Amos 3:7

Surely For, the reason, however, following not in Amos 3:7 but in Amos 3:8 (to which Amos 3:7 is subordinate): -I give all these examples of events and occurrences in nature being due regularly to their proper cause, for Jehovah does nothing without communicating His purpose to His prophets, and when He does so the call to declare it is an irresistible one (Amos 3:8)": hence when the prophet speaks, and especially when he comes forward with a message such as that contained in Amos 3:2, it may be inferred that it is because he has heard Jehovah's voice commanding him to do so.

doeth nothing, except he have revealed &c. An exaggeration, of course, of the actual fact; but Amos means naturally nothing of importance, so far as Israel was concerned. Prophets, whose mission it was to guide and advise Israel, appeared at all important crises in the national history.

secret Heb. sôd, properly friendlyor confidential conversation(ὁμιλία, which the corresponding word in Syriac is often used to express), Psalms 55:14: then, on the one hand, friendliness, friendship(Job 29:4; Psalms 25:14; Proverbs 3:32, see R.V. marg.in these passages), and in a more concrete sense, a secret(Proverbs 25:9); on the other hand, a body holding confidential intercourse together, a council, or conclave, of familiar friends (Job 19:19, R.V. marg.; Jeremiah 15:17). In the latter sense sôdoccurs in two passages illustrating the present one, Jeremiah 23:18; Jeremiah 23:22, where Jeremiah implies that the true prophets have access to the "council" of Jehovah, and preach the principles which are there approved (cf. Job 15:8, R.V. marg.; also Psalms 89:7).

his servants the prophets An expression otherwise used chiefly by writers of the age of Jeremiah (2 Kings 17:13; 2Ki 17:23; 2 Kings 21:10; 2 Kings 24:2; Jeremiah 7:25; Jeremiah 25:4; Jeremiah 26:5; Jeremiah 29:19; Jeremiah 35:15; Ezekiel 38:17; also Zechariah 1:6; Daniel 9:10).