The Prophets
The Prophets
They have a queer way of talking, like people who, instead of pro-ceeding in an orderly manner, ramble off from one thing to the next so that you cannot make heads or tails of them or see what they are getting at. Martin Luther
[The] ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, since the new covenant is established on better promises.
Hebrews 8:6 NIV
why bother with the prophets?
to know God
Why do we have the Bible?So that we can know God
them
GOD
us us
prophets = nabi
called (by God) to call out (for God)
Prophets are called by God
. . . to speak from God
. . . about God
The Word of the LORD
Whether he is discussing the past, present or future, the prophet is seeking to make God the most genuine reality that men can know and experience.
A.B. MickelsonInterpreting the Bible, p. 287
[The prophets] entered into God’s heart, sharing his anger and his grief, his sense of rejection, and his continuing passionate love for his people. Through the prophets we get a glimpse of the complexity and depth of God’s person that is not duplicated anywhere else in the Bible.
NLT Study Bible
not foretelling
forthtelling
Prophecy is essentially a ministry of disclosure, a stripping bare. Israel’s great prophets do not merely lift the veil of the future in order to destroy false expectations; at the same time, they expose the conduct of their contemporaries. . . . Prophets tear the masks away and show the true face of the people behind them.
Hans Walter Wolff, Confrontations
Calling people back to the covenant
Covenant enforcement mediators(Fee and Stuart)
Warning of judgment
Promising restoration
Restoration
Basic pattern
Identification of Israel’s sin
Announcement of judgment
Declaration of God’s love for Israel
Announcement of blessing
Fulfilment
NewTestament
Promise
OldTestament
deep focus
two horizons
covenant
Adam
Noah
Abraham
I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you.
Genesis 12:1–3, NLT
Moses
Now if you will obey me and keep my covenant, you will be my own special treasure from among all the peoples on the earth; for the earth belongs to me. . . .
Exodus 19:1
covenant blessings
life
prosperity
health respect
abundance
security
covenant curses
disease
defeat
drought
dearth
dangerdisgrace
death
destruction
deportation
destitution
David
Don’t you realise that the Lord, the God of Israel, made a lasting covenant with David, giving him and his descendants the throne of Israel forever?
2 Chronicles 13:5
JUDAH
ISRAEL
Rehoboam
Jeroboam
922 BC
SamariaShechem
Jerusalem
931 BC880 BC
Tirzah
909 BC
BaashaOmri
Amos
Jonah
Hosea
800 780 760 740 720 700
800 780 760 740 720 700
Isaiah
Micah
the message of the prophets
41
PeaceProsperity(Hosea 8:14; Isaiah 9:10)
Confidence(Amos 3:15;
5:11)
Poverty
Exploitation(Hosea 12:7; Amos 8:5-8)
Idolatry(Hosea 13:2)
Humanity’s most fundamental need isto be right with God
2
Religion, politics and society must all be on
a firm moral base
3
God offers us the choice of judgment or hope
4
Assyria45
47
700 680 660 640 620 600
700 680 660 640 620 600
Nahum
Habakkuk
Jeremiah
Zephaniah
Babylon49
The [Latter Prophets] did not call for reform, for they knew it was too late; the end of the present order was near and could not be averted.
Donald GowanReclaiming the OT p. 125–6
600 580 560 540 520 500
600 580 560 540 520 500
Daniel
Ezekiel
Jeremiah
Hab
akku
k Hag
gai
Zec
hari
ah
Malachi (440)
Joel?Oba
diah
?
The future kingdom of God
5
These distant future events . . . are announced to serve as beacons for God’s people – beacons which will help them get their bearings and set their course in life, beacons which will give direction, hope, and encouragement, even in the darkest hour.
Sidney Greidanus,The Modern Preacher and the Ancient Text, p. 235
a universal kingdom
coming and continuing
a coming King
The glory of God
6
God’s glory in the prophets
God’s glory revealed as he gathers a people and redeems
them
Jeremiah 31:10–11
God’s glory revealed in a new Zion
Isaiah 2
God’s glory revealed in new Davidic king
Jeremiah 23:5–6
God’s glory revealed in a new temple
Ezekiel 47:1
God’s glory revealed in new creation
Isaiah 65:17
God’s glory revealed in new covenant
Jeremiah 31:31–33
God will be shepherd
Ezekiel 34:11–13, 26–31
God’s righteousness revealed in salvation of nations
Isaiah 42:6b–7; 49:6b
The Lord’s anointed will do this
Isaiah 11:1–4; 42:1; 49:1–3; 50:4; 59:21; 61:1
Death
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