THE home of Amos is in Tekoa, a town situated about 10 miles (16 km) south of Jerusalem. To the east lies the wilderness of Judah, with its rounded, barren hills, cleft by valleys and ravines. During the rainy season, the area produces meager vegetation. Here Amos has his employment as a humble sheep raiser. He also engages in seasonal work as a nipper of sycamore figs, pinching or puncturing the fruit to hasten its ripening and to increase its size and sweetness.​—Amos 1:1; 7:14, 15.

Emboldened by the spirit of God, Amos stands his ground. “I was not a prophet, neither was I the son of a prophet,” he says, “but I was a herdsman and a nipper of figs of sycamore trees.