Amos 6:1-7
The Voice
Didn’t God institute the festivals? Didn’t He instruct His people to sacrifice? Didn’t He inspire the singers and songwriters to praise His name? Yes. Even the most beautiful ceremony can become empty ritual, and a sacred time should not be mixed with activities that displease God. He wants more than pious exercises; He wants His people to follow His instructions, to do what is right, and to honor Him because they recognize that He is the one all-powerful God.
6 Grief is coming to those who live comfortably in Zion
and those who feel secure on the mountain of Samaria;
The noteworthy of this nation
and those respected by the people of Israel have much to dread.
2 Go over to Calneh and look at what happened there,
then cross over to the great city of Hamath in Aram,
Then go down to Gath, the city of the Philistines.
Are you any more powerful than these fallen kingdoms were?
Are your lands any larger than theirs?
3 You try to hold off the evil day,
but your actions bring the reign of violence ever nearer.
4 Grief is coming to those who lounge on beds inlaid with ivory,
who stretch out on their luxurious sofas,
And who feast on lambs from their flocks
and stall-fattened calves anytime, not just during festivals.
5 Grief is coming to those who sing foolish songs to the sounds of the harp,
who think they can play like David;
6 Who guzzle fine wine by the gallon from elegant bowls;
who apply expensive oils to their bodies, when cheaper ones will do,
But they are not grieved by the awful state of Joseph’s people.
7 That is why they will be the first ones carried off into exile,
and their lives of leisure and feasting will disappear.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
