Amos 9:4 (ASV)

Passage

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.

Nearby Context

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;

Amos 9:6 [it is] he that buildeth his chambers in the heavens, and hath founded his vault upon the earth; he that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth; Jehovah is his name.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "for good", "though", "captivity", "before", "enemies", "thence", "command", and "sword". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "for good" and "though", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "And though they hide themselves in the..." into verse 5's "For the Lord Jehovah of hosts is...", so "for good" and "though" 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 "for good" and "though" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.