Amos 5:12 (ASV)

Passage

For I know how manifold are your transgressions, and how mighty are your sins-ye that afflict the just, that take a bribe, and that turn aside the needy in the gate [from their right].

Nearby Context

Amos 5:10 They hate him that reproveth in the gate, and they abhor him that speaketh uprightly.

Amos 5:11 Forasmuch therefore as ye trample upon the poor, and take exactions from him of wheat: ye have built houses of hewn stone, but ye shall not dwell in them; ye have planted pleasant vineyards, but ye shall not drink the wine thereof.

Amos 5:12 For I know how manifold are your transgressions, and how mighty are your sins-ye that afflict the just, that take a bribe, and that turn aside the needy in the gate [from their right].

Amos 5:13 Therefore he that is prudent shall keep silence in such a time; for it is an evil time.

Amos 5:14 Seek good, and not evil, that ye may live; and so Jehovah, the God of hosts, will be with you, as ye say.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "transgressions", "manifold", "mighty", "sins-ye", "afflict", "just", "take", and "bribe". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "transgressions" and "manifold", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 11's "Forasmuch therefore as ye trample upon the..." into verse 13's "Therefore he that is prudent shall keep...", so "transgressions" and "manifold" 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 "transgressions" and "manifold" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.