1. This is what the Lord God showed me: He was forming a swarm of locusts. This was after the king had taken his share of the first crop. The second crop had just begun growing.
2. The locusts ate all the crops in the country. After that I said, “Lord God, forgive us, I beg you! No one in Israel could live through this. Israel is too small already!”
3. So the Lord felt sorry about this. “This will not happen,” said the Lord.
4. This is what the Lord God showed me: The Lord God was calling for fire to come to punish. The fire dried up the deep water and destroyed the land.
5. Then I cried out, “Lord God, stop, I beg you! No one in Israel could live through this. Israel is too small already.”
6. So the Lord felt sorry about this. “This will not happen either,” said the Lord God.
7. This is what the Lord showed me: The Lord stood by a straight wall. He had a plumb line in his hand.
8. The Lord said to me, “Amos, what do you see?”I said, “A plumb line.”Then the Lord said, “See, I will put a plumb line among my people Israel to show how crooked they are. I will not feel sorry for them any longer.
9. “The places where Isaac’s descendants worship will be destroyed.Israel’s holy places will be turned into ruins.And I will attack King Jeroboam’s family with the sword.”