Amos 5:10

They hate him that rebuketh in the gate, and they abhor him that speaketh uprightly.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(10) Rebuker in the Gate.—The person so described might be the prophet himself. So also he that speaketh uprightly.

Benson Commentary

Amos 5:10. They hate him that rebuketh in the gate — The usual place of administering justice, and of reproving and passing judgment on iniquity. The prophet now, after having descanted upon God’s wondrous power, returns to enumerate the crimes of the Israelites; and begins with telling them, that they in general hated the judges who reproved them for their injurious conduct and acts of fraud or violence, and endeavoured to do justice to the oppressed. And besides this, they hated the prophets and private persons who rebuked ungodliness and unrighteousness, and exhorted men to the practice of piety and virtue.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

5:7-17 The same almighty power can, for repenting sinners, easily turn affliction and sorrow into prosperity and joy, and as easily turn the prosperity of daring sinners into utter darkness. Evil times will not bear plain dealing; that is, evil men will not. And these men were evil men indeed, when wise and good men thought it in vain even to speak to them. Those who will seek and love that which is good, may help to save the land from ruin. It behoves us to plead God's spiritual promises, to beseech him to create in us a clean heart, and to renew a right spirit within us. The Lord is ever ready to be gracious to the souls that seek him; and then piety and every duty will be attended to. But as for sinful Israel, God's judgments had often passed by them, now they shall pass through them.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

They hate him that rebuketh - "The gate" is the well-known place of concourse, where just or, in Israel now, unjust judgment was given Deuteronomy 25:7; Job 5:4; Job 31:21; 2 Samuel 15:2; Proverbs 22:22; Isaiah 29:21, where all was done which was to be done publicly Ruth 4:1, Ruth 4:11. Samaria had a large area by its chief gate, where two kings could hold court, and the 400 false prophets and the people, in great numbers, could gather 1 Kings 22:10; 2 Chronicles 18:9, and a market could be held 2 Kings 7:1. Josiah brake down an idol-shrine, which was in one of the gates of Jerusalem 2 Kings 23:8. The prophets seized the opportunity of finding the people together, and preached to them there. So it was even in the days of Solomon. "Wisdom crieth without; she uttereth her voice in the streets; she crieth in the chief place of concourse, in the openings of the gates, in the city she uttereth her words, How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity?..." Proverbs 1:20-22, and again, "She standeth in the top of high places, by the way, in the meeting of the paths. She crieth at the gates, at the entry of the city, at the coming in at the doors; Unto you, O men, I call, "Pro 8:2-4. Jeremiah mentions two occasions, upon which God bade him reprove the king and people in the gates of Jerusalem Jeremiah 17:19; Jeremiah 19:2. There doubtless Amos and Hosea reproved them, and, for reproving, were "hated." As Isaiah says, "they lay a snare for him that reproveth in the gate" Isaiah 29:21. They sinned publicly, and therefore they were to be rebuked publicly. They sinned "in the gate" by injustice and oppression, and therefore were to be "rebuked before all, that others also might fear" 1 Timothy 5:20.

And they abhor him that speaketh uprightly - Literally, "perfectly." The prophets spoke "perfectly" , "for they spoke the all-perfect word of God, of which David says, "The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul" Psalm 19:7. "Carnal eyes hate the light of truth, which they cast aside for execrable lies, closing to themselves the fountain of the divine mercy" . Rup.: "This is the sin which hath no remission; this is the sin of the strong and mighty, who sin not out of ignorance or weakness, but with impenitent heart proudly defend their sin, and 'hate him that rebuketh arid abhor him who' dareth to 'speak perfectly,' that is, not things which please them, but resisting their evil." This, like all other good of God and evil of man, met most in and against Christ. Rup.: "Who is he who 'rebuked in the gate' or who 'spake perfectly?' David rebuked them, and spake much perfectly, and so they hated him and said, 'what portion have we in David, or what inheritance have we in the son of Jesse?' 1 Kings 12:16, Him also who spake these very words, and the other prophets they hated and abhorred. But as the rest, so this too, is truly and indubitably fulfilled in Christ, rebuking justly and speaking perfectly. He Himself saith in a Psalm, 'They that sat in the gate spake against Me' Psalm 69:12, wherefore, when He had said, 'he that hateth Me hateth My Father also' John 15:23-25, and, 'now they have. both seen and hated both Me and My Father,' He subjoined, 'that the word might be fulfilled that is written in their law, they hated Me without a cause.' Above all then, we understand Christ, whom they hated, 'rebuking in the gate,' that is, openly and in public; as He said, 'I spake openly to the world, and in secret have I said nothing' John 18:20. He alone spake perfectly, 'Who did no sin, neither was guile found in His mouth.' 1 Peter 2:22. In wisdom also and doctrine, He alone spake perfectly, perfectly. and so wonderfully, that 'the officers of the chief priests and Pharisees' who were 'sent to take, Him, said, Never man spake like this Man.' John 7:45-46.

Jerome: "it is a great sin to hate him who rebuketh, especially if he rebuke thee, not out of dislike, but out of love, if he doth it 'between thee and him alone Matthew 18:15-17, if, taking with' him a brother, if afterward, in the presence of the Church, so that it may be evident that he does not blame thee out of any love of detraction, but out of zeal for thine amendment."

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

10. him that rebuketh in the gate—the judge who condemns their iniquity in the place of judgment (Isa 29:21).

abhor him that speaketh uprightly—the prophet telling them the unwelcome truth: answering in the parallelism to the judge, "that rebuketh in the gate" (compare 1Ki 22:8; Pr 9:8; 12:1; Jer 36:23).

Matthew Poole's Commentary

Either this is the prophet’s complaint of them without further expecting their compliance with his advice, or he foretells what they will do, judges and people.

They hate him that rebuketh; they both hate them that rebuke; judges hate the prophets, who rebuke corrupt judges; and the people hate impartial judges, if any such be among them.

In the gate; where judges sat, and where the prophets did many times deliver their message.

They abhor him that speaketh uprightly; they cannot brook any one that deals plainly and honestly with them, whether judge, prophet, or private person.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

They hate him that rebuketh in the gate,.... Openly and publicly in the courts of judicature: wicked judges hated the prophets of the Lord, such as Amos, who faithfully reproved them for the perversion of justice, even when they were upon the bench: or the people were so corrupt and degenerate, that they hated those faithful judges who reproved them for their vices in the open courts of justice, when they came before them, The former sense seems best, and more agreeable to the context:

and they abhor him that speaketh uprightly; not only hate him, but abhor him, cannot bear the sight of him, or to hear his name mentioned that speaks out his mind freely and honestly, and tells them of their sins, and advises them to repent of them, and leave them.

Geneva Study Bible

They hate him {f} that rebuketh in the gate, and they abhor him that speaketh uprightly.

(f) They hate the Prophets, who reprove them in the open assemblies.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

10. The prophet reverts to the subject of Amos 5:7, which was interrupted by Amos 5:8-9.

They hate him that reproveth in the gate, &c.] They are heedless (Amos 5:7) of the claims of justice: they will not listen either to the exposure of wrong-doing or to the defence of innocence, in the public place of judgement. The same phrase, ‘the reprover in the gate,’ in a similar connexion, recurs Isaiah 29:21 : it denotes the person, whether judge or advocate, who indicts, impeaches, seeks to convict, the wrong-doer; cf. Job 13:10; Job 22:4, and the corresponding subst. ‘reproof,’ or ‘indictment’ (R.V. ‘reasoning’), Job 13:6 The ‘gate’—more exactly the ‘gate-way,’ with a depth corresponding to the thickness of the wall, in which it was constructed, and no doubt with seats along each side—is the Oriental forum: and it is often alluded to as the place in which the ‘elders’ sat, and justice was administered (e.g. Amos 5:12; Amos 5:15; Deuteronomy 21:19; Deuteronomy 22:15; Deuteronomy 25:7; Ruth 4:1-2; Ruth 4:11; Job 31:21; Psalm 127:5).

him that speaketh uprightly] sincerely or blamelessly (Jdg 9:16; Psalm 15:2); any one who comes forward to speak honestly in defence of the innocent, is the object of their undisguised ‘abhorrence.’ Abhor forms a climax upon hate: cf. Psalm 5:5 b, 6b.

Pulpit Commentary

Verses 10-12. - The prophet gives further instances of the people's corruption. Verse 10. - Him that rebuketh in the gate (Isaiah 29:21). The gate of Eastern cities was the place of public resort (Proverbs 1:21), either for business (Deuteronomy 25:7), or the administration of justice (2 Samuel 15:2), or for gossip. So "he that rebuketh in the gate" may be a judge, or a chief, or a prophet (Jeremiah 17:19; Jeremiah 19:2). It seems better to take the words thus than to join "in the gate" to "they hate," with the meaning that those who resort to the gate - kings, chiefs, judges - hate the prophet's reproof, for the following verses show that Amos is referring chiefly to judicial proceedings, and not to his own mission. Uprightly; literally, perfectly; Vulgate, perfecte; i.e. without reserve, keeping nothing back. Amos 5:10

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

"They hate the monitor in the gate, and abhor him that speaketh uprightly. Amos 5:11. Therefore, because ye tread upon the poor, and take the distribution of corn from him, ye have built houses of square stones, and will not dwell therein; planted pleasant vineyards, and will not drink their wine. Amos 5:12. For I know how many are your transgressions, and how great your sins; oppressing the righteous, taking atonement money; and ye bow down the poor in the gate." However natural it may seem to take מוכיח and דּבר תּמים in Amos 5:10 as referring to prophets, who charge the ungodly with their acts of unrighteousness, as Jerome does, this explanation is precluded not only by bassha‛ar (in the gate), since the gate was not the meeting-place of the people where the prophets were accustomed to stand, but the place where courts of judgment were held, and all the public affairs of the community discussed (see at Deuteronomy 21:19); but also by the first half of Amos 5:11, which presupposes judicial proceedings. Mōkhı̄ăch is not merely the judge who puts down unjust accusers, but any one who lifts up his voice in a court of justice against acts of injustice (as in Isaiah 29:21). דּבר תּמים, he who says what is blameless, i.e., what is right and true: this is to be taken generally, and not to be restricted to the accused who seeks to defend his innocence. תּעב is a stronger expression than שׂנא. The punishment for this unjust oppression of the poor will be the withdrawal of their possessions. The ἁπ. λεγ. bōshēs is a dialectically different form for בוסס, from בוּס, to trample down (Rashi, Kimchi), analogous to the interchange of שׁריון and סריון, a coat of mail, although as a rule שׁ passes into ס, and not ס into שׁ. For the derivation from בושׁ, according to which בושׁס would stand for בושׁשׁ (Hitzig and Tuch on Genesis p. 85), is opposed both to the construction with על, and also to the circumstance that בּושׁשׁ means to delay (Exodus 32:1; Judges 5:28); and the derivation suggested by Hitzig from an Arabic verb, signifying to carry one's self haughtily towards others, is a mere loophole. Taking a gift of corn from the poor refers to unjust extortion on the part of the judge, who will only do justice to a poor man when he is paid for it. The main clause, which was introduced with lâkhēn, is continued with בּתּי גזית: "thus have ye built houses of square stones, and shall not dwell therein;" for "ye shall not dwell in the houses of square stones which ye have built." The threat is taken from Deuteronomy 28:30, Deuteronomy 28:39, and sets before them the plundering of the land and the banishment of the people. Houses built of square stones are splendid buildings (see Isaiah 9:9). The reason for this threat is given in Amos 5:12, where reference is made to the multitude and magnitude of the sins, of which injustice in the administration of justice is again held up as the chief sin. The participles צררי and לקחי are attached to the suffixes of פּשׁעיכם and חטּאתיכם: your sins, who oppress the righteous, attack him, and take atonement money, contrary to the express command of the law in Numbers 35:31, to take no kōpher for the soul of a murderer. The judges allowed the rich murderer to purchase exemption from capital punishment by the payment of atonement money, whilst they bowed down the right of the poor. Observe the transition from the participle to the third person fem., by which the prophet turns away with disgust from these ungodly judges. Bowing down the poor is a concise expression for bowing down the right of the poor: compare Amos 2:7 and the warnings against this sin (Exodus 23:6; Deuteronomy 16:19).