Be careful lest you entertain the wicked thought that the seventh year, the year of cancellation of debts, has almost arrived, and your attitude be wrong toward your impoverished fellow Israelite and you do not lend him anything; he will cry out to the LORD against you and you will be regarded as having sinned.

butter from the herd and milk from the flock, along with the fat of lambs, rams and goats of Bashan, along with the best of the kernels of wheat; and from the juice of grapes you drank wine.

For he has oppressed the poor and abandoned them; he has seized a house which he did not build.

“Because of the violence done to the oppressed, because of the painful cries of the needy, I will spring into action,” says the LORD.“I will provide the safety they so desperately desire.”

I know that the LORD defends the cause of the oppressed and vindicates the poor.

Do not exploit a poor person because he is poor and do not crush the needy in court,

Evil Oppression on Earth So I again considered all the oppression that continually occurs on earth. This is what I saw: The oppressed were in tears, but no one was comforting them; no one delivers them from the power of their oppressors.

Learn to do what is right! Promote justice! Give the oppressed reason to celebrate! Take up the cause of the orphan! Defend the rights of the widow!

The Lord Will Judge Samaria The splendid crown of Ephraim’s drunkards is doomed, the withering flower, its beautiful splendor, situated at the head of a rich valley, the crown of those overcome with wine.

No, this is the kind of fast I want. I want you to remove the sinful chains, to tear away the ropes of the burdensome yoke, to set free the oppressed, and to break every burdensome yoke.

All of this is because the LORD of Heaven’s Armies has said:‘Cut down the trees around Jerusalem and build up a siege ramp against its walls. This is the city which is to be punished. Nothing but oppression happens in it.

“People of Babylonia, you plundered my people. That made you happy and glad. You frolic about like calves in a pasture. Your joyous sounds are like the neighs of a stallion.

“King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon devoured me and drove my people out. Like a monster from the deep he swallowed me. He filled his belly with my riches. He made me an empty dish. He completely cleaned me out.”

They take bribes within you to shed blood. You engage in usury and charge interest; you extort money from your neighbors. You have forgotten me, declares the Sovereign LORD.

The people of the land have practiced extortion and committed robbery. They have wronged the poor and needy; they have oppressed the resident foreigner and denied them justice.

You will eat the flesh of warriors and drink the blood of the princes of the earth– the rams, lambs, goats, and bulls, all of them fattened animals of Bashan.

God Will Judge Israel This is what the LORD says:“Because Israel has committed three covenant transgressions– make that four!– I will not revoke my decree of judgment. They sold the innocent for silver, the needy for a pair of sandals.

They stretch out on clothing seized as collateral; they do so right beside every altar! They drink wine bought with the fines they have levied; they do so right in the temple of their God!

Do two walk together without having met?

“They do not know how to do what is right.”(The LORD is speaking.)“They store up the spoils of destructive violence in their fortresses.

The Party is over for the Rich Woe to those who live in ease in Zion, to those who feel secure on Mount Samaria. They think of themselves as the elite class of the best nation. The family of Israel looks to them for leadership.

Land Robbers Will Lose Their Land Beware wicked schemers, those who devise calamity as they lie in bed. As soon as morning dawns they carry out their plans, because they have the power to do so.

God Will Judge Judah’s Sinful Leaders I said,“Listen, you leaders of Jacob, you rulers of the nation of Israel! You ought to know what is just,

You must not oppress the widow, the orphan, the resident foreigner, or the poor, nor should anyone secretly plot evil against his fellow citizen.’

Warning to the Rich Come now, you rich! Weep and cry aloud over the miseries that are coming on you.