Article May 12, 1980 Issue

Amos, the shepherd-prophet

Lynn H. Howard

Amos loved God. He thought his fellow countrymen did, too. But when he saw what was happening in the marketplace and shrines of worship, he became convinced that God was neglected, misunderstood. To Amos, not to seek God and follow His ways was to lack peace, satisfaction, and protection.

Amos wasn't brought up to be a prophet. He herded sheep on the hills outside the small town of Tekoa, twelve miles south of Jerusalem. He also gathered the fruit that grows on sycamore fig trees.^{See Amos 7:14;}

To sell his wool and fruit and to purchase what he needed for living in the wilderness, Amos probably journeyed to many marketplaces: Jerusalem, Beersheba, Gilgal, or even more distant Samaria. Marketplaces (open areas just inside the gates of a town) were the town's center of activity. A crowd of all kinds of people— farmers, weavers, fishermen, and their families—milled about at the market. There was buying and selling of fruits, vegetables, textiles, and pottery. In addition, civil court cases were tried, and the tax collector received customs money. Merchants bringing bales of silk, spices, and jewels from far away, as well as more ordinary merchandise, journeyed the caravan routes to reach town before the gates closed at night.

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