Verse Lens · Expanded explanation
Amos 3:14 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 14. 14That in the day that I shall visit the transgressions of Israel upon him I will also visit the altars of Beth-el: and the horns of the altar shall be cut off, and fall to the ground.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
This verse visits Bethel's transgressions and cuts its altar horns to the ground.
Read It With
- Amos 3:13-15
Read Amos 3:14 with 3:13-15. This verse visits Bethel's transgressions and cuts its altar horns to the ground. The complete unit establishes this movement: Cultic security at Bethel and elite architectural excess share one judgment: altar horns are cut off and seasonal ivory-decorated houses collapse.
Why This Verse Appears Here
The unit joins sanctuary and household wealth, refusing to let worship hide the economy that sustains elite comfort. Within that movement, this verse visits Bethel's transgressions and cuts its altar horns to the ground.
Follow the Context
- Witnesses are told to testify to Jacob.
- Bethel's transgressions and altar horns are visited.
- Winter and summer residences are struck.
- Ivory-decorated and great houses come to an end.
What This Verse Is Not Saying
The verse does not authorize vandalism, antisemitism, or violence against Jewish or other religious sites.
What Remains True
Sanctuary symbols cannot protect worship that participates in injustice.
How It Can Shape Life
- Review religious institutions without attacking sacred spaces or worshipers.
Teach It Back
Explain Amos 3:14's contribution to Amos 3:13-15: visits Bethel's transgressions and cuts its altar horns to the ground. Include what the surrounding verses add, the stated uncertainty, and what this verse does not authorize.
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Continue in Context
The full thought-unit study remains the final contextual authority for this Verse Lens.
Read Amos 3:13-15 — Bethel's Altars and Luxury Houses Fall TogetherSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? probable
Where care is needed
The number of altars and the horns' asylum or ritual significance are debated.
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact reader-facing Scripture wording, paragraph markers, supplied-word markup, and complete verse coverage.
Exact location: Amos 3:13-15, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM corpus
Open source ↗hebrew text and morphology
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: Amos
Open Scriptures
Open Scriptures, release 2.2
Supports: Masoretic Hebrew wording, morphology, clause relationships, wordplays, names, and the base text behind translation discussion.
Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v.2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Amos.xml, 3:13-15
Open source ↗translation and translator notes
NET Bible: Amos with translators' notes
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, 2006
Supports: Verse-level translation, syntax, textual, literary, historical, and uncertainty notes.
Exact location: NET Bible Amos PDF, printed pp. 1711, translation and notes on 3:13-15
Open source ↗