And they lay themselves down upon clothes laid to pledge by every altar, and they drink the wine of the condemned in the house of their god.
Parallel translations
- WEB and they lay themselves down beside every altar on clothes taken in pledge; and in the house of their God they drink the wine of those who have been fined.
- BSB They lie down beside every altar on garments taken in pledge. And in the house of their God, they drink wine obtained through fines.
- NKJV They lie down by every altar on clothes taken in pledge, And drink the wine of the condemned in the house of their god.
- NASB “And on garments seized as pledges they stretch out beside every altar, And in the house of their God they drink the wine of those who have been fined.
- NLT At their religious festivals, they lounge in clothing their debtors put up as security. In the house of their gods, they drink wine bought with unjust fines.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Israel worships on garments seized from the poor and drinks wine bought with unjust fines, even in God's house. They turn worship into a celebration of their own oppression.
Overview
The Law required a poor man's pledged cloak to be returned by nightfall (Exodus 22:26-27), but here it is kept and used at pagan altars. Wine taken through extortion is consumed in worship. Their religion is funded and stained by injustice. God despises worship that coexists with cruelty, a theme that exposes hypocrisy and points to the need for a cleansed heart given in Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 14
- Deut 24:12–17And if the man be poor, thou shalt not sleep with his pledge:
- Exod 22:26–27If thou at all take thy neighbour’s raiment to pledge, thou shalt deliver it unto him by that the sun goeth down:
- Amos 6:6That drink wine in bowls, and anoint themselves with the chief ointments: but they are not grieved for the affliction of Joseph.
- Ezek 18:12Hath oppressed the poor and needy, hath spoiled by violence, hath not restored the pledge, and hath lifted up his eyes to the idols, hath committed abomination,
- 1 Cor 10:21Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord’s table, and of the table of devils.
- Ezek 18:7And hath not oppressed any, but hath restored to the debtor his pledge, hath spoiled none by violence, hath given his bread to the hungry, and hath covered the naked with a garment;
- Judg 9:27And they went out into the fields, and gathered their vineyards, and trode the grapes, and made merry, and went into the house of their god, and did eat and drink, and cursed Abimelech.
- Hos 4:8They eat up the sin of my people, and they set their heart on their iniquity.
- 1 Cor 10:7Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.
- Amos 6:4That lie upon beds of ivory, and stretch themselves upon their couches, and eat the lambs out of the flock, and the calves out of the midst of the stall;
- Amos 4:1Hear this word, ye kine of Bashan, that are in the mountain of Samaria, which oppress the poor, which crush the needy, which say to their masters, Bring, and let us drink.
- Ezek 23:41And satest upon a stately bed, and a table prepared before it, whereupon thou hast set mine incense and mine oil.
- 1 Cor 8:10For if any man see thee which hast knowledge sit at meat in the idol’s temple, shall not the conscience of him which is weak be emboldened to eat those things which are offered to idols;
- Isa 57:7Upon a lofty and high mountain hast thou set thy bed: even thither wentest thou up to offer sacrifice.
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Christ at the center
Amid judgment on injustice, Amos promises the raising up of David's fallen tent — read by James in Acts 15 as the ingathering of the nations into the kingdom of the risen Christ.
How Amos 2:8 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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