Amos 5:16Therefore thus says Yahweh, the God of Armies, the Lord: "Wailing will be in all the broad ways; and they will say in all the streets, 'Alas! Alas!' and they will call the farmer to mourning, and those who are skillful in lamentation to wailing.
The setting
Northern Israel, ~760 BC. God describes the coming Assyrian invasion - so devastating that professional mourners won't be enough...
The emotion here: heartbroken shepherd forced to deliver God's devastating verdict
The original word
misped (מספד) — ritualized mourning with torn clothes, wailing, and dust on heads
Why it matters
Professional mourners were hired for funerals - calling farmers to mourn means death is so widespread that everyone must help
Read with care
What most readers miss in Amos 5:16
Farmers abandoning their fields to mourn means total societal collapse - even food production stops
Common misconceptionThis seems like random divine anger, but it's the inevitable consequence of ignoring repeated warnings about injustice - God's judgment follows persistent oppression of the poor.
The thread continues
Verses that echo Amos 5:16
Bible Genome reading
Amos 5:16 — Bible Genome reading
Emotional genome
Amos 5:16 comes from the book of Amos, written during the Divided Kingdom period. These words are attributed to God. The dominant emotion in this verse is grieving, with a comfort power of 10% and a tone that is lamenting. It belongs to the prophecy genre of biblical literature. Key themes include judgment, mourning, universal grief. Notable phrases: wailing will be; all broad ways; Alas! Alas!. This verse contains a promise of God. This verse contains prophecy.
Emotionally similar
Verses that meet the same grieving
“By the sweat of your face will you eat bread until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken. For you are dust, and to dust you…”
— Genesis 3:19
“Jesus wept.”
— John 11:35
“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from helping me, and from the words of my groaning?”
— Psalms 22:1
“They divide my garments among them. They cast lots for my clothing.”
— Psalms 22:18
“for all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God;”
— Romans 3:23
Your reflection
What does Amos 5:16 mean to you, today?
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