Hear this word which I take up over you in lamentation, O house of Israel/Listen, people of Israel, to this funeral song which I sing over you:

Hear this word/Listen. As in other places in Amos, this expression begins a concluding section (Appendix, Section 1.21). In this case it would be well to indicate that fact with the use of a word like “so.”

House of Israel shows to whom the message is being spoken, and in many languages it is natural to put such an expression at the beginning, or at least near the beginning, of the sentence, like Good News Translation. In addition, a picture such as house of Israel will often be clear only in a translation such as people of Israel.

Since the LORD starts to speak in verse 3, Amos is the speaker of verses 1 and 2. In some languages this should be shown by translating “which I, Amos, sing over you” or by introducing the whole sentence with “Amos said”: or “Amos continued, saying,” or “Amos spoke again.”

The translation may also need to show that the funeral song is Amos’ message by saying, for example, “this, my funeral song.”

The funeral song or “mourning song” was the chief funeral ceremony in Israel. It was a poem of grief on the death of a kinsman, friend or leader. In Amos this kind of song for an individual is changed into one for the people of Israel as a whole, so it becomes a political mourning song. The “dead” over whom Amos sings his song are the living people to whom Amos is speaking. In this way they listen to the announcement of their own death.

Funeral customs differ, and the idea of a “song” in connection with a funeral is entirely strange in some cultures. It may even be contradictory because songs are associated with joy or work or play, but not with death. In such cases the translation should have something like “Listen to what I say in mourning over your death.” There may be some kind of specific term which would be usable. If there are poems or speeches recited or composed rather than sung, adaptation should be made along that line.

Quoted with permission from de Waard, Jan & Smalley, William A. A Handbook on Amos. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1979. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .