a permanent condition. The very
expression, "tabernacle," suggests the idea of a sunken condition of
the house of David. The prophet sees the proud palace of David changed
into a humble tabernacle, everywhere in ruins, and perforated. The same
idea is expressed by a different image in Is. xi. 1. There the house of
David is called the cut off trunk of Jesse, which puts forth a new
shoot. _Hofmann_ and others are of opinion that the prophet designates
the house of David as a fallen tabernacle, on account of its abasement
at the time then present. "At present," he says, "the lofty house of
David is a [Hebrew: skh nplt] when compared with the power of Jeroboam;
but the latter shall fall, and the former shall raise itself again from
its decay." But this designation is certainly not applicable to [Pg
390] the house of David under a king like Uzziah, nor, in general, to
the whole time of the existing Davidic kingdom. The fact that Amos
foresees the deep fall of Judah, is placed beyond all doubt even by ii.
5. It is impossible that the announcement of the restoration which is
to _follow_ only after this fall, should altogether ignore the latter.
This is, moreover, proved by the parallel passages. The predictions of
all the prophets are pervaded by the foresight of the Messiah's
appearing at the time of the deepest debasement of the Davidic dynasty,
and after the total loss of the royal dignity; compare the remarks on
Mic. iv. 8, vi. (2); Is. xi. 1, liii. 2; Ezek. xvii. 22-24.--It might
now appear as though the prophet here only supposed the ruin of the
house of David, without having, in the preceding context, expressly
mentioned it; but such is not the case. The whole of the preceding
threatening of punishment relates to the ruin of the house of David;
for when the kingdom suffers, the reigning family cannot but suffer
also. This close connection of the two is pointed out by the prophet
himself in the subsequent words. The change of the suffixes is there
certainly not without a reason. The suffix in [Hebrew: prcihN] refers
to the two kingdoms; that in [Hebrew: hrist] to David; and that in
[Hebrew: bnitih] to the tabernacle, while the subject of [Hebrew:
iirwv] (ver. 12) is the people. By this it is intimated that David, his
tabernacle, the kingdoms, and the people, are in substance one--that
one stands and falls with the other. They who overlook the co-reference
to Judah, in the preceding verses, do not know what to make of the