Where god has brought material blessing to his people through honest hard work and diligence, such blessing should be received gratefully and enjoyed. The israelites had a unique and privileged relationship with god. Amos great innovation on the biblical landscape is that israels moral state directly affects its national destiny. Transnational god, social justice, and true religion. The author of the book of amos is identified as the prophet amos. Amos, a judaean prophet from the village of tekoa, was active in the northern kingdom of israel during the reign of jeroboam ii c. In spite of withering opposition, he fearlessly indicted the nation for its hollow, meaningless piety, social injustice and general immorality. During the time of the minor prophets, the nation of israel had divided into two separate countries, each with its own government. 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. Amos accuses israel of breaking their covenant with god, and highlights how their idolatry has led to injustice and the neglect of the poor. A summary, synopsis or recap is a shortened version of the original.
The following passage from amos is repeated by james in acts 15. The book of the prophet amos download ebook pdf, epub. Amos was a vigorous spokesman for gods justice and righteousness, whereas hosea emphasized gods love, grace, mercy and forgiveness. The only ways we have to assign a date to amos are the superscription to the book 1. Resources include introductions to biblical books, studies of specific bible books and passages, and discussion of a variety of topics on which the bible speaks. In the book of amos, we find two different kinds of light. He spoke against an increased disparity between the very wealthy and the very poor. In recent years several attempts have been made to discover an overall structural pattern in the book of amos. Editors and copyists added comments to the prophets original oracles that they deemed appropriate in light of events that occurred after his death. 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.
Arguably, the book of amos is exclusively about morality and social justice. Not much has been written about it in the new church. Despite the fact that israel certainly had problems with idolatry in his time, amos never explicitly condemns itnor any other sin pertaining to. Amos declared that god was going to judge his unfaithful, disobedient, covenant. Amos served during the reigns of uzziah azariah, 792740 bc, and jeroboam ii, 793753 bc. If you would like to read this first prophetic book of the bible, please click the link to the chapter you would like to read and all of the bible verses will be listed for your perusal. At the heart of this message is the covenant between yahweh and his people. He speaks of hope for the children of israel when they will be restored to a kingdom under. Doc five themes of the prophets francis okethwengu. 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. Theses promises are of great blessing and restoration for gods people, put in the following terms. Noble 18otter close, bar hill, cambridge cb3 8ea, england. Amos, herdsman of tekoa, was sent from god with a powerful message of correction for the ancient house of israel. The book of amos is the third of the twelve minor prophets in the tanakhold testament and the second in the greek septuagint tradition.
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. The book of amos is one of the least understood in the holy scriptures. The twelve include hosea, joel, amos, obadiah, jonah, micah, nahum, habakkuk, zephaniah, haggai, zechariah, and malachi. In this essay i will discuss how different submessages spanning across the book are tied. The book of hosea consists of fourteen chapters, which was the record for a minor prophet until zechariah tied it a couple centuries later. The book of amos was written during the era of divided kingdoms of israel but in an age which is much prosperous than the previous times especially the northern kingdom of isreal with ruler jeroboam ii reached at such a level of growth and prosperity as was not seen after david and solomon. Book of amos summary we have detailed a brief summary of the book of amos for bible study or sunday school lessons. The book of the twelve prophets was originally on one parchment roll because of the brevity of the text, and originally formed one book of the 24 books of hebrew scripture. The book of amos is a prophetic book of the hebrew bible, one of the twelve minor prophets. The earliest prophets, such as amos and hosea, warn israel and sometimes. If the day is dark gray and overcast, and terrible storms are coming, we still know that if we go high enough above the clouds, the sun is still shining bright. The book of amos, the third of the twelve minor prophets, has been one of the most significant and influential books of the bible from the time it was written 8th century bce down to the 20th century. God raised up the prophet amos, as an act of his great mercy to a people who repeatedly shunned.
This site is like a library, use search box in the widget to get ebook that you want. The work chronicles the visions that the ancient author of this book believed he received from god in order to warn israel of its impending doom and. Amos called by the lord to prophesy to the northern. I am no prophet, protested amos, nor a prophets son. The main themes of the book of amos are social justice, god\s omnipotence, and divine judgment became staples of prophecy.
Bible character study on amos what christians want to know. For, lo, he that formeth the mountains, and createth the wind, and declareth unto man what ishis thought, that maketh the morning darkness, and treadeth upon the high places of the earth, the lord, the god of hosts, is his name amos 4. The prophet amos was from the city of tekoa which was high in the hill country 5. Overview of the book of amos third millennium ministries. Amos prophesied during the days of uzziah, king of judah, and in the days of jeroboam the son of joash, king of israel amos 1. Jesus said he would build his church, that he would not leave us orphans and that he would be with us to the end of the age. Amos prophecy was a judgement message to a few nations, but primarily against the 10 tribe kingdom of israel, warning of gods judgement against them for their false worship, immorality.
This book provides a detailed exploration of this theme and other important elements of the theology underlying the book of amos. More than almost any other book of scripture, the book of amos holds gods people accountable for their illtreatment of others. The theme that runs through all of the material is one of protest against the social injustices that prevailed in northern israel during the reign of jeroboam ii. Book of amos overview insight for living ministries. Sep, 2015 the book of amos niv audio holy bible high quality and best speed book 30 duration. After a whole catalogue of denunciations from the prophet amos, he comes up with 5 great promises to the people of israel from the lord almighty.
The words of amos, who was among the sheepherders from tekoa, which he envisioned in visions concerning israel in the days of uzziah king of judah, and in the days of jeroboam son of joash, king of israel, two years before the earthquake. This lecture studies the literary features and major themes of classical israelite prophecy as evidenced in particular in the book of the eighthcentury northern prophet amos. The driving theme of these books is the description and indictment of israels idolatry. Amos was a vigorous spokesman for gods justice and righteousness, whereas hosea emphasized gods love. Gods relationship with his people includes judging them in righteousness when they sin and restoring them in grace. Intro to amos biblica the international bible society. A real relationship with god should show in social justice and righteousness. 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. Comprising only nine chapters of oracles, it was composed during the age of jeroboam ii, king of israel from 786 to 746 bce. That is restored under the rule of christ for he is the son of david, the messiah.
Many scholars believe that amos was the earliest of all of the biblical prophets to have his words put in writingminor, major or somewhere inbetween. They were selling off needy people for goods, taking advantage of the helpless, oppressing the poor, and the men were. To reveal the severity of divine judgment for covenant infidelity in israel and judah and to declare the hope of a great restoration after the approaching destruction and exile. Although he came from a town in judah, he preached to the people of the northern kingdom of israel, about the middle of the eighth century b.
In modern times amos has come to be considered one of the most important prophets, mainly for his uncompromising message about social justice. Reading them today we may well be tempted to downplay the force of the message and dilute the challenge it brings. Apr 30, 2012 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. Prophet amos, gods message and judgments, false worship, israel, hate bad, love good, jehovahs day. Many of the evil characteristics described in amos 12 might better be translated in the present tense of activities then being done. To begin, marcus tells a parable about cows who are confined by an electric. The book of amos is an intriguing scripture from a unique individual, amos, a shepherd and fig tree farmer dwelling in southern judah who is called by god to go to bethel and announce warnings of judgment. The covenant lawsuit, woe oracles, laments, promise oracles, visions, and parallelism. Amos contains all of the literary types he described. Amos was a contemporary of hosea, isaiah, and jonah. On the one hand there was political stability and strength combined with economic prosperity. The poetry of amos, who denounces the hollow prosperity of the northern kingdom, is filled with imagery and language taken from his own pastoral background. Amos bible study outlinecontents by chapter and verse.
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. He confesses he is a herdsman and a gatherer of sycamore fruit wild figs. Amos is identified as the prophet amos religion essay. They were capturing gods people and selling them as slaves to the edomities. 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. The concept of justice in the book of amos heartwell. Many books on amos continue to be published, evidencing scholarly interest in this prophet and the book. Amos wrote at a time of relative peace and prosperity but also of neglect of gods laws. Amos 68 amos denounced all five cities of philistia for trading in human lives.
It repeatedly points out the failure of the people to fully embrace gods idea of justice. Amos was the first prophet in the bible whose message was recorded at length. We will begin with the end of the first part of the book in which he has chastised the pagan nations, and then in amos 2. This summary of the book of amos provides information about the title, author s, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the book of amos. Although he may have been just a sheepherder from tekoa, he was a well educated one and a skilled writer, and his book has quite an elaborate structure.
Click download or read online button to get the book of the prophet amos book now. Although hosea is believed to have arrived a little later on the prophetic scene, hosea did marry a prostitute, which, scholars believe, is a lot spicier than anything that amos ever did. Amos, a judaean prophet from the village of tekoa, was active in the northern kingdom. The superscription, or heading, was probably added by a later editor, but it may nevertheless give accurate information.
For the purpose of this paper we will look at the entire book for any references to critiques by amos. Not all of the material found in these chapters came from amos himself. The theology of the book of amos old testament theology. Old testament of the bible cliffsnotes study guides book. Amos message must not be lost on our modern generation. Many books on amos continue to be published, evidencing scholarly interest in this prophet and the book that bears his name. Theme the kingdom of david types and shadows in amos jesus is the one who sees the great sins.
The book of amos, which is the earliest of the prophetic writings to be preserved in book form, consists of nine chapters. Israel, the northern country consisting of ten tribes, and judah, the remaining two tribes in the south. Along the way a prophet named jonah gets swallowed by a giant fish, while the. Find out what true worship looks like in the book of amos. Hayes he metaphor of the mourning earth is one of many shared expressions in the prophetic books of amos and hosea. The major themes in the book of amos judgment, injustice, lament, the sin of gods people, repentance are not easy subjects. The theological implications of the prophecy of amos. It is a prophecy for the period just ahead of us, a prophecy dealing with a.
The purpose of the book of amos was to announce gods holy judgment on the kingdom of israel the northern kingdom, call them to repentance, and to turn from their selfrighteous sins and idolatry. Amos the prophet the historical background a wandering. Transcribed and edited by david sielaff, february 20. Amos, an older contemporary of hosea and isaiah, was active c. That is what amos is doing in his periodic hymns of praise to yahweh. He speaks of hope for the children of israel when they will be restored to a kingdom under the house of david. It is certain only that he fulfilled some of his prophetic ministry at bethel amos 7. The book of amos was likely written between 760 and 753 b.
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 slave masters were themselves taken into exile and slavery. Although there are sermons using a verse or part of a. The main purpose of a summary is as a simplification highlighting the major points from the original and much longer version of the subject. The book is an anthology of his oracles and was compiled either by the prophet or by some of his disciples. Amos critique of the social sins in judah and israel.
Constables notes on amos 7 message the book of amos is distinctive from the other prophetic books of the old testament in two respects. The prophecy of amos carries an urgent message for the global church in the twentyfirst century. The central idea of the book of amos is that god puts his people on the same level as the surrounding nations god. Aug 30, 2017 the book of amos kjv audio holy bible high quality and best speed book 30 duration. Amos chapter 2 kjv king james version i will not turn away the punishment thereof. Social justice in the book of amos the marcus j borg. Since amos was a contemporary of hosea and jonah, see introductions to those books. Thus my anticipation ran high in reading john bartons theology of the book of amos. One of the things to cherish about the book of amos is its exquisite language. Gods judgment came upon philistia in the days of uzziah and the assyrian invaders. Since i started working on this study of amos, i have searched our library holdings with the hope i would turn up a hidden or forgotten study by some new church scholar. It portrays the beginning of the church from its roots at pentecost fifty days after the lords resurrection, to paul being held under house arrest. Covenantal concerns are central to the yahwehs accusations e. Marcus borg speaks on the topic of social justice in the bible, specifically book of amos, he looks at the societal context and world orders contemporary to jesus and his disciples to help understand their views of social justice.
The main themes of amos and lessons that we learn from this book are. Amos and hosea were coworkers and may even have gone on preaching tours through the land together, although hosea continued his work after amos passed from the scene. First, the prophet amos was not a prophet in the same sense that the other prophets were prophets. His major themes of justice, gods omnipotence, and divine judgment became staples of prophecy. The customary classification of the prophetical books of the bible into major prophets isaiah, jeremiah, and ezekiel and minor prophets hosea, joel, amos.
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