| NET Bible | New Living Translation |
| 1Listen, you Israelites, to this message which the LORD is proclaiming against you! This message is for the entire clan I brought up 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: |
| 2"I have chosen you alone from all the clans of the earth. Therefore I will punish you for all your sins." | 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 |
| 3Do two walk together without having met? | 3Can two people walk together without agreeing on the direction? |
| 4Does a lion roar in the woods if he has not cornered his prey? Does a young lion bellow from his den if he has not caught 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 swoop down into a trap on the ground if there is no bait? Does a trap spring up from the ground unless it has surely caught something? | 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 an alarm sounds in a city, do people not fear? If disaster overtakes a city, is the LORD not responsible? | 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? |
| 7Certainly the sovereign LORD does nothing without first 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. |
| 8A lion has roared! Who is not afraid? The sovereign LORD has spoken! Who can refuse to prophesy? | 8The lion has roared— so who isn’t frightened? The Sovereign LORD has spoken— so who can refuse to proclaim his message? |
| 9Make this announcement in the fortresses of Ashdod and in the fortresses in the land of Egypt. Say this: "Gather on the hills around Samaria! Observe the many acts of violence taking place within the city, the oppressive deeds occurring in 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.” |
| 10"They do not know how to do what is right." (The LORD is speaking.) "They store up the spoils of destructive violence in their fortresses. | 10“My people have forgotten how to do right,” says the LORD. “Their fortresses are filled with wealth taken by theft and violence. |
| 11Therefore," says the sovereign LORD, "an enemy will encircle the land. He will take away your power; your fortresses will be looted." | 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: "Just as a shepherd salvages from the lion's mouth a couple of leg bones or a piece of an ear, so the Israelites who live in Samaria will be salvaged. They will be left with just a corner of a bed, and a part 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 warn the family of Jacob! The sovereign LORD, the God who commands armies, is speaking! | 13“Now listen to this, and announce it throughout all Israel, ” says the Lord, the LORD God of Heaven’s Armies. |
| 14"Certainly when I punish Israel for their covenant transgressions, I will destroy Bethel's altars. 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 destroy both the winter and summer houses. The houses filled with ivory will be ruined, the great houses will be swept away." The LORD is speaking! | 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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