John Calvin Commentary Amos 6:1

"Woe to them that are at ease in Zion, and to them that are secure in the mountain of Samaria, the notable men of the chief of the nations, to whom the house of Israel come!" — Amos 6:1 (ASV)

The Prophet now directs his discourse not only to the Israelites, to whom he was especially given as an instructor and teacher, but also includes the Jews. Yet he does not address all indiscriminately, but only the chief men, who were intent on their pleasures, as though they were exempt from the common miseries. For he does not, as many suppose, only reprove luxury and pride here; but we must remember a fact connected with their situation: they were not awakened by God’s judgments. When God severely punished the sins of the people, the chief men always remained heedlessly in their own dregs. This complacency is now condemned by our Prophet.

And this is a very common evil, as we can see in the present day. For when the Lord afflicts a country with war or with famine, the rich make great profit from such evils. They abuse the scourges of God, for we see merchants getting rich in the midst of wars, since they scrape together plunder from every quarter.

Those who carry on war are forced to borrow money, and also the peasants and artisans, so that they may pay taxes; and then, so that they may live, they are forced to accept unjust conditions. Thus the rich increase in wealth. Those who are also in authority, and in favor at the courts of princes, make more profit in wars, famine, and other calamities than during times of peace and prosperity. For when peace flourishes, the state of affairs is then more equitable; but when the poor are burdened, the others grow fat. And this is the evil now noted by the Prophet.

Hence he pronounces a curse here on the complacent and those at ease; not that it is an evil thing, or in itself displeasing to God, when anyone quietly enjoys their leisure. But to be unmoved when the Lord openly shows himself to be displeased and angry, when his scourges are clearly inflicted, and instead to indulge ourselves more in pleasures—this is to provoke him, as it were, intentionally.

The Prophet here, then, condemns the complacent and the presumptuous, for it was fitting for them to humble themselves when they saw that God was incensed against them. They were not, indeed, more just than the multitude. And when God treated the common people with such severity, should not the chiefs have looked to themselves and examined their own lives?

Since they did not do this, but made themselves drunk with pleasures and dismissed every fear and thought that the scourges of God were of no concern to them—this was a contempt rightly condemned by the Prophet. We see that God was greatly displeased in the same manner, as it is recorded in Isaiah: when he called them to mourning, they sang with the harp and, according to their custom, feasted sumptuously and joyfully (Isaiah 23:12). As they then thus persevered in their indulgences, the Lord became extremely angry, for it was as though they openly despised him and scorned all his threatening.

We now observe the Prophet's intention, which interpreters have not sufficiently noted. It indeed behooves us always to keep in view these scourges of God, by which he began to punish the sins of the people. God can by no means endure, as I have said, such stubborn rebellion as this—that people should continue in the indulgence of their sins and never regard their judge nor feel any guilt.

Hence the Prophet says, Woe to you who are secure in Zion, who are confident, that is, who are without any fear, on the Mount of Samaria. He names here the Mount of Zion and the Mount of Samaria, for these were the chief cities of the two kingdoms, as we all know.

The whole country had been laid waste by various calamities; the citizens of Jerusalem and Samaria were, at the same time, wealthy; and then, trusting in their strongholds, they despised God and all his judgments. This, then, was the complacency, full of stubborn rebellion, which is condemned by the Prophet.

He then mentions their ingratitude: he says that these mountains had been celebrated from the beginning of the nations, and that the Israelites entered into them. God here rebukes both the Jews and Israelites for having come into a foreign possession, for they had obtained those cities, not by their own valor, but the Lord drove out the ancient inhabitants before them.

Since, then, they did not perceive that a safe dwelling place was given to them there by the Lord, so that they might purely worship him and submit to his government, their ingratitude was inexcusable.

The Prophet then, after having inveighed against the gross and heedless complacency with which the chiefs of both kingdoms were intoxicated, now highlights their ingratitude:

“You are not natives, but you have come in, for God went before you, for it was his will to give you this land as your possession. Why then are you now so inflated with pride against him? For before your time these cities were certainly well known and celebrated, and yet this was of no avail to the natives themselves. Why then do you not now fear the Lord’s judgment and repent when he threatens you? Indeed, when he shows his scourges to you?”

We now perceive the Prophet’s meaning in this verse.