Examining Prophet Amos Message to Israel in the 8th Century B.C. and Its Relevance in Challenging Corruption in the 21st Century Governance in Nigeria
Ishaya Mallo Makpu
Department of Religious Studies,
Faculty of Arts, Nasarawa State University, P.M.B. 1022 Keffi, Nasarawa State
Email: makpuishayamakpu@gmail.com
ABSTRACT
Prophets are men and women who lived above board; they were non-conformists who never settled for the status quo, they were bold, courageous, compassionate and decisive. Prophets are risk takers who were ready to pay any price for a cause they believed in. They did not serve their own interests but others and never sought recognition or human approval. They were often blessed with high energy and tough skills. They rarely observed protocol s is often restless and combative of evil. Prophet Amos was one of such Old Testament prophets, whom God raised to confront the issues of national sin and disruption of social norms that led to inequalities and oppression of the downtrodden in the society, a situation that is capable of hindering any meaningful development in any country. This paper examines prophet Amos, historical situation of his times, such as social, political and religious crises. It also looks at Nigerian problems such as corruption display of high level inequality where the rich become richer and poor errand brings out the relevance of Amos message in order to enhance meaningful development in the 21st century Nigeria. Our findings revealed that the political, social and religious situations of the Israelites when Amos was called were polluted and corruption was the order of the day, poor were denied justice, rich became richer and poor and poorer, this is a similar situation in Nigeria. The researcher calls on Nigerians to join hands together and fight corruption in all sectors of the economy, return to God and repent so that God can heal our land.
Keywords: Prophet, leader, Corruption, Relevance, Wealth, Distribution, Justice, etc.
