The Meaning of Amos 8:12 Explained

Amos 8:12

KJV: And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, and shall not find it.

YLT: And they have wandered from sea unto sea, And from north even unto east, They go to and fro to seek the word of Jehovah, And they do not find.

Darby: And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north to the east; they shall run to and fro to seek the word of Jehovah, and shall not find it.

ASV: And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east; they shall run to and fro to seek the word of Jehovah, and shall not find it.

Discover Amos 8:12

CONTEXT: What is the Context of Amos 8:12?

MEANING: What does Amos 8:12 Mean?

WORDS: What do the individual words in Amos 8:12 mean?

RELATIONS: What do the major concepts mean in Amos 8:12?

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And they shall wander  from sea  to sea,  and from the north  even to the east,  they shall run to and fro  to seek  the word  of the LORD,  and shall not find  [it]. 

What does Amos 8:12 Mean?

Context Summary

Amos 8:1-14 - The Worst Famine Of All
What is more fragile than summer fruit! So beautiful, so refreshing, yet so readily corrupted and diseased. To Amos it was an emblem of the rapidity with which dissolution would overtake his rebellious nation. The end had arrived. The Great Husbandman could do no more. When the harvest has come, separation between good and bad is inevitable. See Isaiah 5:4; Matthew 13:30.
The crimes of the ruling class were enormous. Eager to increase their stores, they wearied of time given to religion. They grudged passing a day without opening their salesrooms. They did not scruple to make their measures (ephah) small, and to demand a greater weight of money (shekel) from their clients. These were crimes that could not be passed over. It is an awful sentence when God says, "I will never forget," Amos 8:7. Invasion would sweep the land like an inundation. Since the people would not heed the God-sent messengers, they would be withdrawn. There would be a famine of the Word of God, and those who had most despised it, because enamored with the fascinations of youth, would be smitten with an insatiable appetite for it. [source]

Chapter Summary: Amos 8

1  By a basket of summer fruit is shown the approach of Israel's end
4  Oppression is reproved
11  A famine of the word of God threatened

What do the individual words in Amos 8:12 mean?

And they shall wander from sea to sea and from north and to east they shall run to and fro seeking - the word of Yahweh but not shall find [it]
וְנָעוּ֙ מִיָּ֣ם עַד־ יָ֔ם וּמִצָּפ֖וֹן וְעַד־ מִזְרָ֑ח יְשֽׁוֹטְט֛וּ לְבַקֵּ֥שׁ אֶת־ דְּבַר־ יְהוָ֖ה וְלֹ֥א יִמְצָֽאוּ

וְנָעוּ֙  And  they  shall  wander 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, third person common plural
Root: נוּעַ  
Sense: to quiver, totter, shake, reel, stagger, wander, move, sift, make move, wave, waver, tremble.
מִיָּ֣ם  from  sea 
Parse: Preposition-m, Noun, masculine singular
Root: יָם  
Sense: sea.
יָ֔ם  sea 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: יָם  
Sense: sea.
וּמִצָּפ֖וֹן  and  from  north 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Preposition-m, Noun, feminine singular
Root: צָפֹון  
Sense: north (of direction), northward.
וְעַד־  and  to 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Preposition
Root: עַד  
Sense: as far as, even to, until, up to, while, as far as.
מִזְרָ֑ח  east 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: מִזְרָח  
Sense: place of sunrise, east.
יְשֽׁוֹטְט֛וּ  they  shall  run  to  and  fro 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: שׁוּט  
Sense: to go, go or rove about, go to and fro.
לְבַקֵּ֥שׁ  seeking 
Parse: Preposition-l, Verb, Piel, Infinitive construct
Root: בָּקַשׁ  
Sense: to seek, require, desire, exact, request.
אֶת־  - 
Parse: Direct object marker
Root: אֹות 
Sense: sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative.
דְּבַר־  the  word 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: דָּבָר  
Sense: speech, word, speaking, thing.
יְהוָ֖ה  of  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
וְלֹ֥א  but  not 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Adverb, Negative particle
Root: הֲלֹא 
Sense: not, no.
יִמְצָֽאוּ  shall  find  [it] 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: מָצָא  
Sense: to find, attain to.

What are the major concepts related to Amos 8:12?

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