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.

How disastrous it will be for you who have an easy life in Zion, and you who feel secure living on Mount Samaria—you who are the most famous men in all of Israel to whom people come for help!

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?

But go to Calneh, and see what took place there. Then go on to the great city of Hamath, and down to the Philistine city of Gath. Were they better kingdoms than yours? Did they have more territory than you?

3 You dismiss the day of calamity and bring near a reign of violence.

You put out of your minds any thought of coming disaster, yet you are bringing closer the time when violence reigns.

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.

How disastrous it will be for you people who lie on beds decorated with ivory and lounge on couches, eating lamb from your flocks and fattened calves from the stall.

5 You improvise songs on the harp like David and invent your own musical instruments.

You make up songs accompanied by the harp, thinking you're great composers like David.

6 You drink wine by the bowlful and anoint yourselves with the finest oils, but you fail to grieve over the ruin of Joseph.

You drink wine by the bowlful, and anoint yourselves with the finest oils, but you do not grieve over the ruin of Joseph's descendants.

7 Therefore, you will now go into exile as the first of the captives, and your feasting and lounging will come to an end.

So you will be at the head of those led away into exile; the feasting and lazing around will be over.

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.”

The Lord God has sworn an oath on his own life. This is what the Lord God of power declares: I detest Jacob's arrogance and I hate his fortresses; I will hand over this city and all in it to the enemy.

9 And if there are ten men left in one house, they too will die.

If there are ten people in a house, they will 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.”

And when a relative comes to take away the bodies from the house, he will ask someone inside “Is there anyone else with you?” The person will reply, “No...” Then the other will say, “Quiet! Don't even mention the Lord's name.”

11 For the LORD gives a command: “The great house will be smashed to pieces, and the small house to rubble.”

Watch out! When the Lord gives the command, large houses will be reduced to rubble, and small houses smashed to pieces.

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—

Can horses gallop over rocks? Can oxen plow the sea? But you have turned justice into poison, and the fruit of doing good into bitterness!

13 you who rejoice in Lo-debar and say, ‘Did we not take Karnaim by our own strength?’

You joyfully celebrate your conquest of Lodebar, and say “Didn't we in our own strength capture Karnaim?”

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.”

Watch out, people of Israel! I am going to send an enemy nation to attack you, says the Lord God of power, and they will oppress you from the Pass of Hamath to the Arabah Valley.