Amos 9:3 (ASV)

Passage

And though they hide themselves in the top of Carmel, I will search and take them out thence; and though they be hid from my sight in the bottom of the sea, thence will I command the serpent, and it shall bite them.

Nearby Context

Amos 9:1 I saw the Lord standing beside the altar: and he said, Smite the capitals, that the thresholds may shake; and break them in pieces on the head of all of them; and I will slay the last of them with the sword: there shall not one of them flee away, and there shall not one of them escape.

Amos 9:2 Though they dig into Sheol, thence shall my hand take them; and though they climb up to heaven, thence will I bring them down.

Amos 9:3 And though they hide themselves in the top of Carmel, I will search and take them out thence; and though they be hid from my sight in the bottom of the sea, thence will I command the serpent, and it shall bite them.

Amos 9:4 And though they go into captivity before their enemies, thence will I command the sword, and it shall slay them: and I will set mine eyes upon them for evil, and not for good.

Amos 9:5 For the Lord, Jehovah of hosts, [is] he that toucheth the land and it melteth, and all that dwell therein shall mourn; and it shall rise up wholly like the River, and shall sink again, like the River of Egypt;

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "though", "hide", "themselves", "carmel", "search", "take", and "thence". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "though" and "hide", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 2's "Though they dig into Sheol thence shall..." into verse 4's "And though they go into captivity before...", so "though" and "hide" 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 "though" and "hide" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.