Amos 4:6 (ASV)

Passage

And I also have given you cleanness of teeth in all your cities, and want of bread in all your places; yet have ye not returned unto me, saith Jehovah.

Nearby Context

Amos 4:4 Come to Beth-el, and transgress; to Gilgal, [and] multiply transgression; and bring your sacrifices every morning, [and] your tithes every three days;

Amos 4:5 and offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving of that which is leavened, and proclaim freewill-offerings and publish them: for this pleaseth you, O ye children of Israel, saith the Lord Jehovah.

Amos 4:6 And I also have given you cleanness of teeth in all your cities, and want of bread in all your places; yet have ye not returned unto me, saith Jehovah.

Amos 4:7 And I also have withholden the rain from you, when there were yet three months to the harvest; and I caused it to rain upon one city, and caused it not to rain upon another city: one piece was rained upon, and the piece whereupon it rained not withered.

Amos 4:8 So two or three cities wandered unto one city to drink water, and were not satisfied: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith Jehovah.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "given", "cleanness", "teeth", "cities", "want", "bread", "places", and "returned". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "given" and "cleanness", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 5's "and offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving of..." into verse 7's "And I also have withholden the rain...", so "given" and "cleanness" 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 "given" and "cleanness" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.