Amos 6:12-14

6:12 Can horses run on rocky cliffs?

Can one plow the sea with oxen? ¹ 

Yet you have turned justice into a poisonous plant,

and the fruit of righteous actions into a bitter plant. ² 

6:13 You are happy because you conquered Lo-Debar. ³ 

You say, “Did we not conquer Karnaim ⁴  by our own power?”

6:14 “Look! I am about to bring ⁵  a nation against you, family ⁶  of Israel.”

The Lord, the God who commands armies, is speaking.

“They will oppress ⁷  you all the way from Lebo-Hamath ⁸  to the Stream of the Arabah.” ⁹ 

[6:12]  ¹ tc Heb “Does one plow with oxen?” This obviously does not fit the parallelism, for the preceding rhetorical question requires the answer, “Of course not!” An error of fusion has occurred in the Hebrew, with the word יָם (yam, “sea”) being accidentally added as a plural ending to the collective noun בָּקָר (baqar, “oxen”). A proper division of the consonants produces the above translation, which fits the parallelism and also anticipates the answer, “Of course not!”

[6:12]  ² sn The botanical imagery, when juxtaposed with the preceding rhetorical questions, vividly depicts and emphasizes how the Israelites have perverted justice and violated the created order by their morally irrational behavior.

[6:13]  ³ tn Heb “those who rejoice over Lo-Debar.”

[6:13]  ⁴ sn Karnaim was also located across the Jordan River. The name in Hebrew means “double horned.” Since an animal’s horn was a symbol of strength (see Deut 33:17), the Israelites boasted in this victory over a town whose very name symbolized military power.

[6:14]  ⁵ tn Or “raise up” (KJV, NASB); NIV “stir up.”

[6:14]  ⁶ tn Heb “house.”

[6:14]  ⁷ sn Once again there is irony in the divine judgment. The oppressive nation itself will suffer oppression. The verb “oppress” (לָחַץ, lakhats) in this verse is not the same as that used in 4:1 (עָשַׁק, ’ashaq).

[6:14]  ⁸ tn Or “from the entrance to Hamath.” The Hebrew term לְבוֹא (lÿvo’) can either be translated or considered a part of the place name.

[6:14]  ⁹ sn Lebo-Hamath refers to the northern border of Israel, the Stream of the Arabah to its southern border. See 2 Kgs 14:25. Through this invader the Lord would reverse the victories and territorial expansion Israel experienced during the reign of Jeroboam II.