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Prophetical Movement II

The books of the Prophets


PROPHETIC MOVEMENT II

The Books of the Prophets

COURSE DESCRIPTION

The course is designed to give an brief understanding into the books of the prophets. It
deals with the historical background, information about the prophet and the structure,
theme and theology of each of the prophetic books.

OBJECTIVES

1. To gain an insight into the background, structure and the theology of the individual
prophetical books.

2. To learn the relevance of the individual books in our contemporary society.

3. To apply the messages of the prophets in our life and ministry.

4. To be encouraged and equipped to follow a prophetic ministry.

EVALUATION

Internal Assessment: Total 40 marks

Assignments: 20 marks

Reading Report: 5 marks

Class participation: 5 marks

Class Test: 10 marks

Final Examination: Total 60 marks


COURSE OUTLINE
Introduction- The Prophetic Literature
Brief Overview of the Prophetic Literature
Interpreting Prophetical Literature
1. Major Prophets with Exegesis of Selected passages
1.1. Isaiah
1.2 Jeremiah &
1.2.1 Lamentation
1.3 Ezekiel
2. Minor Prophets with Exegesis of Selected passages
2.1 Hosea
2.2 Joel
2.3 Amos
2.4 Obadiah
2.5 Jonah
2.6 Micah
2.7 Nahum
2.8 Habakkuk
2.9 Zephaniah
2.10 Haggai
2.11 Zechariah
2.12 Malachi
3. Themes in the Prophetical Books
3.1 Day of the Lord
3.2 Justice
3.3 Covenant
3.4 Hesed
3.5 Messiah
3.6 Eschatology
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
1. Lecture notes: Lecture notes and regular reading report of the prescribed books to be
written in the class notes. Evaluation will be based on the class notes.

2. Assignment Topic____________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

Last date of submission- __________________

Date of Presentation _____________________

Prescribed Texts:
Assignments

Prophets and the social crisis of the Eighth Century Israel -_________________

Prophets and the cult (Priests, Temple and religious practices)- ________________

Prophets and the Babylonian crisis- _____________________

Prophets role in post exilic Israel -______________________

Prophets a paradigm for today’s preachers-______________________

“The day of the Lord” in Prophetical Literature-___________________

Concept of Justice in Prophetical Literature-___________________

The lamentations of Jeremiah____________________


PROPHETIC MOVEMENT II

The Books of the Prophets


Introduction- The Prophetic Literature
Prophets and their books
Brief Overview of the Prophetic Literature

Isaiah Jeremiah Ezekiel

Sovereign God to pluck & Glory of God

to plant (In Babylon)

Micah Nahum Haggai

Who is like Yahweh? Woe to Nineveh Build the temple

Amos Habakkuk Zechariah

Let Justice roll How long? God’s plan for Israel

(In North)

Hosea Zephaniah Malachi

Covenant Love Beware the day of the Who can stand the day of
Lord the Lord
(In North)

Jonah? Joel ? Obadiah?

God’s concern for “Repent for the Day of Judgment of Edom’s Pride
Gentiles (Nineveh) the Lord…”
(In North & Nineveh)

8th Century 7th Century 6th Century-5th Century

Assyrian crisis Babylonian crisis Exile Post exilic


Interpreting Prophetical Literature
How to read prophetical books today? Bridging the gap

How to preach from prophets today?

Function of Prophets in Israel

1. The prophets were covenant enforcement mediators.

The Law constituted a covenant between God and his people. Obedience to the covenant
would bring blessings or else curse… So the prophets were enforcing the covenant…So
basically this pattern is found- i. an identification of Israel’s sin ii. a prediction of curse or
blessing depending upon the circumstances.

2. Their messages were not their own but God’s. Consider for example Jeremiah’s call to
surrender to the Babylonians- a message of treason. But he begins by reminding that “this
is the word that the Lord said unto me.

3. Prophetic messages involved prediction of the future specially Messianic prophecy and
eschatology.

Reading prophetic books today: the exegetical task and

hermeneutical considerations

@ The need for out side help of dictionaries and help books

- the historical context

The larger context

The specific context

-The identification of the individual oracles

think oracle (as it is about think paragraphs in epistles) which is sometimes a


difficult task. Amos 5 is three oracles! 1-3;4-17; 18-27.

- identification of the forms of prophetic oracles.

@ lawsuit riv: accusation, court imageries

@ the woe oracles- Habbakkuk 2:6-8


@ the propmise or salvation oracle; message of restoration, a day of abundance
and prosperity Is 45:1-7; Jere 31;1-9

@ the symbolic actions or enactment prophecy Is 20; Zechariah 11:14-17

@ The messenger speech: thus says the Lord…messengers with a message Jer 7,
Mal 2:2-5

@ the prophets as poets: parallelism, symblolisms in poetical passages

Hermeneutical questions:

What it means to us?

@ The message of the prophets has to be interfaced with our times to be a message for
us. The interface hermeneutical principle outline in the previous lecture

@ Prophets as foreteller of future events

-some events are already past…how do we use them today, caution needs to be
exercised! Ez 25-39 can we just outline the basic messages in these portions

-some are relating to the end time events almost in metaphorical sense, caution needs to
be exercised…Ez 37 is it talking about return and rise of Israel after exile…can we go for
a multiple layer of interpretations? The dynamic nature of God’s word!

@ the analogical method of interpretation- Exodus 17:1-7 and Numbers 20:1-13 is


interpreted by Paul in I Corinthians 20: 1-4 in an analogical way to say that the rock was
Christ…cloud and sea with baptism ( This second meaning is called sensus plenior or
fuller meaning)

What God expected from the Israel and Judah is in a general sense the same as what he
wants from us. The prophets can serve constantly as reminders to us of God’s
determination to enforce his covenant.
1. Major Prophets with Exegesis of Selected passages
1.1. Isaiah
1.2 Jeremiah &
1.2.1 Lamentation
The Book of Isaiah

The main message is a message of judgment on the corrupt leaders which will be
executed by the first the Assyrians and then will be followed by the Babylonians. This
message is followed by a message of hope that would be fulfilled by branch of David the
Messiah. Theology of the book is –Sovereignty of God-the throne lifted high.

1-39 (720 BCE) message of judgment but there is also a message of hope and that is
picked up by chapters 40-66(context of 530 BCE)

1-12 Judgment 13-27 40-66 Was this part coming from the
Isaianic school or a straight forward
1 & 2 Purifying fire 13-23: Fall of Babylon prediction? Isaiah 8:16 an extension of
to rise after Assyria… Isaiah’s message.
which will make way for a and neighbors which
new Jerusalem in chapter 40-48 comfort… a call to return.
was 41-47 The God of Israel is powerful than
2. This is repeated again
and again. 24-27 The tale of two the gods of Babylon. And God was
city. The corrupt city purifying his people and they must see
Is 6 is central God’s throne. will be replaced by the God’s hand in the rise of Cyrus.
The fire from God purifies kingdom of God. 40-55 The servant of God-suffering
him. His message will not servant. the mission: to restore Israel
be of any effect. So Israel and to be a light to the nations
will be chopped and only 53 this servant would be a suffering
28-39
the stump will be left. But servant, rejected and killed. his death if
28-35 Accusation: don’t
there will be a holy seed a sacrifice for sin. But he lives again and
go after Egypt for help
that would survive. A sign of he makes the people righteous.
against Assyria. You will
hope but who is this hope? The people called the servants who
be saved by repentance
accept this message are the seed of
7-12 Ahaz- he announces and trust!
Isaiah 6. but the wicked reject this
his downfall. So God will 36-39 rise of Hezekiah-
servant
chop his kingdom down but humbles himself. But
56-66 the new kingdom
his will be followed by the ultimately goes after
60-62 Kingdom announced.
kingdom of Immanuel. Babylon: the new ally:
Surrounding this message is the prayer
Isaiah predicts that
This kingdom will be a for repentance and the contrast
Babylon in 100 years…
shoot…Messiah.. between the wicked and the righteous.
Remember that God is
The covenant promises are fulfilled in a
judging thenation to
grand way in the end.
purify it and bring the
God creates a covenant family through
messianic kingdom-
the suffering servant.
this hope will be picked
up next.
Jeremiah
Jeremiah prophesied during the most disturbing phase of Judean history. Baruch wrote
and compiled the book (30:1)

Source of structure diagram (Internet: Bible you version)

Chapter 1 Jeremiah’s Call Chapter 25 46-51

-to Israel and to the nations Judgment from North (ch 1) Poems about nations
you have not listened therefore being judged by Babylon
-to pluck and uproot (judgment) The cup of fury on Israel and
for their sin of pride
the nations (vs 17 f)
-to plant and build (hope and arrogance
restoration)
50-51

Fall of Babylon

2-24 Accusations (oracles under 26-45


Josiah 1-6 and Jehoiakim (7-20) 26-29 continued warning to
Zedekiah (21-24) leaders conflict with false
prophets
52 Historical appendix
Messages to Judah before exile 26- the context of Temple
sermon about Fall of Jerusalem
-worship of foreign gods (like 27- 29 after first exile as a fulfillment of
adultery and prostitution) 29-letter to exiles Jeremiah prope3hcies
30-33 message of hope new
-injustice and social evil (Torah covenant and 33:15 the good fig Jehoachin- a
disobeyed) branch note of hope
34-45 seige of Jerusalem and
Jeremiah 7 temple sermon ultimate destruction of Temple
(reflects the social evils, and Jeremiah taken to Egypt
38 fall of Jerusalem and
namesake religion and the Temple
Temple
of Zion theology) 42 f Jeremiah taken to Egypt
24 the vision of figs

Laments of Jeremiah: biographical sections of the suffering of Jeremiah 8:18-23; 14


&15; 20:7-18
The visions and symbolic actions of Jeremiah-:
the vision with the call, vision of good figs and bad figs
Symbolic or parabolic actions actions: wearing the yoke, loin cloth 13:1-11; 18:1-
12
1.3 Ezekiel
Tripartite structure of the book - the glory of the LORD in the temple, departed from the
temple, and returned.
The importance of symbolic actions (i.e., sign-acts) and the character of God in the book
(“son of man” language important here as well).
Exegesis Ezekiel 37.
2. Minor Prophets with Exegesis of Selected passages

Comprehend the diversity of the prophetic literature by the comparison of the tone and
intent of texts like Amos and Hosea. Students should be able to attend to the diversity of
theological portraits between Hosea and Amos. How is God portrayed in each of these
books, and to what ends?
2.1 Hosea
Exegesis on Divine pathos in Hosea 11:1-9;
Part 1: - Introductory Lecture on the Book of the Twelve, its themes, and unity and diversity
within this corpus. Before attending more closely to Hosea, student presentation on Hosea 11:1-
7. Conduct in-class exegesis on Hosea 1-2, noting sign-acts, importance of names in ancient
Israelite tradition, and the idea of divine pathos as
it appears throughout the book. This is no dispassionate God in the prophetic literature, but a God
deeply involved with humanity (see Heschel on this point).
2.2 Joel
2.3 Amos
Amos 5:18-24
2.4 Obadiah
Perceive God’s special attention to his chosen people Israel, but his abiding interest in the
entire world in texts like the oracles against the nations (e.g., Amos 1-2, Obadiah).
According to the prophets, students should ask, how is it that God interacts with the
nations other than Israel itself?

2.5 Jonah
2.6 Micah
2.7 Nahum
Conduct a critical discussion on the messages of Nahum and Jonah. How do the two
books perceive the Assyrians differently? What are their overall messages? How are
Jonah and Nahum different, and can they coexist side by side in the same canon? Why or
why not? In this session you may wish to intersperse the discussion with brief lectures on
both books.

2.8 Habakkuk
2.9 Zephaniah
2.10 Haggai
2.11 Zechariah
2.12 Malachi
3. Themes in the Prophetical Books

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