Amos 5:18 (YLT)

Passage

Ho, ye who are desiring the day of Jehovah, Why <FI>is<Fi> this to you--the day of Jehovah? It is darkness, and not light,

Nearby Context

Amos 5:16 Therefore, thus said Jehovah, God of Hosts, the Lord, In all broad places <FI>is<Fi> lamentation, And in all out-places they say, `Alas, alas,' And called the husbandman to mourning, And to lamentation the skilful of wailing.

Amos 5:17 And in all vineyards <FI>is<Fi> lamentation, For I pass into thy midst, said Jehovah.

Amos 5:18 Ho, ye who are desiring the day of Jehovah, Why <FI>is<Fi> this to you--the day of Jehovah? It is darkness, and not light,

Amos 5:19 As <FI>when<Fi> one fleeth from the face of the lion, And the bear hath met him, And he hath come in to the house, And hath leant his hand on the wall, And the serpent hath bitten him.

Amos 5:20 Is not the day of Jehovah darkness and not light, Even thick darkness that hath no brightness?

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "light", "darkness", "desiring", "jehovah", and "you--the". It is saying that the contrast between light and darkness marks a real divide in how people respond to God's work.

The nearby context moves from verse 17's "And in all vineyards FI is Fi..." into verse 19's "As FI when Fi one fleeth from...", so "light" and "darkness" 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 "light" and "darkness" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.