Amos 2:11
And I raised up of your sons for prophets, and of your young men for Nazarites. Is it not so, O ye children of Israel, saith the Lord?
Open Amos 2:11 in the Motif Searcher, word by word across all five texts →Show on the spiral →The verse in its languages
- Vulgate (Clementine)
- Et suscitavi de filiis vestris in prophetas, et de juvenibus vestris nazaræos. Numquid non ita est, filii Israël ? dicit Dominus.
- Septuagint (Swete)
- καὶ ἔλαβον ἐκ τῶν υἱῶν ὑμῶν εἰς προφήτας, καὶ ἐκ τῶν νεανίσκων ὑμῶν εἰς ἁγιασμόν· μὴ οὐκ ἔστιν ταῦτα, υἱοὶ Ἰσραήλ; λέγει Κύριος.
- Hebrew (WLC)
- וָאָקִ֤ים מִבְּנֵיכֶם֙ לִנְבִיאִ֔ים וּמִבַּחוּרֵיכֶ֖ם לִנְזִרִ֑ים הַאַ֥ף אֵֽין זֹ֛את בְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל נְאֻם יְהוָֽה
Haydock's commentary
Nazarites. Some went secretly to Jerusalem for this purpose; or perhaps they performed these rites illegally at Bethel: for many parts of the law were observed, though not perfectly, chap iv. 4. The Nazarites were in high estimation, Lamentations iv. 7. But the dissolute Israelites (Calmet) derided them as well as the prophets, (Haydock) and attempted to make them transgress. (Calmet)
From Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary, 1859, in the transcription made by Todd Easton and kept online by John Paul Wohlschied at johnblood.gitlab.io/haydock.
The Fathers on this verse
St John Chrysostom Treatise Concerning the Christian Priesthood, Book VI
11. For this very cause God accuses the Israelites more vehemently, and shows that they were worthy of greater chastisement, because they sinned after so many honors had come to them from Him, saying in one place: “But you only have I known of all the families of the earth, therefore will I punish you for your iniquities,” and again, “and I raised up of your sons for prophets, and of your young men for Nazarites;” and before the times of the prophets, wishing to show that sins receive sorer punishment by far when they occur in the case of the Priest than in the case of the laity, He enjoins as great a sacrifice to be offered for the Priest as for the whole people, and this amounts to a proof on his part, that the wounds of the Priesthood need more assistance, that is, as great as those of all the people together, and they would not have needed a greater, except they were worse; and they …
St John Chrysostom The Homilies of St. John Chrysostom on Timothy, Titus, and Philemon, Titus 1:5,6
Dost thou enjoy honor? reject it, knowing that it renders thee a debtor. Does no one honor thee? thou oughtest to rejoice at it. For God will not lay to thy charge this, among other things, that thou hast enjoyed honor. Seest thou not that God upbraids Israel with this among other things, by his prophet, “I took of your sons for Prophets, and of your young men for sanctification”? ( Amos ii. 11 , Sept.) Thou wilt therefore gain this advantage at least, that thou wilt not aggravate thy punishment. For he who is not honored in the present life, who is despised, and held in no consideration, but is insulted and scorned, gains this at least, if nothing else, that he has not to answer for being honored by his fellow-servants. And on many other accounts he gains by it. He is brought down and humbled, nor if he would, can he be high-minded, if he takes the more heed to himself. …