Amos 6:7-8

6:7 Therefore they will now be the first to go into exile, ¹ 

and the religious banquets ²  where they sprawl on couches ³  will end.

6:8 The sovereign Lord confirms this oath by his very own life. ⁴ 

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

“I despise Jacob’s arrogance;

I hate their ⁵  fortresses.

I will hand over to their enemies ⁶  the city of Samaria ⁷  and everything in it.”

Amos 6:2

6:2 They say to the people: ⁸ 

“Journey over to Calneh and look at it!

Then go from there to Hamath-Rabbah! ⁹ 

Then go down to Gath of the Philistines!

Are they superior to our two ¹⁰  kingdoms?

Is their territory larger than yours?” ¹¹ 

Amos 1:6

1:6 This is what the Lord says:

“Because Gaza ¹²  has committed three crimes ¹³  –

make that four! ¹⁴  – I will not revoke my decree of judgment. ¹⁵ 

They deported a whole community ¹⁶  and sold them ¹⁷  to Edom.

[6:7]  ¹ tn Heb “they will go into exile at the head of the exiles.”

[6:7]  ² sn Religious banquets. This refers to the מַרְזֵחַ (marzeakh), a type of pagan religious banquet popular among the upper class of Israel at this time and apparently associated with mourning. See P. King, Amos, Hosea, Micah, 137-61; J. L. McLaughlin, The “Marzeah” in the Prophetic Literature (VTSup). Scholars debate whether at this banquet the dead were simply remembered or actually venerated in a formal, cultic sense.

[6:7]  ³ tn Heb “of the sprawled out.” See v. 4.

[6:8]  ⁴ tn Heb “swears by his life”; or “swears by himself.”

[6:8]  ⁵ tn Heb “his,” referring to Jacob, which stands here for the nation of Israel.

[6:8]  ⁶ tn The words “to their enemies” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[6:8]  ⁷ tn Heb “the city”; this probably refers to the city of Samaria (cf. 6:1), which in turn, by metonymy, represents the entire northern kingdom.

[6:2]  ⁸ tn The words “They say to the people” are interpretive and supplied in the translation for clarification. The translation understands v. 2 as the boastful words, which the leaders (described in v. 1) spoke to those who came to them (v. 1b). Some interpret v. 2 differently, understanding the words as directed to the leaders by the prophet. Verse 2b would then be translated: “Are you (i.e., Israel and Judah) better than these kingdoms (i.e., Calneh, etc.)? Is your border larger than their border?” (This reading requires an emendation of the Hebrew text toward the end of the verse.) In this case the verse is a reminder to Judah/Israel that they are not superior to other nations, which have already fallen victim to military conquest. Consequently Judah/Israel should not expect to escape the same fate. Following this line of interpretation, some take v. 2 as a later addition since the Assyrians under Tiglath-pileser III conquered Calneh, Hamath, and Gath after the time of Amos’ ministry. However, this conclusion is not necessary since the kingdoms mentioned here had suffered military setbacks prior to Amos’ time as well. See S. M. Paul, Amos (Hermeneia), 201-4.

[6:2]  ⁹ tn Or “Great Hamath” (cf. NIV); or “Hamath the great” (cf. KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV); the word “rabbah” means “great” in Hebrew.

[6:2]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “to these,” referring to Judah and Israel (see v. 1a).

[6:2]  ¹¹ tn Both rhetorical questions in this verse expect the answer “no.” If these words do come from the leaders, then this verse underscores their self-delusion of power (compare 6:13). The prophet had no such mistaken sense of national grandeur (7:2, 5).

[1:6]  ¹² sn Gaza was one of the five major Philistine cities (along with Ashdod, Ashkelon, Ekron, and Gath). It was considered to mark the southern limit of Canaan at the point on the coast where it was located (Gen 10:19).

[1:6]  ¹³ tn Traditionally, “transgressions” (KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV) or “sins” (NIV). For an explanation of the atrocities outlined in this oracle as treaty violations of God’s mandate to Noah in Gen 9:5-7, see the note on the word “violations” in 1:3.

[1:6]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “Because of three violations of Gaza, even because of four.”

[1:6]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “I will not bring it [or “him”] back.” The translation understands the pronominal object to refer to the decree of judgment that follows; the referent (the decree) has been specified in the translation for clarity. For another option see the note on the word “judgment” in 1:3.

[1:6]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “[group of] exiles.” A number of English translations take this as a collective singular and translate it with a plural (e.g., NAB, NIV, NRSV).

[1:6]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “in order to hand them over.”