At a Glance
Amos at a Glance
Amos was a farmer, not a priest or a professional prophet. God sent him north into the richest, busiest, and most religious years Israel had known in generations, to say that all of it counted for nothing while the poor were being crushed.
- Author. Amos, a herdsman and gatherer of sycomore fruit from Tekoa in Judah, south of Jerusalem (Amos 1:1; Amos 7:14–15).
- Date. About 760 BC, in the days of Uzziah of Judah and Jeroboam II of Israel, two years before the earthquake (Amos 1:1).
- Written To. The northern kingdom of Israel. Amos preached at Bethel and Samaria, though he was from Judah.
- Setting. Israel's borders had grown (2 Kings 14:25), money flowed, and the wealthy owned houses of ivory (Amos 3:15). Worship at Bethel and Gilgal was busy, while the poor were sold for a pair of shoes (Amos 2:6).
- Key Verse. let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream (Amos 5:24).
- Key Word or Theme. Justice and righteousness. God wants a people whose lives match their worship, and He tells them to prepare to meet Him.
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Further reading
For Deeper Study
- Be ConcernedAmazon Warren W. WiersbeA practical commentary on Amos, Obadiah, Micah, and Zephaniah.
- The Day of the Lion: The Message of AmosAmazon J. A. MotyerA vivid exposition in the Bible Speaks Today series. Motyer was an Anglican evangelical, and we differ with him on the future of Israel.
- The Minor ProphetsAmazon Charles Lee FeinbergA dispensational commentary that takes Amos 9 as a promise to Israel.
- Foxe's Book of MartyrsAmazon John FoxeThe classic Protestant record of those who died for the faith, from the early church to the English Reformation.
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