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Contra el lujo y la euforia

¡Ay de quienes se sienten seguros en Sión
y viven tranquilos en la montaña de Samaría!
¡Los que presumen de jefes
de la nación más importante
y a los que acude el pueblo de Israel!
Pasad por Calné y observad;
id desde allí a Jamat, la grande,
y luego bajad a Gat de los filisteos.
¿Sois vosotros mejores que esos reinos?
¿Es vuestro territorio más extenso?
Pretendéis alejar la desgracia,
pero hacéis que reine la violencia.
Se acuestan en camas de marfil,
se recuestan en cómodos divanes,
comen los corderos del rebaño
y los terneros que sacan del establo.
Canturrean al son del arpa
y, siguiendo el ejemplo de David,
inventan instrumentos musicales.
Beben vino en grandes copas
y se ungen con olorosos aceites,
sin que les duela el desastre de José.
Por eso ahora irán al destierro
encabezando la fila de cautivos;
así acabará la orgía de tanto disoluto.

Ruina de la ciudad

El Señor Dios lo jura por sí mismo,
—oráculo del Señor, Dios del universo—:
Yo detesto la soberbia de Jacob
y aborrezco todos sus palacios;
por eso entregaré la ciudad al enemigo
con todo cuanto hay en ella.
Si en una casa quedan diez hombres,
morirán sin remedio los diez.
10 Y cuando el pariente saque de la casa
los cadáveres para quemarlos
y diga al que está en el fondo de la casa:
“¿Queda todavía alguien contigo?”,
el otro responderá: “no queda ninguno”.
Y añadirá: “Guardad silencio”,
pues no hay que mencionar el nombre del Señor.
11 Es el Señor quien da la orden
para que se resquebraje la casa grande
y se desplome la pequeña.
12 ¿Galopan los caballos sobre las rocas?
¿se ara con bueyes el mar?
¡Pues vosotros habéis convertido
el derecho en veneno
y la justicia en fruto amargo!
13 Os alegráis por Lodebar y decís:
¿No conquistamos Carnáin con nuestras fuerzas?
14 Pues bien, israelitas, suscitaré contra vosotros
—oráculo del Señor, Dios del universo—
una nación que os oprimirá
desde el paso de Jamat
hasta el torrente del Arabá.

Woe to the Complacent

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)
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?
You put off the day of disaster
    and bring near a reign of terror.(J)
You lie on beds adorned with ivory
    and lounge on your couches.(K)
You dine on choice lambs
    and fattened calves.(L)
You strum away on your harps(M) like David
    and improvise on musical instruments.(N)
You drink wine(O) by the bowlful
    and use the finest lotions,
    but you do not grieve(P) over the ruin of Joseph.(Q)
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

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)

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.

God promises to send trouble to his people

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.

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? You refuse to think that trouble might come to you. But the cruel things that you do are causing trouble to come very soon. You lie on beautiful, expensive beds. You do not work, but you rest all the time. You eat fat young sheep and cows. Like King David, you play music on your harps and you sing new songs. 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]

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

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]

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.

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!

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?

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

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;

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

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

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

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.

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.