Amos
About this date: Dates are broad scholarly estimates of composition or final editing, not dates of the events narrated. Traditional attributions and scholarly assessments can differ.
Amos confronts exploitation, complacency, and worship detached from justice. Oracles against surrounding nations lead into judgment on Israel itself; visions of loss conclude with a disputed but important restoration horizon.
Historical context
The opening places Amos in the days of Uzziah and Jeroboam. Prosperity and insecurity form the narrative horizon, while the collection's transmission and ending remain subjects of scholarship.
Key points
- Election increases accountability rather than providing immunity from judgment.
- The rejection of festivals and music is tied to the absence of justice.
- Acts' use of the restoration promise follows Greek wording that differs from the familiar Hebrew-based English form.
Scripture
- Amos 3:1-8 — Israel's special relationship to God is presented as a reason for accountability.
- Amos 5:18-24 — The day of the Lord and rejected worship lead to the demand for justice.
- Amos 9:11-15 — The restoration ending supplies the passage later discussed in Acts.
- Acts 15:13-21 — James uses the Greek-form restoration wording in a debate about Gentile inclusion; compare the two textual forms.
Sources and further reading
- Acts 15: the restoration citation in context
- Amos: complete public-domain WEB text
- Anglican Thirty-Nine Articles: canonical books and Apocrypha
- Catholic Catechism §120: canon and book list
- Orthodox Church in America: canon of Scripture
- Orthodox Church in America: Old Testament historical books
- USCCB Bible introductions: historical and literary notes