Amos 3:12-14

Contemporary English Version

¹²The Lord has promised
that only a few from Samaria
    will escape with their lives
and with some broken pieces
    of their beds and couches.^[a]
It will be like when a shepherd
    rescues two leg bones
and part of a sheep's ear
    from the jaws of a lion.^[b]

The Altars at Bethel

¹³The Lord God All-Powerful
told me to speak this message
    against Jacob's descendants:
¹⁴^(A) When I, the Lord, punish Israel
    for their sins,
I will destroy the altars
    at Bethel.
Even the corners of the altar^[c]
    will be left in the dirt.

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Footnotes

3.12 some … couches: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
3.12 lion: When a wild animal attacked and killed a sheep, the shepherd had to rescue part of the sheep and take it to the owner as proof that it had been killed by an animal. Otherwise, the shepherd had to pay the owner the cost of the sheep.
3.14 altar: Altars were places of worship but also places of protection. People whose lives were in danger could grab hold of the corners of an altar, and no one was allowed to kill them.