Amos 5:15 (ASV)

Passage

Hate the evil, and love the good, and establish justice in the gate: it may be that Jehovah, the God of hosts, will be gracious unto the remnant of Joseph.

Nearby Context

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.

Amos 5:15 Hate the evil, and love the good, and establish justice in the gate: it may be that Jehovah, the God of hosts, will be gracious unto the remnant of Joseph.

Amos 5:16 Therefore thus saith Jehovah, the God of hosts, the Lord: Wailing shall be in all the broad ways; and they shall say in all the streets, Alas! Alas! and they shall call the husbandman to mourning, and such as are skilful in lamentation to wailing.

Amos 5:17 And in all vineyards shall be wailing; for I will pass through the midst of thee, saith Jehovah.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "hate", "evil", "love", "good", "establish", "justice", "gate", and "jehovah". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "hate" and "evil", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 14's "Seek good and not evil that ye..." into verse 16's "Therefore thus saith Jehovah the God of...", so "hate" and "evil" 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 "hate" and "evil" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.