Will a lion roar in the forest, when he hath no prey? will a young lion cry out of his den, if he have taken nothing?
Parallel translations
- WEB Will a lion roar in the thicket, when he has no prey? Does a young lion cry out of his den, if he has caught nothing?
- BSB Does a lion roar in the forest when he has no prey? Does a young lion growl in his den if he has caught nothing?
- NKJV Will a lion roar in the forest, when he has no prey? Will a young lion cry out of his den, if he has caught nothing?
- NASB Does a lion roar in the forest when he has no prey? Does a young lion growl from his den unless he has captured something?
- NLT Does a lion ever roar in a thicket without first finding a victim? Does a young lion growl in its den without first catching its prey?
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
A lion roars only when it has prey, and a young lion growls only when it has caught something. So God's roar of judgment signals that he has real cause.
Overview
The lion imagery connects to 1:2 and 3:8, where Yahweh roars in judgment. A lion's roar means it has seized its prey; God's warning means judgment is at hand for a reason. Amos uses familiar pastoral observations to make divine truth plain. Nothing in God's dealings is arbitrary; his judgment answers to Israel's sin.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 5
- Hos 11:10They shall walk after the LORD: he shall roar like a lion: when he shall roar, then the children shall tremble from the west.
- Ps 104:21The young lions roar after their prey, and seek their meat from God.
- Amos 1:2And he said, The LORD will roar from Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the habitations of the shepherds shall mourn, and the top of Carmel shall wither.
- Amos 3:8The lion hath roared, who will not fear? the Lord GOD hath spoken, who can but prophesy?
- Hos 5:14For I will be unto Ephraim as a lion, and as a young lion to the house of Judah: I, even I, will tear and go away; I will take away, and none shall rescue him.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 3:4 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
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.