BGCT: DSM: Old Testament Text: Lecture 38

Index/Table of Contents
Old Testament and New Testament
Credits and Copyright

_{PROPHETICAL BOOKS}

_{LECTURE 38}

_{THE MINOR PROPHETS}

_{Students will be able to}

_{1. identify the unique messages of each of the minor
prophets.}

_{2. identify the historical setting associated with
each prophet as it is known.}

_JONAH

_SETTING:

_{Jonah is identified as a Jewish prophet who was
reluctant to take God's message to the Assyrian Empire (Nineveh was the capital). Since
the prophet's ministry was dated during the reign of Jeroboam II (786746 B.C.), Jonah
could possibly have been a contemporary of Hosea and Amos.}

_UNIQUENESS:

_{Unlike any other canonical prophet, Jonah does not
include oracles but describes in prose narrative the prophet's ministry. The book
emphasizes an inclusiveness (Jonah was to preach to Gentiles) which balances Jewish
nationalism and isolation tendencies of sections of Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther
(EzraNehemiah condemned interracial marriage and Esther depicted the Jewish nation
threatened by the prejudice of some Persians [Haman]).}

_CONTENTS:

_{Chapter 1 When called by God to preach to
Ninevites, Jonah fled by ship to Tarshish (possibly a city in southern Spain). By casting
lots, the sailors came to believe that Jonah was the reason for the storm; he was thrown
overboard and swallowed by a large fish. (The large fish is not the central issue of the
story. Like the tempest (1:4), the plant (4:6) and the worm (4:7), the fish is an agent of
God's Sovereignty.).}

_{Chapter 2 As a result of Jonah's prayer, the Lord
caused the fish to vomit Jonah out on dry land (2:10).}

_{Chapter 3 Nineveh repents in response to Jonah's
preaching.}

_{Chapter 4 When Jonah becomes depressed and
self-absorbed, he is rebuked by God.}

_HOSEA

_Setting:

_{of political stability, economic prosperity and
spiritual decline, during lengthy reign of Jereboam II.}

_Message:

_{The prophet used his marriage to Gomer and her
infidelity to describe the way Israel had violated her covenant with God.}

_AMOS

_Setting:

_{Like Hosea, Amos provided a message to Israel during
the Assyrian crisis of the Northern Kingdom.}

_Message:

_{The presentation of the prophet was unique as Amos
started by condemning the surrounding neighbors before confronting the sins of Israel.
Unique to the content of Amos are the judgment images of the plumbline (7:7) and summer
fruit (8:1).}

_OBADIAH

_{He probably prophesied in Judah although the time of
his ministry is debated (perhaps the message came shortly after Jerusalem was destroyed by
the Babylonians). Obadiah contains a stinging judgment on Edom (descendants of Esau) for
its insensitivity to their Israelite brothers (1:114).}

_JOEL

_{Little can be said with certainty about the prophet or
the setting of his ministry. The name, Joel, means The Lord is God and is common to a
dozen other Old Testament personalities. This prophet of Judah depicted God's judgment as
a plague of locusts which would ravish the nation (1:22:7). During the Messianic Age,
the prophet predicted an outpouring of God's Spirit (2:2829), a reference later quoted
by Peter at Pentecost (Acts 2:1721).}

_MICAH

_Setting:

_{Micah was probably a contemporary of Isaiah, sharing
the same political crisis. The prophesies were addressed to both Samaria (capital of
Northern Kingdom) and Jerusalem (Micah 1:1).}

_Message:

_{Like Amos, Hosea and Isaiah, Micah insisted on pure
worship rather than ritual (6:68). Micah 5:2 is quoted in the New Testament as a
prediction that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem (Matt. 2:6).}

_NAHUM

_Setting:

_{Nahum prophesied during the period which preceded the
fall of the Assyrian capital of Nineveh (612 B.C.). The Assyrian Empire which had taken
control of the Northern Kingdom (Fall of Samaria in 722 B.C.) and left the Southern
Kingdom of Judah in servitude (2 Kings 16:78) quickly collapsed after the death of its
last great King Ashurbanipal (about 630 B.C.).}

_Message:

_{The prophet's message was directed to the seat of
Assyrian pride, the capital of Nineveh. Nahum predicted the day when God would be the
avenger of Assyrian cruelty.}

_HABAKKUK

_Setting:

_{This prophet expressed his anxiety over the growing
power of the Babylonian empire and the fact that God would allow a pagan nation to
dominate His people (perhaps dated between 610586 B.C.).}

_Message:

_{The prophet struggles to answer the question of why
God is silent when the wicked swallow up the more righteous (1:13).}

_{Within Habakkuk are three distinct literary forms:}

_{(a) Dialogue between the prophet and God (1:22:5),}

_{(b) Five woes against the wicked (2:620) and}

_{(c) Habakkuk's prayer in the form of a hymn (3:119).}

_{Habakkuk's answer to the problem of evil and suffering
underscores the sovereignty of God (He can use any instrument to accomplish His purpose,
even Babylonia, verses 1:511) and the necessity that God's people live by faith (2:4).}

_ZEPHANIAH

_{Setting: The introduction placed the prophet in the
Southern Kingdom during the reign of Josiah (640609 B.C.).}

_Message:

_{Chapter 1 sounds the warning concerning impending
judgment associated with the day of the Lord (1:718).}

_{Chapter 2 is a condemnation of Judah's neighbors.}

_{Chapter 3 offers hope and consolation for those who
will serve the Lord with one accord (3:9).}

_HAGGAI

_Setting:

_{Haggai's superscription dated the message about 520
B.C., in the second year of Darius' reign over Persia (Haggai 1:1). Work on the temple had
been delayed and the people had become preoccupied with personal matters.}

_Message:

_{Haggai challenged the Governor, Zerubbabel, and high
priest, Joshua, to assume leadership in getting the people to rebuild the temple
(1:111).}

_ZECHARIAH

_Setting:

_{Zechariah was a contemporary of Haggai (Ezra 5:1;
6:14), sharing his enthusiasm for rebuilding the temple and establishing a purified
community.}

_Message:

_{Like Haggai, Zechariah extends the challenge to
rebuild the temple (1:1517). Zechariah differs from the style of Haggai, providing a
link between earlier prophecy and apocalyptic literature. Much of Zechariah is series of
visions (1:186:8). The references to the Prince of Peace (9:910) and good shepherd
(11:414) have parallels with New Testament images of Christ (Zech. 9:910 is quoted in
Matt. 21:5 to emphasize the humble/peaceful nature of Christ's Kingship).}

_MALACHI

_Setting:

_{The prophet probably delivered his messages between
500-450 B.C.}

_Message:

_{The prophet developed a distinct questionandanswer
format. Among several startling assertions, Malachi insisted that people were robbing God
by withholding tithes (3:810) and that God hated divorce (2:1316).}

_{MINOR PROPHETS}

MINOR PROPHETS

BOOK

SETTING

MESSAGE

_{Prophets of Israel}

_{(Northern Kingdom)}

_Jonah

_Amos

_Hosea

Assyrian Crisis

(Jereboam II)

_{Prophets of Judah Obadiah}

_{(Southern Kingdom)}

_Obadiah

_Joel

_Micah

_Nahum

_Habakkuk

_Zephaniah

_{Post-Exilic Prophets}

_Haggai

_Zechariah

_Malachi

_{DISCUSSION QUESTIONS}

_{Do people today struggle with the issues covered by Habakkuk?
Why would a just God allow innocent people to be abused by the wicked? Does Habakkuk's
answer that the just shall live by faith satisfy people? Is there anything you might add
to Habakkuk's answer?}

_{How would Malachi's message be received by moderns?
Are people still robbing God? Why do you think God would hate divorce? How do you
reconcile this emphasis of Malachi with the insistence of EzraNehemiah that the Jewish
people were to divorce their foreign wives (Ezra 9:15; 10:35; 10:1012; Nehemiah
13:2326).}

_{Of the practices widely condemned by the minor
prophets, how many would be problems in our society?}

_{Genuine worship was replaced by ritual.}
_{People had become preoccupied with personal concerns
and were neglecting the matters of God.}
_{Social injustice and abuse of poor were common.}

_{Teacher's Notes}

_{The lecture would begin by having students look at the Table of
Contents in their English Bible. Review the various sections of the Old Testament, such
as:}

_{a) Books of Law,}

_{b) Historical Books (JoshuaEsther);}

_{c) Jewish poetry or wisdom writings (JobSong of
Solomon); and}

_{d) Prophets (IsaiahMalachi). lamentations was
attributed to Jeremiah, but would fit with Jewish poetry if it had been classified by type
of literature.}

_{Emphasize that the designation of minor prophets was a
reference to the length of those works from Hosea to Malachi in contrast to the longer
works of the major prophets (IsaiahDaniel). In Jewish classification, the minor prophets
were known as "the twelve."}

_{At the completion of this lecture students should be
able to identify unique ideas from each prophet, as well as place the prophetic message in
its historical context when that is known.}

_{Since several of these prophetic works have been
examined in previous lectures, there will be a review of previous material and a
discussion of new.}

_{Because many different prophets are covered, this
presentation might be divided into two lectures if time permits.}

_{The enclosed handout/overhead transparency could be
used to help students identify the essentials of this lecture.}

_RESOURCES

_{Anderson, Bernhard W. Understanding The Old Testament
3rd ed. Englewood Cliffs, N. J.: PrenticeHall, Inc., 1975.}
_{Barclay, William, Introducing the Bible. Nashville, TN:
Abingdon Press, 1972.}
_{Davidson, Robert. The Old Testament. New York: J.B.
Lippincott Co., 1964.}
_{West, James King. Introduction to The Old Testament.
2nd ed. New York, NY: MacMillan Publishing Co., 1981.}
_{Perowne, J. J. S. Commentary on the Psalms.}
_{Trueblood, Elton. Foundations for Reconstruction. Waco,
TX: Word Books.}
_{The Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible}
_{Harris, R. L. Canon of the Old Testament. Grand Rapids,
Ml: Zondervan, 1975.}
_{Ramm, Bernard. Protestant Biblical Interpretation.
Boston: W. A. Wilde Company, 1956.}
_{Rowley, H. H. The Biblication Interpretation.}
_{Protestant Biblical Hermeneutics.}
_{Barrows, Companion to the Bible.}

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