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Amos 6

God promises to send trouble to his people

6 Trouble is coming to you people who live in Zion and on Samaria's hill. You think that you are safe. You think that you are important people who live in the best nation on earth. Israelite people respect you as their leaders.

2 Go and look at Calneh city. And go and look at Hamath city. Then go and look at Gath city, where the Philistines live. Are your cities stronger than their cities? Do you have more land than they do? 3 You refuse to think that trouble might come to you. But the cruel things that you do are causing trouble to come very soon. 4 You lie on beautiful, expensive beds. You do not work, but you rest all the time. You eat fat young sheep and cows. 5 Like King David, you play music on your harps and you sing new songs. 6 You drink lots of wine. You put beautiful oils on your bodies. But you are not sad that Joseph's descendants are destroying themselves as a nation. [ a ]

7 You will be the first people that your enemies will take away as prisoners. You will no longer enjoy your feasts and wild parties.

8 The Lord God Almighty has promised that this will surely happen. He has spoken this strong message: ‘The Israelites think that they are very strong. But I have turned against them. I hate their strong buildings. So I will give their great city and everything in it to their enemies.’ [ b ]

9 At that time, if ten people are safe together in one house, they will still all die. 10 When a man comes to carry a dead body outside to burn it, he will ask his relative, ‘Is there anyone with you in the house?’ The relative will answer, ‘No.’ Then the man will say, ‘Be quiet!. Do not speak the name of the Lord !’ [ c ] 11 When the Lord gives his command, enemies will destroy all the houses, great and small. They will break them all into pieces.

12 Horses cannot run on rocks. People do not try to plough the sea. But you Israelites have changed what is fair and honest into something bad. You have made justice seem like poison. 13 You are proud because you won against Lo-Debar and Karnaim. You think that your own strength did that.

14 But the Lord God Almighty says to you Israelites, ‘I am sending an enemy nation to attack you. They will bring trouble to you everywhere, all the way from Lebo-Hamath in the north, to the Arabah valley in the south.’

Footnotes

  1. 6:6 Joseph's descendants is a way of talking about the nation of Israel.
  2. 6:8 The Israelites' great city was Samaria.
  3. 6:10 They did not want to speak the Lord 's name because he might send more trouble.

Israel’s Good Times Will Be Taken Away

6 Oh, look at the people enjoying life in Zion,
and those on Mount Samaria who feel so safe.
They are such important leaders of a most important nation.
The “House of Israel” comes to you for advice.
2 Go look at Calneh.
From there, go to the large city Hamath.
Go to the Philistine city of Gath. [ a ]
Are you better than these kingdoms?
Their countries are larger than yours.
3 You people are rushing toward the day of punishment.
You bring near the rule of violence.
4 But now you lie on ivory beds
and stretch out on your couches.
You eat tender young lambs from the flock
and young calves from the stable.
5 You play your harps,
and like David, you practice on [ b ] your musical instruments.
6 You drink wine in fancy cups. [ c ]
You use the best perfumes.
And it doesn’t even bother you
that Joseph’s family is being destroyed.

7 You people are stretched out on your couches now, but your good times will end. You will be taken away as prisoners to a foreign country, and you will be some of the first people taken. 8 The Lord God used his own name and made an oath. The Lord God All-Powerful said,

“I hate what Jacob is proud of.
I hate his strong towers.
So I will let an enemy take the city
and everything in it.”

There Will Be Few Israelites Left Alive

9 At that time ten people in one house might survive, but they too will die. 10 And when someone dies, a relative will come to get the body so that it can be taken out and burned. [ d ] Relatives will come to take away the bones. They will call to anyone who might be hiding back in the house, “Are there any other dead bodies in there with you?”

That person will answer, “No, ….” [ e ]

But the relative will interrupt and say, “Hush! We must not mention the name of the Lord .”

11 Look, the Lord will give the command,
and the large houses will be broken to pieces,
and the small houses will be broken to small pieces.
12 Do horses run over loose rocks?
No, and people don’t use cows for plowing.
But you turned everything upside down.
You changed justice and goodness to bitter poison.
13 You are so excited about defeating Lo Debar. [ f ]
And you boast, “We have taken Karnaim [ g ] by our own strength.”

14 “But Israel, I will bring a nation against you that will bring troubles to your whole country from Lebo Hamath to Arabah Brook.” This is what the Lord God All-Powerful said.

Footnotes

  1. Amos 6:2 Calneh, Hamath, Gath Powerful Babylonian, Syrian, and Philistine cities that were all captured by the Assyrians.
  2. Amos 6:5 practice on Or “invent.” The Hebrew word means to “think,” “become skilled,” or “design.”
  3. Amos 6:6 fancy cups Very large bowls used in worship rituals.
  4. Amos 6:10 And when … burned The meaning of the Hebrew text here is uncertain.
  5. Amos 6:10 No, … The full answer might have been, “No, praise the Lord ,” but the person was interrupted.
  6. Amos 6:13 Lo Debar This name means “nothing.”
  7. Amos 6:13 Karnaim This name means “horns.” Horns were a symbol of strength.

6 Woe to them that are at ease in Zion, and trust in the mountain of Samaria, which are named chief of the nations, to whom the house of Israel came!

2 Pass ye unto Calneh, and see; and from thence go ye to Hamath the great: then go down to Gath of the Philistines: be they better than these kingdoms? or their border greater than your border?

3 Ye that put far away the evil day, and cause the seat of violence to come near;

4 That lie upon beds of ivory, and stretch themselves upon their couches, and eat the lambs out of the flock, and the calves out of the midst of the stall;

5 That chant to the sound of the viol, and invent to themselves instruments of musick, like David;

6 That drink wine in bowls, and anoint themselves with the chief ointments: but they are not grieved for the affliction of Joseph.

7 Therefore now shall they go captive with the first that go captive, and the banquet of them that stretched themselves shall be removed.

8 The Lord God hath sworn by himself, saith the Lord the God of hosts, I abhor the excellency of Jacob, and hate his palaces: therefore will I deliver up the city with all that is therein.

9 And it shall come to pass, if there remain ten men in one house, that they shall die.

10 And a man's uncle shall take him up, and he that burneth him, to bring out the bones out of the house, and shall say unto him that is by the sides of the house, Is there yet any with thee? and he shall say, No. Then shall he say, Hold thy tongue: for we may not make mention of the name of the Lord .

11 For, behold, the Lord commandeth, and he will smite the great house with breaches, and the little house with clefts.

12 Shall horses run upon the rock? will one plow there with oxen? for ye have turned judgment into gall, and the fruit of righteousness into hemlock:

13 Ye which rejoice in a thing of nought, which say, Have we not taken to us horns by our own strength?

14 But, behold, I will raise up against you a nation, O house of Israel, saith the Lord the God of hosts; and they shall afflict you from the entering in of Hemath unto the river of the wilderness.

“Carefree in Zion”

6 ( A ) Woe to those who are carefree in Zion,
And to those who feel secure on the mountain of Samaria,
The ( B ) dignitaries of the foremost of nations,
To whom the house of Israel comes.
2 Go over to ( C ) Calneh and look,
And go from there to ( D ) Hamath the great,
Then go down to ( E ) Gath of the Philistines.
Are [ a ] they better than these kingdoms,
Or is their territory greater than yours?
3 Are you ( F ) postponing the day of disaster,
And would you ( G ) bring near the seat of violence?

4 Those who lie on beds of ivory,
And lounge around on their ( H ) couches,
And ( I ) eat lambs from the flock,
And calves from the midst of the fattened cattle,
5 Who improvise to the sound of the harp,
And like David have [ b ] composed ( J ) songs for themselves,
6 Who ( K ) drink wine from sacred bowls
While they anoint themselves with the finest of oils—
Yet they have not ( L ) grieved over the collapse of Joseph.
7 Therefore, they will now ( M ) go into exile at the head of the exiles,
And the revelry of those who ( N ) lounge around will come to an end.

8 The Lord [ c ] God has ( O ) sworn by Himself, the Lord God of armies has declared:
“I ( P ) loathe the arrogance of Jacob,
And [ d ] detest his ( Q ) citadels;
Therefore I will ( R ) give up the city and [ e ] all it contains.”

9 And it will be, if ( S ) ten men are left in one house, they will die. 10 Then one’s [ f ] uncle, or his ( T ) undertaker, will lift him up to carry out his bones from the house, and he will say to the one who is in the innermost part of the house, “Is anyone else with you?” And that one will say, “No one.” Then he will [ g ] answer, “ ( U ) Keep quiet! For [ h ] the name of the Lord is ( V ) not to be mentioned.” 11 For behold, the Lord is going to ( W ) command that the ( X ) great house be smashed to pieces, and the small house to rubble.

12 Do horses run on rocks?
Or does one [ i ] plow them with oxen?
Yet you have turned ( Y ) justice into poison,
And the fruit of righteousness into [ j ] wormwood,
13 You who rejoice in [ k ] ( Z ) Lodebar,
[ l ] And say, “Have we not ( AA ) by our own strength taken [ m ] Karnaim for ourselves?”
14 “For behold, ( AB ) I am going to raise up a nation against you,
House of Israel,” declares the Lord God of armies,
“And they will torment you from the ( AC ) entrance of Hamath
To the ( AD ) brook of the Arabah.”

Footnotes

  1. Amos 6:2 Or you
  2. Amos 6:5 Or invented musical instruments
  3. Amos 6:8 Heb YHWH , usually rendered Lord
  4. Amos 6:8 Lit hate
  5. Amos 6:8 Lit its fullness
  6. Amos 6:10 Or beloved one
  7. Amos 6:10 Lit say
  8. Amos 6:10 Lit not to make mention in the name of
  9. Amos 6:12 Another reading is plow the sea with oxen
  10. Amos 6:12 I.e., bitterness
  11. Amos 6:13 Lit nothing
  12. Amos 6:13 Lit Who say
  13. Amos 6:13 Lit a pair of horns

Woe to the Complacent

6 Woe to you ( A ) who are complacent ( B ) in Zion,
and to you who feel secure ( C ) on Mount Samaria, ( D )
you notable men of the foremost nation,
to whom the people of Israel come! ( E )
2 Go to Kalneh ( F ) and look at it;
go from there to great Hamath, ( G )
and then go down to Gath ( H ) in Philistia.
Are they better off than ( I ) your two kingdoms?
Is their land larger than yours?
3 You put off the day of disaster
and bring near a reign of terror. ( J )
4 You lie on beds adorned with ivory
and lounge on your couches. ( K )
You dine on choice lambs
and fattened calves. ( L )
5 You strum away on your harps ( M ) like David
and improvise on musical instruments. ( N )
6 You drink wine ( O ) by the bowlful
and use the finest lotions,
but you do not grieve ( P ) over the ruin of Joseph. ( Q )
7 Therefore you will be among the first to go into exile; ( R )
your feasting and lounging will end. ( S )

The Lord Abhors the Pride of Israel

8 The Sovereign Lord has sworn by himself ( T ) —the Lord God Almighty declares:

“I abhor ( U ) the pride of Jacob ( V )
and detest his fortresses; ( W )
I will deliver up ( X ) the city
and everything in it. ( Y ) ”

9 If ten ( Z ) people are left in one house, they too will die. 10 And if the relative who comes to carry the bodies out of the house to burn them [ a ] ( AA ) asks anyone who might be hiding there, “Is anyone else with you?” and he says, “No,” then he will go on to say, “Hush! ( AB ) We must not mention the name of the Lord .”

11 For the Lord has given the command,
and he will smash ( AC ) the great house ( AD ) into pieces
and the small house into bits. ( AE )

12 Do horses run on the rocky crags?
Does one plow the sea [ b ] with oxen?
But you have turned justice into poison ( AF )
and the fruit of righteousness ( AG ) into bitterness ( AH ) —
13 you who rejoice in the conquest of Lo Debar [ c ]
and say, “Did we not take Karnaim [ d ] by our own strength? ( AI ) ”

14 For the Lord God Almighty declares,
“I will stir up a nation ( AJ ) against you, Israel,
that will oppress you all the way
from Lebo Hamath ( AK ) to the valley of the Arabah. ( AL ) ”

Footnotes

  1. Amos 6:10 Or to make a funeral fire in honor of the dead
  2. Amos 6:12 With a different word division of the Hebrew; Masoretic Text plow there
  3. Amos 6:13 Lo Debar means nothing.
  4. Amos 6:13 Karnaim means horns ; horn here symbolizes strength.
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