Amos 5:20 (KJV)

Passage

Shall not the day of the LORD be darkness, and not light? even very dark, and no brightness in it?

Nearby Context

Amos 5:18 Woe unto you that desire the day of the LORD! to what end is it for you? the day of the LORD is darkness, and not light.

Amos 5:19 As if a man did flee from a lion, and a bear met him; or went into the house, and leaned his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him.

Amos 5:20 Shall not the day of the LORD be darkness, and not light? even very dark, and no brightness in it?

Amos 5:21 I hate, I despise your feast days, and I will not smell in your solemn assemblies.

Amos 5:22 Though ye offer me burnt offerings and your meat offerings, I will not accept them: neither will I regard the peace offerings of your fat beasts.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "light", "darkness", "shall", "lord", "even", "very", and "brightness". It is saying that the contrast between light and darkness marks a real divide in how people respond to God's work.

The nearby context moves from verse 19's "As if a man did flee from..." into verse 21's "I hate I despise your feast days...", so "light" and "darkness" 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 "light" and "darkness" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.