Discovery BoxAmos 6:5-7 
Context6:5 They sing 1 to the tune of 2 stringed instruments; 3
like David they invent 4 musical instruments.
6:6 They drink wine from sacrificial bowls, 5
and pour the very best oils on themselves. 6
Yet they are not concerned over 7 the ruin 8 of Joseph.
6:7 Therefore they will now be the first to go into exile, 9
and the religious banquets 10 where they sprawl on couches 11 will end.
1 tn The meaning of the Hebrew verb פָּרַט (parat), which occurs only here in the OT, is unclear. Some translate “strum,” “pluck,” or “improvise.”
2 tn Heb “upon the mouth of,” that is, “according to.”
3 sn The stringed instruments mentioned here are probably harps (cf. NIV, NRSV) or lutes (cf. NEB).
4 tn The meaning of the Hebrew phrase חָשְׁבוּ לָהֶם (khoshvu lahem) is uncertain. Various options include: (1) “they think their musical instruments are like David’s”; (2) “they consider themselves musicians like David”; (3) “they esteem musical instruments highly like David”; (4) “they improvise [new songs] for themselves [on] instruments like David”; (5) “they invent musical instruments like David.” However, the most commonly accepted interpretation is that given in the translation (see S. M. Paul, Amos [Hermeneia], 206-7).
5 sn Perhaps some religious rite is in view, or the size of the bowls is emphasized (i.e., bowls as large as sacrificial bowls).
6 tn Heb “with the best of oils they anoint [themselves].”
7 tn Or “not sickened by.”
8 sn The ruin of Joseph may refer to the societal disintegration in Israel, or to the effects of the impending judgment.
9 tn Heb “they will go into exile at the head of the exiles.”
10 sn Religious banquets. This refers to the מַרְזֵחַ (marzeakh), a type of pagan religious banquet popular among the upper class of Israel at this time and apparently associated with mourning. See P. King, Amos, Hosea, Micah, 137-61; J. L. McLaughlin, The “Marzeah” in the Prophetic Literature (VTSup). Scholars debate whether at this banquet the dead were simply remembered or actually venerated in a formal, cultic sense.
