{"id":77119,"date":"2018-07-09T17:48:26","date_gmt":"2018-07-09T14:48:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wall\/wall-522\/"},"modified":"2020-07-12T17:22:06","modified_gmt":"2020-07-12T14:22:06","slug":"wall-522","status":"publish","type":"wall","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wall\/wall-522\/","title":{"rendered":"chapter-Prophets-Amos-4"},"parent":0,"template":"","acf":{"type":"chapter","wall_id":"522","date":"20270830","book":"Amos","chapter":"4","chapter_main_number":"522","books_group":"Prophets","posts":[{"order":1,"id":"76989","color":"#f8ebe3","size":"1","name":"JPS Audio Bible - Amos Chapter 4 ","post_title":"JPS Audio Bible - Amos Chapter 4","slug":"jps-audio-bible-amos-chapter-4","old_id":"76989","type":"user","iframe":"","writer":{"id":34686,"post_title":"Soundcloud","slug":"soundcloud","old_id":"34686","first_name":"","last_name":"","description":"","short_description":"","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":34656,"alt":"","title":"491","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","width":300,"height":300,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","medium_large-width":300,"medium_large-height":300,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","large-width":300,"large-height":300,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","1536x1536-width":300,"1536x1536-height":300,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","2048x2048-width":300,"2048x2048-height":300,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","post_full_size-width":300,"post_full_size-height":300,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","home_baner-width":300,"home_baner-height":300}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"522","type_929":"4","show_author_image":true,"old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"","post_main_content_content":"","post_main_content_image":"","post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"JPS Audio Bible","tile_main_caption":"Amos Chapter 4","tile_main_caption_size":"2","tile_sub_caption":"Hear the daily chapter","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":"","tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/user-753876298\/jps_audio_bible_amos_chapter_4","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","old_create_date":"","links":false,"tile_link_for_pay":"0","chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Amos","chapter":"4","chapter_main_number":"522","date":"20270830","wall_id":"522"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":2,"id":"77308","color":"#f7f7f5","size":"1","name":"Listening To The Prophets with Rabbi Abby Sosland - Amos 4","post_title":"Listening To The Prophets with Rabbi Abby Sosland - Amos 4","slug":"listening-to-the-prophets-with-rabbi-abby-sosland-amos-4","old_id":"77308","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":56624,"post_title":"Abby Sosland","slug":"abby-sosland","old_id":"56624","first_name":"Abby ","last_name":"Sosland","description":"Rabbi Abby Sosland is a spiritual advisor, writer, and educator, based at The Leffell School in Westchester, New York. 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","post_title":"Who Were the \u201cCows of the Bashan\u201d?","slug":"who-were-the-cows-of-the-bashan","old_id":"77260","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":34243,"post_title":"Moshe Sokolow","slug":"moshe-sokolow","old_id":"34243","first_name":"Moshe","last_name":"Sokolow","description":"Dr. Moshe Sokolow is Associate Dean of the Azrieli Graduate School of Jewish Education and Administration, Yeshiva University, and teaches a weekly class in parashat hashavu`a at Lincoln Square Synagogue. He is the author of TANAKH: An Owner\u2019s Manual (Jerusalem: Urim\/Ktav, 2015).\r\n\r\n","short_description":"Dr. Moshe Sokolow is Associate Dean of the Azrieli Graduate School of Jewish Education and Administration, Yeshiva University","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":34244,"alt":"","title":"sokolow","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","width":302,"height":300,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow-300x298.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":298,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","medium_large-width":302,"medium_large-height":300,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","large-width":302,"large-height":300,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","1536x1536-width":302,"1536x1536-height":300,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","2048x2048-width":302,"2048x2048-height":300,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","post_full_size-width":302,"post_full_size-height":300,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","home_baner-width":302,"home_baner-height":300}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"522","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"Stout, beautiful, oppressive, thieving, carousing \u2018cows\u2019\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

In the opening verse of this chapter, Amos directs his rebuke to: \u201cYou cows of Bashan on the hill of Samaria\u2014 who defraud the poor, who rob the needy; who say to your husbands, \u201cBring, and let\u2019s carouse!\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Who were these \u201ccows\u201d?<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Targum Yonatan translated this phrase as \u201cthose who possess riches and dwell in the mountains of Samaria.\u201d Rashi, perhaps focusing on the use throughout the verse of the feminine gender (`<\/em><\/span>oshkot, rotzetzot, \u2018omrot<\/span><\/em>), interpreted it as: \u201cThe wives of officers and officials.\u201d Yosef Kara agreed, adding: \u201cThese were Israelite women who resembled cows grazing on the Bashan mountains. Because that is where they grew fat, they rebelled and revolted, crushing the needy and oppressing the poor.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Radak, in agreement with his predecessors, also elaborated on the geographical allusion, saying:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Bashan is a rich pasture and the animals that graze there are fat and healthy. He compared the wives of the kings and high officers to cows of the Bashan because they enjoy pleasure and are stout and beautiful. They cause oppression and crushing because they demand of their masters\u2014who are their husbands\u2014\u201cbring, and let\u2019s carouse,\u201d but if their husbands do not have the money of their own available, they oppress the poor who have not the strength to evade them. If they do not pay up immediately, they crush them.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Amos\u2019s use of the verbs defraud (<\/span>`-sh-k<\/span><\/em>) and oppress (<\/span>r-tz-tz<\/span><\/em>) appears particularly biting when we consider that they were used by the Prophet Samuel in his rebuke of the people for seeking a king: \u201cHere I am; witness against me before the Lord, and before His anointed: whose ox have I taken? or whose ass have I taken? or whom have I defrauded (`<\/em><\/span>ashakti<\/span><\/em>)? or whom have I oppressed (<\/span>ratzoti<\/span><\/em>)?\u201d (1 Samuel 12:3). Samuel diligently avoided the very behaviors that characterized Amos\u2019s audience.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Image: Elim Wu \/ sleepless night creations<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":77262,"alt":"","title":"amos4-cows","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-cows.jpg","width":400,"height":369,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-cows-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-cows-300x277.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":277,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-cows.jpg","medium_large-width":400,"medium_large-height":369,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-cows.jpg","large-width":400,"large-height":369,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-cows.jpg","1536x1536-width":400,"1536x1536-height":369,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-cows.jpg","2048x2048-width":400,"2048x2048-height":369,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-cows.jpg","post_full_size-width":400,"post_full_size-height":369,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-cows.jpg","home_baner-width":400,"home_baner-height":369}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"Who Were the \u201cCows of the Bashan\u201d?","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Stout, beautiful, oppressive, thieving, carousing \u2018cows\u2019","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":77262,"alt":"","title":"amos4-cows","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-cows.jpg","width":400,"height":369,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-cows-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-cows-300x277.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":277,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-cows.jpg","medium_large-width":400,"medium_large-height":369,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-cows.jpg","large-width":400,"large-height":369,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-cows.jpg","1536x1536-width":400,"1536x1536-height":369,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-cows.jpg","2048x2048-width":400,"2048x2048-height":369,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-cows.jpg","post_full_size-width":400,"post_full_size-height":369,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-cows.jpg","home_baner-width":400,"home_baner-height":369}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_link_for_pay":"0","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Amos","chapter":"4","chapter_main_number":"522","date":"20270830","wall_id":"522"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":4,"id":"77270","color":"#f6f5de","size":"1","name":"Meeting God: Punishment Or Antidote? ","post_title":"Meeting God: Punishment Or Antidote?","slug":"meeting-god-punishment-or-antidote","old_id":"77270","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":76938,"post_title":"Miriam Szafranski","slug":"miriam-szafranski","old_id":"76938","first_name":"Miriam ","last_name":"Szafranski ","description":"Miriam Szafranski teaches Tanakh at SAR High School and lives in Riverdale, and has never missed a day of 929 so far (bh) even insisting on completing the Perek when in labor with her son.\r\n","short_description":"Miriam Szafranski teaches Tanakh at SAR High School and lives in Riverdale. ","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":76939,"alt":"","title":"Miriam Khukhashvili","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Miriam-Khukhashvili.jpg","width":996,"height":1791,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Miriam-Khukhashvili-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Miriam-Khukhashvili-167x300.jpg","medium-width":167,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Miriam-Khukhashvili-569x1024.jpg","medium_large-width":569,"medium_large-height":1024,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Miriam-Khukhashvili-569x1024.jpg","large-width":569,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Miriam-Khukhashvili.jpg","1536x1536-width":854,"1536x1536-height":1536,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Miriam-Khukhashvili.jpg","2048x2048-width":996,"2048x2048-height":1791,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Miriam-Khukhashvili-667x1200.jpg","post_full_size-width":667,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Miriam-Khukhashvili-234x420.jpg","home_baner-width":234,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"522","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"For the sin of sinning\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

There is an idea in Jewish thought that the punishment fits the crime (midda k\u2019neged midda). The phrase in today\u2019s chapter, \u201cPrepare yourself to meet your God, O Israel\u201d (verse 12) seems to be a punishment. The phrase seems threatening. \u201cMeeting God\u201d seems ominous. The Jews forgot about God, God\u2019s power and God\u2019s strength-- and so God wants to remind them and reacquaint Himself with his people in a powerful way. So the punishment fits the sin.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Sin in Hasidic thought stems from a total lack of awareness of God\u2019s presence. \"For when the intellect that is within the thinking soul contemplates and meditates deeply upon the greatness of the LORD- how He fills all the universe and operates all the universe, and everything before Him is like naught - then the attribute of awe of His exaltedness is born and arises in his mind and his thoughts, to fear and to be ashamed before the greatness of the LORD, which is infinite and has no end, and the fear of the LORD is in his heart.\" (Tanya, chapter 3)<\/span><\/p>\r\n

If one was truly aware of God\u2019s presence in the world, and in every aspect of their lives, there would be no sin. So many of our mitsvot in fact are there to increase this awareness. Blessings before eating, prayer, the wearing of certain garments. Judaism seeks to instill the Jew with a present moment awareness of God. The reason for this is to live a purposeful, mindful life, but it is also to keep us from sinning. Imagine living with a constant awareness of God\u2019s presence? Imagine \u201cmeeting God\u201d in day to day moments? There would be no room for sin.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The sin of sinning is not that one has submitted to their urges, or done something wrong. The sin of sinning is that one forgot God\u2019s presence. You pushed God out of a space and created a lack. It is said that one of the Baal Shem Tov\u2019s last words were \u201cfear nothing but God alone\u201d. The phrase \u201cprepare yourself to meet your God, O Israel\u201d then is not simply a punishment. Perhaps God is offering the people the antidote to sin. Live with an awareness of God, and there will never be a need for punishment.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Image: Mahzor Worms page 2 (JNUL) 1270-1280 \/ flickr (2008)<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":77271,"alt":"","title":"amos4-machzor","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-machzor.jpg","width":1403,"height":1071,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-machzor-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-machzor-300x229.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":229,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-machzor-768x586.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":586,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-machzor-1024x782.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":782,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-machzor.jpg","1536x1536-width":1403,"1536x1536-height":1071,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-machzor.jpg","2048x2048-width":1403,"2048x2048-height":1071,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-machzor-1200x916.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":916,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-machzor-550x420.jpg","home_baner-width":550,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"Meeting God: Punishment Or Antidote?","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"For the sin of sinning","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":77271,"alt":"","title":"amos4-machzor","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-machzor.jpg","width":1403,"height":1071,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-machzor-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-machzor-300x229.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":229,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-machzor-768x586.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":586,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-machzor-1024x782.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":782,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-machzor.jpg","1536x1536-width":1403,"1536x1536-height":1071,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-machzor.jpg","2048x2048-width":1403,"2048x2048-height":1071,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-machzor-1200x916.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":916,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-machzor-550x420.jpg","home_baner-width":550,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_link_for_pay":"0","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Amos","chapter":"4","chapter_main_number":"522","date":"20270830","wall_id":"522"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":5,"id":"77267","color":"#f6edf6","size":"1","name":"Faux Religiosity And A Culture of Conspicuous Consumption ","post_title":"Faux Religiosity And A Culture of Conspicuous Consumption","slug":"faux-religiosity-and-a-culture-of-conspicuous-consumption","old_id":"77267","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":39778,"post_title":"Aliza Libman Baronofsky","slug":"aliza-libman-baronofsky","old_id":"39778","first_name":"Aliza Libman ","last_name":"Baronofsky ","description":"Aliza Libman Baronofsky is a first-year student in the Advanced Kollel at Yeshivat Maharat and teaches at Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School, in Rockville, MD. She studied Tanach at Midreshet Lindenbaum and York University and previously taught Tanach and math at the Maimonides School in Brookline, MA. Aliza is the creator of www.chumashandmath.blogspot.com, a repository of interdisciplinary lesson plans. ","short_description":"Aliza Libman Baronofsky is a student in the Advanced Kollel at Yeshivat Maharat and teaches at Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School, in Rockville, MD. ","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":39779,"alt":"","title":"aliza baronofsky","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/aliza-baronofsky.jpg","width":1425,"height":1794,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/aliza-baronofsky-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/aliza-baronofsky-238x300.jpg","medium-width":238,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/aliza-baronofsky-768x967.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":967,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/aliza-baronofsky-813x1024.jpg","large-width":813,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/aliza-baronofsky.jpg","1536x1536-width":1220,"1536x1536-height":1536,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/aliza-baronofsky.jpg","2048x2048-width":1425,"2048x2048-height":1794,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/aliza-baronofsky-953x1200.jpg","post_full_size-width":953,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/aliza-baronofsky-334x420.jpg","home_baner-width":334,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"522","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"The money has to come from somewhere...\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

(This post is the fourth in a series on social justice in Amos)\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

In our series examining income inequality in the Northern Kingdom as described in the book of Amos, we have noted that there are a number of officials and public servants who are misusing their positions to enrich themselves.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Today\u2019s chapter helps us understand why. The prophet opens with the words \u201cHear this word, you cows of Bashan On the hill of Samaria\u2014 Who defraud the poor, Who rob the needy; Who say to your husbands, \u201cBring [wine], and let\u2019s carouse!\u201d\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The cows of the Bashan symbolize wealth and luxury: only a person who can afford more than they need has the luxury of being fat.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Many commentaries suggest that \u201ccows of the Bashan\u201d refers to the wives of the officials we discussed yesterday.\u00a0 In case the reader thought they were not party to the sins of their husbands, the opening verse here singles them out as perpetrators. Malbim explains that they demanded fine things from their husbands and therefore bear partial responsibility for their subsequent suffering. Radak adds that if their husbands didn\u2019t deliver, they would personally go and wring the necessary cash from the poor themselves. Metzudat David even adds that they\u2019d personally beat the poor if they tried to refuse.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Verses 4-5 describe the people\u2019s sacrificial habits in derogatory terms. In chapter 2, the altar was mentioned as a place where the targets of these prophecies enjoyed their ill-gotten gains.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

There is a false religiosity here \u2013 a religiosity of luxury. Verse 5 says \u201cAnd burn a thank offering of leavened bread\u201d though most sacrifices were brought without leavened bread. Instead, types of matza and simple crackers made with oil were used. These people are bringing the \u201cTodah,\u201d a sacrifice traditionally accompanied by forty loaves, only their loaves are made out of leavened bread. The Todah\u2019s traditional rules require the offerer to eat all the meat within a day and a night of offering it. This law, known as <\/span>piggul<\/span><\/em>, can be seen as a way of enabling sharing of the meat with others. However, they have perverted the spirit of these laws and turned them simply into a vehicle for excessive consumption of meat and bread.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

These verses describe religious practice done only for show \u2013 the verse says \u201cproclaim freewill offerings loudly,\u201d because they bring these sacrifices only for the purpose of others seeing their virtue.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

We can imagine a world where you got invited to someone else\u2019s Todah sacrifice party and thus feel compelled to throw your own, to keep up with the neighbors. This requires bringing your own bull, along with accompanying bread and wine. The costs would add up \u2013 and the money has to come from somewhere.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":77268,"alt":"","title":"amos4-money","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-money.jpg","width":1920,"height":1324,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-money-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-money-300x207.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":207,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-money-768x530.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":530,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-money-1024x706.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":706,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-money.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1059,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-money.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1324,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-money-1200x828.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":828,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-money-609x420.jpg","home_baner-width":609,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"Social Justice in Amos","tile_main_caption":"Faux Religiosity And A Culture of Conspicuous Consumption","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"The money has to come from somewhere...","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":77268,"alt":"","title":"amos4-money","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-money.jpg","width":1920,"height":1324,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-money-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-money-300x207.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":207,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-money-768x530.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":530,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-money-1024x706.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":706,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-money.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1059,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-money.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1324,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-money-1200x828.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":828,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-money-609x420.jpg","home_baner-width":609,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_link_for_pay":"0","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Amos","chapter":"4","chapter_main_number":"522","date":"20270830","wall_id":"522"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":6,"id":"77264","color":"#e0e9ef","size":"1","name":"Carried Off In Fish Baskets! ","post_title":"Carried Off In Fish Baskets!","slug":"carried-off-in-fish-baskets","old_id":"77264","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":64450,"post_title":"David Curwin","slug":"david-curwin","old_id":"64450","first_name":"David ","last_name":"Curwin ","description":"David Curwin is a writer living in Efrat, and the author of the Balashon blog www.balashon.com","short_description":"David Curwin is a writer living in Efrat, and the author of the Balashon blog www.balashon.com","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":64452,"alt":"","title":"david curwin","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/david-curwin.png","width":427,"height":464,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/david-curwin-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/david-curwin-276x300.png","medium-width":276,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/david-curwin.png","medium_large-width":427,"medium_large-height":464,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/david-curwin.png","large-width":427,"large-height":464,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/david-curwin.png","1536x1536-width":427,"1536x1536-height":464,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/david-curwin.png","2048x2048-width":427,"2048x2048-height":464,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/david-curwin.png","post_full_size-width":427,"post_full_size-height":464,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/david-curwin-387x420.png","home_baner-width":387,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"522","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"Or is it pots, hooks, or boats?\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

In chapter 3, Amos castigates those wealthy people who oppress the poor. In the beginning of chapter 4, he criticizes their wives and warns of the punishment they will receive:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

\u201cHear this word, you cows of Bashan On the hill of Samaria\u2014 Who defraud the poor, Who rob the needy; Who say to your husbands, \u2018Bring, and let\u2019s carouse!\u2019 My Lord GOD swears by His holiness: Behold, days are coming upon you When you will be carried off in baskets, And, to the last one, in fish baskets, And taken out [of the city]\u2014 Each one through a breach straight ahead\u2014 And flung on the refuse heap \u2014declares the LORD.\u201d (Amos 4:1-3)<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The cattle imagery in verse 1 is appropriate \u2013 the Bashan was a region known for its quality cattle. But verse 2 is difficult to understand. What does it mean to be \u201ccarried off in baskets,\u201d and why, in this landlocked region would there be mention of \u201cfish baskets\u201d?<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Let\u2019s take a look at the Hebrew words for \u201cfish baskets\u201d \u2013 <\/span>sirot dugah<\/span><\/em>. There are many suggested translations for this phrase. <\/span>Dugah<\/span><\/em> would appear to be related to the Hebrew word for \u201cfish\u201d \u2013 <\/span>dag<\/span><\/em>.<\/span><\/i> So the key word is <\/span>sirot<\/span><\/em>. The translation \u201cbaskets\u201d comes from a parallel with the first half of the verse, and linguists have found a similar metaphor used in Mesopotamia. Since the audience Amos was addressing would be exiled to Assyria, that metaphor is apt.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Another translation is \u201cfish pots.\u201d So instead of the baskets used to catch fish, this image is of the pots used to cook fish. In Hebrew a <\/span>sir<\/span><\/em>\u00a0(pronounced closer to \"sear\") is a cooking pot, and so this theory connects <\/span>sir<\/span><\/em>\u00a0and <\/span>sirot<\/span><\/em>.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\r\n

The Koren Jerusalem Bible translation uses a different allegory. It writes, \u201cwhen you will be taken with hooks, and your remnant with fishhooks.\u201d This was earlier suggested by the medieval commentator Ibn Ezra. He says that <\/span>sirot\u00a0<\/span><\/em>is like the word <\/span>sirim<\/span><\/em>\u00a0\u00ad\u00ad<\/span><\/i>\u00ad\u2013 \u201cthorns.\u201d Thorns are like hooks, and so the image, according to this opinion, is that they will be taken out of the land like fish are caught with hooks.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Another translation, based on Rashi\u2019s commentary, has the phrase read, \u201cin fishing boats.\u201d Rashi based this interpretation on a Talmudic passage, where <\/span>dugit<\/span><\/em> is a type of small boat.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Most modern scholars say this is not the correct reading of the verse. While the other translations used imagery of removing fish from water, the exile to Assyria was via land and would not carry the people off in boats.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Even though \u201csmall boats\u201d is the least plausible translation, it managed to enter modern Hebrew. Today there are three main words for boats in Hebrew: <\/span>oniya<\/span><\/em>\u00a0is a large ship, a <\/span>sefina<\/span><\/em>\u00a0<\/span><\/i>is a smaller ship, and the smallest type of vessel is a <\/span>sira<\/span><\/em>\u00a0\u2013 officially 7 meters long or less.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":77265,"alt":"","title":"amos4-fish","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-fish.jpg","width":1920,"height":1271,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-fish-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-fish-300x199.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":199,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-fish-768x508.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":508,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-fish-1024x678.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":678,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-fish.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1017,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-fish.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1271,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-fish-1200x794.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":794,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-fish-634x420.jpg","home_baner-width":634,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"Carried Off In Fish Baskets!","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Or is it pots, hooks, or boats?","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":77265,"alt":"","title":"amos4-fish","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-fish.jpg","width":1920,"height":1271,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-fish-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-fish-300x199.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":199,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-fish-768x508.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":508,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-fish-1024x678.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":678,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-fish.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1017,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-fish.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1271,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-fish-1200x794.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":794,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/amos4-fish-634x420.jpg","home_baner-width":634,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_link_for_pay":"0","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Amos","chapter":"4","chapter_main_number":"522","date":"20270830","wall_id":"522"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":7,"id":"77256","color":"#f6edf6","size":"1","name":"Nothing To Chew On ","post_title":"Nothing To Chew On","slug":"nothing-to-chew-on","old_id":"77256","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":54356,"post_title":"Robert Alter","slug":"robert-alter","old_id":"54356","first_name":"Robert ","last_name":"Alter","description":"Robert Alter is the Class of 1937 Professor of Hebrew and Comparative Literature at the University of California at Berkeley, where he has taught since 1967. He has written over twenty books, focusing on such topics as the European novel from the 18th century to the present, contemporary American fiction, and modern Hebrew literature. He has also written extensively on the literary aspects of the Bible. His most recent work is his monumental three volume translation of the entire Hebrew Bible - The Hebrew Bible, W. W. Norton & Co., 2019 - from which the selections in 929 are taken. ","short_description":"Robert Alter is the Class of 1937 Professor of Hebrew and Comparative Literature at the University of California at Berkeley, and author of the three-volume translation of the entire Hebrew Bible - The Hebrew Bible, W. W. Norton & Co., 2019.","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":54357,"alt":"","title":"robert alter","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","width":184,"height":275,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","medium-width":184,"medium-height":275,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","medium_large-width":184,"medium_large-height":275,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","large-width":184,"large-height":275,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","1536x1536-width":184,"1536x1536-height":275,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","2048x2048-width":184,"2048x2048-height":275,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","post_full_size-width":184,"post_full_size-height":275,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","home_baner-width":184,"home_baner-height":275}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"522","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"Clean teeth, and empty stomachs\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

4:6 \u201c\u2018And I on My part have given you cleanness of teeth in all your towns and want of bread in all your places, but you did not come back to Me, said the LORD.\u2019\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

This is an original coinage of Amos\u2019s. It of course does not have anything to do with dental hygiene but evokes a mouth in which there is no food, as \u201cwant of bread\u201d in the next verset makes clear. The line reverses the usual pattern, in which the standard term appears in the first verset and a metaphorical or poetic equivalent in the second, because the prophet means to confront his audience with a small enigma at the beginning of the line that is spelled out at the end.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

From: Robert Alter, The Hebrew Bible<\/em>, vol. 2: Prophets, W. W. Norton & Co., 2019, ad loc. By permission of the author.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":54890,"alt":"","title":"Alter-Cover","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","width":1200,"height":693,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-300x173.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":173,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-768x444.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":444,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-1024x591.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":591,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","1536x1536-width":1200,"1536x1536-height":693,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","2048x2048-width":1200,"2048x2048-height":693,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-1200x693.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":693,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-727x420.jpg","home_baner-width":727,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"From Robert Alter's Bible Translation and Commentary","tile_main_caption":"Nothing To Chew On","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Clean teeth, and empty stomachs","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":54890,"alt":"","title":"Alter-Cover","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","width":1200,"height":693,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-300x173.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":173,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-768x444.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":444,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-1024x591.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":591,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","1536x1536-width":1200,"1536x1536-height":693,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","2048x2048-width":1200,"2048x2048-height":693,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-1200x693.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":693,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-727x420.jpg","home_baner-width":727,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"tile_link_for_pay":"0","chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Amos","chapter":"4","chapter_main_number":"522","date":"20270830","wall_id":"522"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":8,"id":"77254","color":"#faeed8","size":"1","name":"Points to Ponder - 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    \r\n\t
  1. The Temple in Gilgal<\/em>. You probably remember the temple in Beit El. Verse 4 reminds us that also in Gilgal there was an active temple serving the kingdom of Israel. That was where Joshua had his camp, and it was also a center of activity during the times of the judges (Judges 2), and during the time of Samuel the prophet (1 Sam. 13, for instance).<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
  2. Dental hygiene?<\/em>\u00a0In the list of the punishments here, in verse 6, you\u2019ll find \u201c Cleanness of teeth in all your towns.\u201d Even though from the point of view of the dental hygienist that sounds like a good thing, if you read the rest of the verse, say, from the point of view of the dietician: \u201clack of food in all your settlements,\u201d then you know that the cleanness comes from lack of anything to chew on, and is indeed a curse of hunger.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
  3. If this disaster sounds familiar to you<\/em>. It\u2019s because you\u2019ve heard similar curses in the passage of rebuke in Leviticus, about 406 chapters ago (Lev. 26), and after that, in the section of blessings and curses, 341 chapters ago in Deuteronomy 28.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
  4. Be prepared!<\/em> What is the meaning of the call: \u201cPrepare to meet your God, O Israel!\u201d towards the end of the chapter. Is it a threat regarding the coming catastrophe? A call to repentance, because it is still possible? You\u2019ll find both these options in the commentaries. <\/span><\/li>\r\n<\/ol>","post_main_content_image":{"id":53645,"alt":"","title":"general-qs-points to ponder","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/general-qs-points-to-ponder.jpg","width":1920,"height":603,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/general-qs-points-to-ponder-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/general-qs-points-to-ponder-300x94.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":94,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/general-qs-points-to-ponder-768x241.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":241,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/general-qs-points-to-ponder-1024x322.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":322,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/general-qs-points-to-ponder.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":482,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/general-qs-points-to-ponder.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":603,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/general-qs-points-to-ponder-1200x377.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":377,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/general-qs-points-to-ponder-1337x420.jpg","home_baner-width":1337,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"Amos 4","tile_main_caption":"Points to Ponder","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Insights and questions for personal reflection and group discussion","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":53645,"alt":"","title":"general-qs-points to ponder","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/general-qs-points-to-ponder.jpg","width":1920,"height":603,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/general-qs-points-to-ponder-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/general-qs-points-to-ponder-300x94.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":94,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/general-qs-points-to-ponder-768x241.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":241,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/general-qs-points-to-ponder-1024x322.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":322,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/general-qs-points-to-ponder.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":482,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/general-qs-points-to-ponder.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":603,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/general-qs-points-to-ponder-1200x377.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":377,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/general-qs-points-to-ponder-1337x420.jpg","home_baner-width":1337,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"tile_link_for_pay":"0","chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Amos","chapter":"4","chapter_main_number":"522","date":"20270830","wall_id":"522"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":9,"id":"77020","color":"#effaea","size":"1","name":"Sefaria Source Sheets - Amos 4 ","post_title":"Sefaria Source Sheets - Amos 4","slug":"sefaria-source-sheets-amos-4","old_id":"77020","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":42228,"post_title":"Sefaria","slug":"sefaria","old_id":"42228","first_name":"","last_name":"Sefaria","description":"Sefaria is a non-profit organization dedicated to building the future of Jewish learning in an open and participatory way. 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    \u201cJudaism and Climate Change: \u201cThe Earth is the Lord\u2019s\u201d & \u201cEverything is Given into your hand.\u201d Complied by Student Rabbi David Eber; Reconstructionist Rabbinical College\u201d<\/a> by David Eber: The balancing act that must be maintained between preserving and using the Earth.<\/p>\r\n

    \u201c\u00bfWrap Yo Self or Naw?\u201d<\/a> by Daniel Ganopolsky: Appropriateness in dress during prayer.<\/p>","post_main_content_image":"","post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"Go deeper into the chapter....","tile_main_caption":"Source Sheets - Amos 4","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Links to learning resources","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":42232,"alt":"","title":"sefaria-words-sunburst","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","width":608,"height":395,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst-300x195.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":195,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","medium_large-width":608,"medium_large-height":395,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","large-width":608,"large-height":395,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","1536x1536-width":608,"1536x1536-height":395,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","2048x2048-width":608,"2048x2048-height":395,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","post_full_size-width":608,"post_full_size-height":395,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","home_baner-width":608,"home_baner-height":395}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"Sefaria word sunburst visualization","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","old_create_date":"","links":false,"tile_link_for_pay":"0","chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Amos","chapter":"4","chapter_main_number":"522","date":"20270830","wall_id":"522"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false}],"hide_acf":true,"home_image":false,"home_posts":false,"home_posts_title":"","posts_home":[],"static_cube_title":"","static_cube_brief":"","static_cube_color":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wall\/77119"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wall"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/wall"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=77119"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}