Amoschapter 6
14 verses · Amos · about 760 BC · The Twelve
Key verse
Woe to them that are at ease in Zion, and trust in the mountain of Samaria, which are named chief of the nations, to whom the house of Israel came!
It stands in Woe to those at ease in Zion, first to go into exile, verses 1 to 7.
The chapter
Chapter summary
'Woe to them that are at ease in Zion, and to them that are secure in the mountain of Samaria.' Go look at Calneh, Hamath, Gath, says Amos: are you better than those kingdoms that fell? The portrait of luxury is unforgettable: lying on beds of ivory, sprawled on couches, eating lambs out of the flock, inventing instruments of music like David, drinking wine in bowls, anointed with the chief oils: 'but they are not grieved for the affliction of Joseph' (6:6). Therefore they go captive first. They boast of taking Karnaim by their own strength; they have turned justice into gall and the fruit of righteousness into wormwood.
Context
Prophecy · Amos · Amos overview
The world behind this chapter
Amos 6The history
The feast described here has a name in the wider culture. Texts from Ugarit and later Semitic sources describe the marzeah, an elite drinking society that met for lavish banquets, sometimes in connection with the dead, with its own membership, property, and reputation for excess. The word Amos uses for the revelry of those who stretch themselves out is that term.
The rest of the history, and what it meant to them
Every luxury named is a specific extravagance. Beds inlaid with ivory match the carved ivories excavated at Samaria. Lambs from the flock and calves from the stall means eating the young breeding stock and the specially fattened animals rather than what a household would normally eat. Drinking wine from bowls means the large basins used for ritual sprinkling, not cups, deliberately absurd quantities.
The finest oils were an expensive import used for anointing at feasts, and the idle songs strummed to the harp are dismissed as amateur composing in the manner of David, the comparison is meant to sting, since David's songs were worship and these were background music.
The two towns named at the end are a bitter pun. Lo-debar means roughly nothing at all, and Karnaim means horns, the standard image for strength. Israel had recently taken both in Jeroboam's wars, so the boast becomes: we took Nothing by our own strength, and captured Horns by our own horns.
What it meant to them
The verdict is compressed into one phrase: they are not grieved over the ruin of Joseph. The sin is not the food or the music. It is a governing class that could enjoy all of it while the nation came apart, and feel nothing.
Amos points them to Calneh, Hamath, and Gath, cities that had already fallen, and asks whether Israel is better than those kingdoms. Hearers who believed their borders were the widest in living memory were being asked to visit some ruins.
Sources cited
- John H. Walton, Victor H. Matthews, Mark W. Chavalas, The IVP Bible Background Commentary: Old Testament
- James B. Pritchard, ed., Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament
Where the chapter sits
Amos 6 falls in Sermons against Israel (chapters 3–6). The cows of Bashan, the summer-house-and-winter-house wealthy, those who drink wine in bowls, comfortable Israel indicted.
Before it: Oracles against the nations, chapters 1–2. After it: Five visions and restoration promise, chapters 7–9.
The whole shape of Amos→The structure of this chapter
The heads below are this chapter's scenes. The numbered points under each are its verses.
A. Woe to those at ease in Zion, first to go into exile
1. (vv. 1-3)
Amos 6:1
“The house of Israel came to them, that is, was divided into those kingdoms, of which Zion and Samaria were the mother cities. Those that were at ease were the princes and rulers, the great men, that were chief of the nations, chief of those two kingdoms, and to whom, having their residence in Zion and Samaria, the whole house of Israel applied for judgment.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
1 more voice on this verseWhat preachers and commentators have said about this verse, in their own words.
Amos 6:1
“At ease - That neither fear nor believe the threatened judgments of God. In Zion - That is put for the kingdom of the two tribes, and principally the inhabitants of Jerusalem. Samaria - Woe to them also who rely upon the strength, wealth, and policy of the kingdom of Samaria or Israel.”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament (1765)evangelical
Amos 6:2
“Pass ye unto Calneh - This is, says Calmet, the Ctesiphon on the river Tigris. Hamath - The same as Emesa. Hamath was a city on the Orontes, in Syria. Gath - A well-known town, and head of one of the five seignories of the Philistines. Be they better - You have no more reason to expect exemption from the consequences of your sins than they had. They have been punished; so shall you. Why then will ye trust in their gods, that could not save their own cities?”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
2 more voices on this verse
Amos 6:2
“Pass ye unto Calneh, and see,.... What is become of that city, which was in the land of Shinar, an ancient city, as early as the days of Nimrod, and built by him, and was with others the beginning of his kingdom, Gen 10:10; it belonged to Babylon, and is by Jarchi here interpreted by it, being put for Babel, as he supposes.”
Amos 6:2
“Also by Assyria subsequently (2Ki 18:34). Gath--subjugated by Uzziah (2Ch 26:6). be they better--no. Their so recent subjugation renders it needless for Me to tell you they are not.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Amos 6:3
“Ye - That flatter yourselves the day of darkness foretold, is far off. The seat - The judgment seat which should relieve the oppressed, is made a seat of violence.”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament (1765)evangelical
at ease in Zion: The woe names both capitals in one breath, at ease in Zion and trusting in the mountain of Samaria, the two kingdoms sharing one complacency though their borders had long since split. The tour of Calneh, Hamath and Gath asks the leaders to compare their own defenses against three cities already broken by Assyria, be they better than these kingdoms, a rhetorical challenge the bench reads as exposing a false confidence built on nothing but untested peace. Ye that put far away the evil day names the denial itself, judgment postponed in the mind while the seat of violence is invited nearer in practice.
2. (vv. 4-6)
Amos 6:4
“That lie upon beds of ivory,.... That were made of it, or inlaid with it, or covered with it, as the Targum; nor was it improbable that these were made wholly of ivory, for such beds we read of: Timaeus says (r), the Agrigentines had beds entirely made of ivory; and Horace (s) also speaks of such beds: and if any credit can be given to the Targums of Jonathan and Jerusalem on Gen 50:1. Joseph made his father Jacob to lie on a bed of ivory.”
2 more voices on this verse
Amos 6:4
“That lie upon beds of ivory - The word הוי hoi, wo, is understood at the beginning of each of the first, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth verses. The beds mentioned here may be either sofas to recline on at table, or beds to sleep on; and these among the ancients were ornamented with ivory inlaid. They were called lectos eburatos by Plautus, lectos eburnos by Horace, “ivory beds.” Probably those ornamented with shells, or mother-of-pearl, may be intended. Several works of this kind may be still seen in Palestine and other places.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Amos 6:4
“They had no concern at all for the interests of the church of God, and of the nation, that were sinking and going to decay: They are not grieved for the affliction of Joseph; the church of God, including both the kingdoms of Judah and Israel (which are called Joseph, Ps. lxxx. 1 ), was in distress, invaded, insulted, and broken in upon.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Amos 6:5
“That chant to the voice of the lyre - Accompanying “the voice of the lyre” with the human voice; giving vocal expression and utterance to what the instrumental music spoke without words. The word, which Amos alone uses in this one place, describes probably a hurried flow of unmeaning, unconsidered words, in which the rhythm of words and music was everything, the sense, nothing; much like most glees.”
1 more voice on this verse
Amos 6:5
“They defend their luxurious passion for music by his example: forgetting that he pursued this study when at peace and free from danger, and that for the praise of God; but they pursue for their own self-gratification, and that when God is angry and ruin is imminent.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Amos 6:6
“That drink wine in bowls - Perhaps the costliness of the drinking vessels, more than the quantity drank, is that which is here reprehended by the prophet. Drinking vessels of the most costly materials, and of the most exquisite workmanship, are still in use; and as to precious ointments and perfumes among the Jews, we have a proof that the contents of one small box was worth three hundred denarii, at least seven pounds ten shillings sterling. See the case in the Gospel, Joh 12:5 (note), and the note there.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Amos 6:6
“That drink wine in bowls,.... Not in small cups or glasses, but in large bowls, that they might drink freely, even to drunkenness; hence we read of the drunkards of Ephraim, or the ten tribes, Isa 28:1; or "drink in bowls of wine"; which is much to the: same sense.”
beds of ivory: The catalogue of luxury piles detail on detail, beds of ivory, lambs from the flock and calves from the stall eaten without regard to cost, music invented like David though without David's purpose, wine drunk in bowls rather than cups and the finest oil for anointing used as ordinary grooming. The comparison to David is read by the bench as the sharpest stroke, since David's music served worship and theirs serves only appetite, imitation without the substance it once carried. They are not grieved for the affliction of Joseph closes the list on the true charge, not luxury itself but luxury pursued while the nation's own wound went unfelt.
3. (v. 7)
Amos 6:7
“Therefore now (that is, shortly) shall they go captive with the first (at the head) of those who go captive - They had sought eminence; they should have it. Jerome: “Ye who are first in riches, shall, the first, endure the yoke of captivity, as it is in Ezekiel, ‘begin from My sanctuary’ Eze 9:6, that is, from the destruction of the Temple which is holy.”
1 more voice on this verse
Amos 6:7
“How strongly this burden is bound on, not to be shaken off by their presumption and security; for it is bound by the Lord the God of hosts, by his mighty, his almighty, hand, which none can resist; it is bound with an oath, which puts the sentence past revocation: The Lord God has sworn, and he will not repent, and, since he could swear by no greater, he has sworn by himself.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Amos 6:7-8
the banquet of them that stretched themselves: The sentence answers the banquet directly, therefore now shall they go captive with the first that go captive, and the banquet of them that stretched themselves shall be removed, exile falling first on the very class that felt itself most secure. The Lord God hath sworn by himself intensifies the oath beyond any earlier one in the book, since there is no greater name to swear by, and I abhor the excellency of Jacob, and hate his palaces reverses the nation's own pride in its architecture into the object of divine hatred. The bench reads the palaces named here as the same houses of hewn stone Amos already condemned in chapter 5.
B. The Lord abhors the pride of Jacob
1. (v. 8)
Amos 6:8
“The Lord God - He who alone is and who alone hath power, “hath sworn by Himself,” literally, “by His soul;” as our “self” comes from the same root as “soul.” Jerome: “So God saith in Isaiah, “Your new moons and your appointed feasts My soul hateth” Isa 1:14; not that God hath a soul, but that He speaks after the way of human feelings.”
1 more voice on this verse
Amos 6:8
“The sanctuary which was the great glory of the covenant-people [VATABLUS], (Eze 24:21). The priesthood, and kingdom, and dignity, conferred on them by God. These, saith God, are of no account in My eyes towards averting punishment [CALVIN]. hate his palaces--as being the storehouses of "robbery" (Am 3:10, 15).”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
2. (vv. 9-11)
Amos 6:10
“A man’s uncle shall take him up - Bp. Newcome says, this obscure verse seems to describe the effects of famine and pestilence during the siege of Samaria. The carcass shall be burnt, and the bones removed with no ceremony of funeral rites, and without the assistance of the nearest kinsman. Solitude shall reign in the house; and if one is left, he must be silent, (see Amo 8:3), and retired, lest he be plundered of his scanty provision!”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Amos 6:11
“The Lord commandeth and He will smite - Jerome: “If He commandeth, how doth He smite? If He smiteth, how doth He command? In that thing which He “commands” and enjoins His ministers, He Himself is seen to “smite.” In Egypt the Lord declares that He killed the first-born, who, we read, were slain by “the destroyer” Exo 12:23. The “breaches” denote probably the larger, “the cleft” the smaller ruin. The greater pile was the more greatly destroyed.”
1 more voice on this verse
Amos 6:11
“The princes' palaces are not above the rebuke of divine justice, nor the poor men's cottages beneath it; neither shall escape. When sin has marked them for ruin God will find ways to bring it about. It is by order from him that breaches are made.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
if there remain ten men in one house: The scene shrinks to a single household to make the scale of death vivid, if there remain ten men in one house, that they shall die, and the survivor who comes to remove the bodies is warned into silence, hold thy tongue, for we may not make mention of the name of the Lord, a fear the bench reads as dread that even invoking God might bring further judgment down. The Lord commandeth, and he will smite the great house with breaches, and the little house with clefts extends the plague roll call from chapter 4 into total demolition, rich and poor houses struck alike. No exemption of rank or humility is left standing by the time the verse ends.
C. Justice turned to poison, and boasting in Lo-debarvv. 12-14
Shall horses run upon the rock?: Two impossibilities, horses running on bare rock and oxen plowing the sea, expose the absurdity the bench reads throughout the chapter, that a people could turn judgment into gall and righteousness into hemlock and still expect the natural order to hold steady around them. Rejoicing in a thing of nought and boasting have we not taken to us horns by our own strength is read as military pride in some minor victory mistaken for permanent security, horns being the standard Hebrew figure for strength. The Lord's answer closes the chapter and the book's whole first half, a nation raised up to afflict them from Hamath in the north to the river of the wilderness in the south, the full length of the land the boasted strength claimed to hold.
Amos 6:12
“In turning "judgment (justice) into gall (poison), and . . . righteousness into hemlock" (or wormwood, bitter and noxious), ye act as perversely as if one were to make "horses run upon the rock" or to "plough with oxen there" [MAURER]. As horses and oxen are useless on a rock, so ye are incapable of fulfilling justice [GROTIUS].”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
1 more voice on this verse
Amos 6:12
“Shall horses run upon the rock - First, they could not do it, because they were unshod; for the shoeing of horses with iron was not then known. Secondly, If they did run on the rock, it would be useless to their owner, and hurtful to themselves. Thirdly, And it would be as useless to plough on the rock with oxen; for there it would be impossible to sow with any advantage. Fourthly, Just as useless and injurious would it be to put gall in the place of judgment, and hemlock in the place of righteousness.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Amos 6:13
“Who rejoice - (Literally, “the rejoicers!” Amos, as is his wont, speaks of them with contempt and wonder at their folly, “the rejoicers!” much as we say, the cowards! the renegades!) “in a thing of nought,” literally, “a non-thing,” (“no-whit, nought”) not merely in a thing valueless, but in a “non-thing,” that has no existence at all, as nothing has any substantial existence out of God. This “non-thing” was their power, strength, empire, which they thought they had, but which was soon to shrivel away as a scroll.”
2 more voices on this verse
Amos 6:13
“But those who trust in their own strength rejoice in a thing of nought, and so they will find. Probably they did not say this with their lips, totidem verbis--in so many words, but it was the language of their hearts and of their actions, both which God understands.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Amos 6:13
“Whence also we say that the holy men are just and that they are made pleasing to God after their sins not only through their merits but through the mercy of him to whom every creature is subject and stands in need of his mercy. Let heretics hear, who are lifted up by pride and say, "We have taken unto us horns by our own strength." Let them listen to what Moab heard said to him: "We have heard the pride of Moab, he is exceedingly proud.”
Jerome· written before 420· AGAINST THE PELAGIANS 2:29patristic
Amos 6:14
“I will raise up against you a nation - The Assyrians under Pul, Tiglath-pileser, and Shalmaneser, who subdued the Israelites at various times, and at last carried them away captive in the days of Hosea, the last king of Israel in Samaria. From the entering in of Hamath (on the north) unto the river of the wilderness - Besor, which empties itself into the sea, not far from Gaza, and was in the southern part of the tribe of Simeon.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Amos 6:14
“The whole nation has shared in the iniquity, and therefore must expect to share in the calamity. Note, When men are in any way instruments of affliction to us we must see God raising them up against us, for they are in his hand--the rod, the sword, in his hand.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
This page carries no textual note on Amos 6. Where this site has examined a place the manuscripts differ, the examination is in the manuscripts room. Every place this site examines →
Sources for this chapter
The summary
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory; John Calvin, Commentaries; John Wesley, Notes on the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Complete Commentary.
The exposition
Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Carl Friedrich Keil, The Twelve Minor Prophets; Edward Bouverie Pusey, The Minor Prophets: A Commentary; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.