“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.
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.
- KJV 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.
- 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.
- 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 24:12–17If he is a poor man, you shall not sleep with his pledge.
- Exod 22:26–27If you take your neighbor’s garment as collateral, you shall restore it to him before the sun goes down,
- Amos 6:6who drink wine in bowls, and anoint themselves with the best oils; but they are not grieved for the affliction of Joseph.
- Ezek 18:12has wronged the poor and needy, has taken by robbery, has not restored the pledge, and has lifted up his eyes to the idols, has committed abomination,
- 1 Cor 10:21You can’t both drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons. You can’t both partake of the table of the Lord, and of the table of demons.
- Ezek 18:7and has not wronged any, but has restored to the debtor his pledge, has taken nothing by robbery, has given his bread to the hungry, and has covered the naked with a garment;
- Judg 9:27They went out into the field, harvested their vineyards, trod the grapes, held festival, and went into the house of their god, and ate and drank, and cursed Abimelech.
- Hos 4:8They feed on the sin of my people, and set their heart on their iniquity.
- 1 Cor 10:7Don’t be idolaters, as some of them were. As it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.”
- Amos 6:4Who lie on beds of ivory, and stretch themselves on their couches, and eat the lambs out of the flock, and the calves out of the middle of the stall;
- Amos 4:1Listen to this word, you cows of Bashan, who are on the mountain of Samaria, who oppress the poor, who crush the needy, who tell their husbands, “Bring us drinks!”
- Ezek 23:41and sat on a stately bed, with a table prepared before it, whereupon you set my incense and my oil.
- 1 Cor 8:10For if a man sees you who have knowledge sitting in an idol’s temple, won’t his conscience, if he is weak, be emboldened to eat things sacrificed to idols?
- Isa 57:7On a high and lofty mountain you have set your bed. You also went up there 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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