Amos 6:1–7:9

Woe to Those at Ease in Zion

6 w“Woe to those who are at ease in Zion,

and to those who feel secure on xthe mountain of Samaria,

ythe notable men of zthe first of the nations,

to whom the house of Israel comes!

2  Pass over to aCalneh, and see,

and from there go to bHamath the great;

then go down to cGath of the Philistines.

dAre you better than these kingdoms?

Or is their territory greater than your territory,

3  eO you who put far away the day of disaster

fand bring near the seat of violence?

4  “Woe to those gwho lie on hbeds of ivory

gand stretch themselves out on their couches,

and eat lambs from the flock

iand calves from the midst of the stall,

5  jwho sing idle songs to the sound of the harp

and like David jinvent for themselves instruments of music,

6  kwho drink wine in bowls

and lanoint themselves with the finest oils,

but are not grieved over the ruin of Joseph!

7  mTherefore they shall now be the first of those who go into exile,

and the revelry of those who stretch themselves out shall pass away.”

8 nThe Lord God has sworn by himself, declares the Lord, the God of hosts:

“I abhor othe pride of Jacob

and hate his strongholds,

pand I will deliver up the city and all that is in it.”

9 And qif ten men remain in one house, they shall die. 10 And when one’s relative, rthe 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, s“Silence! We must not mention the name of the Lord.”

11  For behold, the Lord commands,

and tthe great house shall be struck down into fragments,

and the little house into bits.

12  Do horses run on rocks?

Does one plow there1 with oxen?

uBut you have turned justice into vpoison

uand the fruit of righteousness into wormwood2—

13  you who rejoice in Lo-debar,3

who say, w“Have we not by our own strength

captured Karnaim4 for ourselves?”

14  “For behold, xI will raise up against you a nation,

O house of Israel,” declares the Lord, the God of hosts;

“and they shall oppress you from yLebo-hamath

to the Brook of zthe Arabah.”

Warning Visions

7 aThis is what the Lord God showed me: behold, bhe was forming locusts when the latter growth was just beginning to sprout, and behold, it was the latter growth after the king’s mowings. 2 When they had finished eating the grass of the land, I said,

“O Lord God, please forgive!

cHow can Jacob stand?

He is so small!”

3  dThe Lord relented concerning this:

“It shall not be,” said the Lord.

4 aThis is what the Lord God showed me: behold, the Lord God was calling efor a judgment by fire, and it devoured the great deep and was eating up the land. 5 Then I said,

“O Lord God, please cease!

cHow can Jacob stand?

He is so small!”

6  dThe Lord relented concerning this:

“This also shall not be,” said the Lord God.

7 aThis is what he showed me: behold, the Lord was standing beside a wall built with fa plumb line, with a plumb line in his hand. 8 And the Lord said to me, g“Amos, what do you see?” And I said, “A plumb line.” Then the Lord said,

“Behold, I am setting fa plumb line

in the midst of my people Israel;

gI will never again pass by them;

9  hthe high places of Isaac shall be made desolate,

and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste,

and I will rise against ithe house of Jeroboam with the sword.”