AMOS -- The Shepherd Prophet


                                        I. THE  PROPHET

  Name: Amos's name means "burden bearer."  He is the only one
in the Old Testament with this name.  The Amos mentioned in the
genealogy of Luke (3:25) is otherwise unknown.  Some get Amos
confused with the father of Isaiah (Isaiah 1:1).

  His Home: Amos was from Tekoa, about six miles south from
Bethlehem.  It is on a hill 2,700 feet high overlooking the wilderness
of Judah.  It was made a "city for defense" by Rehoboam (2 Chron.
11:6).  The town's name is used frequently in the sense of sounding
an alarm with the trumpet: e.g. "Blow the trumpet in Tekoa, and set
a sign of fire in Beth-haccerem" (Jer. 6:1).  Tekoa is the pasture-
ground for large flocks of sheep and goats.  From high ground on
which the village stands one can look eastward and see the Dead Sea
18 miles away and 4,000 feet below you.

  Personal History: Amos was not a prophet by profession, nor
the son of a prophet (Amos 7:14).  He was "among the herdmen of
Tekoa" (1:1).  The term "herdmen" refers to a special, ugly breed of
sheep with a fine short wool.  He was also a dresser of sycamore tress
(7:14).  The word "dresser" occurs only here and is reference to a
squeezing of the sycamore fig to accelerate ripening and make it more
palatable.

  His Preparation: Nothing is said of any special preparation
of the prophet for his work.  "The Lord took me from following the
flock, and the Lord said unto me, Go, prophesy unto my people
Israel" (7:15).  He puts himself in line with all the prophets who
claim a direct revelation from God.  The mention of his prophetic call
in association with his occupation is significant.  There was no period
interposed between the one and the other.  The herdsman was
prepared for his task when God called him.  His preparation is shown
by:

  1.  Knowledge of God -- He knew the character of the God in
whose name he is called to speak.
    a. God's presence is boundless -- 9:2.
    b. God's power is infinite -- 8:9f.
    c. He controls the forces of nature -- ch. 4, 5:8f.
    d. Guides movements and destinies of nations -- 6:1f.
    e.   God is righteous in all His ways, dealing with nations on
         moral principles -- 1:3ff; 2:1ff.

  The call to speak in God's name may have come suddenly, but the
prophet's conception of the character of God is not a new or sudden
revelation but a firm and well-established conviction.

  2.   Acquaintance with the history of his people -- His book
shows that not only was he well acquainted with the history and
traditions of his nations, but he takes it for granted that his hearers are
too.  It is evident also that Amos had reflected upon these things and
realized their significance.

  3.   Personal Travel -- Amos reveals an accurate acquaintance
with contemporary life and conditions in the nations around Judah. 
It may have been that as a wool-merchant or flock-master he had
visited the towns and markets mentioned and may have talked with
many foreign merchants.

  4.   Scenery of his home -- We must not overlook another factor
in his preparation, the scenery around his home and his occupation. 
The landscape was one to make a solemn impression on a reflective
mind.  The wide-spreading desert, the shimmering waters of the Dead
Sea, the high wall of the distant hills of Moab.  The silent life of the
desert, tending to his flock, defending them from the ravages of wild
beasts, would to one whose thoughts were full of God nourish that
exalted view of the Divine Majesty which we find in his book.  As he
is taken from following the flock he comes using the language and
figures of his daily life (3:12).

  5.  His Mision -- Through he lived in the south part of Judah he
was called to go and prophesy unto the people of Israel and appears
at Bethel, the religious capital of the Northern Kingdom.  Thus he
travels about 25 miles north to do his preaching as God bids.  It is the
manner of God's prophets to appear where they are most needed.  The
Northern Kingdom about this time had come victorious out of war
and had reached its culmination of wealth accompanied by luxury and
excess.  He met the opposition of the high priest Amaziah who
reported the prophet to Jeroboam II and consequently Amos was
ordered out of the country.

  The Date: The date of Amos' work can be fixed approximately
from the information of verse one.  Both Uzziah and Jeroboam II had
long reigns.  Uzziah from 790-739 BC and Jeroboam II from
 783-753 BC.  We can place the work of Amos about 760 BC.  This would
be about 30 years before the fall of Israel to the Assyrians (Samaria
fell in 722 BC).
  In a country where earthquakes are not uncommon the one here
mentioned must have been unusually severe for people 300 years later
were referring to is (Zech. 14:5).  (Josephus informs us, we do not
know how reliably, that it took place in connection with Uzziah's
trespass reported in 2 Chron. 26.)
  We are not told how long Amos exercised his ministry.  In all
probability the book is the written series of addresses he delivered at
Bethel until he was ordered to leave the country.  We can imagine that
he put his messages into writing in condensed form and allowed them
to continue to circulate in this book form.

  Amos' Contemporaries: Older men that Amos may have
known includes Jonah and Elisha.  He may have heard them preach. 
Joel may have been about the same age preaching in Judah.  Younger
men who may have heard Amos include Hosea, a young co-worker
with Amos in the northern kingdom, and Micah and Isaiah young men
in Judah.  These prophets make up "The Golden Age" of Hebrew
prophecy when these many prophets of the 8th century BC come onto
the scene.

                                          II. THE BOOK

  Its Divisions: The style of Amos and the purity of his Hebrew
is a very eloquent and beautiful thing.  The arrangements of the Book
is clear and simple.  The text has been faithfully preserved.

  Outline:
  1.   God's Judgment Upon Surrounding Nations -- ch. 1 & 2
       (Damascus, Gaza, Tyre, Edom, Ammon, Moab, Judah)
  2.   Judgment Upon Israel Expanded -- 3:1 - 6:14
  3.   Symbolic Predictions of God's Judgment -- 7:1 - 9:10
  4.   The Promise of Glorious Restoration -- 9:11-15

  Values of the Book: The book, like that of Hosea, gives us a
picture of the times.

  A.   A picture of social conditions:   (See Amos 2:6-8; 3:15;
4:1; 5:7, 10, 11-13; 6:3-6).  1) Misuse of authority; 2) Corrupt
government; 3) Social injustices; 4) Abuse of wealth; 5)
Intemperance; 6) Dishonest business practices; 7) Superficial
optimism;  8) Indifference to basic needs of their fellows; 9) Heartless
oppression; 10) Urban emphasis.

  B.   A picture of the religious conditions: (See Amos 2:4-8,
12; 3:10; 4:1-5; 5:1-27; 6:3-6; 8:4-6).  1) A shallow and distorted
conception of God; 2) A worship vitiated by ceremonialism; 3) A
worship polluted by immorality; 4) A worship corrupted by false
teaching; 5) Shallow complacency; 6) Public and private virtues
disintegrated; 7) Self-deception; 8) Nauseating arrogance; 9) Rebuke
was not tolerated; 10) Religious professionalism.

  C.   Testimony to history: The book confirms many historical
statements of other books.

  D.   Some lessons from the book of Amos:
1)  All nations of the world are responsible to Almighty God (ch. 1 &
2).
2)  Inhumanity to man is sin (1:3 - 2:16)
3)  False doctrine, immorality, and ceremonialism destroy true
    worship (5:18-27).
4)  Dishonest business practices stand condemned by the highest
    court in the universe (8:4-6).
5)  Special privileges embrace added responsibility (3:2).
6)  Ingratitude is sin (2:9-12).
7)  It is a tragedy when God must summon the world to witness the
    worldliness of his people (3:9).
8)  Unbrotherliness is an abomination (1:11)
9)  We should properly respect the dead (2:1).
10) Even heathen nations stand condemned for their senseless
    brutalities inflicted in war (1:3 ff).
11) Ostentatious giving is unacceptable to God (4:5).
12) The day of judgment cannot be wished away (6:3)
13) Going to church is no substitute for the right attitude in
    church (8:4-6).
14) Righteousness has no substitute (5:24).
15) "Prepare to meet thy God" (4:12).
16) Messianic prophecy is sometimes clothed in Mosaic
    terminology (9:11-15).
17) The prophet Amos exemplifies the proper spirit of a man of
    God in the face of corrupt social and religious leaders  (7:10-17).
                                                                       -- Windell Gann

Home Page
Email: Windell Gann
Go to the TOP of this page.