Source edition
Septuaginta. The Old Testament in Greek According to the Septuagint. Volume 3: Hosea-4 Maccabees, Psalms of Solomon, Enoch, The Odes. Swete, Henry Barclay, editor. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1905
Source data
Open Greek and Latin · CC BY-SA 4.0
Cloned and adapted by Humanitext, with ongoing edits.
Summary
The Book of Amos is a prophetic work set in the eighth century BCE northern Kingdom of Israel, recording the divine judgments and promises of restoration delivered by the prophet Amos, a shepherd from Tekoa. The work begins with fierce indictments against the injustices and unfaithfulness of Israel and its neighboring nations. In the middle section, the luxury of Samaria's elites, the oppression of the poor by greedy merchants, and empty, hypocritical religious rituals are severely condemned, with a passionate call to establish genuine social justice rather than formal worship. Through symbolic visions of locusts, fire, a plumb line, and a basket of summer fruit, Amos is shown the inevitability of Israel's ruin, maintaining his prophetic calling even amidst conflict with the priest Amaziah. Although the work declares a thorough judgment reaching from heaven to earth, it concludes with a promise of hope: the restoration of the fallen tent of David and the future recovery and eternal prosperity of the people of Israel.