Amos 6
Orthodox Jewish Bible
6 Hoy to them that are complacent in Tziyon, and have their bitachon in Har Shomron, the notables of the foremost Goyim, to whom Bais Yisroel comes!
2 Pass ye unto Calneh, and see; and from thence go ye to great Chamat; then go down to Gat of the Pelishtim (Philistines); be they better than these mamlachot? Or their territory more vast than your territory?
3 Ye that put far away the Yom Rah, and cause the shevet chamas to come near;
4 That lie upon beds of ivory, and stretch themselves upon their couches, and eat the lambs out of the tzon, and the calves from the stall;
5 Who prattle to the tune of the nevel (harp); like Dovid [HaMelech] they invent string instruments.
6 That drink yayin in sacrificial bowls, and anoint themselves with the finest ointments; but they are not grieved for the shever Yosef (ruin of Yosef).
7 Therefore now shall they go into captivity at the head of the golus, and the merry shouting of the revellers will die.
8 Adonoi Hashem hath sworn by Himself, saith Hashem Elohei Tzva’os: I abhor the ga’on Ya’akov, and hate his fortresses; therefore will I deliver up the city with all that is therein.
9 And it shall come to pass, if there remain asarah anashim in one bais, they shall die.
10 And a man’s relative shall take him up, and he that burieth him, to carry out the bones out of the bais, and shall say unto him still hiding inside, Is there yet any with thee? And he shall say, Not one. Then shall he say, Hold thy tongue; for the Shem Hashem is not to be invoked.
11 For, hinei, Hashem commandeth, and He will strike the bais hagadol into ruins, and the bais hakaton into pieces.
12 Do susim run upon the rock? Do men plow there with oxen? For ye have turned mishpat into poison, and the p’ri of tzedakah into wormwood;
13 Ye which rejoice over what is worthless, which say, Have we not taken to us horns [i.e., symbols of military resources] by chazekeinu (our own strength)?
14 But, hineni, I will raise up against you a Goy (Nation), O Bais Yisroel, saith Hashem Elohei Tzva’os; and they shall afflict you from the territory of Chamat unto the Wadi of the Aravah. T.N. Notice in the next chapter that Amos refuses to be intimidated by an apostate religious leader who dares to war against Scripture. Amos gives a prophetic prediction that this chalatan will be defrocked by Hashem by being dragged off to an unclean heathen land.
Amos 6
Amplified Bible
“Those at Ease in Zion”
6 Woe (judgment is coming) to those who are at ease and carefree in Zion (Judah)
And to those on the mountain of Samaria who feel secure,
The distinguished men of the foremost of nations,
To whom the house of Israel comes.(A)
2
Go over to Calneh [in Babylonia] and look,
And from there go [north of Damascus] to the great city of Hamath;
Then go down to Gath of the Philistines.
Are they better than these kingdoms [of yours],
Or is their territory greater than yours?
3
Do you put off the day of punishment,
Yet cause the seat of violence to come near?
4
Those who lie on [luxurious] beds of ivory
And lounge around out on their couches,
And eat lambs from the flock
And calves from the midst of the stall,
5
Who improvise to the sound of the harp—
Like David they have composed songs for themselves—(B)
6
Who drink wine from sacrificial bowls
And anoint themselves with the finest oils [reflecting their unrestrained celebration];
Yet they are not grieved over the ruin of Joseph (Israel).(C)
7
Therefore, they will now go into exile with the first of the captives,
And the cultic revelry and banqueting of those who lounge around [on their luxurious couches] will pass away.
8
The Lord [a]God has sworn [an oath] by Himself—the Lord God of hosts, says:
“I loathe and reject the [self-centered] arrogance of Jacob (Israel),
And I hate his palaces and citadels;
Therefore, I shall hand over the [idolatrous] city [of Samaria] with all that it contains [to the Assyrian invaders].”
9 And it shall come to pass that if there remain ten men in one house, they shall die [by the pestilence that comes with war]. 10 Then one’s uncle, or his undertaker, shall come to bring the [disease-infected] body out of the house, [to cremate it], and he will say to another in the farthest part of the house, “Is there anyone else with you?” And that one will say, “No one.” Then he will respond, “Hush! Keep quiet! For the name of the Lord is not to be mentioned [even casually, for fear that we might invoke even more punishment].”(D) 11 For behold, the Lord is going to command that the great house be smashed to pieces and the small house to fragments.
12
Do horses run on rocks?
Do men plow rocks with oxen? [Of course not!]
Yet you have turned justice into poison
And the fruit of righteousness into wormwood (bitterness),
13
You who [self-confidently] rejoice in [b]Lo-debar (Nothing),
Who say, “Have we not by our own strength taken [c]Karnaim (Strength) for ourselves?”
14
“For behold, I am going to stir up a nation against you,
O house of Israel,” says the Lord, the God of hosts,
“And they will afflict and torment you [to the entire limits of Israel] from the entrance of Hamath [in the north]
To the brook of the Arabah [in the south].”
Footnotes
- Amos 6:8 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord.
- Amos 6:13 Lit a thing of nothing. Lo-debar and Karnaim apparently were Aramean sites that had been captured by Israel. Amos uses the meanings of these names in a play on words to rebuke Israel.
- Amos 6:13 Lit a pair of horns. The horns of animals were regarded as symbols of power. Amos condemns Israel for claiming that their victories were achieved without God’s help.
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