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Amos 6

God will Cause the Good Times in Israel to End

1 Oh, it will be very bad for you people in Zion.

You do not think that you have any reason to worry.

And you people who live on Mount Samaria -- you feel so safe. You are important leaders of the most important nation!

The Israelites come to you!

2 Go to Calneh and look at it.

Go from there to the large city Hamath.

Then go to the Philistine city called Gath.

You are stronger than these nations.

Their countries are not larger than yours.

3 But you refuse to believe that there will be a time of punishment. You cause the rule of terror to begin earlier.

4 You lie on expensive beds.

You sit in a lazy way on your chairs.

You eat young sheep and fat young cows.

5 You play on your harps like David.

You like to write songs and to play on musical instruments.

6 You drink many bowls of wine. You use the best oils for your body. But you are not sad that people are destroying the family of Joseph.

7 So you will be the first to go into exile.

The times when you eat well will finish.

The times when you lie on couches will end.

Verse 1 For most of the time, Amos was speaking to Israel. However, he sometimes gave his messages to Judah. Another message to Judah was in 2:4-5. Here he calls Judah ' Zion'. Zion is really the name of a hill inside Jerusalem, but sometimes this name refers to the whole city. Jerusalem had a long history. But Samaria only began 125 years before the time of Amos. Both places had security. Samaria was very powerful and people respected its leaders. Jeroboam 2nd had won battles against Syria (2 Kings 14:25).

Verse 2 Both Calneh and Hamath were city-states. They were to the north of Israel. Israel had some control over these places. Uzziah broke down the wall of Gath in Philistia (2 Chronicles 26:6). In Amos's time, Judah had control of Gath. The cities in Israel have strong defences. But the leaders of Israel must not think that this makes them safe from their enemies.

Verse 3 Perhaps the leaders realize that there may be a day of judgement. But they think that this day is a long time in the future. In the meantime, they continue to make trouble for the poor people. The 'rule of terror' may refer to unfair judgements by the courts or government. The Hebrew uses the words 'seat of terror'.

Verse 4 Amos now speaks to the rich people. They were lazy. They spent their money on things of little real value. Most Israelites ate very little meat. They only ate meat on special occasions. But the rich people ate lots of meat. And they did not care that society had many things wrong with it.

Verse 5 The rich people amused themselves by playing music. They had so much time that they could live like kings and queens.

Verse 6 As well as this, the rich people became drunk. They drank too much wine. And they did not care how they drank it! It was a good idea to use oils in the time of Amos. It was a way to keep clean. However, the rich people used very expensive oils. It was not necessary to spend so much money. But they did not care about their own country. They did not care that they were ruining their nation.

Verse 7 Rich people will continue to be first. They will lead their country into exile. Even when their enemies destroy their country, they will be at the front. Their confidence in their wealth will finish.

Only a Few Israelites will Live

8 The Lord the Ruler has used his own name.

The Lord Almighty has made a promise.

'I hate the things that Jacob is proud of.

I hate his strong places.

So I will let the enemy take the city and everything in it.'

9 If there are ten men left in a family, they will die. 10 And when a person dies, a relative will come to get the body. Then he can take it out and burn it. The relative will come to take away the body. He will call to any person who might be hiding in the house.

He will say, 'Is anyone with you?' That person will answer, 'No.' Then the relative will say, 'Be quiet! We must not mention the name of the Lord.'

11 This is because the Lord has given the command.

He will break the large houses into pieces.

He will break the small houses into small pieces.

Verse 8 This is the second time that God makes a promise. The other times are in 4:2 and 8:7. Each promise is a promise of punishment. The punishment is final. God will not change his mind. The people of Israel (or Jacob) are too proud. Pride is the cause of most of their sin. They are too confident about their strong places. But the enemy will take Samaria.

Verses 9-10 When the attack happens, there will be hunger and illness. There will be no escape for anyone. People will hide in inner rooms. Their relatives will come to these rooms. Perhaps there is a chance that more than one person is still alive. But they must not hope. They will not want to suffer any more. This is why they will not 'mention' the name 'the Lord'. They accept that this is his punishment. They do not want to make him more angry. The time is over when they can pray to God. God has left them.

Verse 11 God has given instructions to the enemy. The details of the attack do not matter. God will make sure that the end will come. All types of houses will fall -- big and small. Perhaps these are the 'summer houses' and 'winter houses' in Amos 3:15.

12 Horses do not run over rocks.

People do not use cows to plough over rocks.

But you have changed fair laws into poison.

You have changed good things into bitter things.

13 You are happy that you took Lo Debar city in battle.

You say, 'We have taken Karnaim city because we are strong.'

14 But the Lord God Almighty says, 'Israel, I will bring a nation against you.

That nation will bring troubles to your whole country. It will bring troubles from the entrance to Hamath to the Arabah Valley."

Verse 12 Amos now uses some examples that seem a little unlikely. A good rider would not take his horse over rocks. A good farmer would not try to plough over rocks. These actions would not be sensible, and they would only have bad results. They are not normal actions. But Israel has done the opposite of what is good and normal. The Israelites did not want fair laws. As a result, when good people tried to do good things, they were disappointed. It was like eating bitter food. The prophets in the Old Testament knew the terrible power of sin.

Verse 13 Amos now uses Hebrew in a clever way. It is difficult to give the proper meaning in a translation. 'Lo Debar' means 'nothing'. 'Karnaim' means ' horns'. The word ' horns' is a way of saying 'strength'. Jeroboam 2nd took these cities in war (2 Kings 14:25-28). When Israel won these battles, she thought that she had become great. However, God did not think that these battles were important.

Verse 14 Amos has a surprise for Israel! Other nations seemed weak, but God would change this. Hamath was on the northern boundary of Israel. The Arabah Valley was on the southern boundary. The Dead Sea was in the Arabah Valley. Amos does not give a name to the enemy. However, Israel could be sure that the enemy would come. Nobody in Israel would escape.

Locusts, Fire and a Plumb Line

Amos now gives us five pictures from God. There are three pictures in chapter 7, one in chapter 8 and one in chapter 9. The first two pictures are punishments that God was going to send. But after Amos prayed to him, he did not send them. The fourth picture depends on the similar sound of two words.