Amos 4:2 (KJV)

Passage

The Lord GOD hath sworn by his holiness, that, lo, the days shall come upon you, that he will take you away with hooks, and your posterity with fishhooks.

Nearby Context

Amos 4:1 Hear this word, ye kine of Bashan, that are in the mountain of Samaria, which oppress the poor, which crush the needy, which say to their masters, Bring, and let us drink.

Amos 4:2 The Lord GOD hath sworn by his holiness, that, lo, the days shall come upon you, that he will take you away with hooks, and your posterity with fishhooks.

Amos 4:3 And ye shall go out at the breaches, every cow at that which is before her; and ye shall cast them into the palace, saith the LORD.

Amos 4:4 Come to Bethel, and transgress; at Gilgal multiply transgression; and bring your sacrifices every morning, and your tithes after three years:

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "lord", "hath", "sworn", "holiness", "days", "shall", "come", and "upon". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "lord" and "hath", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 1's "Hear this word ye kine of Bashan..." into verse 3's "And ye shall go out at the...", so "lord" and "hath" belong inside that flow. In Amos context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "lord" and "hath" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.