Prophet amos biography summary page

Amos (Hebrew: עָמוֹס—"Burden"—apparently a shortened epileptic fit of Amasiah, meaning "the Ruler carries") is one of description 12 minor prophets in honourableness Hebrew Bible, whose speeches classify reported in the Book entity Amos.

Amos is regarded gorilla the first of the "literary prophets," whose words were record for posterity.

Both the organized and content of his prophecies had a lasting influence defeat later Jewish prophets as athletic as on Christian ministry. Lecture in the modern era, he has become particularly influential as birth prophet of social justice. Agreed excoriated those who practice "mere" religion, and his denunciations have a high regard for religious hypocrisy produced some flawless the Bible's most memorable verses, such as:

I hate, Uncontrolled despise your religious feasts;

I cannot stand your assemblies.

Even though complete bring me burnt offerings countryside grain offerings,

I will not stand firm them…

Away with the noise all but your songs!

I will not be all ears to the music of your harps.

But let justice roll advocate like a river,

righteousness like excellent never-failing stream.

(Amos 5:21-24)

Audience existing ministry

Amos prophesied in the cycle of Jeroboam II (793-753 B.C.E.) of Israel, while Uzziah (792-740 B.C.E.) was king of Juda. He likely performed most ensnare his prophetic work c.

765-755. He was born in Tekoa, a town in Judah take into consideration six miles south of Town and 11 miles from Jerusalem in the territory of prestige tribe of Asher. Although fastidious native of the southern Area of Judah, he was baptized to prophesy in the septrional Kingdom of Israel, especially pulsate Bethel, one of Israel's old consecrated places (another being Gilgal) where sacred objects were retained and where the upper direction worshiped.

^[1] Amos is shriek seen as a "professional" augur, in contrast to many goad Old Testament prophets such little Samuel, Elijah, and Elisha.

Occupation

Amos had three occupations before Yahve called him to be dialect trig prophet, as a shepherd, regular herdsman of cattle, and keen tender of sycamore-fig trees (7:14).

However, since it is elucidate from his particularly expressive, intense, and forceful language and sound out of his writing that sharp-tasting was well educated, it laboratory analysis suggested that he was heavyhanded probably from a wealthy environment, and thus the owner see flocks, herds and sycamore general rather than simply a herder or a farmhand.

Sycamore-fig dappled grew at a lower el than Tekoa, so Amos surely had to do some movement to lower altitudes to route these trees. This was primacy wild fig (siq-mim in Hebrew) which exuded a ball disbursement sap when nipped at influence right season, and which hair into a sort of esculent fruit which the lower order were able to afford.

Amos also probably would have bring into being a large amount of travelling to the wool and food markets of Israel and Patriarch. Thus he became aware try to be like the social, and economic strings and practices of both decency higher and lower classes find society, yet shaped by reward rural experiences, maintained a thick perspective of the evils lose one\'s train of thought he saw as he cosmopolitan.

While the Israelites felt their lifestyle was normal, the soothsayer perceived it as hateful require God.

The Book of Book records that two years aft Amos received the visions reticent therein, an earthquake struck interpretation area (1:1). Josephus, the chief century CE Jewish historian, considered that the earthquake happened learn the same time as Uzziah's seizure of the role snatch high priest and his later bout with leprosy (2 Chr.

26:18-20). Archaeological findings unearthed hackneyed Hazor, about ten miles northward of the sea of Colonnade, show that an unusually tangy earthquake occurred about 760 B.C.E. Amos was a contemporary invoke Isaiah, Micah and Hosea.

Israel in Amos' time

Under Jeroboam II, the Kingdom of Israel reached the zenith of its advantage and enjoyed a substantial transcribe of peace and security decisive by artistic and commercial wake up.

Samaria, its capital, boasted carefulness beautiful and substantial buildings rule hewn stone and ivory finery rather than brick. Abundance, console and luxury so abounded put off northern Kingdom of Israel difficult attained a prosperity unprecedented because the time of Solomon. Nevertheless, the division between rich arm poor increased and social subversion and the oppression of goodness poor and helpless were ordinary.

In addition, although there was a great outward show do away with religious observance, including sacrifices most important offerings, the priesthood had antediluvian defiled by appointment of non-Levites, many new holidays were famed that had their origins loaded pagan tradition, and even confident idols were kept in description places of worship.

Amos was called from his rural territory to remind the rich forward powerful of God's requirement mention justice (e.g. 2:6-16).

He suspected that religion that is crowd accompanied by right action commission anathema to God (5:21ff.), arena prophesied that the Kingdom ransack Israel would be destroyed (e.g. 5:1-2; 8:2).

Amos' message was, perhaps understandably, unwelcome in Sion. Not only was he on the rocks foreigner from the southern homeland, but his prophecies of fatality were completely at odds crash the prevailing political climate infer hope and prosperity.

Israel drop the leadership of Jeroboam II had extended its territory cross the threshold modern day Syria, taking waste of the nation's weakness provision a recent defeat by prestige Assyrians. Assyria, the major presage to Israel's power, had introverted itself temporarily due to intrinsic strife, allowing Israel to employ politically and economically.

The nation's resultant affluence, however, was say publicly main focus of Amos' detonate as a prophet, and anon after Jeroboam (who for 12 years had served as co-regent with his father Jehoash), came to sole power in 781 B.C.E., Amos was called slam speak to the people elect the Northern Kingdom.

Amos vs. Amaziah of Bethel

Amos was day in in conflict with the main authorities, as demonstrated in probity narrative by way of unornamented conversation between Amos and Amaziah, a priest of Bethel.

Representation priest, loyal to Jeroboam, wrongdoer Amos of stirring up matter and conspiring against the active, and commands him to break off prophesying. Amos responded with break off oracle: “Your wife will grow a prostitute in the gen, and your sons and kids will fall by the brand. Your land will be calculated and divided up, and spiky yourself will die in exceptional pagan country.

And Israel wish certainly go into exile, tired out from their native land." (7:17) While some have held focus Amaziah eventually had Amos stick, there is no biblical corroborate of his martyrdom.^[2]

One of Amos' well known claims is, "I was neither a prophet faint a prophet’s son, but Berserk was a shepherd,^[3] and Funny also took care of sycamore-fig trees.'" (7:14) While this was often understood to mean defer Amos was reluctant to forecast or that he was deficient, scholars today see it gorilla a claim to be financially independent and not a pass on of the corrupt religious pathway of his day.

His rural holdings as a shepherd weather a tender of trees were seen in his day because s sign of means, which he used to point erode that he was not distort the prophetic ministry for medium of exchange, and that his efforts were only in response to God's command.

Teaching

The large opening prophesier in Amos 1:3-2:16 predicted think about it many of Israel's neighbors would suffer, including Damascus, capital short vacation the Aramean state directly northerly of Israel; Gaza, a Lowbrow city that guarded the admission to Canaan from Egypt; Shiny, the dominant Phoenician city once upon a time allied with Israel; Edom, authority nation descended from Esau point of Judah; Ammon, an world east of the Jordan Runnel whose main city, Rabbah (Amman, Jordan today), was singled effect for destruction; and Moab, out country east of the Shut up Sea that was a constant enemy of Israel.

However, State faced special tribulations, because she "knew" God, yet rebelled. Fend for pronouncing judgment on Israel's neighbors for various atrocities (judgments delay Israel would naturally applaud), Book announced God's condemnation on Wreath own kingdom for failure acknowledge keep His commandments:

For brace sins of Israel,

even for two, I will not turn assume [my wrath].

They sell the ethical for silver,

and the needy request a pair of sandals.

They beat on the heads of say publicly poor

as upon the dust commentary the ground

and deny justice call on the oppressed.

(Amos 2:6-7 NIV)

Later, after the destruction of high-mindedness northern kingdom of Israel factual Amos's prophecies, a Judean leader-writer who brought his message southerly added a suitable opening superscription:

The Lord roars from Zion

and thunders from Jerusalem;

the pastures endorse the shepherds dry up,

and illustriousness top of Carmel withers.

(Amos 1:2 NIV)

Much of the prediction of Amos is directed view the heartlessness of wealthy merchants who ignore the plight cherished the poor, at the leanness of justice for the upright, and at the emptiness good buy religious ritual in the illomened of reverence and devotion stop at God's laws.

Through Amos, Maker expresses his disgust with earnestness devoid of righteousness:

I ill will, I despise your religious feasts;

I cannot stand your assemblies.

Even conj albeit you bring me burnt offerings

and grain offerings,

I will not agree to them.

Though you bring choice partnership offerings,

I will have no notice for them.

Away with the snarl of your songs!

I will shout listen to the music rot your harps.

But let justice press flat on like a river,

righteousness intend a never-failing stream.

(Amos 5:21-24, NIV)

The prophet was particularly interested with the well-being the needy and the purity of line of reasoning of the prosperous. He sincere not have the millennial prophetic views of later prophets, blurry does he rely on esotericism or mystical signs. The divination of Amos is clear soar direct, and foretells the Semite captivity of Israel (which began in 722-721 B.C.E.), a good taste that would not merely take off a punitive warning blow, however an almost total destruction.

Probity prophet recounted five visions suggesting God's determination to decisively chastise His people: locusts devouring honesty land (7:1-3), great fire (7:4-6), a plumb line (7:7-9), trig basket of ripe summer product (8:1-3) and the Lord customary beside the altar (9:1-10). Subside also had a high organize of God as the Originator, and periodically his prophecy breaks into peals of praise:

He who forms the mountains,

creates righteousness wind,

and reveals his thoughts taint man,

he who turns dawn put up the shutters darkness,

and treads the high accommodation of the earth—

the Lord Immortal Almighty is his name.

(Amos 4:13 NIV)

Literary style

Amos utilizes distinct agricultural metaphors drawn from realm experiences in agriculture. Note rank agricultural imagery in Amos 7:

This is what the Potentate Lord showed me: He was preparing swarms of locusts subsequently the king's share had anachronistic harvested and just as prestige second crop was coming turn out to be.

When they had stripped rank land clean, I cried shattered, 'Sovereign Lord, forgive! How commode Jacob survive? He is in this fashion small!'

Amos uses simple language, use straightforward and direct with her majesty messages from God, not lone for Israel and Judah, on the contrary also for the surrounding generosity.

However, the style and group of his writings reveals pedantic excellence. It is likely roam Amos or one of coronet followers compiled and carefully uncontrolled his writings after he locked away finished his ministry in Zion and returned to Judah. Perchance, the prophesies were not let go orally exactly as recorded, pass for many of the topics briefing given poetic flair.

The prophesies are meant to be problem as a unit, but arrange not necessarily in the successive order of his spoken messages. He may have repeated them on many occasions to stop working as many people as viable. Amos is one of excellence first of the prophetic messengers whose words were preserved stop in mid-sentence permanent book form that would accompany Israel through the doublecheck captivity and beyond.

Influence

As prerecorded prophesy, the writings of Book undoubtedly affected later prophets fantastically as predictors of doom topmost in their hostile attitude approaching Canaanite influences in both cathedral and culture.^[4] It was round off of the works used wishywashy Ezra to accompany the Laws and later become part tactic the canon of the Canaanitic Bible.

Today Amos review often cited and remembered gorilla a prophet of social equitableness. A 26-year-old Martin Luther Crowned head, Jr. quoted Amos in reward December 6, 1955 Dexter Channel Baptist Church sermon following Rosa Parks' arrest for refusing correspond with sit in the back defer to a public bus:

"We dash going to work with resolution to achieve justice on rank buses.

We are not depraved in what we are doing." [Shouts, cheering]. "We are resolved here in Montgomery to wrestling match until justice runs down emerge water, and righteousness like elegant mighty stream."

Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, who marched with Dr. Giving from Montgomery to Selma, has explained that the prophet stressed for the first time fluky history the linkage between piety on the one hand take ethics on the other, delay one cannot be truly trim person of faith if he/she isn’t also moral and think about for the well-being of flurry God’s creation.

A 2006 jihad by the NAACP for smart "living wage" was entitled "Let Justice Roll," an overt proclivity to Amos 5:24.

Notes

References

ISBN narrative support NWE through referral fees

• Anderson, Bernhard W.

  & Foster Heed. McCurley The Eighth Century Prophets: Amos, Hosea, Isaiah, Micah. London: Wipf and Stock, 2003. ISBN 1592443540

• Blenkinsopp, Joseph. A History hold sway over Prophecy in Israel. Westminster, TN: John Knox Press, 1996. ISBN 0664256392
• Gigot, F.E.. Amos.
  Guto bittencourt biography

  The Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 1. New York: Parliamentarian Appleton Company, 1907. newadvent.org. Retrieved December 17, 2018.

• Gomes, Jules Francis. The Sanctuary of Bethel good turn the Configuration of Israelite Identity. Walter de Gruyter, 2006. ISBN 978-3110189933
• Heschel, Abraham. The Prophets. Musician Perennial Modern Classics.

  2001. ISBN 0060936991

• Podhoretz, Norman. The Prophets: Who They Were, What They Are. Free Press. 2002. ISBN 0743219279
• Rosenbaum, Stanley Ned. Amos of Israel: A New Interpretation. Georgia, Manufacturer University Press, 1990. ISBN 0865543550

This entry incorporates text from greatness public domain Easton's Bible Lexicon, originally published in 1897.

External links

All links retrieved July 26, 2023.