Woe to Those at Ease in Zion

(A)“Woe to those who are at ease in Zion,
    and to those who feel secure on (B)the mountain of Samaria,
(C)the notable men of (D)the first of the nations,
    to whom the house of Israel comes!
Pass over to (E)Calneh, and see,
    and from there go to (F)Hamath the great;
    then go down to (G)Gath of the Philistines.
(H)Are you better than these kingdoms?
    Or is their territory greater than your territory,
(I)O you who put far away the day of disaster
    (J)and bring near the seat of violence?

“Woe to those (K)who lie on (L)beds of ivory
    (M)and stretch themselves out on their couches,
and eat lambs from the flock
    (N)and calves from the midst of the stall,
(O)who sing idle songs to the sound of the harp
    and like David (P)invent for themselves instruments of music,
(Q)who drink wine in bowls
    and (R)anoint themselves with the finest oils,
    but are not grieved over the ruin of Joseph!
(S)Therefore they shall now be the first of those who go into exile,
    and the revelry of those who stretch themselves out shall pass away.”

(T)The Lord God has sworn by himself, declares the Lord, the God of hosts:

“I abhor (U)the pride of Jacob
    and hate his strongholds,
    (V)and I will deliver up the city and all that is in it.”

And (W)if ten men remain in one house, they shall die. 10 And when one's relative, (X)the one who anoints him for burial, shall take him up to bring the bones out of the house, and shall say to him who is in the innermost parts of the house, “Is there still anyone with you?” he shall say, “No”; and he shall say, (Y)“Silence! We must not mention the name of the Lord.”

11 For behold, the Lord commands,
    and (Z)the great house shall be struck down into fragments,
    and the little house into bits.
12 Do horses run on rocks?
    Does one plow there[a] with oxen?
(AA)But you have turned justice into (AB)poison
    (AC)and the fruit of righteousness into wormwood[b]
13 you who rejoice in Lo-debar,[c]
    who say, (AD)“Have we not by our own strength
    captured Karnaim[d] for ourselves?”
14 “For behold, (AE)I will raise up against you a nation,
    O house of Israel,” declares the Lord, the God of hosts;
“and they shall oppress you from (AF)Lebo-hamath
    to the Brook of (AG)the Arabah.”

Footnotes

  1. Amos 6:12 Or the sea
  2. Amos 6:12 Or into bitter fruit
  3. Amos 6:13 Lo-debar means nothing
  4. Amos 6:13 Karnaim means horns (a symbol of strength)

Warnings to the self-satisfied

    Doom to those resting comfortably in Zion
        and those trusting in Mount Samaria,
    the chiefs of the nations,
        to whom the house of Israel comes!
    Cross over to Calneh and see;
        from there go to Hamath the great;
        then go down to Gath of the Philistines.
    Are you better than these kingdoms?
        Or is your territory greater than their territory?

    Doom to those who ignore the evil day
        and make violent rule draw near:
    who lie on beds of ivory,
        stretch out on their couches,
        eat lambs from the flock,
        and bull calves from the stall;
    who sing idle songs to the sound of the harp,
        and, like David, compose tunes on musical instruments;
    who drink bowls of wine,
        put the best of oils on themselves,
        but who aren’t grieved over the ruin of Joseph!
    Therefore, they will now be the first to be taken away,
        and the feast of those who lounged at the table will pass away.

    The Lord God has solemnly sworn,
    says the Lord, the God of heavenly forces:
    I reject the pride of Jacob.
        I hate his fortresses.
        I will hand over the city and all that is in it.
    If ten people remain in one house,
        then they will die.
10 If a relative, someone who burns the dead,
        picks up the body to bring it out of the house,
        and says to someone inside the house,
    “Is anyone else with you?”
        the answer will be, “No.”
    Then the relative will say,
        “Hush! We mustn’t mention the name of the Lord.”
11 Look, the Lord is giving an order;
        he will shatter the great house into bits
        and the little house into pieces.
12 Do horses run on rocks?
        Does one plow the sea with oxen?
    But you have turned justice into poison
        and the fruit of righteousness into bitterness—
13     you who rejoice in Lo-debar,
    who say, “Haven’t we by our own strength taken Karnaim for ourselves?”
14 Indeed, I will raise up against you a nation, house of Israel, says the Lord God of heavenly forces,
    and they will oppress you from Lebo-hamath to the desert ravine.