| Berean Study Bible | New Living Translation |
| 1Hear this word that the LORD has spoken against you, O children of Israel, against the whole family that I brought up out of 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: |
| 2“Only you have I known from all the families 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 where to go? | 3Can two people walk together without agreeing on the direction? |
| 4Does a lion roar in the forest when he has no prey? Does a young lion growl in his den if he has caught nothing? | 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 snare where no bait has been set? Does a trap spring from the ground when it has nothing to catch? | 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 sounds in a city, do the people not tremble? If calamity comes to a city, has not the LORD caused 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? |
| 7Surely the Lord GOD does nothing without revealing His plan to His servants the prophets. | 7Indeed, the Sovereign LORD never does anything until he reveals his plans to his servants the prophets. |
| 8The 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 to the citadels of Ashdod and to the citadels of Egypt: “Assemble on the mountains of Samaria; see the great unrest in the city and the acts of oppression in her midst.” | 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.” |
| 10“For they know not how to do right,” declares the LORD. “They 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 this is what the Lord GOD says: “An enemy will surround the land; he will pull down 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.” |
| 12This is what the LORD says: “As the shepherd snatches from the mouth of the lion two legs or a piece of an ear, so the Israelites dwelling in Samaria will be rescued having just 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. |
| 13Hear and testify against the house of Jacob, declares 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. |
| 14On the day I punish Israel for their transgressions, I will visit destruction on the altars of Bethel; the horns of the altar will be cut off, and they will 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 tear down the winter house along with the summer house; the houses of ivory will also perish, and the great houses will come to an end,” declares the LORD. | 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. |
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