Amos 5:19 (ASV)

Passage

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.

Nearby Context

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

Amos 5:18 Woe unto you that desire the day of Jehovah! Wherefore would ye have the day of Jehovah? It 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 Jehovah be darkness, and not light? even very dark, and no brightness in it?

Amos 5:21 I hate, I despise your feasts, and I will take no delight in your solemn assemblies.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "flee", "lion", "bear", "went", "house", "leaned", "hand", and "wall". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "flee" and "lion", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 18's "Woe unto you that desire the day..." into verse 20's "Shall not the day of Jehovah be...", so "flee" and "lion" 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 "flee" and "lion" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.