AMOS—NOTE ON AMOS 1:1 Superscription. The first verse identifies the book’s speaker, audience, and time frame. AMOS 1:1 addresses ISRAEL during the time covered in 2 Kings 14:23. This is the period between the beginning of the reign of Jeroboam II (796 B.C.) and the death of Uzziah (739). More speci... [ Continue Reading ]
AMOS 1:2 Oracles of Judgment. Amos delivers a series of messages from God showing that neither Israel’s neighbors (Amos 1:2) nor Israel herself (Amos 2:6) can escape the consequences of their actions. ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getElementsByTagName("img"); for (var i=0, len=images.length, img; i [ Continue Reading ]
AMOS—NOTE ON AMOS 1:3 THREE TRANSGRESSIONS... FOUR. This poetic device expresses totality (compare Proverbs 30:15, Proverbs 30:18, Proverbs 30:21). It introduces the judgment on all seven neighboring nations (Amos 1:6, Amos 1:9, Amos 1:11,... [ Continue Reading ]
AMOS—NOTE ON AMOS 1:4 BEN-HADAD, son of HAZAEL, was king of Syria at the beginning of the eighth century B.C. (see 2 Kings 13:24). FIRE is the means of judgment on these seven nations. ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getElementsByTagName("img"); for (var i=0, len=images.length, img; i [ Continue Reading ]
AMOS—NOTE ON AMOS 1:5 The wooden city gates were fastened shut with a heavy wooden GATE-BAR across them. If that bar were broken, an invading army could enter the city. KIR is the ancestral home of the Syrians (Amos 9:7). It is probably somewhere to the northeast of Mesopotamia. Thus they were being... [ Continue Reading ]
AMOS—NOTE ON AMOS 1:6 All the five cities of the PHILISTINES except Gath are named in this judgment oracle. Rule of the region went back and forth among the five cities depending on which ruler happened to be strongest at the time. Philistia was southwest of Jerusalem, on the Mediterranean coast. ⇐... [ Continue Reading ]
AMOS—NOTE ON AMOS 1:9 TYRE was northwest of Israel, on the Mediterranean coast. With its fine harbor and easily defended island fortress, it dominated the sea trade of the eastern Mediterranean (see Isaiah 23:1; Ezekiel 26:1). Tyre is accused of the same act as the Philistines (Amos 1:6), but it was... [ Continue Reading ]
AMOS—NOTE ON AMOS 1:11 EDOM was southeast of Judah, around the southern end of the Dead Sea. Descended from Esau, the Edomites were longtime enemies of Israel (Numbers 20:14). Here Edom is judged for its mercilessness and ANGER. ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getElementsByTagName("img"); for (var i=0,... [ Continue Reading ]
AMOS—NOTE ON AMOS 1:13 The AMMONITES lived east of the Jordan River between Syria to the north and Moab to the south. Their territory did not extend all the way west to the Jordan, so they were in constant conflict with the tribes of Reuben and Gad in an effort to extend their BORDER westward to gai... [ Continue Reading ]
AMOS—NOTE ON AMOS 1:15 EXILE. When Assyria conquered a nation, they deported the leadership and imported people from elsewhere into the area. This was done to discourage rebellion by the conquered people and to minimize the differences throughout their diverse empire. ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.ge... [ Continue Reading ]