Amos 7:14

Amos 7:14 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Then answered Amos, and said to Amaziah, I was no prophet, neither was I a prophet’s son; but I was an herdman, and a gatherer of sycomore fruit:
• New International Version (NIV)Amos answered Amaziah, “I was neither a prophet nor the son of a prophet, but I was a shepherd, and I also took care of sycamore-fig trees.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Then Amos answered and said to Amaziah, "I was no prophet, nor a prophet's son, but I was a herdsman and a dresser of sycamore figs.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Then Amos answered, and said to Amaziah: “I was no prophet, Nor was I a son of a prophet, But I was a sheepbreeder And a tender of sycamore fruit.

Context of Amos 7:14

12Then Amaziah said to Amos, “Go, you seer, run for your life [from Israel] to the land of Judah [your own country] and eat bread and live as a prophet there! 13But do not prophesy any longer at Bethel, for it is the king’s sanctuary and a royal residence.” Then Amos replied to Amaziah, “I am not a prophet [by profession], nor am I a prophet’s son; I am a herdsman and a grower of sycamore figs. 15But the Lord took me as I followed the flock and the Lord said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to My people Israel.’ 16Now therefore, listen to the word of the Lord: You say, ‘You shall not prophesy against Israel nor shall you speak against the house of Isaac.’

Amos 7:14 word by word

וַיַּ֤עַן עָמוֹס֙ וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֶל־אֲמַצְיָ֔ה לֹא־נָבִ֣יא אָנֹ֔כִי וְלֹ֥א בֶן־נָבִ֖יא אָנֹ֑כִי כִּֽי־בוֹקֵ֥ר אָנֹ֖כִי וּבוֹלֵ֥ס שִׁקְמִֽים׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Then answeredעָנָה‛ânâh · to answerH6030
• Amosעָמוֹס‛âmôs · AmosH5986
• and saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• to Amaziahאֲמַצְיָ֫הוּ'ămatsyâh 'ămatsyâhû · AmaziahH558
• no prophetנָבִיאnâbîy' · prophetH5030
• sonבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
• an herdmanבּוֹקֵרbôqêr · herdsmanH951
• and a gathererבָּלַסbâlas · to gather/tend figsH1103
• of sycomore fruitשִׁקְמָהshâqâm shiqmâh · sycamoreH8256

Cross-references for Amos 7:14

• 1 Kings 20:35Now a certain man of the sons of the prophets said to another by the word of the Lord, “Please strike me.” But the man refused to strike him.
• 2 Kings 2:3Now the sons of the prophets who were at Bethel came out to Elisha and said to him, “Do you know that the Lord will take your master away from you today?” He said, “Yes, I know it; be quiet [about it].”
• 2 Kings 4:38Elisha came back to Gilgal during a famine in the land. The sons of the prophets were sitting before him, and he said to his servant, “Put on the large pot and cook stew for the sons of the prophets.”
• 2 Kings 6:1Now the sons of the prophets said to Elisha, “Look now, the place where we live near you is too small for us.
• 2 Chronicles 16:7At that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah and said to him, “Because you relied on the king of Aram (Syria) and did not rely on the Lord your God, the army of the king of Aram (Syria) has escaped out of your hand.
• 2 Chronicles 19:2Jehu the son of Hanani the seer went out to meet him and said to King Jehoshaphat, “Should you help the ungodly and love those who hate the Lord and in doing so bring wrath from the Lord on yourself?
• 2 Chronicles 20:34Now the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, from the first to the last, behold, they are written in the records of Jehu the son of Hanani, which are recorded in the Book of the Kings of Israel.
• Amos 1:1The words of Amos, who was among the sheepherders of Tekoa, which he saw [in a divine revelation] concerning Israel in the days of Uzziah king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the earthquake.
• Zechariah 13:5but he will [deny his identity and] say, ‘I am no prophet. I work the ground, because a man sold me as a slave in my youth.’
• 1 Corinthians 1:27But God has selected [for His purpose] the foolish things of the world to shame the wise [revealing their ignorance], and God has selected [for His purpose] the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong [revealing their frailty].

Commentaries on Amos 7:14

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 14I was no prophet - I am an extraordinary messenger of God. I am not called to the prophetic office but for this occasion. I have no message to Judah, and therefore need not go there. I have a message to Israel alone, and I must faithfully deliver it. For the account which Amos gives here of himself, see the introduction.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 14I was no prophet - The order of the words is emphatic. “No prophet I, and no prophet‘s son I, for a herdsman I, and dresser of sycamores.” It may be, Amos would meet, for the people‘s sake, Amaziah‘s taunt. He had a living, simple indeed, yet that of the prophets was as simple. But chiefly he tells them of the unusual character of his mission. He did not belong to the order of the prophets, nor had he been educated in the schools of the prophets, nor had…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 10-17Verses 10-17 It is no new thing for the accusers of the brethren, to misrepresent them as enemies to the king and kingdom, as traitors to their prince, and troublers of the land, when they are the best friends to both. Those who make gain their godliness, and are governed by the hopes of wealth and preferment, are ready to think these the most powerful motives with others also. But those who have a warrant from God, like Amos, ought not to fear the face…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 14Amos was not a professional prophet or a disciple in training. He had no financial reason to leave his job to prophesy. herdsman: The Hebrew word here differs from the one in Amos 1:1 and is not found elsewhere in the Old Testament. It relates to a word for cattle, suggesting Amos may have raised cattle as a breeder or herder (see Amos Book Introduction, “The Prophet Amos”). The sycamore-fig was gathered for cattle feed.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1414. I was no prophet--in answer to Amaziah's insinuation (Am 7:12), that he discharged the prophetical office to earn his "bread" (like Israel's mercenary prophets). So far from being rewarded, Jehovah's prophets had to expect imprisonment and even death as the result of their prophesying in Samaria or Israel: whereas the prophets of Baal were maintained at the king's expense (compare 1Ki 18:19). I was not, says Amos, of the order of prophets, or educated…Read the comment

Topics related to Amos 7:14

• Amaziah
• Amos
• Call
• Minister, Christian
• Prophecy
• Prophets
• Reproof
• Sycamore

In the dictionaries

• Amaziah
• Amos
• Arise
• Contend
• Amos (1)
• Canon of the Old Testament
• Ezekiel
• Fig, Fig-Tree
• Gather
• God

Commentaries on Amos 7

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings