A.W. Tozer once said that scholars can interpret the past, but it takes a prophet to interpret the present. Amos came to the northern kingdom of Israel at a very crucial time.

He came out of obscurity, nobody had really heard of him. He’s not mentioned anywhere else in the bible except for this book. No family background that we know of.

Not someone of wealth, or importance, or influence. All we know is that he was from a small town called Tekoa.

He had an interesting occupation. A sheep breeder of a particular kind of sheep that was kept down from that area of Tekoa. They had sort of a long stringy hair.

He was also a producer or a harvester of the sycamore fig fruit. What most people would think of as untrained, unlearned, unschooled-- perfect guy for God to use.

[1Co 1:27 NKJV] 27 But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty;