The grammatical form of the imperative (take away) in this sentence is singular. However, the command should be understood as addressed to all and should be translated in most languages as spoken to many people.

Take away from me the noise of your songs/Stop your noisy songs. It must be clear in the translation that the singing is a part of the religious worship, part of the festival. The context may be enough to make this clear, but if not, some possibilities are “Stop the noisy songs of your worship” or “Stop trying to worship me with noisy singing.” English has other ways of expressing the meaning of this command: “Away with your noisy songs!” (New American Bible), “No more of your hymns for me!” (Moffatt), “Spare me the sound of your songs” (New English Bible). In some other languages it would be better to translate instead “Go away with the noise of your songs,” “Stop singing your noisy songs,” “Stop bothering me with the noisy singing which you use to worship me.” In some languages the expression may be close to the Hebrew: “the noise you make by singing (or: when you sing).”

To the melody of your harps (Hebrew: lutes) I will not listen/I do not want to listen to your harps. Melody of or “music of” is not expressed in Good News Translation (compare Moffatt) because it is understood in English. In many languages one may have to speak of the “voice” or “sound” or “cry” or “noise” of musical instruments. In some languages will is expressed in the present: “I do not listen to.” After the nose (verse 21b) and the eyes (verse 22b) now the ears are closed.

The musical instrument mentioned here was probably what could be called a “lyre” or “lute” in English. It was a stringed instrument with different numbers of strings (up to ten) and with a sounding box at the top. Some degree of cultural adaptation must be made in translation, since cultures differ among each other in the shape, the number of strings, and the function of their instruments. One will have to select an equivalent instrument in the receptor language.

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 .