Amos 6

Woe to the Complacent

6Woe to those who are at ease in Zion ^k

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.

²Cross over to Calneh ^land see;

go from there to great Hamath; ^m

then go down to Gath ⁿof the Philistines.

Are you better than these kingdoms?

Is their territory larger than yours?

³You dismiss any thought of the evil day ^o

and bring in a reign of violence. ^p

⁴They lie on beds inlaid with ivory, ^q

sprawled out on their couches, ^r

and dine on lambs from the flock ^s

and calves from the stall.

⁵They improvise songs ^tto the sound of the harp ^u

and invent ^vtheir own musical instruments like David. ^w

⁶They drink wine by the bowlful ^x

and anoint themselves with the finest oils

but do not grieve over the ruin of Joseph. ^y

⁷Therefore, they will now go into exile

as the first of the captives, ^z

and the feasting ^aof those who sprawl out

will come to an end.

Israel’s Pride Judged

⁸The Lord God has sworn by Himself ^b—this is the declaration of Yahweh, the God of Hosts:

I loathe Jacob’s pride ^c

and hate his citadels, ^d

so I will hand over the city ^eand everything in it.

⁹And if there are 10 men left in one house, they will die. ^f10A close relative ^gand burner ^hiwill remove his corpse ^jfrom the house. He will call to someone in the inner recesses of the house, “Any more with you?”

That person will reply, “None.”

Then he will say, “Silence, because Yahweh’s name must not be invoked.” ^k

¹¹For the Lord commands:

The large house will be smashed to pieces,

and the small house to rubble. ^l

¹²Do horses gallop on the cliffs;

does anyone plow there with oxen? ^m

Yet you have turned justice into poison ⁿ

and the fruit of righteousness into wormwood ^o—

¹³you who rejoice over Lo-debar ^p

and say, “Didn’t we capture Karnaim

for ourselves by our own strength?” ^q

¹⁴But look, I am raising up a nation

against you, house of Israel ^r—

this is the declaration of the Lord,

the God of Hosts—

and they will oppress you

from the entrance of Hamath ^st

to the Brook of the Arabah. ^u