עמוס, פרק ח׳, פסוק י״ב

A time of deep spiritual thirst and loss of direction is destined to arrive, an era when people will desperately look everywhere for divine guidance but find absolutely nothing. Driven by this need, they will wander back and forth without any clear path [מצודת ציון]. The Israelites will travel from the Red Sea in the south to the Great Sea in the west, as well as from the north to the east, effectively covering all four directions of the compass in their search [אבן עזרא, רד״ק, מצודת דוד, מלבי״ם]. The entire purpose of this restless journey is to seek out prophecy and hear the word of God, yet their efforts will ultimately end in failure [מצודת דוד].

There are different perspectives regarding where exactly this desperate search takes place. One approach understands these boundaries as the borders of the Land of Israel. The painful reality is that even within the land itself, prophecy will completely stop, meaning it certainly will not be found outside of it during times of exile [מצודת דוד, רד״ק]. Another perspective suggests that this wandering represents the scattering of the people to the four corners of the world during the exile itself. No matter where they end up, they will look for God's word without success. Following the destruction of the Temple, both prophecy and any heavenly voice completely ceased [מלבי״ם].