Bible Strands
Amos 1:3
This is what the LORD says: “For three transgressions of Damascus, even four, I will not revoke My judgment, because they threshed Gilead with sledges of iron.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The LORD declares judgment against Damascus through the prophet, following His initial roar from Zion and Jerusalem. The message addresses the northern kingdom's oppressor during a period of active regional conflict.
The words — פִּשְׁעֵ֣י (pish.'Ei) means transgressions, and שְׁלֹשָׁה֙ (she.lo.Shah) means three. The idiom “three transgressions, even four” indicates a cumulative measure of guilt that has reached its limit.
The thread — The plunder of Syrian territory reappears in Isaiah 8:4, which notes the wealth of Damascus will be carried off. The same region's military pressure on Israel is recorded in 2 Kings 10:32.
Why it lands — The text states that Damascus's brutal oppression of Gilead with iron sledges triggered an irrevocable divine judgment. A reader must recognize that systemic violence against a vulnerable population invites concrete historical consequences.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Thus saith the Lord; For three transgressions of Damascus, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they have threshed Gilead with threshing instruments of iron:
Cross-references
- 2 Kings 8:12 “Why is my lord weeping?” asked Hazael. “Because I know the evil you will do to the Israelites,” Elisha replied. “You will set fire to their fortresses, kill their young men with the sword, dash their little ones to pieces, and rip open their pregnant women.”
- 2 Kings 10:32 In those days the LORD began to reduce the size of Israel. Hazael defeated the Israelites throughout their territory
- Isaiah 8:4 For before the boy knows how to cry ‘Father’ or ‘Mother,’ the wealth of Damascus and the plunder of Samaria will be carried off by the king of Assyria.”
- Jeremiah 49:23 Concerning Damascus: “Hamath and Arpad are put to shame, for they have heard a bad report; they are agitated like the sea; their anxiety cannot be calmed.
- Amos 1:9 This is what the LORD says: “For three transgressions of Tyre, even four, I will not revoke My judgment, because they delivered up a whole congregation of exiles to Edom and broke a covenant of brotherhood.
- Amos 2:6 This is what the LORD says: “For three transgressions of Israel, even four, I will not revoke My judgment, because they sell the righteous for silver and the needy for a pair of sandals.
- Isaiah 17:1 This is the burden against Damascus: “Behold, Damascus is no longer a city; it has become a heap of ruins.
- Amos 1:6 This is what the LORD says: “For three transgressions of Gaza, even four, I will not revoke My judgment, because they exiled a whole population, delivering them up to Edom.
- Amos 1:13 This is what the LORD says: “For three transgressions of the Ammonites, even four, I will not revoke My judgment, because they ripped open the pregnant women of Gilead in order to enlarge their territory.
- Amos 2:1 This is what the LORD says: “For three transgressions of Moab, even four, I will not revoke My judgment, because he burned to lime the bones of Edom’s king.