The phrase ... has often been understood as a part of a prophetic critique of northern devotion to Yhwh. The semantic range of ... however, leads to the possibility that it is actually part of a critique of the ancestral cult associated with the northern state sanctuary at Bethel. The present study argues for the latter by considering the use of ... in the Book of Amos and elsewhere, as well as the literary/thematic context in which Amos 2:8 appears.