Amaziah does not tell Amos to stop prophesying, but to do so in Judah rather than Israel. He was probably used to cult prophets and roaming bands of their disciples that had been travelling throughout the northern kingdom since the days of Elijah and Elisha (1 Kings 20:35–43; 2 Kings 2:3, 2 Kings 2:5, 2 Kings 2:15; 2 Kings 6:1; 2 Kings 9:1). Amaziah considers Amos to be just another one of these prophets, not someone worth listening to and certainly not someone that should be allowed to continue making trouble with his preaching.
12 And Amaziah said to Amos, “O seer, go, flee away to the land of Judah, and eat bread there, and prophesy there,