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Seek good, not evil, so that you may live. And the LORD, the God of Hosts, will be with you, as you have claimed.
Amos 5:14 · Berean Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB Seek good, and not evil, that you may live; and so Yahweh, the God of Armies, will be with you, as you say.
  • KJV Seek good, and not evil, that ye may live: and so the LORD, the God of hosts, shall be with you, as ye have spoken.
  • NKJV Seek good and not evil, That you may live; So the Lord God of hosts will be with you, As you have spoken.
  • NASB ¶Seek good and not evil, so that you may live; And so may the Lord God of armies be with you, Just as you have said!
  • NLT Do what is good and run from evil so that you may live! Then the Lord God of Heaven’s Armies will be your helper, just as you have claimed.

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

Amos urges Israel to truly seek good rather than evil so they may live and genuinely have God with them. Real fellowship with God requires repentance, not mere claims of his presence.

Overview

Israel boasted that 'God is with us,' but Amos insists that such a claim is empty without a life that pursues good. To 'seek good' is to seek the Lord himself, the source of all good, and this seeking is the path to life. The gospel fulfills this longing: in Christ, God is truly Immanuel, 'God with us,' and he produces the good he commands in those he saves.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 24

  • Josh 1:9Have I not commanded you to be strong and courageous? Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”
  • Matt 6:33But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you.
  • Mic 3:11Her leaders judge for a bribe, her priests teach for a price, and her prophets practice divination for money. Yet they lean upon the LORD, saying, “Is not the LORD among us? No disaster can come upon us.”
  • Phil 4:8–9Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think on these things.
  • Mic 6:8He has shown you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you but to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?
  • 2 Tim 4:22The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you all.
  • Isa 48:1–2“Listen to this, O house of Jacob, you who are called by the name of Israel, who have descended from the line of Judah, who swear by the name of the LORD, who invoke the God of Israel—but not in truth or righteousness—
  • 1 Chr 28:20David also said to Solomon his son, “Be strong and courageous, and do it. Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the LORD God, my God, is with you. He will neither fail you nor forsake you before all the work for the service of the house of the LORD is finished.
  • Ps 34:12–16Who is the man who delights in life, who desires to see good days?
  • Gen 39:2–3And the LORD was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, serving in the household of his Egyptian master.
  • Rom 2:7–9To those who by perseverance in doing good seek glory, honor, and immortality, He will give eternal life.
  • Jer 7:3–4Thus says the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel: Correct your ways and deeds, and I will let you live in this place.
  • Amos 3:3Can two walk together without agreeing where to go?
  • Matt 1:23“Behold, the virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call Him Immanuel” (which means, “God with us”).
  • Prov 11:27He who searches out good finds favor, but evil will come to him who seeks it.
  • Isa 55:2Why spend money on that which is not bread, and your labor on that which does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of foods.
  • Ps 46:11The LORD of Hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah
  • Isa 8:10Devise a plan, but it will be thwarted; state a proposal, but it will not happen. For God is with us.”
  • Isa 1:16–17Wash and cleanse yourselves. Remove your evil deeds from My sight. Stop doing evil!
  • Exod 3:12“I will surely be with you,” God said, “and this will be the sign to you that I have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, all of you will worship God on this mountain.”
  • 2 Chr 15:2So he went out to meet Asa and said to him, “Listen to me, Asa and all Judah and Benjamin. The LORD is with you when you are with Him. If you seek Him, He will be found by you, but if you forsake Him, He will forsake you.
  • Gen 39:23The warden did not concern himself with anything under Joseph’s care, because the LORD was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did.
  • Num 16:3They came together against Moses and Aaron and told them, “You have taken too much upon yourselves! For everyone in the entire congregation is holy, and the LORD is in their midst. Why then do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the LORD?”
  • Matt 28:20and teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (1)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Amos videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Amos 5:14YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on AmosMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

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 5:14 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.