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 this message, Israelites, which the Lord has spoken against you, against the whole nation that I brought out of Egypt:
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.”
You alone have I cared for of all the nations of the world, this is why I will punish you for your crimes.
3 Two [people] certainly cannot [RHQ] walk together if they have not [already] agreed [about what place they will start walking from].
Do two walk together unless they agreed to meet?
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].
Does a lion roar in the forest when there is no prey for him? Does a young lion cry out in his den unless he has caught 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.
Does a bird swoop down into a trap if no bait is set for it? Does a trap spring up from the ground if nothing sets it off?
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].
Can a trumpet be blown in a city and the people not tremble? Can disaster strike a city and the Lord not have caused it?
7 And whatever Yahweh plans to do, he tells his prophets about it.
Surely the Lord God does nothing without revealing his purpose 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 has roared; who does 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!”
Proclaim over the palaces in Ashdod, and over the palaces in the land of Egypt: Gather upon the mountain of Samaria, and see the violent turmoil, the acts of oppression in her midst.
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].
For they do not know how to do right. They are heaping up violence and oppression in their palaces, says the Lord.
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.
Therefore the Lord God says: An enemy will surround the land, he will strip your strength from you. and your palaces will be looted.
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.”
The Lord says: Just as a shepherd rescues from the jaws of a lion two shinbones or a piece of an ear, so the Israelites living in Sameria will be rescued – with the corner of a couch, and the damask of a divan!
13 The Commander of the armies of angels said this: “Proclaim [this message] about the descendants [MTY] of Jacob:
Listen and testify against the house of Jacob, says the Lord God, the 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.
On the day when I punish Israel for their crimes, I will also visit in judgment the altars of Bethel, the horns of the altar will be hacked off, and they 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!”
I will destroy the winter houses together with the summer houses and the houses of ivory will perish. Many great houses will be swept away, says the Lord.
