Amos 1:1 - Exposition

Heading. The words. So Jeremiah begins his prophecy ( Jeremiah 1:1 ), and the writer of Ecclesiastes ( Ecclesiastes 1:1 ). That the words am not those of Amos, but of Jehovah, is shown by the succeeding clause, "which he saw." Herdmen . The Hebrew word noked used here is found in 2 Kings 3:4 , applied to Mesha King of Moab, a great "sheepmaster;" hence some have considered that Amos was not a mere mercenary, but a rich possessor of flocks. His own words, however ( Amos 7:14 , Amos 7:15 ), decide his position as that of a poor labouring man. Tekoah . A small town of Judah (see above in the account of the author, Introduction, § II .). He saw, with inward intuition. Hence his "words" were inspired (comp. Isaiah 2:1 ; Habakkuk 1:1 ). Concerning Israel chiefly, mention of Judah being introduced only incidentally and as connected with the destinies of Israel The Septuagint reads, by some mistake, "concerning Jerusalem." In the days. (For the date of the prophecy, see above, Introduction, § III .) Earthquake . No mention is made of this event in the historical books. It was remembered in after years (see Zechariah 14:5 ), and Amos alludes to it as a token of the judgment which he foretold, such catastrophes being regarded as signs of the majesty of God and his vengeance on sinners (comp. Exodus 19:18 : Psalms 68:8 ; Micah 1:4 ; Habakkuk 3:6 , Habakkuk 3:10 ), Josephus ('Ant.' 9.10. 4) attributes this earthquake to God's displeasure at Uzziah's usurpation of the priest's office ( 2 Chronicles 26:16 ).