Amos 8:13

Verse

Berean Standard Bible

In that day the lovely young women— the young men as well— will faint from thirst.

American Standard Version (1901)

In that day shall the fair virgins and the young men faint for thirst.

Bible in Basic English

In that day the fair virgins and the young men will be feeble from need of water.

Free Bible Version

On that day, even the beautiful girls and healthy young men will collapse from thirst.

Geneva Bible 1599

In that day shall the faire virgines and the yong men perish for thirst.

King James (Authorized) Version

In that day shall the fair virgins and young men faint for thirst.

Translation for Translators

At that time, even beautiful young women and strong young men will faint because of being very thirsty.

Unlocked Literal Bible

In that day the beautiful virgins and the young men will faint from thirst.

Noah Webster Bible

In that day shall the fair virgins and young men faint for thirst.

World English Bible

In that day the beautiful virgins and the young men will faint for thirst.

Young's Literal Translation

In that day faint do the fair virgins, And the young men, with thirst.

Context

The Basket of Summer Fruit

¹²People will stagger from sea to sea and roam from north to east, seeking the word of the LORD, but they will not find it. ¹³In that day the lovely young women— the young men as well— will faint from thirst. ¹⁴Those who swear by the guilt of Samaria and say, ‘As surely as your god lives, O Dan,’ or, ‘As surely as the way of Beersheba lives’— they will fall, never to rise again.”

Summary

In this verse, the prophet Amos speaks of a time when there will be a famine, not of food or water, but of hearing the word of the Lord. This famine represents a spiritual drought and lack of divine guidance among the people. It serves as a warning of the consequences of rejecting God's truth and turning away from His teachings. The verse underscores the importance of cherishing and seeking God's word diligently, as it is essential for spiritual nourishment and guidance in life.

Commentary

Keil-Delitzsch
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
John Gill

Carl Friedrich Keil and Franz Delitzsch Old Testament Commentary

"In that day will the fair virgins and the young men faint for thirst. Amo 8:14. They who swear by the guilt of Samaria, and say, By the life of thy God, O Dan! and by the life of the way to Beersheba; and will fall, and not rise again." Those who now stand in all the fullest and freshest vigour of life, will succumb to this hunger and thirst. The virgins and young men are individualized, as comprising that portion of the nation which possessed the vigorous fulness of youth. עלף, to be enveloped in night, to sink into a swoon, hithp. to hide one's self, to faint away. הנּשׁבּעים refers to the young men and virgins; and inasmuch as they represent the most vigorous portion of the nation, to the nation as a whole. If the strongest succumb to the thirst, how much more the weak! 'Ashmath Shōmerōn, the guilt of Samaria, is the golden calf at Bethel, the principal idol of the kingdom of Israel, which is named after the capital Samaria (compare Deu 9:21, "the sin of Israel"), not the Asherah which was still standing in Samaria in the reign of Jehoahaz (Kg2 13:6); for apart from the question whether it was there in the time of Jeroboam, this is at variance with the second clause, in which the manner of their swearing is given, - namely, by the life of the god at Dan, that is to say, the golden calf that was there; so that the guilt of Samaria can only have been the golden calf at Bethel, the national sanctuary of the ten tribes (cf. Amo 4:4; Amo 5:5). The way to Beersheba is mentioned, instead of the worship, for the sake of which the pilgrimage to Beersheba was made. This worship, again, was not a purely heathen worship, but an idolatrous worship of Jehovah (see Amo 5:5). The fulfilment of these threats commenced with the destruction of the kingdom of Israel, and the carrying away of the ten tribes into exile in Assyria, and continues to this day in the case of that portion of the Israelitish nation which is still looking for the Messiah, the prophet promised by Moses, and looking in vain, because they will not hearken to the preaching of the gospel concerning the Messiah, who appeared as Jesus.