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shepherd: "'Shepherd' (NOQED) [Amos 1:1] is not the usual word for shepherd. It is used of Mesha, king of Moab, where it implies that he was a breeder and supplier of sheep (2 Kings 3:4). "In Amos 7:14 the word BOQER is used to describe Amos's occupation. This word occurs only once in the OT; thus its precise meaning is difficult to determine. While BOQER may have been a general term that denoted a herdsman of any type, its linguistic connection with BAQAR ('cattle') suggests the possibility that Amos kept cattle as well as sheep. The word SO'N (7:15) connotes smaller animals like sheep and goats; thus it is likely that Amos was a breeder of various types of animals besides sheep." (Thomas Edward McComiskey, THE EXPOSITOR'S BIBLE COMMENTARY, Vol. 7, © 1985 Zondervan, p. 279)