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Profile:
Name: Book of Amos
Author: the Prophet Amos
Dating: late 8th century BCE
Book of Amos:
Amos was the first among the early Israeli prophets to have an entire book of the
Bible, named after him, describing his life, ideas and prophecies. He is categorized
with the minor prophets, and is one of the eight who lived before the exile to
Babylon.
Amos, who lived in the northern kingdom of Israel during the rule of King Jeroboam III (786-784 BCE), declared that the Jews were God's chosen people, but that their problems were due to the corruption and evils of their rulers. Israel was very prosperous at the time, but there seems to have been wide disparity between rich and poor - a disparity which rested upon the rich ignoring their obligations to their less fortunate brothers.
Thus, he called upon the people to reform as a means to restore their greatness. According to Amos, God despises their sacrifies and prayers when they are not accompanied by sound ethical behavior:
I hate, I despise your feast days, and I will not smell in your solemn assemblies. Though ye offer me burnt offerings and your meat offerings, I will not accept them: neither will I regard the peace offerings of your fat beasts. Take thou away from me the noise of thy songs; for I will not hear the melody of thy viols. But let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream. (Amos 5:21-24)
Unfortunately, because Amos' message was so harsh and also unwelcome, he was banished by Jeroboam.
Amos is particularly famous for the line attributed to God: "You only have I known of all the families of the earth: therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities." (3:2) This expresses a concept fundamental to Judaism, namely that the Jews are God's chosen people. But for Amos, being "chosen" did not mean that the Jews got any special favors from God - instead, it meant that they were held to a higher standard than everyone else. They were chosen, then, so that they would spread the message of God to the rest of the people on the earth.
Also Known As: none
Alternate Spellings: none
Common Misspellings: none
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