| Holman Christian Standard Bible | New Living Translation |
| 1Listen to this message that the LORD has spoken against you, Israelites, against the entire clan that I brought from the land of Egypt: | 1Listen to this message that the LORD has spoken against you, O people of Israel—against the entire family I rescued from Egypt: |
| 2I have known only you out of all the clans of the earth; therefore, I will punish you for all your iniquities. | 2“From among all the families on the earth, I have been intimate with you alone. That is why I must punish you for all your sins.” Witnesses against Guilty Israel |
| 3Can two walk together without agreeing to meet? | 3Can two people walk together without agreeing on the direction? |
| 4Does a lion roar in the forest when it has no prey? Does a young lion growl from its lair unless it has captured something? | 4Does a lion ever roar in a thicket without first finding a victim? Does a young lion growl in its den without first catching its prey? |
| 5Does a bird land in a trap on the ground if there is no bait for it? Does a trap spring from the ground when it has caught nothing? | 5Does a bird ever get caught in a trap that has no bait? Does a trap spring shut when there’s nothing to catch? |
| 6If a ram's horn is blown in a city, aren't people afraid? If a disaster occurs in a city, hasn't the LORD done it? | 6When the ram’s horn blows a warning, shouldn’t the people be alarmed? Does disaster come to a city unless the LORD has planned it? |
| 7Indeed, the Lord GOD does nothing without revealing His counsel to His servants the prophets. | 7Indeed, the Sovereign LORD never does anything until he reveals his plans to his servants the prophets. |
| 8A lion has roared; who will not fear? The Lord GOD has spoken; who will not prophesy? | 8The lion has roared— so who isn’t frightened? The Sovereign LORD has spoken— so who can refuse to proclaim his message? |
| 9Proclaim on the citadels in Ashdod and on the citadels in the land of Egypt: Assemble on the mountains of Samaria and see the great turmoil in the city and the acts of oppression within it. | 9Announce this to the leaders of Philistia and to the great ones of Egypt: “Take your seats now on the hills around Samaria, and witness the chaos and oppression in Israel.” |
| 10The people are incapable of doing right-- this is the LORD's declaration-- those who store up violence and destruction in their citadels. | 10“My people have forgotten how to do right,” says the LORD. “Their fortresses are filled with wealth taken by theft and violence. |
| 11Therefore, the Lord GOD says: An enemy will surround the land; he will destroy your strongholds and plunder your citadels. | 11Therefore,” says the Sovereign LORD, “an enemy is coming! He will surround them and shatter their defenses. Then he will plunder all their fortresses.” |
| 12The LORD says: As the shepherd snatches two legs or a piece of an ear from the lion's mouth, so the Israelites who live in Samaria will be rescued with only the corner of a bed or the cushion of a couch. | 12This is what the LORD says: “A shepherd who tries to rescue a sheep from a lion’s mouth will recover only two legs or a piece of an ear. So it will be for the Israelites in Samaria lying on luxurious beds, and for the people of Damascus reclining on couches. |
| 13Listen and testify against the house of Jacob-- this is the declaration of the Lord GOD, the God of Hosts. | 13“Now listen to this, and announce it throughout all Israel, ” says the Lord, the LORD God of Heaven’s Armies. |
| 14I will punish the altars of Bethel on the day I punish Israel for its crimes; the horns of the altar will be cut off and fall to the ground. | 14“On the very day I punish Israel for its sins, I will destroy the pagan altars at Bethel. The horns of the altar will be cut off and fall to the ground. |
| 15I will demolish the winter house and the summer house; the houses inlaid with ivory will be destroyed, and the great houses will come to an end. This is the LORD's declaration. | 15And I will destroy the beautiful homes of the wealthy— their winter mansions and their summer houses, too— all their palaces filled with ivory,” says the LORD. |
| Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. | 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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