Bible Verse Lookup
Amos -
Introduction
1:1 sets Amos the prophet in the eighth century BCE, just prior to Assyria's conquest of Israel (Soggin 1987: 1; Andersen and Freedman 1989: 18–19). Further internal evidence (e.g. 6:13–14 ) suggests a period slightly antedating Hosea and Isaiah (cf. Hos 1:1; Isa 1:1 ); hence Amos is often called the earliest ‘writing’ prophet. But in the Twelve (‘Minor’) Prophets, the book of Amos never comes first, either following Hosea and preceding Micah (LXX) or following Hosea and Joel and preceding Obadiah (MT). MT's canonical order is perhaps by supposed historical period (Amos is contemporary with all prophets from Hosea to Micah) but not chronological priority. Books are linked verbally and thematically; Amos dovetails with Joel (Am 1:2; Joel 4:16 ) and Obadiah (Am 9:12; Ob 1–4 ); Am 9:13–15 resembles Hos 14:4–8, Joel 4:18; Am 9:2–3 echoes Jon 1:3 . These and other links suggest deliberate arrangement (Collins 1993; Nogalski 1993; Coggins 1994 ).
