Amos, Shepherd and Prophet

“The words of Amos, who was among the shepherds of Tekoa, which he saw concerning Israel in the days of Uzziah king of Judah and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, kind of Israel, two years before the earthquake.” –Amos 1:1.  “Then Amos answered and said to Amaziah, ‘I was no prophet, nor a prophet’s son, but I was a herdsman and a dresser of sycamore figs.  But the Lord took me from following the flock, and the Lord said to me, Go, prophesy to my people Israel.  Now therefore hear the word of the Lord.” –Amos 7:14-15.

These devotionals for the past nine days have examined some pertinent “Proverbs to Live By.”  The rich book of Proverbs could have remained the subject for much longer, for many more axioms are contained in that rich book.  But for a period now we will turn to some of the prophets, beginning with Amos, the herdsman of Tekoa.  

Let us consider the call of Amos. What we know of his call to be a prophet is given in what we call “internal evidence”—his own statement of his calling.  He was born in Tekoa, in Israel, the northern Kingdom.  His ministry of prophesying took place in the southern kingdom of Judah, but had implications for both. His call is recorded in verses 1:1 and 7:14-15.  He was not one from among the royal guild of the prophets, a group paid by the kings and therefore one who would speak to the king’s pleasure.  Amaziah, a priest who lived and worked in Bethel of Judah, told Jereboam, the king of Israel, that “the land is not able to bear all his words,”telling the king that Amos had prophesied his death and the exile of Israel (see 7:10-13).  It was then that Amos fearlessly said he was not a prophet nor a prophet’s son—it was not in his lineage to follow the usual professional prophet’s role.  The implication, too, is that the words of Amos would not placate the ear but declare the judgments of God.  God called him from being a shepherd and a dresser of sycamore figs and gave him a message that must be delivered to the people.  Amos’s call was so clear and positive that he could not deny the claim of God upon his life and he had to deliver the message God gave him.  Hebrew names are significant in that they have meaning that bears out the purpose and work of the person.  Amos means “a load”—and Amos certainly had a burden, a load to bear the message from God to the people, as grim as it was.  On the other hand, there is the thought that the people themselves could have been a burden to Amos, as they did not want to hear and heed his prophecies. 

Very significant in how Amos states his call is “the Lord took me.”  Amos could not get away from the call of God, and so he became a lonely voice prophesying from the desert and in the villages.  His message laid bare the sins of superficiality in religious practice and the decay that accompanies prosperity.  His message delivered about 750 B. C. was very similar to that of John the Baptist, the forerunner of Jesus, who preached in the wilderness of Jordan and cried out, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 3:2).  Amos was among the earliest of the prophets to declare the coming of the Day of the Lord, a time of judgment and winnowing (see Amos 5:18-20). His calling was to sound a clarion warning to beware and prepare, not to spread pleasing platitudes.