< Amos 3 >

1 “You people of Israel, I brought all your ancestors out of Egypt; so listen to what I am saying about you.
Listen to the word which the Lord has spoken about you, sons of Israel, concerning the whole family that I led out of the land of Egypt, saying:
2 From all the people-groups on the earth, I [chose and] took care of only you. That is the reason that I will punish you for the sins that you have committed.”
I have known only you in such a way, out of all the families of the earth. For this reason, I will visit upon you all your iniquities.
3 Two [people] certainly cannot [RHQ] walk together if they have not [already] agreed [about what place they will start walking from].
Will two walk together, unless they have agreed to do so?
4 A lion certainly does not [RHQ] roar in the bushes/forest if it has not killed another animal. It does not [RHQ] growl in its den if it is not eating [the flesh of an animal that it has caught].
Will a lion roar in the forest, unless he has prey? Will the lion’s young cry out from his den, unless he has taken something?
5 No one can [RHQ] catch a bird if [he does] not [set] a trap for it. A trap does not spring shut unless some [animal] has not sprung the trap.
Will a bird fall into a snare on the ground, if there is no bird-catcher? Will a snare be taken away from the ground, before it has caught something?
6 [Similarly, all] the people in a city certainly [RHQ] become afraid when [they hear someone] blowing a trumpet [to signal that enemies are attacking]. And when a city experiences disaster, Yahweh is the one who has caused it [RHQ].
Will the trumpet sound in a city, and the people not become frightened? Will there be disaster in a city, which the Lord has not done?
7 And whatever Yahweh plans to do, he tells his prophets about it.
For the Lord God does not fulfill his word, unless he has revealed his secret to his servants the prophets.
8 Everyone certainly becomes terrified [RHQ] when they hear a lion roar, and if Yahweh the Lord has given messages [to prophets like me], we certainly must [RHQ] proclaim those messages, [even if they cause people to become terrified].
The lion will roar, who will not fear? The Lord God has spoken, who will not prophesy?
9 [I said this to the leaders of Samaria] (OR, [Yahweh said this to me]): Send this message to the leaders [MET] in Ashdod [city] and to Egypt: “Come to the hills of Samaria and see [the way that their (leaders/wealthy people)] are causing people in that city to be terrified, and [the way that they] are causing the people to suffer!”
Let it be heard in the buildings of Ashdod and in the buildings of the land of Egypt, and say: Gather together across the mountains of Samaria, and see the many absurdities in its midst, and those who are suffering false accusations in its inner most places.
10 Yahweh says that the people there do not know how to do things that are right. Their homes are filled with [valuable things] that they have stolen or [taken] violently [from others].
And they do not know how to make it right, says the Lord, storing up iniquity and plunder in their buildings.
11 So Yahweh [our] God says that [soon] their enemies will come and tear down their (defenses/high city walls) and take away those valuable things.
Because of these things, thus says the Lord God: The land will be encircled and squeezed together. And your strength will be drawn away from you, and your buildings will be torn apart.
12 Yahweh has declared this: “When a lion attacks a sheep, [sometimes] a shepherd will be able to snatch from the lion’s mouth only two legs or an ear of the sheep. Similarly, [only] a few people from Samaria will escape, and [they will be able to rescue only] a part of a couch and a part of a bed.”
Thus says the Lord: Just as if a shepherd had rescued two legs from the mouth of a lion, or the tip of an ear, so also will the sons of Israel be rescued, who dwell in the sick bed of Samaria, and in the cot of Damascus.
13 The Commander of the armies of angels said this: “Proclaim [this message] about the descendants [MTY] of Jacob:
Listen and give testimony in the house of Jacob, says the Lord God of hosts:
14 When I, Yahweh, punish [the people of] Israel because of the sins that they have committed, I will cause the altars at Bethel [town] to be destroyed; even the projections at the corners of the altars will be cut off and fall to the ground.
that in the day, when I will begin to visit the betrayals of Israel, I will visit upon him and upon the altars of Bethel. And the horns of the altars will be cut off and will fall to the ground.
15 I will cause the houses [that they live in during] the (winter/rainy season) and those [in which they live during] the (summer/dry season) to be torn down. [Beautiful] big houses and houses [that are decorated] with ivory will be destroyed. [That will surely happen because I], Yahweh, have said it!”
And I will strike the winter house with the summer house; and the houses of ivory will perish, and many buildings will be torn apart, says the Lord.

< Amos 3 >