Describing the genre of a written work that reinvigorates older oral speech forms, in m. Amos mission is directed to his neighbor to the north, israel. The theology of the book of amos old testament theology. It is possible that a special historical event lies behind the mention of the ten men and the dwd in amos 6. It is based on the german lexicon by william gesenius. And we must never forget that amos is speaking to us, the church of god, the israel of god. Gods relationship with his people includes judging them in righteousness when they sin and restoring them in grace. Assyria would eventually engulf nearly the entire near east, from ur to ararat to egypt. Amos the prophet the historical background a wandering people. Amos was a rather humble person thats why god called him he was a herdsman and a gatherer of sycamore fruit. Elsewhere, yahweh assures his people that this privilege was not given to them because they were. He calls himself a shepherd and a cultivator of sycamorefig trees. The book of amos is a stinging rebuke of a nation that has rejected and forgotten god.
Lexical there are several excellent lexicons available for ancient hebrew. Amos, a judaean prophet from the village of tekoa, was active in the northern kingdom. Amos lived during the reign of jeroboam ii king of israel, and king uzziah of judah, so amos probably started his mission about 760 b. You only have i know of all the families of the earth. Amos the prophet the historical background a wandering. Amos the prophet the historical background a wandering people at the start of what is a series looking at some of the prophets of israel, it might be helpful to do. Jonahs preaching in nineveh must have been similar.
The book of amos was likely written between 760 and 753 b. The book of amos amos was a sheepbreeder of tekoa in judah, who delivered his oracles in the northern kingdom during the prosperous reign of jeroboam ii 786746 b. The book of amos is the third in the hebrew canon known as the twelve minor prophets. Amos made clear in his writings that he did not come from a family of prophets, nor did he even consider himself one. Amos bible study outlinecontents by chapter and verse. This prophet amos was a citizen of the kingdom of judah, yet he obeyed god rather than man, and preached in the ten tribe kingdom of israel gods message as god called him to do. Amos, a judaean prophet from the village of tekoa, was active in the northern kingdom of israel during the reign of jeroboam ii c. Amos, theology of bakers evangelical dictionary of. It is a prophecy for the period just ahead of us, a prophecy dealing with a. Amos exposed injustice and announced gods judgement on the people. Book of amos, the third of 12 old testament books that bear the names of the minor prophets, collected in one book under the jewish canon titled the twelve. Amos s connection to the simple life of the people made its way into the center of his prophecies. This is important, it gives us a glimpse of how immersed these men were in world events, they. They were selling off needy people for goods, taking advantage of the helpless, oppressing the poor, and the men were.
In order to comprehend the theology of the book that bears his name, one must have a basic understanding of that context. Amos 3 niv bible hear this word, people of israel, the. Hebrew and english lexicon of the old testament by francis brown, s. Eerdmans has made available online in pdf format a general introduction to the book and an introduction to the book of amos. Apr 02, 2020 book of amos, the third of 12 old testament books that bear the names of the minor prophets, collected in one book under the jewish canon titled the twelve. More than almost any other book of scripture, the book of amos holds gods people accountable for their illtreatment of others. There is a crossexamination that is characterized by. It contains over twenty examples that map to models typically fitted by many investigators. Transcribed and edited by david sielaff, february 20. It is a stirring warning to all of the dangers of apostasy, rebellion and complacency. Amos tackles perennial issues such as the extent the nations are responsive and responsible to gods law, and offers one key scriptural source for understanding the serious call that gods people have for caring for the poor among them. May 18, 2017 the book of amos is considered one of the earliest biblical books by scholars, as it dates to the middle of the 8th century bce. Amos prophesied to a society drenched in dire classism, with an elite tier of israeli authorities civil and religious who enjoyed wealth and prosperity while the majority faced poverty and affliction. He prophesied in israel at the great cult center of bethel, from which he was finally expelled by the priest in charge of this royal sanctuary 7.
Thus my anticipation ran high in reading john bartons theology of the book of amos. The book of amos is a prophetic book of the hebrew bible largely dating to the 8th century bce and considered to be scripture by modernday jews and christians. The book of amos, which is the earliest of the prophetic writings to be preserved in book form, consists of nine chapters. The main purpose of a summary is as a simplification highlighting the major points from the original and much longer version of the subject. Prophet amos, gods message and judgments, false worship, israel, hate bad, love good, jehovahs day. God called amos to prophesy to israel, and it seems that he did most of his work at bethel amos 7.
Rather, he was a grower of sycamore figs as well as a shepherd amos 7. These messages were followed be a series of five visions, culminating with a view of the lord standing upon the altar, ready to. Not all of the material found in these chapters came from amos himself. At the heart of this message is the covenant between yahweh and his people. The resurgence of this ancient empire dominated much of the politics of the ancient near east from the time of jeroboam until the end of the seventh century b. The epitome of amos s prophetic ministry is summed up in this verse. Users can download over 50 million pdfs from the site. Meanwhile, it is currently the worlds largest online publishing company of ebooks that focuses on short and practical books, it. Before using this information and the product it supports, read the information in the notices section. Seven times in the book of amos god says i will send fire. Amos is a shepherd and a fruit picker from the judean village of tekoa when god calls him, even though he lacks an education or a priestly background. For the purpose of this paper we will look at the entire book for any references to critiques by amos. The first opens with a general title to the work, giving the authors name and the general date of his ministry, and a text or motto in four poetical lines, describing the lords power over palestine. The accuser and the one who is accused are introduced 3.
Uzziah was king of judah, and jeroboam ii was king of israel. Editors and copyists added comments to the prophets original oracles that they deemed appropriate in light of events that occurred after his death. This edition applies to ibm spss amos 22 and to all subsequent releases and modifications until otherwise indicated in new editions. Amos, an older contemporary of hosea and isaiah, was active c. All structured data from the file and property namespaces is available under the creative commons cc0 license. Files are available under licenses specified on their description page. Amos must have subsequently returned to tekoa where he assembled and edited his messages as we now see them in the book. He writes about the terrible things that they have done. Covenantal concerns are central to the yahwehs accusations e. The sins of israel during amos ministry included empty ritualism in religion, oppression of the poor by the rich, idolatry, deceit, selfrighteousness, arrogance, greed, materialism, and callousness. The theology of the book of amos in modern times, amos has come to be considered one of the most important prophets, mainly for his uncompromising message about social justice. Amos informs us that he is writing during the reigns of jeroboam ii and uzziah, both of whom are biblical kings known from the archaeological record to have reigned from the 8th century bce. This grace is evident, first of all, in his election of israel amos 3.
Amos third message was an exhortation to turn to the lord, for he was predicting the overthrow of the kingdom, and the captivity chapters 4,5. Then he says something to his own people who live in israel and judah. Our lady, queen of the most holy rosary cathedral toledo, ohio ceiling mural of the prophet amos. Microsoft product screenshots reproduced with permission from microsoft corporation. It is a prophecy for the period just ahead of us, a prophecy dealing with a specific twoyear span of time just prior to the second advent of christ. Media in category book of amos the following 6 files are in this category, out of 6 total. Amos critique of the social sins in judah and israel. This book provides a detailed exploration of this theme and other important elements of the theology underlying the book of amos. It repeatedly points out the failure of the people to fully embrace gods idea of justice. Hear this word, people of israel, the word the lord has spoken against youagainst the whole family i brought up out of egypt.
The book of amos is the third of the twelve minor prophets in the tanakhold testament and the second in the greek septuagint tradition. Amos lived in the kingdom of judah but preached in the northern kingdom of. A summary, synopsis or recap is a shortened version of the original. But let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like. Many of these elements can be recognized in the book of amos. This book provides a detailed exploration of this theme and other important elements of. Book of amos overview insight for living ministries. This introduction shows how to read the bible on the literary, historical, and theological levels. The book of amos also gives clear indication of yahwehs grace, that is, the lovingkindness and mercy that he lavishes on people without regard to merit. God s relationship with his people includes judging them in righteousness when they sin and restoring them in grace. Amos the prophet the historical background a wandering people at the start of what is a series looking at some of the prophets of israel, it might be helpful to do a little history which gives us a feel of the background. You only have i chosen of all the families of the earth.
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