Amos 5:12 (LSB)

Passage

For I know your transgressions are many and your sins are mighty, You who distress the righteous and take bribes And turn aside the needy in the gate.

Nearby Context

Amos 5:10 They hate him who reproves in the gate, And they abhor him who speaks with integrity.

Amos 5:11 Therefore because you impose heavy rent on the poor And take a tribute of grain from them, Though you have built houses of cut stone, Yet you will not live in them; You have planted desirable vineyards, yet you will not drink their wine.

Amos 5:12 For I know your transgressions are many and your sins are mighty, You who distress the righteous and take bribes And turn aside the needy in the gate.

Amos 5:13 Therefore at such a time the one with insight keeps silent, for it is an evil time.

Amos 5:14 Seek good and not evil, in order that you may live; And thus may Yahweh God of hosts be with you, Just as you have said!

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "transgressions", "sins", "mighty", "distress", "righteous", "take", "bribes", and "turn". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "transgressions" and "sins", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 11's "Therefore because you impose heavy rent on..." into verse 13's "Therefore at such a time the one...", so "transgressions" and "sins" 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 "sins" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.