Nation after nation would come over (Isaiah 45:14), that is, be joined with and cleave to the house of Jacob (chapter 14:1). One of the main objectives of the Bible commentator is to reconstruct the historical setting in which the declarations of the prophets were originally made. But the manner in which it is carried out may change because man may change. It is not known whether Malachi is the name of the author or simply the title of an otherwise anonymous author, since Malachi means my messenger. If it is the latter, his is the only anonymous work among the prophetic books of the Old Testament. WebJeremiah was active as a prophet from the thirteenth year of Josiah, king of Judah (626 BC), until after the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of Solomon's Temple in 587 BC. The Temple was apparently rebuilt, and sacrifices were regularly offered at the time of the prophets activity (chapter 1:7-10). Also, Jeremiah (chapter 26:18), quoting Micah (chapter 3:12), testifies that Micah ministered during Hezekiahs time. What are the common divisions of Isaiah made by contemporary scholars? Long before Norman Podhoretz became one of the intellectual leaders of American neoconservatism, he was a student of Hebrew literature and a passionate reader of the In a mysterious way known only to God the prophets words were sometimes intended to meet their fulfillment in the then far-distant future. Encouraging Hezekiah and the people through his own trust in God, he was instrumental in saving Jerusalem. Gods promises are made conditional upon mans cooperation and obedience. Nothing is impossible with God. One needs to keep these in mind to better understand the heart of Isaiah's message. And the Lord shall scatter thee among all people, from the one end of the earth even unto the other (Deuteronomy 28:63, 64). But when the Jews rejected Christ there was no such assurance of reinstatement. Isaiahs whole ministry from Uzziah to Manasseh must therefore have lasted more than half a century. They forgot that God abhors a multiplication of the forms of religion (Isaiah 1:11-18; Hosea 6:6; Micah 6:7; Malachi 2:13), and asks of man nothing but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with his God (Micah 6:8; cf. WebIn Judea: prophecy of Zephaniah, Jeremiah, Obadiah, and Habakkuk In Babylon: prophecy of Ezekiel. Since only these two kings are mentioned, Amos seems to have prophesied during the time when both kings were sole rulers in their respective kingdoms. Eventually Gods purposes will prevail and the plan of salvation will succeed, irrespective of the failure of any person or group. Aha was used as an expression of malicious joy. Church tradition suggests that Jeremiah was stoned to death in Egypt by the Jews. What archaeological evidence implies Isaiah was a unified book? A Nebuchadnezzar 59 Q According to tradition, how was Isaiah killed? The church in this generation has been endowed by God with great privileges and blessings, and He expects corresponding returns. Many messages and prophecies can be understood correctly only if seen against the background of the time in which the prophets ministered and in the light of the events that happened during their lives. Hence, 640 B.C., about midway between the two limits, marked by the destruction of Thebes and the fall of Nineveh, would seem to be a reasonable conjectural date for Nahums prophetic ministry. Micah states that his ministry fell in the time of the kings Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah (chapter 1:1). Prophecies that Inspiration clearly applies to our day were designed of God to inspire us with patience, comfort, and the hope that all things foretold by these holy men of old will soon meet their final and complete fulfillment. The gates of Jerusalem would be open continually to receive the wealth contributed to Israel for the conversion of still other nations and peoples (Isaiah 60:1-11, RSV; Psalms 72:10; Isaiah 45:14; Haggai 2:7, RSV). Remember that the record of Gods dealings with His people in ages past has been recorded for the benefit of all later generations to the end of time. It is possible that he was a Temple singer, since his third chapter is dedicated to the chief singer on my stringed instruments (chapter 3:19). In so doing we shall be secure against the fanciful explanations sometimes given certain Old Testament prophecies. WebIn Jeremiah, Yahweh is portrayed as one who reveals himself primarily through his word, whereas in Ezekiel, Yahweh is presented in visions of God (pp. The life story of Jeremiah is better known than that of any other prophet. His early ministry seems to have coincided with the last years of King Uzziahs reign (see Introduction to Isaiah), but his official call to the office of a prophet came in 740/39, the last year of King Uzziah (chapter 6:1). But with regards to how Jeremiah died, the Scriptures leave no record. Few passages of Scripture are more commonly misunderstood and variously interpreted than those containing the divine promises made to ancient Israel through the prophets. Even during the Captivity, and later under foreign tutelage, Israel remained a theocracy in theory if not fully in practice. The older generation place him in the 9th century B.C., whereas most commentators are now inclined to assign him either to the time of King Josiah or to the postexilic period. However, there is also no reference made to Persia, which would be expected if the book was of so late a date. 1. In general, Old Testament promises and predictions were addressed to literal Israel and were to have been fulfilled to them, conditional on obedience. Obedience to the law of God would make them marvels of prosperity before the nations of the world, living witnesses to the greatness and majesty of God (Deuteronomy 8:17, 18; 28:11-13). WebJeremiah is allowed to remain in Jerusalem. In the endeavor to account for this seeming enigma, Bible expositors have set forth various explanations: 1. Beholding Israels righteousness (Isaiah 62:1, 2), the Gentiles would acknowledge them, that they are the seed which the Lord hath blessed (Isaiah 61:9, 10; cf. Paul states the same truth in Romans 9:30, 31, where he makes it plain that the Christian church has replaced the Hebrew nation in the divine plan. Jeremiah blames the people for ethical misbehavior. The sanctuary became Gods dwelling place among them (see Exodus 25:8), its priests were ordained to minister before Him (Hebrews 5:1; 8:3), its services provided an object lesson of the plan of salvation and prefigured the coming of the Messiah (1 Corinthians 5:7; Colossians 2:16, 17; Hebrews 9:1-10; 10:1-12). According to tradition, how was Isaiah killed? No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the L ORD , for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the L ORD. But to go beyond that which is clearly set forth by Inspirationin the immediate context of the passage concerned, in the New Testament, or in the Spirit of prophecyis to substitute personal opinion for a plain Thus saith the Lord. Where Inspiration has not thus clearly spoken it is our privilege to compare scripture with scripture in an endeavor to understand more perfectly the mind of the Spirit. A less-well-defined school of interpretation bases its approach to the prophetic portions of the Old Testament on the theory that the prophet, while bearing messages to the people of his day, also took occasional excursions into the distant future, with the result that many of his forecasts did not apply to literal Israel at all, but were intended exclusively for Israel after the spirit, that is, for the church today. Consideration is given to the role of literal Israel as Gods chosen people, to the way His plan for them was to have been accomplished, to the way in which it actually did work out, and to the eventual transfer of the privileges and responsibilities of literal Israel to spiritual Israel, that is, to the Christian church. Following this line of interpretation, some have gone to the extreme of proposing a Christian migration to Palestine. Continuing faithfully under the following three kings, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah (chapter 1:1), he seems to have been fiercely hated by Manasseh, Hezekiahs wicked son. Living in a crisis period of his nation, Jeremiah was called to proclaim many messages of reproof and solemn predictions of doom over his people for their disobedience. By Which king? Enigmatic is his statement that this 5th year of captivity was also the thirtieth year. It is believed that the prophet refers either to his own age or to that year as the 30th year reckoned from the reform which took place during the 18th year of Josiah. Jodi T. Religion. Jeremiah (Yirmiyahu) It was Jeremiahs lot in life to be known throughout the ages as the prophet of doom, for he was G-ds main spokesman in the generation of the destruction of Jerusalems first Temple. As the people cooperated with the directions God gave them in regard to the culture of the soil, the land would gradually be restored to Edenic fertility and beauty (Isaiah 51:3). In which century B.C. Thus it was with Daniel, a bright example of what man may become, even in this life, if he will make God his strength and wisely improve the opportunities and privileges within his reach (see Daniel 1:8-20). Another reason to trust God is there is nothing too complicated for Him. He probably died in the Nile country. When they brought forth wild grapes instead of the mature fruit of character, He inquired, What could have been done more to my vineyard, that I have not done in it? (Isaiah 5:1-7). For some time he held a high position in Nebuchadnezzars government (chapter 2:48), and became a trusted counselor of the great king. According to this view, Jeremiah said, in effect, that Jerusalem would be deserted for about 70 years, about the length of a persons life. Thus, for more than 1,500 years, a great experiment designed to test the relative merits of good and evil was conducted before the world. Whatever the Jews, as a nation, may do, now or in time to come, is in no way related to the former promises made to them. Although the Hebrew term naar, youth, or child, by which the prophet designates himself verse (6), does not give an indication of Jeremiahs exact age at the time of his call, the context of the passage in which this word appears seems to favor the interpretation that he was still very young, perhaps less than twenty. A closer dating is impossible in spite of the statement that his first divine message came to him two years before the earthquake (chapter 1:1), because the date of this event is unknown. (This rule does not apply to those portions of the book of Daniel that the prophet was bidden to shut up and seal, or to other passages whose application Inspiration may have limited exclusively to our own time.). 1-39 40-55 56-66. God provided Israel with every facility for becoming the greatest nation on the earth. They were to become a nation of intellectual geniuses, and feebleness of mind would eventually have been unknown among them. It is impossible to date the devastating plague of locusts that the prophet so vividly describes and compares with the terrors of the coming day of judgment. Practice all cards Practice all cards Practice all cards done loading. According to Jewish tradition Isaiah was sawn asunder. Christianity is a historical religion, and its inspired messages are anchored to the hills and valleys, the deserts and rivers, of the ancient world, and to literal men and women who once walked the earth. Furthermore, the rise of the Chaldeans and their invasion of the West is predicted, but this seemed at that time completely incredible (chapter 1:5-7). WebThere are four major prophets: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Daniel. Examine the prophecy in its entirety. By nowadays 2 500 years old concerns have simply gone through time changes, but Gods truth spoken by two prophets remains the same. Those nations that rejected the worship and service of the true God, were to be dispossessed, and Israel would inherit the Gentiles chapter (54:3). The prophet Hosea was a citizen of the northern kingdom of Israel, whose ruler, Jeroboam II, is called by the prophet, our king (chapters 1:1; 7:5). Literal Jews may still find salvation by being grafted into spiritual Israel, in precisely the same way that Gentiles are to be grafted in (verses 23, 24). He has a controversy with them because they have rebelled against His authority (Jeremiah 25:31-33), and He will judge (Joel 3:9-17) and destroy them there (Isaiah 34:1-8; 63:1-6; 66:15-18). Through Israel of old, God planned to provide the nations of earth with a living revelation of His own holy character and an exhibit of the glorious heights to which man can attain by cooperating with His infinite purposes. After Jerusalems fall in 586, Nebuchadnezzar allowed Jeremiah to stay with the remnant of his people who were left in the country (chapter 40:1-6). WebIsaiah lived about 100 years before Jeremiah. When Manasseh came to the throne as sole ruler upon his fathers death, approximately in 686, he lost little time in removing the faithful seer. the ideal selection is option C. Learn more about the Book of Micah here: Any nation and kingdom that would not serve Israel was to perish chapter (60:12). Hence the year 571/70 must not be considered as necessarily marking the end of his ministry. But the Scriptures record the fact that they disobeyed God and proved disloyal to Him instead. Answer Jeremiah was one of the major prophets of ancient Israel and a key figure in the Old Testament. [1] The prophet received his call while still a young man, during the thirteenth year of King Josiahs reign, about 627 or 626 B.C. Nevertheless, Isaiah believed that Judah was Gods chosen nation and they would be vindicated by God. In Jeremiah, we see evidence of God elevating humble men like Jeremiah to become leaders precisely when they are needed. On the other hand, the destruction of Nineveh is described as an event still future (chapter 3:7). The promises and threatenings of God are alike conditional. WebIsaiah, the first of the prophets considered "major," had an active ministry that centered in Jerusalem. WebFrom the time of King Josiah, Jeremiah was the Lords prophet in Jerusalem. Four verses, Isaiah 45:12; 48:13; and Jeremiah 10:12; 51:15 use the Qal perfect form. 6465). It was ordained of God to meet the needs of His people at the time it was given and to remind them of the glorious destiny that awaited them as a nation, of the coming of the Messiah, and of the establishment of His eternal kingdom. It was therefore not alone unto themselves and to their contemporaries that the prophets ministered, but also to all sincere men and women of later generations (1 Peter 1:12). They voluntarily accepted God as their sovereign, and this constituted the nation a theocracy. When Gedaliah is assassinated, the Jews flee to Egypt and force Jeremiah to go with them. Paul makes it clear beyond argument that when he speaks of Israel as the chosen people of God he means it in this sense. The prophetess Huldah was a relative and contemporary of To this can be added the mention of Greeks (chapter 3:6), who hardly played a role in Near Eastern history earlier than the 7th century. Isaiah was a Jewish prophet who lived during the eighth century BC. Those who think that chapter 52 was added as an inspired postscript by Jeremiahs secretary or one of his disciples, believe that he died some 20 years earlier, about 580 B.C. However, he is again found playing a role on the night of Babylons fall, as interpreter of the mysterious handwriting on the wall (chapter 5). 2. His book contains no direct to establish the time of his mission to Nineveh. He would have come, He would have died, and would have risen again. The accompanying chart enables the reader to study these prophets in their historical setting. John 4:23, 24; 2 Tim. If these rules are consistently followed the resulting interpretation can be accepted with confidence. Hosea. 3:5). Since Jothams sole reign began after the death of his father Uzziah in 740/39, the initial date for Micahs prophetic ministry should probably be placed after that date. Godlinessgodlikenessis the goal to be reached. Since the hostile acts of the heathen peoples committed against Judah (chapter 3:4 ff.) Furthermore, Old Testament prophecy must first be examined in terms of its historical application to literal Israel before the validity of a derived application to spiritual Israel may be undertaken. But here, as in all exposition of Scripture, we should avoid affirming as the explicit teachings of the Bible that which is our private, finite view, however plausible it may appear to be. This fact weakens the arguments for such a late date. It is important to note that all the Old Testament promises looking forward to a time of restoration for the Jews were given in anticipation of their return from captivity (see Isaiah 10:24-34; 14:1-7; 27:12, 13; 40:2; 61:4-10; Jeremiah 16:14-16; 23:3-8; 25:11; 29:10-13; 30:3-12; 32:7-27, 37-44; Ezekiel 34:11-15; 37; Amos 9:10-15; Micah 2:12, 13; etc.). The people might approach God personally and through the ministry of a mediating priesthood, their representatives before Him; He would direct the nation through the ministry of prophets, His appointed representatives to them. Its messages show that it was written after the time of the kingdom of Judah, when a governor ruled over the country (chapter 1:8), a fact that points to the Persian period. The completeness and finality of this rejection is evident from chapter 8:19, 20: As the nations which the Lord destroyeth before your face, so shall ye perish; because ye would not be obedient unto the voice of the Lord your God. The rejection of Jesus by the leaders of Israel (cf. Isaiah would not have known about the events to come without Gods help. WebIsaiah's time, Babylonian exile, and return to exile 21 Q Where did Jeremiah live when he was called to be a prophet? It was Gods design that the whole earth be prepared for the first advent of Christ, even as to-day the way is preparing for His second coming. The prophets did not always clearly understand messages they themselves had borne pointing forward to the distant future, to the coming of the Messiah (1 Peter 1:10, 11). The Christian church is a spiritual nation scattered all over the world, and such details obviously could not apply to it in a literal sense. They would have no part in all that Christ stood for (see on Matthew 3:2, 3; Mark 3:14). At Mt. Hence, Jonah was probably the earliest of the prophets under discussion. 4. Accordingly, the covenant promises and privileges were all permanently transferred from literal to spiritual Israel (Romans 9:4; cf. Without this, the people of Israel would not qualify to receive the material blessings God designed to bestow upon them. In fact, this procedure is responsible more than anything else for the fanciful interpretations that distinguish the teachings of certain religious groups. Only when its leaders formally rejected the Messiah and declared before Pilate their allegiance to no king but Caesar (John 19:15) did Israel as a nation irrevocably withdraw from the covenant relationship and the theocracy. Furthermore, the repeated mention of Judahs wickedness, described as enormous in his day (see chapters 1:4-6, 8, 9, 12; 3:1-3, 7), points to the time before Josiahs reform, which began in 623/22. Nehemiah 13:10-12; Malachi 2:11-16; cf. Jer 31:35. Promises not already fulfilled to literal Israel either would never be fulfilled at all or would be fulfilled to the Christian church as spiritual Israel.