"The virgin of Israel has fallen; She shall rise no more. She is cast down on her land; There is no one to raise her up."
This outburst of Amos against Israel came at the very apex of Israel's pride and prosperity, the better part of a century having elapsed since Jeroboam II had restored the borders of the kingdom and seized control of the lucrative trade routes to the east.  Israel had never had it so good; and a message like that so dramatically delivered by Amos would have been just about as unpopular as any that could be imagined.