AMOS (Hebr. ’Āmōs, “he who bears a burden,” different from the name of Isaiah’s father, ’Āmōs, “strong”). — Third of the minor prophets, in the order of the Bible.
1. THE PROPHET
By asserting that he is “neither a prophet nor a son of prophets” (7:14), A. declares that he does not belong to groups or schools of prophets and has had no special preparation for the prophetic ministry, and above all that he does not make prophecy a profession, as his courtly and schismatic rival Amasia insinuates (7:12). A. was born at Tekoa in the kingdom of Judah, a village 9 km. south of Bethlehem, which seems to be reflected in the setting of his book, rich in images drawn from desert life. Through his easy relations with the caravans, A. could always obtain precise information about Edom and Moab, the Philistines and Ammonites, Tyre and Damascus. From the title onward (1:1), he presents himself as a shepherd (7:14, bōgēr, “one who tends his flock himself”), also engaged in cultivating sycamores (7:14). From his humble condition he was called to prophetic dignity by the Lord, who, according to his good pleasure, chooses and takes up the humble (7:14).A. seems to have been the earliest writing prophet. His prophetic vocation, clearly manifested (1:1; 3:3-8; 7:14-15), occurred in the time of Jeroboam II, king of Israel from 783 to 743, and of Uzziah, his contemporary king of Judah (789-38), two years before the “earthquake” (1:1) also mentioned in Zach. 14:5. Two mentions of the plague (4:10; 8:3) and of the solar eclipse (8:9) find confirmation in two references in a Babylonian eponymous list, which places the two phenomena in the years 765-59 and 763; consequently, at least part of A.’s ministry would have taken place after those years. That the Israelites glory in the consolidation of their kingdom (6:14; allusions in 4:14 ff.; 5:2; cf. II Reg. 14:24-28; 6:15) seems to presuppose that the kingdom extended as far as the entrance to Hamath (as in II Reg. 14:25). From the great political and economic prosperity there arose a soft and luxurious life, often reproved by A. (2:6 ff.; 3:9-15; 4:1; 5:11; 6:1-6). All this seems to refer to the later part of the reign of Jeroboam II (around 760).
A. was charged with announcing the divine decrees in the northern kingdom. He delivered most of his sermons in Bethel (7:10); it seems that he did not travel about preaching in the kingdom, but had a permanent dwelling in Bethel near the royal sanctuary, to which he so often alludes (7:13; 2:6-12; 3:14; 4:4 ff.; 5:4 ff., 21-25). He also knows well the disorders of Samaria (3:9-15; 5:11; 6:1-7). He does not say whether, after the threats of the perfidious priest of Bethel, Amasia, he immediately left the kingdom (7:12).
2. THE BOOK
Forced to return to his homeland, A. wrote down his oracles in the order in which he had pronounced them, limiting himself to the salient ideas, expressed with clarity and vigor, in an admirable style.St. Jerome’s judgment on the style, “ imperitus sermone sed non scientia ” (Prof. in Amos: PL 25, 1038), means only that, although unfamiliar with the subtle artifices of the schools, A. is endowed with true divine eloquence (St. Augustine: “ Neque enim haec humana industria composita, sed divina mente sunt fusa et sapiente et eloquente ”, De doctrina christiana, IV, 7, 21: PL 34, 96).
The subject of the book is the impending punishment of Israel’s sins (divine judgment) and the salvific prophecy of the restoration of Davidic sovereignty. It is divided into three parts: a) After the title (1:1 f.) comes the threat of divine judgment against Damascus, the Philistines, Tyre, Edom, Ammon, Moab, Judah, and Israel (1:3-2:16). b) Three discourses announce the punishment of crimes (3:1-6:14). Although privileged by God, Israel has stained itself with many grave sins, and therefore will be deprived of its prosperity, and the altars of Bethel will be destroyed (chap. 3); judgment is imminent for the wanton women of Samaria and the wicked people (chap. 4); for Israel, which does not heed God’s call to repentance, after “woe!”: the day of the Lord will be dark, and great sorrow will come upon the leaders of the people (chaps. 5-6). c) Five symbolic visions concerning the ruin of Israel (7:1-9:10): the locusts that devour everything, the destroying fire, the plumb line in God’s hand, the hook that tears away the harvest, God above the altar of burnt offerings, and the fall of the Temple.
Epilogue: the restoration of the house of David (9:11-15). This oracle is regarded as messianic both in the Talmudic tradition (Sanhedrin, 96 b), which relates it to Dan. 7:13-14 (the “Son of man” who receives eternal and universal power), and in the Christian tradition, where it is cited as a messianic prophecy in Act. 15:16-17 by St. James. The divine authority of the book is attested in Tob. 2:6, in the allusion in I Mach. 1:41 (Am. 8:10), and in the citation by St. Stephen (Act. 7:42).
The text of A. has come down to us in excellent condition, despite certain fluctuations in the Masoretic punctuation: even the most extreme rationalists acknowledge this, although among the 146 verses they attribute approximately thirty to someone other than A. The Greek version (the Septuagint) and the Latin version (the Hieronymian) are excellent.