Amo 6:12 | TNotes | STEP | 6:12 It would be foolish to run horses ... over boulders , because unshod horses cannot run on rocks without serious damage to their hooves. It is also obvious that oxen cannot plow rocks. A slight adjustment to the word division of the Hebrew text yields plow the sea with oxen , an equally absurd suggestion. • that’s how foolish you are: The point of the comparisons now becomes obvious, as Israel’s own absurdity surfaces in the moral realm. • you turn justice into poison: The people perverted what is just and right, turning it into something toxic and bitter (see also 5:7 ).

‏ Amos 6:12

6:12 ^a It would be foolish to run horses ... over boulders, because unshod horses cannot run on rocks without serious damage to their hooves. It is also obvious that oxen cannot plow rocks. A slight adjustment to the word division of the Hebrew text yields plow the sea with oxen, an equally absurd suggestion.

• that’s how foolish you are: The point of the comparisons now becomes obvious, as Israel’s own absurdity surfaces in the moral realm.

• you turn justice into poison: The people perverted what is just and right, turning it into something toxic and bitter (see also 5:7 ^b).