“Carefree in Zion”

(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.
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?
Are you (F)postponing the day of disaster,
And would you (G)bring near the seat of violence?

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,
Who improvise to the sound of the harp,
And like David have [b]composed (J)songs for themselves,
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.
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.

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Footnotes

  1. Amos 6:2 Or you
  2. Amos 6:5 Or invented musical instruments

Woe to the Complacent

Woe to those who are at ease in Zion(A)
and to those who feel secure on the hill of Samaria—
the notable people in this first of the nations,
those the house of Israel comes to.
Cross over to Calneh(B) and see;
go from there to great Hamath;(C)
then go down to Gath(D) of the Philistines.
Are you better than these kingdoms?
Is their territory larger than yours?
You dismiss any thought of the evil day(E)
and bring in a reign of violence.(F)

They lie on beds inlaid with ivory,(G)
sprawled out on their couches,(H)
and dine on lambs from the flock(I)
and calves from the stall.
They improvise songs[a] to the sound of the harp(J)
and invent[b] their own musical instruments like David.(K)
They drink wine by the bowlful(L)
and anoint themselves with the finest oils
but do not grieve over the ruin of Joseph.(M)
Therefore, they will now go into exile
as the first of the captives,(N)
and the feasting(O) of those who sprawl out
will come to an end.

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Footnotes

  1. Amos 6:5 Hb obscure
  2. Amos 6:5 Or compose on