Amos 6:3-13

3 ¹O you who put far away the day of disaster ²and bring near the seat of violence?

4 "Woe to those ³who lie on ⁴beds of ivory ⁵and stretch themselves out on their couches, and eat lambs from the flock ⁶and calves from the midst of the stall,

5 ⁷who sing idle songs to the sound of the harp and like David ⁸invent for themselves instruments of music,

6 ⁹who drink wine in bowls and ¹⁰anoint themselves with the finest oils, but are not grieved over the ruin of Joseph!

7 ¹¹Therefore they shall now be the first of those who go into exile, and the revelry of those who stretch themselves out shall pass away."

8 ¹²The Lord GOD has sworn by himself, declares the LORD, the God of hosts: "I abhor ¹³the pride of Jacob and hate his strongholds, ¹⁴and I will deliver up the city and all that is in it."

9 And ¹⁵if ten men remain in one house, they shall die.

10 And when one's relative, ¹⁶the one who anoints him for burial, shall take him up to bring the bones out of the house, and shall say to him who is in the innermost parts of the house, "Is there still anyone with you?" he shall say, "No"; and he shall say, ¹⁷"Silence! We must not mention the name of the LORD."

11 For behold, the LORD commands, and ¹⁸the great house shall be struck down into fragments, and the little house into bits.

12 Do horses run on rocks? Does one plow there^[a] with oxen? ¹⁹But you have turned justice into ²⁰poison ²¹and the fruit of righteousness into wormwood^[b]--

13 you who rejoice in Lo-debar,^[c] who say, ²²"Have we not by our own strength captured Karnaim^[d] for ourselves?"

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Amos 6:3-13 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO AMOS 6

This chapter seems to be directed both to the two tribes of Judah and Benjamin, and the ten tribes of Israel, under the names of Zion and Samaria, and to the principal men in both; who are reproved and threatened for their carnal security and self-confidence, being in no fear of the evil day, though they had no reason for it no more than other people, Am 6:1-3; are charged with wantonness, luxury, intemperance, and want of sympathy with those in distress, Am 6:4-6; therefore are threatened to be carried captive first, and their city to be delivered up; which, for the certainty of it, is not only said, but swore to, Am 6:7,8; and a great mortality in every house, and the destruction of all houses, both great and small, Am 6:9-11; and since a reformation of them seemed impracticable, and not to be expected, but they gloried in their wealth, and boasted of their strength, therefore they should be afflicted by a foreign nation raised against them, which affliction should be general, from one end of the country to the other, Am 6:12-14.

Taken from John Gill's Exposition of the Bible

Cross References 22

1. [Amos 9:10; Ezekiel 12:27]
2. See Amos 3:10
3. [Amos 3:12]
4. [Esther 1:6]
5. [Amos 3:12]
6. [James 5:5]
7. See Amos 5:23
8. See Amos 5:23
9. [Isaiah 5:12]
10. [Daniel 10:3]
11. Amos 7:11, 17
12. Jeremiah 22:5; Jeremiah 51:14
13. Amos 8:7; [Psalms 47:4]
14. [Jeremiah 17:3]
15. [Amos 3:3]
16. See 1 Samuel 31:12
17. [Amos 5:13; Amos 8:3]
18. [Amos 3:15]
19. [Amos 5:7]
20. Deuteronomy 29:18
21. [Amos 5:7]
22. [1 Kings 22:11; Micah 4:13]

Footnotes 4

[a]. Or the sea
[b]. Or into bitter fruit
[c]. Lo-debar means nothing
[d]. Karnaim means horns (a symbol of strength)

The English Standard Version is published with the permission of Good News Publishers.

Amos 6:3-13

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Amos 6:3-13 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO AMOS 6

Cross References 22

Footnotes 4