Amos 6
1 Woe to those at ease in Zion and those secure on Mount Samaria, the distinguished ones of the foremost nation, to whom the house of Israel comes.
Woe to them that set at nothing Sion, and that trust in the mountain of Samaria: they have gathered [the harvest of] the heads of the nations, and they have gone in themselves.
2 Cross over to Calneh and see; go from there to the great Hamath; then go down to Gath of the Philistines. Are you better than these kingdoms? Is their territory larger than yours?
O house of Israel, pass by all [of you], and see; and pass by thence to Ematrabba; and thence descend to Geth of the Philistines, the chief of all these kingdoms, [see] if their coasts are greater than your coasts.
3 You dismiss the day of calamity and bring near a reign of violence.
You who are approaching the evil day, who are drawing near and adopting false sabbaths;
4 You lie on beds inlaid with ivory, and lounge upon your couches. You dine on lambs from the flock and calves from the stall.
who sleep upon beds of ivory, and live delicately on their couches, and eat kids out of the flocks, and sucking calves out of the midst of the stalls;
5 You improvise songs on the harp like David and invent your own musical instruments.
who excel in the sound of musical instruments; they have regarded them as dwelling, not as fleeting [pleasures];
6 You drink wine by the bowlful and anoint yourselves with the finest oils, but you fail to grieve over the ruin of Joseph.
who drink strained wine, and anoint themselves with the best ointment; and have suffered nothing on occasion of the calamity of Joseph.
7 Therefore, you will now go into exile as the first of the captives, and your feasting and lounging will come to an end.
Therefore now shall they depart into captivity from the dominion of princes, and the neighing of horses shall be cut off from Ephraim.
8 The Lord GOD has sworn by Himself—the LORD, the God of Hosts, has declared: “I abhor Jacob’s pride and detest his citadels, so I will deliver up the city and everything in it.”
For the Lord has sworn by himself, [saying], Because I abhor all the pride of Jacob, I do also hate his countries, and I will cut off [his] city with all who inhabit it.
9 And if there are ten men left in one house, they too will die.
And it shall come to pass, if there be ten men left in one house, that they shall die.
10 And when the relative who is to burn the bodies picks them up to remove them from the house, he will call to one inside, “Is anyone else with you?” “None,” that person will answer. “Silence,” the relative will retort, “for the name of the LORD must not be invoked.”
But a remnant shall be left behind, and their relations shall take them, and shall strenuously endeavour to carry forth their bones from the house: and one shall say to the heads of the house, Is there yet [any one] else with you? And he shall say, No [one] else. And [the other] shall say, Be silent, that you name not the name of the Lord.
11 For the LORD gives a command: “The great house will be smashed to pieces, and the small house to rubble.”
For, behold, the Lord commands, and he will strike the great house with breaches, and the little house with rents.
12 “Do horses gallop on the cliffs? Does one plow the sea with oxen? But you have turned justice into poison and the fruit of righteousness into wormwood—
Will horses run upon rocks? will they refrain from neighing at mares? for you have turned judgement into poison, and the fruit of righteousness into bitterness:
13 you who rejoice in Lo-debar and say, ‘Did we not take Karnaim by our own strength?’
you who rejoice at vanity, who say, Have we not possessed horns by our own strength?
14 For behold, I will raise up a nation against you, O house of Israel,” declares the LORD, the God of Hosts, “and they will oppress you from Lebo-hamath to the Brook of the Arabah.”
For behold, O house of Israel, I will raise up against you a nation, says the Lord of hosts; and they shall afflict you so that you shall not enter into Aemath, and as it were [from] the river of the wilderness.
