Amos 1 Study Notes

1:1 Some believe that Amos was a very poor man, being no more than a day laborer who tended livestock and worked in orchards (7:14), but sheep breeders may imply Amos owned sheep and cattle and that he was in the middle or upper-middle class. The book does not tell us anything about his economic status. Although Amos was from Judah, his message was primarily designated for Israel, the northern kingdom. The earthquake was evidently of such severity that other events were dated relative to it. Lacking a single fixed point for their calendar (as our calendar has, being fixed relative to the birth of Christ), the Israelites dated events relative to the reigns of kings or to other significant events. In addition, the earthquake, coming two years after Amos’s ministry, symbolically confirmed his message (9:5). The fact that the book is precisely dated to two years before the earthquake suggests that Amos’s preaching career was fairly short.

1:2 This verse sets the theme of the book: God is like a roaring lion. This symbolically portrays his giving a message to his prophets and his readiness to pounce and attack (3:4-8).

1:3-2:16 The first section of Amos is a series of oracles against the nations: Damascus (or Syria, 1:3-5); Gaza (or Philistia, 1:6-8); Tyre (or Phoenicia, 1:9-10); Edom (1:11-12); Ammon (1:13-15); Moab (2:1-3); Judah (2:4-5); and Israel (2:6-16). The focus is on Israel, which is last and is given by far the longest oracle. There are six Gentile nations followed by Judah, the seventh. One would think this creates a complete list, with seven oracles in all, but Israel comes as the eighth, and thus the tally of her sin is in effect greater than the number seven, which symbolized completion. That is, Israel is the quintessentially wicked nation. Also, the order of the nations slowly tightens around Israel. First is Damascus, to the northeast; then Gaza, to the southwest; then Tyre, to the northwest; then Edom, to the southeast; and next come Ammon and Moab, across the Jordan River to the east; and finally before Israel comes Judah, located immediately south of Israel.

1:3 The significance of the expression for three crimes, even four is debated. But it could be translated as “for three crimes, and for [another] four,” implying that the number of offenses had reached seven and was therefore complete, requiring judgment. Damascus regularly struggled with Israel for control of Gilead, east of the Sea of Galilee. It used brutal military tactics there, symbolically described as going over the countryside with iron sledges.

1:4 Hazael and Ben-hadad were throne names used by all the kings of Damascus.

1:5 Judgment will fall on the main areas of population. Kir is the region from which the Arameans came (Am 9:7). The Assyrians exiled the Arameans there (2 Kg 16:9).

1:6 The Philistines captured villages in order to sell the entire populace into slavery.

1:7-8 All the major cities of the Philistines (Gaza . . . Ashdod . . . Ashkelon, and Ekron) are mentioned except Gath, which by the time of Amos had already been substantially wiped out.

1:9 Tyre also raided towns to sell the people into slavery, and it did so in violation of treaty obligations.

1:10 This is repeated from v. 4.

1:11 Edom committed border raids (probably against Judah) in which they exterminated entire populations.

1:12 Again repeated from vv. 4,10.

1:13 The Ammonites sought to exterminate the population of Gilead by slaughtering the pregnant women.

1:14-15 Verse 14 begins with the standard punishment oracle (vv. 4,10,12). The wind and the storm may signal a theophany. The leaders will receive special attention.