Bible Strands
Amos 7:15
But the LORD took me from following the flock and said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to My people Israel.’
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The LORD addresses Amos directly after Amos denies his prophetic lineage and identifies his former occupation. This occurs during a confrontation where Amos receives a divine commission to speak against Israel.
The words — The phrase וַ/יִּקָּחֵ֣/נִי (va/i.yi.ka.Che./ni) literally renders "and He took me," while לֵ֥ךְ (lekh) commands "go." These terms frame the transition from Amos's prior livelihood to his new divine assignment.
The thread — This pattern of divine selection from a pastoral background parallels 2 Samuel 7:8 and Psalms 78:70, where God takes David from the flock. Ezekiel 2:3 similarly records a direct commission to address Israel, though it lacks the agricultural motif.
Why it lands — The text demands recognition that prophetic authority originates from divine appointment, not human training or lineage. It requires the reader to submit to the command to speak despite personal reluctance or unconventional background.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And the Lord took me as I followed the flock, and the Lord said unto me, Go, prophesy unto my people Israel.
Cross-references
- 2 Samuel 7:8 Now then, you are to tell My servant David that this is what the LORD of Hosts says: I took you from the pasture, from following the flock, to be the ruler over My people Israel.
- Ezekiel 2:3 “Son of man,” He said to me, “I am sending you to the Israelites, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against Me. To this very day they and their fathers have rebelled against Me.
- Psalms 78:70 He chose David His servant and took him from the sheepfolds;
- Jeremiah 1:7 But the LORD told me: “Do not say, ‘I am only a child.’ For to everyone I send you, you must go, and all that I command you, you must speak.
- Matthew 4:18 As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen.
- Matthew 9:9 As Jesus went on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax booth. “Follow Me,” He told him, and Matthew got up and followed Him.
- Acts 1:8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
- Acts 5:20 “Go, stand in the temple courts and tell the people the full message of this new life.”
- Luke 24:46 And He told them, “This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day,
- Acts 4:20 For we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.”