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Shall horses run on the rock? will one plow [there] with oxen? that you have turned justice into gall, and the fruit of righteousness into wormwood;
Verse Takeaways
1
The Absurdity of Injustice
Amos uses two absurd images—running horses on a cliff and plowing a rock—to show how senseless Israel's actions are. Commentators explain that seeking prosperity through injustice is as foolish and fruitless as these tasks. Israel had turned justice, a source of life and stability, into a bitter poison, a complete perversion of God's design.
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Book Overview
Amos
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5
18th Century
Presbyterian
The two images both represent a toil that people would condemn as absurd, destructive, and fruitless. The horse’s hooves or its limbs would be brok…
19th Century
Anglican
The questions require a negative answer and show that Israel's conduct is as inconsistent and senseless as the supposition involved in the question…
16th Century
Protestant
Interpreters misrepresent this verse. Some think that the Prophet, by these figurative expressions, means that the people were wholly unprofitable …
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17th Century
Reformed Baptist
Shall horses run upon the rocks? or will [one] plough [there] with oxen ? &c.] Will any man be so weak and foolish, to pr…
How dreadful, how miserable, is the case of those whose eternal ruin the Lord himself has sworn; for he can execute his purpose, and none can alter…
