AMOS
“carrier.”
One of the prophets, a native of Tekoa, in Judah, possibly the father of the prophet Isaiah. He said to Amaziah, “I am not a prophet, nor am I the son of a prophet, but I am a herdsman, and I gather wild figs.
And the LORD took me from behind the cattle, and said unto me, Go and prophesy unto my people Israel” (Am. 7:14, 15). His language indicates familiarity with rural life (cp. Am. 2:13; 3:12; 4:9; 5:8; 6:12; 7:1, 2).
He tells us that his prophecy was given in the days of Uzziah, king of Judah, and Jeroboam II, son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the earthquake; or at least that he began at that time (Am. 1:1).