They shall wander from sea to sea, and from north to east/People will wander from the Dead Sea to the Mediterranean and then on around from the north to the east. On wander, see 4.9. In Hebrew, they (also Smith-Goodspeed, New American Bible) does not refer back to anyone who has been mentioned before. Whether they or “men” (New English Bible, Moffatt) or people (also The Translator’s Old Testament) or some impersonal pronoun is used will depend on the translation of verse 13.

From sea to sea is normally taken to mean “from the Mediterranean to the Dead Sea.” In terms of a viewpoint-place like Bethel (or even Tekoa) this would be the same as saying “from west to south.” The only directions which remain are from north to east! It would also be possible to take from sea to sea in the reverse sense: from the Dead Sea to the Mediterranean. The movement would then be seen as a circle of wandering: South (Dead Sea)–West (Mediterranean)–North (Lebanon)–East (Bashan), as in Good News Translation.

The translator will have to use the directional systems of his language, keeping the viewpoint-place of the book (Bethel) constantly in mind. In some languages this may lead to such a translation as “from north to south” and “from east to west” (New English Bible, but on the wrong grounds) or vice versa, depending on what is normally used in the language in question. Sometimes equivalents like “sunrise” and “sunset” can be used for “east” and “west,” but it is usually much harder to find terms for “north” and “south.” If such distinctions as “up-stream” and “down-stream” or “north wind” and “south wind” are not made in the language, it may be possible to say, for example, “from east to west and in all other directions” or, if necessary, “people will wander through the whole country.” (See Translating Amos, Section 3.)

They shall run to and fro has much the same meaning as the Hebrew word translated wander. The single word wander covers them both nicely in English.

To seek/They will look everywhere. In this context seek means search for something which is lost, and many languages will have specific words for this.

The word of the LORD/a message from the LORD. See 8.11. It may not make sense in some languages to seek or look … for a message, because look implies the use of the eyes, and message implies the use of the ears. Instead, “look for someone who will tell them my message” or “try to hear my message” are possibilities.

But they shall not find it/but they will not find it. Depending on the translation of other parts of the verse, it may be good to say something like “but they will not hear from me” or “they will not hear me speak.”

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 .