Amos 7: A stranger in the nest

In Amos 7, it becomes clearer that the prophet was not from Israel. Amos was a stranger in the nest. We read:

10 Amaziah, priest at the shrine at Bethel, sent a message to Jeroboam, king of Israel:
“Amos is plotting to get rid of you; and he’s doing it as an insider, working from within Israel. His talk will destroy the country. He’s got to be silenced. Do you know what Amos is saying?
11    ‘Jeroboam will be killed.
    Israel is headed for exile.’”

Amaziah was a priest aligned with the king of Israel. He spoke in the name of the Lord and, as priest, he did sacrifices. For him, Amos was a rebel against the king Jeroboam and against Israel. Was the message of Amos, a message of love from the Lord? In a way, yes; however, it was calling to change, to repentance; thus it was a confrontation message.


12-13 Then Amaziah confronted Amos: “Seer, be on your way! Get out of here and go back to Judah where you came from! Hang out there. Do your preaching there. But no more preaching at Bethel! Don’t show your face here again. This is the king’s chapel. This is a royal shrine.”

Here it is very clear that Amos came from Judah ("go back to Judah where you came from"). It is easy to understand that the priest Amaziah had a lot of privileges as being priest, but Amos had only problems.


14-15 But Amos stood up to Amaziah: “I never set up to be a preacher, never had plans to be a preacher. I raised cattle and I pruned trees. Then God took me off the farm and said, ‘Go preach to my people Israel.’

16-17 “So listen to God’s Word. You tell me, ‘Don’t preach to Israel. Don’t say anything against the family of Isaac.’ But here’s what God is telling you:
    Your wife will become a whore in town.
    Your children will get killed.
    Your land will be auctioned off.
    You will die homeless and friendless.
    And Israel will be hauled off to exile, far from home.”

    
Amos forsees a lot of problems to Amaziah. In a way, the Lord will make clear that Amos is right and Amaziah wrong.