Amos

Composition

Amos is one of twelve Old Testament books known as the works of the minor prophets. In this sense, the term, “minor” refers to the books’ length, as they were usually shorter than the those of major prophets such as Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Isaiah. Authorship of the book is attributed to a shepherd named Amos who lived in the eighth century BCE. If this date is accurate, it would make him the first of the literary Old Testament prophets.

Amos lived during a time when the Kingdom of Israel was divided into two—a northern kingdom, which kept the name Israel, and a southern kingdom named Judah. According to tradition, Israel was once a united kingdom but was split into two upon the death of King Solomon. In 722 BCE, the northern kingdom was conquered and destroyed by the Assyrians. Under Assyrian military policy, conquered people were forcibly relocated from their homeland to prevent local uprisings. The people of the northern kingdom were scattered and became known as the lost tribes of Israel.

Amos provides a timeframe for his writing by mentioning two historical Jewish kings. The first was Jeroboam II, who was king of Israel from about 786–746 BCE; the second was King Uzziah of Judah, who reigned from about 783–742 BCE. Amos also mentions a devastating earthquake that struck Israel two years after he began receiving his visions from God. Geologists have determined that an earthquake impacted the region sometime in the mid-eighth century BCE.

Little is known about Amos except that he was originally a shepherd who was born in the town of Tekoa in Judah. He also worked as a cattle herder and a tender of trees. In his book, he claims that he was commanded by God to prophesize in the northern Kingdom of Israel. He spoke at the Jewish temple at Bethel until he was expelled by the high priest there.

Amos’s prophecies reflect his background as a shepherd and contain forceful and expressive and language and imagery. Some scholars believe this indicated that he was a member of the educated upper class and possibly even owned livestock. However, others believe that he would have been illiterate, as was the case with most shepherds of the time, and either dictated his writings, or they his words were later written down by his followers. Most experts believe the prophecies in the book did come from Amos, although they were edited many times in the centuries after they were written.

Summary

The book begins with a short introduction in which Amos is identified as the prophet who has received these visions from God. In the next section, Amos prophesizes that God will punish the cities of Damascus, Tyre, and Ammon and the kingdoms of Gaza, Edom, and Moab—places that he says have committed great sins against God and the people of the region. God will destroy their kings, burn their fortresses, and send their people into exile.

Amos then says that God will also punish Judah for failing to keep the law of God and worshiping false gods. He says that God will destroy Judah’s capital, Jerusalem, by fire. However, Amos saves his most vitriolic prophesies for the Kingdom of Israel. God says that the Israelites have committed great sins, from selling people into bondage to oppressing the poor. He reminds them that long ago the Amorites were a strong people, but he caused a great famine and destroyed their civilization. The Lord also says that it was he who brought the people out of slavery and gave them the Amorites’ land. Now, the Lord will crush the Israelites just as he defeated their enemies before them.

The Lord again reminds them that it was he who chose the Israelites to be his people, and they have let him down time and time again. He adds that just as a lion does not roar unless it has found prey, the Lord does not punish until he has stated his intentions through his prophets. The Lord promises Israel that an enemy will invade their land and destroy and loot their cities. Only a few Israelites living in the land of Samaria will be spared.

Through Amos, the Lord specifically addresses the sins of women living in Bashan near Mount Samaria. He says the women live a pampered existence, oppressing and abusing the poor. For their transgressions, the women will be taken away with ropes and fishhooks and sent into exile. God further chastises the Israelites, telling them that he has sent plagues upon them, caused droughts and famines, and burned cities to the ground, but still the people do not obey his law.

After this, God warns the people that they must turn from the path of evil and return to following his law. He says that if they seek justice, the people may avoid God’s wrath. If they do not, the Lord goes on to further describe the day of his judgment. He calls it a day of darkness and likens it to “as though a man fled from a lion, only to meet a bear.”

Amos then claims to see God preparing his judgment against Israel, readying swarms of locusts and a rain of fire from Heaven. Amos asked the Lord how can Israel be spared? But the Lord said that it cannot.

Amos then tells of how Amaziah, the high priest at Bethel, told King Jeroboam that Amos was stirring up the people with harsh words against Israel. Amaziah ordered Amos to leave the temple. Amos responds by saying that he was once a shepherd, but God commanded him to become a prophet. He then tells Amaziah that he will also face God’s judgment and lose everything, dying in a pagan land.

Amos then has a vision of a basket of ripe fruit. The Lord says the fruit represents Israel, which is now ripe for God’s judgment. God again says that the day of the Lord will bring darkness during the day, the land will sink into the water, and the people will mourn and weep, searching in vain for God’s word.

At the end of the book, God reiterating the sufferings he will bring on Israel. However, he also says that one day it will be restored, and he will bring its people back from exile. The people will rebuild their homes and the Lord promises that they will never be displaced again.

Themes

The Book of Amos is written as a series of verses rather than in straight prose. Owing to Amos’s history as a shepherd and a tender of livestock, much of the imagery in the book seems to have been influenced by those professions. Several prophecies mention animals, such as comparing God’s impeding judgment to a lion roaring at its prey. In a similar vein, Amos compares God’s wrath to a bird swooping down to take an animal caught in a trap.

Amos begins his book by laying out a litany of catastrophes that will befall the nations surrounding Israel. Some experts believe this was a way of drawing in listeners who would have approved of God’s judgment against foreign nations. However, Amos then turns the tables and begins a detailed condemnation of Israel for failing to obey God’s law.

Some scholars classify Amos as a type of prophetic book called a “covenant enforcement document.” This was meant to be a condemnation of the wickedness of society and a call to return to the law God handed down to Moses. To add more insult, Amos even suggests that Israel’s traditional enemies, Assyria and Egypt, should come and see for themselves how wicked Israel has become.

Much of Amos focuses on the theme of God’s judgment. The Lord constantly reminds the people of Israel that he is the reason they are living in their land and will be the reason they are removed from it. Much of the text details the horrors that God is preparing to unleash, from plagues such as locusts to the destruction of cities and exile into foreign lands. Amos is the first book in the Bible to mention the concept of a “day of the Lord,” a specific moment when God will let loose his judgment upon the people. That concept was later used by other Old Testament prophets and in the concept of a coming judgment day.

Another key theme in the book is Amos’s focus on social justice. One of the main transgressions mentioned by God is that the people of Israel do not care about the poor and are oppressing those less fortunate. Amos singles out the women of Bashan whom he describes as entitled and lazy. Bashan was a wealthy region with rich farmlands, suggesting that Amos was criticizing them for living in luxury while many others lived in poverty.

Bibliography

“Amos.” Bible Gateway, www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Amos%201&version=NIV. Accessed 25 Apr. 2022.

“Amos.” Society for Old Testament Study, 2022, www.sots.ac.uk/wiki/amos/. Accessed 25 Apr. 2022.

“Amos.” United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, 2022, bible.usccb.org/bible/amos/0. Accessed 25 Apr. 2022.

“The Global Message of Amos.” English Standard Version, 2022, www.esv.org/resources/esv-global-study-bible/global-message-of-amos/. Accessed 25 Apr. 2022.

Hasel, Gerhard F. Understanding the Book of Amos: Basic Issues in Current Interpretations. Wipf and Stock, 2019.

Issa, Jimmy. “Book of Amos.” World History Encyclopedia, 18 May 2017, www.worldhistory.org/Book‗of‗Amos/. Accessed 25 Apr. 2022.

Mark, Joshua J. “Israel.” World History Encyclopedia, 26 Oct. 2018, www.worldhistory.org/israel/. Accessed 25 Apr. 2022.

Mindel, Nissan. “The Prophet Amos.” Chabad.org, 2022, www.chabad.org/library/article‗cdo/aid/112277/jewish/The-Prophet-Amos.htm. Accessed 25 Apr. 2022.