The Prophet’s Visions and Encounter with Amaziah (8:1-3): While this section contains two different types of visions and a biographical insert, it should be regarded as a unit that has been given its present form by the disciples of the prophet.

The first two visions, in 7:1–3 and 7:4–6, are “event visions,” portraying what is about to happen, and they are identical in their form. The third and fourth visions, in 7:7–9 and 8:1–3, are “wordplay visions,” in which the meaning of what is seen depends on Yahweh’s interpretation of the word used. The biographical account of 7:10–17 shows the reaction of the priest Amaziah to the judgment announcement in 7:9 and is bound to the third vision by the use of “sword” in both 7:9 and 7:11 and by the reference to “sanctuaries” in both 7:9 and 7:13. Thus…