Amos was a shepherd, called by God to be a prophet. His story is found in the book of Amos in the Bible.
Amos says what God tells him, but after a while, the people of Israel — the primary target of his God-given proclamations — get tired of Amos and what he says, telling him to be quiet and go back home.
Interestingly, Peter, the disciple of Jesus, is given a similar warning by the authorities. Both Amos and Peter decline, insisting that they must do what God tells them to do.
At first Amos has no qualms about sharing God’s judgments regarding other nations, but he does eventually object. God shows Amos what will happen and Amos protests — and God relents. (Similar things happen when both Moses and Abraham plead with God.)
God then gives Amos another stinging word. Amos protests and God again relents.
Then God gives Amos a third oracle. This time Amos says nothing.
I wonder if Amos gave up too soon. I wonder if we sometimes make the same mistake.
[Amos 1:1, Amos 7:10-15, Acts 4:18-20, Numbers 14:11-20, Genesis 18:16-33, and Amos 7:1-9.]
A lifelong student of the Bible, Peter DeHaan, PhD, wrote the 1,000-page website ABibleADay.com to encourage people to explore the Bible. His main blog and many books urge Christians to push past the status quo and reconsider how they practice their faith in every area of their lives.
