| English Standard Version | New Living Translation |
| 1“Woe to those who are at ease in Zion, and to those who feel secure on the mountain of Samaria, the notable men of the first of the nations, to whom the house of Israel comes! | 1What sorrow awaits you who lounge in luxury in Jerusalem, and you who feel secure in Samaria! You are famous and popular in Israel, and people go to you for help. |
| 2Pass over to Calneh, and see, and from there go to Hamath the great; then go down to Gath of the Philistines. Are you better than these kingdoms? Or is their territory greater than your territory, | 2But go over to Calneh and see what happened there. Then go to the great city of Hamath and down to the Philistine city of Gath. You are no better than they were, and look at how they were destroyed. |
| 3O you who put far away the day of disaster and bring near the seat of violence? | 3You push away every thought of coming disaster, but your actions only bring the day of judgment closer. |
| 4“Woe to those who lie on beds of ivory and stretch themselves out on their couches, and eat lambs from the flock and calves from the midst of the stall, | 4How terrible for you who sprawl on ivory beds and lounge on your couches, eating the meat of tender lambs from the flock and of choice calves fattened in the stall. |
| 5who sing idle songs to the sound of the harp and like David invent for themselves instruments of music, | 5You sing trivial songs to the sound of the harp and fancy yourselves to be great musicians like David. |
| 6who drink wine in bowls and anoint themselves with the finest oils, but are not grieved over the ruin of Joseph! | 6You drink wine by the bowlful and perfume yourselves with fragrant lotions. You care nothing about the ruin of your nation. |
| 7Therefore they shall now be the first of those who go into exile, and the revelry of those who stretch themselves out shall pass away.” | 7Therefore, you will be the first to be led away as captives. Suddenly, all your parties will end. |
| 8The Lord GOD has sworn by himself, declares the LORD, the God of hosts: “I abhor the pride of Jacob and hate his strongholds, and I will deliver up the city and all that is in it.” | 8The Sovereign LORD has sworn by his own name, and this is what he, the LORD God of Heaven’s Armies, says: “I despise the arrogance of Israel, and I hate their fortresses. I will give this city and everything in it to their enemies.” |
| 9And if ten men remain in one house, they shall die. | 9(If there are ten men left in one house, they will all die. |
| 10And when one’s relative, the 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, “Silence! We must not mention the name of the LORD.” | 10And when a relative who is responsible to dispose of the dead goes into the house to carry out the bodies, he will ask the last survivor, “Is anyone else with you?” When the person begins to swear, “No, by . . . ,” he will interrupt and say, “Stop! Don’t even mention the name of the LORD.”) |
| 11For behold, the LORD commands, and the great house shall be struck down into fragments, and the little house into bits. | 11When the LORD gives the command, homes both great and small will be smashed to pieces. |
| 12Do horses run on rocks? Does one plow there with oxen? But you have turned justice into poison and the fruit of righteousness into wormwood— | 12Can horses gallop over boulders? Can oxen be used to plow them? But that’s how foolish you are when you turn justice into poison and the sweet fruit of righteousness into bitterness. |
| 13you who rejoice in Lo-debar, who say, “Have we not by our own strength captured Karnaim for ourselves?” | 13And you brag about your conquest of Lo-debar. You boast, “Didn’t we take Karnaim by our own strength?” |
| 14“For behold, I will raise up against you a nation, O house of Israel,” declares the LORD, the God of hosts; “and they shall oppress you from Lebo-hamath to the Brook of the Arabah.” | 14“O people of Israel, I am about to bring an enemy nation against you,” says the LORD God of Heaven’s Armies. “They will oppress you throughout your land— from Lebo-hamath in the north to the Arabah Valley in the south.” |
| ESV Text Edition: 2016. The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®) copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. The ESV® text has been reproduced in cooperation with and by permission of Good News Publishers. Unauthorized reproduction of this publication is prohibited. All rights reserved. | Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. |
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