Woe to the Complacent in Zion
1 Woe to those who are at ease in Zion,
and to those who are secure on Mount Samaria,
the notable men of the chief of the nations,
to whom the house of Israel comes.
2 Go to Calneh and see,
and from there go to Hamath the great.
Then go down to Gath of the Philistines.
Are they better than these kingdoms?
Is their border greater than your border?
3 You put thoughts of disaster far away
and bring the reign of violence near.
4 You lie on beds of ivory
and recline upon your couches
and eat lambs from the flock
and calves from the stall.
5 You strum on the strings of a harp
and invent for yourselves instruments of music, like David.
6 You drink wine by the bowlful
and anoint yourselves with the best oils,
but you are not grieved at the demise of the family of Joseph.
7 Therefore you will now go into exile
with the first who go captive,
and the feasting and lounging will end.
The Pride of Israel
8 âThe Lord God has sworn by himself,â says the Lord, the God of Hosts:
âI abhor the pride of Jacob
and detest his fortresses.
Therefore I will deliver up the city
with all that is in it.
9 It will happen, if there remain ten men in one house, that they shall die. 10 When a manâs relative carries his corpse away, he who burns him in burial, bringing bodies out of the house, will ask him who is in the innermost parts of the house, âAre there any more with you?â And he says, âNo,â then he will say, âHush! Indeed we must not mention the name of the Lord.â
11 For, the Lord commands it,
and the great house is smashed to pieces
and the little house into bits.
12 Do horses run on rocky crags?
Does one plow there with oxen?
But you have turned justice into poison
and the fruit of righteousness into bitterness.
13 You who rejoice over Lo-debar, and say,
âHave we not captured Karnaim for ourselves,
by our own strength?â
14 For I will raise up a nation
against you, house of Israel,â says the Lord, the God of Hosts.
“They will afflict you from the entrance of Hamath
to the brook of the Arabah.â