Amos 2:14

Amplified Bible

"Flight will be lost to the swift [so they will be unable to escape], And the strong shall not strengthen nor maintain his power, Nor shall the mighty man save his own life.

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Escape will fail the swift,the strong one will not maintain his strength,and the warrior will not save his life.

Hebrew Names Version
Flight will perish from the swift; And the strong won't strengthen his force; Neither shall the mighty deliver himself;

King James Version
Therefore the flight shall perish from the swift, and the strong shall not strengthen his force, neither shall the mighty deliver himself:

English Standard Version
Flight shall perish from the swift, and the strong shall not retain his strength, nor shall the mighty save his life;

New American Standard Bible
"Refuge will be lost from the swift, And the strong will not strengthen his power, Nor the warrior save his life.

New Century Version
No one will escape, not even the fastest runner. Strong people will not be strong enough; warriors will not be able to save themselves.

Geneva Bible (1587)
Therefore the flight shall perish from the swift, and the strong shall not strengthen his force, neither shall the mightie saue his life.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
"Flight will perish from the swift, And the stalwart will not strengthen his power, Nor the mighty man save his life.

Legacy Standard Bible
So flight will perish from the swift,And the strong will not instill his power with courage,Nor will the mighty man make his life escape.

Berean Standard Bible
Escape will fail the swift, the strong will not prevail by his strength, and the mighty will not save his life.

Contemporary English Version
No matter how fast you run, you won't escape. No matter how strong you are, you will lose your strength and your life.

Complete Jewish Bible
Even the swift won't be able to flee; the strong won't be able to use their strength, the warriors won't save themselves.

Darby Translation
And flight shall perish from the swift, and the strong shall not strengthen his force, neither shall the mighty deliver his soul.

Easy-to-Read Version
No one will escape, not even the fastest runner. Strong men will not be strong enough. Soldiers will not be able to save themselves.

George Lamsa Translation
Therefore the power to run shall perish from the swift, and the strong shall not possess his strength, neither shall the mighty deliver himself.

Good News Translation
Not even fast runners will escape; strong men will lose their strength, and soldiers will not be able to save their own lives.

Lexham English Bible
Flight will perish from the swift and the strong person will not muster his strength and the warrior will not save his life.

Literal Translation
And refuge shall perish from the swift, and the strong shall not strengthen his power, nor shall the mighty deliver his life,

American Standard Version
And flight shall perish from the swift; and the strong shall not strengthen his force; neither shall the mighty deliver himself;

Bible in Basic English
And flight will be impossible for the quick-footed, and the force of the strong will become feeble, and the man of war will not get away safely:

JPS Old Testament (1917)
And flight shall fail the swift, and the strong shall not exert his strength, neither shall the mighty deliver himself;

King James Version (1611)
Therefore the flight shall perish from the swift, and the strong shall not strengthen his force, neither shall the mightie deliuer himselfe:

Bishop's Bible (1568)
Therfore the flight shall perishe from the swift, and the strong shal not strengthen his force, neither shall the mightie saue his life.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And flight shall perish from the runner, and the strong shall not hold fast his strength, and the warrior shall not save his life:

English Revised Version
And flight shall perish from the swift, and the strong shall not strengthen his force, neither shall the mighty deliver himself:

World English Bible
Flight will perish from the swift; And the strong won't strengthen his force; Neither shall the mighty deliver himself;

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And fliyt schal perische fro a swift man, and a strong man schal not holde his vertu, and a stalworthe man schal not saue his lijf;

Update Bible Version
And flight shall perish from the swift; and the strong shall not strengthen his force; neither shall the mighty deliver himself;

Webster's Bible Translation
Therefore the flight shall perish from the swift, and the strong shall not strengthen his force, neither shall the mighty deliver himself:

New English Translation
Fast runners will find no place to hide; strong men will have no strength left; warriors will not be able to save their lives.

New King James Version
Therefore flight shall perish from the swift, The strong shall not strengthen his power, Nor shall the mighty deliver himself;

New Living Translation
Your fastest runners will not get away. The strongest among you will become weak. Even mighty warriors will be unable to save themselves.

New Life Bible
Even the fast man will not get away. The strong man will not keep his strength. And the powerful man will not save his life.

New Revised Standard
Flight shall perish from the swift, and the strong shall not retain their strength, nor shall the mighty save their lives;

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Therefore shall flight, perish, from the swift, and, the mighty, shall not invigorate his strength, - nor shall, the hero, escape with his life;

Douay-Rheims Bible
And flight shall perish from the swift, and the valiant shall not possess his strength, neither shall the strong save his life.

Revised Standard Version
Flight shall perish from the swift, and the strong shall not retain his strength, nor shall the mighty save his life;

Young's Literal Translation
And perished hath refuge from the swift, And the strong strengtheneth not his power, And the mighty delivereth not his soul.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
so that ye swifte shall not escape, nether the stronge be able to do eny thynge: no, the giaunte shal not saue his owne life.

THE MESSAGE
"When I go into action, what will you do? There's no place to run no matter how fast you run. The strength of the strong won't count. Fighters won't make it. Skilled archers won't make it. Fast runners won't make it. Chariot drivers won't make it. Even the bravest of all your warriors Won't make it. He'll run off for dear life, stripped naked." God 's Decree.

Contextual Overview

⁹"Yet it was I [not the false gods] who destroyed the Amorite before them, Though his height was like the height of the cedars, And he was as strong as the oaks; I even destroyed his fruit above and his root below. ¹⁰"Also it was I who brought you up out of the land of Egypt, And I led you forty years through the wilderness That you might possess the land of the Amorite. ¹¹"Then I raised up some of your sons to be prophets [who gave you My revelation], And some of your young men to be Nazirites (dedicated ones). Is this not true, O you children of Israel?" says the LORD. ¹²"But you gave the Nazirites wine to drink [despite their vows] And commanded the prophets, saying, 'You shall not prophesy!' ¹³"Behold, I am weighted down beneath you As a cart that is weighted down when it is full of sheaves. ¹⁴"Flight will be lost to the swift [so they will be unable to escape], And the strong shall not strengthen nor maintain his power, Nor shall the mighty man save his own life.¹⁵"He who handles the bow will not stand his ground, The one who is swift of foot will not escape, Nor will he who rides the horse save his life [from the invading army]. ¹⁶"Even the bravest among the warriors shall flee naked on that day," says the LORD.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

the flight: Amos 9:1-3, Job 11:20, *marg. Ecclesiastes 9:11, Isaiah 30:16, Jeremiah 9:23

himself: Heb. his soul, or life

Reciprocal: Joshua 8:20 - and they had Judges 8:12 - took 1 Samuel 31:3 - went sore 2 Samuel 2:18 - was as light 1 Kings 19:17 - him that escapeth 1 Kings 20:30 - a wall 2 Kings 7:7 - their horses 2 Kings 25:5 - and overtook 1 Chronicles 10:3 - went Job 27:22 - he would fain flee Psalms 50:22 - none Isaiah 9:14 - will cut Isaiah 40:30 - General Jeremiah 11:11 - which Jeremiah 25:35 - the shepherds Jeremiah 39:4 - when Jeremiah 46:6 - not Jeremiah 48:44 - that fleeth Jeremiah 52:8 - General Lamentations 4:19 - they pursued Hosea 5:14 - none Amos 4:12 - thus Micah 2:3 - from Micah 6:14 - and thou Hebrews 9:7 - errors

Cross-References

Genesis 10:11
From that land Nimrod went to Assyria, and built Nineveh, and Rehoboth-Ir, and Calah,

Genesis 10:22
The sons of Shem: Elam, Asshur, Arpachshad, Lud and Aram;

Genesis 15:18
On the same day the LORD made a covenant (promise, pledge) with Abram, saying, "To your descendants I have given this land, From the river of Egypt to the great river Euphrates—

Genesis 25:18
Ishmael's sons (descendants) settled from Havilah to Shur which is east of Egypt as one goes toward Assyria; he settled opposite (east) of all his relatives.

Deuteronomy 1:7
'Turn and resume your journey, and go to the hill country of the Amorites, and to all their neighbors in the Arabah, in the hill country and in the lowland (the Shephelah), in the Negev (South country) and on the coast of the [Mediterranean] Sea, the land of the Canaanites, and Lebanon, as far as the great river, the river Euphrates.

Deuteronomy 11:24
"Every place on which the sole of your foot treads shall become yours; your territory shall be from the wilderness to Lebanon, and from the river, the river Euphrates, as far as the western sea (the Mediterranean).

Daniel 10:4
On the twenty-fourth day of the first month, as I was on the bank of the great river Hiddekel [which is the Tigris],

Revelation 9:14
saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, "Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates."

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Therefore the flight shall perish from the swift,.... They should be so straitened and cooped up, and be so loaded with pressures, that those, as swift of foot as Asahel, should not be able to make their escape by fleeing:

and the strong shall not strengthen his force; should not increase it, or muster it up, and exert it to such a degree, as to be able to defend and secure himself from the enemy:

neither shall the mighty deliver himself; "his soul" or "life"; a soldier, a man of war, an expert and courageous officer at the head of his troop, or even the general of the army; see Psalms 33:16.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Israel relied, against God, on his own strength. “Have we not,” they said, “taken to us horns by our own strength?” Amos 6:13. Amos tells them then, that every means of strength, resistance, flight, swiftness of foot, of horse, place of refuge, should fail them. Three times he repeats, as a sort of dirge, “he shall not deliver himself.”

Therefore the flight shall perish - (Probably place of flight Job 11:20; Psalms 142:5; Jeremiah 25:35). They had despised God, as their “place of refuge” , so “the place of refuge, should perish from the swift,” as though it were not. He should flee amain, but there would be no “place to flee unto.” God alone “renews strength;” therefore “the strong” man should not “strengthen his force or might,” should not be able to gather or “collect his strength” as we say. Fear should disable him. “The handler of the bow” (as in Jeremiah 46:9), and who by habit is a skilled archer, although himself out of the immediate reach of the enemy, and able, unharmed, to annoy him and protect the fugitives, “shall not stand” (as in Jeremiah 46:21; Nahum 2:8). Panic should overtake him. The “mighty” man, the “fleet of foot” should “not deliver,” yea, “the horseman” should not “deliver himself;” yea, he who, “among the mighty,” was “strongest of his heart,” firm-souled among those of mightiest prowess, “shall flee away naked,” that is, bared of all, armor or dress, which might encumber his flight “in that day” which the Lord made a day of terror His own day.

Saith the Lord - Probably literally, “the secret utterance of the Lord.” Amos, more than Hosea, uses this special authentication of his words , which is so common in Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Zechariah. He claims a knowledge, which those around him had not, and ratifies it by the express appeal to the direct, though secret, revelation of God; what those who were not of God, would deny; what they who were of God, would believe.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Amos 2:14. The flight shall perish from the swift — The swiftest shall not be able to save himself from a swifter destruction. None, by might, by counsel, or by fleetness, shall be able to escape from the impending ruin. In a word, God has so fully determined to avenge the quarrel of his broken covenant, that all attempts to escape from his judgments shall be useless.