Prophets and Prophecy Final
Cosmic upheaval; dark sun & moon of blood (Joel 2:30-32)
"And I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and columns of smoke. 31 The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. 32 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those who escape, as the Lord has said, and among the survivors shall be those whom the Lord calls.
Sons & daughters will prophesy (Joel 2:28)
"And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.
Curse against Priests (Malachi 2:1-3)
"And now, O priests, this command is for you. 2 If you will not listen, if you will not take it to heart to give honor to my name, says the Lord of hosts, then I will send the curse upon you and I will curse your blessings. Indeed, I have already cursed them, because you do not lay it to heart. 3 Behold, I will rebuke your offspring, and spread dung on your faces, the dung of your offerings, and you shall be taken away with it.
Day of the Lord (Obadiah 1:15)
"As you have done, it will be done to you..."
Who does Third Isaiah call the priests of Yahweh
"But all of you (plural=the people) you shall be called: "Priests of Yahweh"
Yahweh does not change (Malachi 3:6)
"For I the Lord do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed. From the days of your fathers you have turned aside from my statutes and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you, says the Lord of hosts.
Universal destruction (Zephaniah 1:2-6, 18)
"I will utterly sweep away everything from the face of the earth," declares the Lord.
Yahweh will punish the leaders (Zechariah 10:3)
"My anger is hot against the shepherds, and I will punish the leaders; for the Lord of hosts cares for his flock, the house of Judah, and will make them like his majestic steed in battle.
Kabod of Yahweh Haggai 1:7-8
"Thus says the Lord of hosts: Consider your ways. 8 Go up to the hills and bring wood and build the house, that I may take pleasure in it and that I may be glorified, says the Lord.
Extra mediation via angelic visitation (Zechariah)
"the angel who talked with me" (5x)
Apocalyptic
"uncovering," "revelation"
2 Isaiah's call narrative
(Divine Council) Herald of God; Message of Comfort o"Comfort (plural), comfort (plural) my people" Why plural imperatives? Divine council? When 1st Isaiah received his call (Isaiah 6), it too was in the Divine Council (with flying seraphim) and Isaiah was able to listen in
Septuagint has "Additions to Daniel"
- Story of Susanna, Bel & the Dragon, Song of 3 Young Men). Included in Roman Catholic Canon. Protestants have it as Apocryphal.
Daniel Chapter 3
-3 friends thrown into fiery furnace for refusing to worship Nebuchadnezzar's image. Martyrdom is preferable to apostasy. [3:1-18] -A 4th person! "like a son of the gods" [3:25] -3 friends untouched by the fire [3:26-27] -Nechuchadnezzar's confession and decree [3:28-30]
Daniel Chapter 5
-Belshazzar's feast Belshazzar = the last Neo-Babylonian ruler Not to be confused w/ Daniel's Babylonian name Belteshazzar -The writing on the wall and Daniel's interpretation [5:5-28] Words = doom for Belshazzar -Belshazzar immediately slain & kingdom passes to Darius [5:30]
Daniel Chapter 2
-Daniel interprets King Nebuchadnezzar's dream -Not only interprets the dream but knows the dream itself [2:1-30]
Why the focus on Nineveh?
-Foreigners converting to Yahwism (The pagan sailors in 1:16; Ninevites in 3:6-10; Cf. the post-exilic debate about foreigners) -Ezra 10 and Nehemiah 13 Contrast -Third Isaiah: "the foreigner who has joined himself to Yahweh" "a house of prayer for all peoples" [Isa 56:3-8] Malachi: "Did not the One God make us all? ... I hate divorce" [Mal 2:15-16]
Isaiah 40:3 parallel poetry
-Has a poetic voice cries out with two synonymously parallel lines -the message might be indicative of a second exodus ("in the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord" and "make straight in the desert a highway for our God") -NT reapplication to John the Baptist
Daniel Chapter 6
-King Darius pleased with Daniel -Daniel made one of three viziers over 120 administrators -Jealousy does Daniel in -Other leaders persuade the king to make a law that for 30 days no one can make a petition to a god expect to the king himself. Daniel refuses to recognize Darius as a god and is cast into lions' den for the night[6:16-18] -Unharmed in the morning [6:19-22] -Darius' delight and decree [6:23-28] -As for Daniel's accusers? [6:24] (their families are thrown into the lion's den alongside of him)
Daniel Chapter 1
-Loyalty in matters of Jewish diet -Great pressure to eat royal diet [1:5, 8-15] -Daniel's skill in visions & dreams [1:17] -Daniel 10x better; 70 year job [1:20-21]
Daniel Chapter 4
-Nechuchadnezzar's visions/dreams -Vision of a majestic, fruitful tree that is then cut down and a man gone mad [4:10-18] -Daniel's interpretation [4:19-27] The tree = you, Nebuchadnezzar [4:22] The mad man = you, Nebuchadnezzar [4:25] -Dreams becomes a reality [4:28-37] Nebuchadnezzar's faith in God [4:34-37]
Judgment theophany in Daniel
-The boastful beast is destroyed [7:9-14] -5th Divine Kingdom - everlasting -Messianic figure par excellence [7:13-14] -"one like a son of man" riding on the clouds -Picked up on in Jewish Apocalyptic [1 Enoch 46-48] and in the Christian New Testament [Mk 13:26]
Additional Visions of Daniel
-Vision of ram and he-goat [chapter 8] -Vision of 70 weeks -Expounding Jeremiah's 70 years = 70 weeks of year = 490 years Named Angels: Gabriel in 8:15; 9:21; Michael in 10:13, 21; 21:1 Resurrection (12:2)
Antiochus Epiphanes IV's assault on Judaism
-Visited Jerusalem in 169 BCE and insisted on entering the holy of holies -Carried of temple treasures [cf. Nebuchadnezzar] -Hellenization of Palestine -Jews forced to accept Greek culture and religion & deny their own beliefs (Cessation of sacrifice in Temple, Circumcision forbidden, Outlawed Jewish dietary restrictions, Ordered Jews to eat swine's flesh and participate in pagan ceremonies, Antiochus IV erected altar to Zeus in the temple (called "the abomination of desolation"))
Habakkuk 3
-Yahweh as Divine Warrior -Yahweh vs "chaos monsters"/dragons (e.g., Yamm, Leviathan, Mot) -Ancient Near Eastern parallels
Zadokite priestly polemic against the Levites (Ezekiel 44:10-16)
12 Because they [the Levites] ministered to them before their idols and became a stumbling block of iniquity to the house of Israel, therefore I have sworn concerning them, declares the Lord God, and they shall bear their punishment. 13 They shall not come near to me, to serve me as priest, nor come near any of my holy things and the things that are most holy, but they shall bear their shame and the abominations that they have committed. 14 Yet I will appoint them to keep charge of the temple, to do all its service and all that is to be done in it.
Scroll of remembrance (Malachi 3:16-18)
16 Then those who feared the Lord spoke with one another. The Lord paid attention and heard them, and a book of remembrance was written before him of those who feared the Lord and esteemed his name. 17 "They shall be mine, says the Lord of hosts, in the day when I make up my treasured possession, and I will spare them as a man spares his son who serves him. 18 Then once more you shall see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve him.
Sheshbazzar
1st phase of return which fizzles out
Solar worship (Jeremiah 8:2)
2 And they shall be spread before the sun and the moon and all the host of heaven, which they have loved and served, which they have gone after, and which they have sought and worshiped. And they shall not be gathered or buried. They shall be as dung on the surface of the ground.
Return to chaos (Jeremiah 4:23-28)
23 I looked on the earth, and behold, it was without form and void; and to the heavens, and they had no light. 24 I looked on the mountains, and behold, they were quaking, and all the hills moved to and fro. 25 I looked, and behold, there was no man, and all the birds of the air had fled. 26 I looked, and behold, the fruitful land was a desert, and all its cities were laid in ruins before the Lord, before his fierce anger. 27 For thus says the Lord, "The whole land shall be a desolation; yet I will not make a full end. 28 "For this the earth shall mourn, and the heavens above be dark; for I have spoken; I have purposed; I have not relented, nor will I turn back." (The word "void" used before creation is used only in Genesis and here)
Necho II (2 Kings 23:29)
29 In his days Pharaoh Neco king of Egypt went up to the king of Assyria to the river Euphrates. King Josiah went to meet him, and Pharaoh Neco killed him at Megiddo, as soon as he saw him. Righteous King Josiah was killed in 609 BCE (2 Kings 23:25) at the height of his religious reform, which was strange because of the promises that God had made to the Davidic house.
2nd Isaiah (Isaiah 40-55)
2nd Isaiah different style than author of 1st Isaiah; Different historical setting for Isaiah 2 (the destruction of Jerusalem is assumed; most important discrepancy); Different theological emphasis. Scholarly consensus: 2nd Isaiah is dated around 540 BCE (Cyrus the Persian is ruling and Babylon is described as still standing. We know that it fell in 539 BCE)
"Peace, peace" (Jeremiah 6:13-15)
3 "For from the least to the greatest of them, everyone is greedy for unjust gain; and from prophet to priest, everyone deals falsely. 14 They have healed the wound of my people lightly, saying, 'Peace, peace,' when there is no peace. 15 Were they ashamed when they committed abomination? No, they were not at all ashamed; they did not know how to blush. Therefore they shall fall among those who fall; at the time that I punish them, they shall be overthrown," says the Lord. Essentially a metaphor for malpractice
Cyrus edict (538 CE) Ezra 6:3-5
3 In the first year of Cyrus the king, Cyrus the king issued a decree: Concerning the house of God at Jerusalem, let the house be rebuilt, the place where sacrifices were offered, and let its foundations be retained. Its height shall be sixty cubits and its breadth sixty cubits, 4 with three layers of great stones and one layer of timber. Let the cost be paid from the royal treasury. 5 And also let the gold and silver vessels of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took out of the temple that is in Jerusalem and brought to Babylon, be restored and brought back to the temple that is in Jerusalem, each to its place. You shall put them in the house of God."
Mock call to worship (Amos 4:4-5)
4 "Come to Bethel, and transgress; to Gilgal, and multiply transgression; bring your sacrifices every morning, your tithes every three days; 5 offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving of that which is leavened, and proclaim freewill offerings, publish them; for so you love to do, O people of Israel!" declares the Lord God.
"Remember the laws of my servant Moses" (Malachi 3:4)
4 "Remember the law of my servant Moses, the statutes and rules that I commanded him at Horeb for all Israel.
Covenant with Levi (Malachi 2:4-8)
4 So shall you know that I have sent this command to you, that my covenant with Levi may stand, says the Lord of hosts. 5 My covenant with him was one of life and peace, and I gave them to him. It was a covenant of fear, and he feared me. He stood in awe of my name. 6 True instruction was in his mouth, and no wrong was found on his lips. He walked with me in peace and uprightness, and he turned many from iniquity. 7 For the lips of a priest should guard knowledge, and people should seek instruction from his mouth, for he is the messenger of the Lord of hosts. 8 But you have turned aside from the way. You have caused many to stumble by your instruction. You have corrupted the covenant of Levi, says the Lord of hosts,
Daniel's Initial Vision [Daniel 7:1-14]
4 beasts = 4 world empires -Lion with eagles' wings [Babylon] -Bear with 3 ribs in its mouth [Medes] -Leopard with 4 wings & 4 heads [Persia] -The last beast is the worst "terrible, dreadful, exceedingly strong" [Greece]
Jeremiah's call narrative (Jeremiah 1:5-10)
5 "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations." 6 Then I said, "Ah, Lord God! Behold, I do not know how to speak, for I am only a youth." 7 But the Lord said to me, "Do not say, 'I am only a youth'; for to all to whom I send you, you shall go, and whatever I command you, you shall speak. 8 Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you,declares the Lord." 9 Then the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth. And the Lord said to me, "Behold, I have put my words in your mouth. 10 See, I have set you this day over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to break down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant."
Elijah will come again (Malachi 3:5)
5 "Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes.
Conversion of the nations! (Zephaniah 3:9-10)
9 "For at that time I will change the speech of the peoples to a pure speech, that all of them may call upon the name of the Lord and serve him with one accord. 10 From beyond the rivers of Cush my worshipers, the daughter of my dispersed ones, shall bring my offering.
Rebuilt temple more glorious than Solomon's (Haggai 2:6-9)
9 The latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former, says the Lord of hosts. And in this place I will give peace, declares the Lord of hosts.'"
Nebuchadrezzar, my servant (Jeremiah 25:9)
9 behold, I will send for all the tribes of the north, declares the Lord, and for Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant, and I will bring them against this land and its inhabitants, and against all these surrounding nations. I will devote them to destruction, and make them a horror, a hissing, and an everlasting desolation.
Why was Jonah's message in 3:4 incomplete?
A declarative sentence of judgment rather than an exhortation to change one's ways to prevent judgment
Day of Yahweh (Zephaniah 1:7-18)
Also used by Amos, Micah, Isaiah. "The great day of the Lord is near, near and hastening fast"
Critiques of economic injustice (Amos 5:11; 6:1-7; 8:4-6)
Amos was prophet of social justice (mishpat = "justice")
Yahweh King over all the earth (Zechariah 14:9)
And the Lord will be king over all the earth. On that day the Lord will be one and his name one.
Transition from Babylonian to Persian Rule (Ezra 5:1-2, 6:14)
And the elders of the Jews built and prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. They finished their building by decree of the God of Israel and by decree of Cyrus and Darius and Artaxerxes king of Persia;
How do Neo-Assyrian texts refer to the Omri's?
As the "House of Omri"
Jehoiachin
Babylonians are major power, King Neb is in power, and Jehoiakim refuses to pay tribute. Neb attacks Judah and deports the upper echelons of society. Jehoiakim dies just beforehand, leaving his son Jehoiachin with immanent destruction. Jehoiachin is taken into exile, and Zedekiah gets to sit on the throne. In 586 Neb returns a second time, burns Jerusalem and the temple. Zedekiah the last king of Judah meets with a tragic end. The last thing he sees prior to being blinded is the execution of his 2 sons. He is taken off in chains into exile into Babylon
Third Isaiah (ch. 56-66)
Beginnings of apocalyptic thought; Usually dated to post-exilic period
Assyrian atrocities in war
Beheaded children
Jonah (Historic)
Brief historical mention (no fish here) (2 Kgs 14:25). Portrays a Jonah as a Yahwistic prophets supporting Jeroboam II's expansion of his borders. Contrast how Amos (Amos 7:10-11) and Hosea are highly critical of Jeroboam II as is Dtr.
Death plot against Jeremiah (Jeremiah 11:18-23)
But I was like a gentle lamb led to the slaughter. I did not know it was against me they devised schemes, saying, "Let us destroy the tree with its fruit, let us cut him off from the land of the living, that his name be remembered no more. (But the Lord punishes the men of Anathoth who devise this plot)
Baal Peor episode (Hosea 9:10; cf. Num 25:1-18)
But they came to Baal-peor and consecrated themselves to the thing of shame, and became detestable like the thing they loved.
Eschatological overtones (Malachi 3:1-18)
But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears? For he is like a refiner's fire and like fullers' soap. 3 He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, and they will bring offerings in righteousness to the Lord. (purification of Levites/redeemed through fire)
Ruler from Bethlehem (Micah 5:1-6)
But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days.
Jonah Timeline
Call narrative 1:1-2 Jonah flees 1:3 "I am a Hebrew" 1:9 The mariners & Yahweh 1:14-16 Jonah is rescued from the "fish" 1:17-2:10 Nineveh-Jonah's prophecy of destruction 3:1-4 Conversion of Nineveh (gentiles) 3:6-10 Jonah upset over Yahweh's decision 4:1-3 The shade tree 4:6-11
Oracle against corrupt leaders in Third Isaiah
Calls current leadership gluttons, shepherds who have no understanding, drunkards, mute dogs, etc. Goes on with scathing slurs, talks about child sacrifice, worshipping the dead, scathing accusations against Temple worship
The structure of the book of Ezekiel
Ch 1-3: Vision & Call 4-24: Oracles of doom 33-39: Oracles of salvation/promise 40-48: Restoration blueprint
Daniel Outline
Ch 1-6 -Daniel and his 3 companions. Set in Babylonian & Persian courts, narrated in the 3rd person. Faithful Jews living amidst persecution. -Theme = faithfulness to Yahweh in the middle of persecution -Loyalty to Torah and its teachings at all costs; God will vindicate the faithful. Ch 7-12 -Daniel's visions. Apocalyptic revelations narrated in the 1st person. -Visions of end times (eschaton) -The consummation of the world when God will overthrow the tyrannical powers and establish God's kingdom on earth
The identity of the herald in Isaiah 40:9. Was 2nd Isaiah a woman?
Compare RSV versus JPS on Isaiah 40:9 •Get you (f. sg.) up to a high mountain •O Zion (f. sg.), herald of good tidings •O herald (f. sg.) of joy to Zion •O herald (f. sg.) of joy The author's use of birth/womb imagery •"I will cry out like a woman in travail, I will gasp and pant" •"Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even those may forget, yet I will not forget you." (Sociological critique: evidence of female scribes does not exist)
Case against the Priests (Malachi 1:6-2:17)
Critique of Cult oAs envisioned by Ezekiel, the second temple was supposed to be idyllic oThe second temple was supposed to be pure, correcting all the former abuses
Intermarriage/xenophobia? (Ezra 10:1-5, 10-12, 18-19; Nehemiah 13:23-27)
Cultural Issues: Intermarriage of Jews and Babylonians; Against intermarriage because Xenophobia? oZealous for purity of Yahwism? oHatred of foreigners (the "other")? oBoth? Issues of property rights, how to define your own identity (whether or not you are Jewish)
Cyrus as 2nd Isaiah's messiah (45:1-6)
Cyrus Oracle •"Thus says the LORD to his anointed (messiah), to Cyrus, whose right hand I have grasped, to subdue nations before him..." •God is using him "though you do not know me" He chooses a pagan as a messiah figure Corrective to Davidic Nationalism •Choosing Cyrus, a pagan Persian, as Yahweh's messiah is a harsh corrective, Cf. Jer 36:30 •Underscores the sovereignty of Yahweh; God does not need the Davidides to accomplish His purposes
Yahweh as Divine Warrior (Zechariah 9:8-17)
Defeated by Yahweh (De-emphasis on military might of the king; The king is now on a donkey, not a stallion; Yahweh as Divine Warrior)
Ezekiel's Sign-Acts
Eating the scroll (3:1-3) Lying on his side (4:4-6) Eating food cooked on dung (4:9-16) Depicting the siege (4:1-3) Cutting his hair & beard (5:1-2)
The "problem" of Ezekiel's Jerusalem knowledge
Ezekiel is portrayed as being exiled to Babylon along with the elite of Jerusalem, yet he knows intimate knowledge of Jerusalem. Never went to Babylon? clairvoyance? portals? wings? trade correspondence?
Fall of Nineveh (capital of Assyria) in 612 BCE
Falls during King Josiah's reign
God desires love (hesed) (Hosea 6:6)
For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings. (Hesed "steadfast love"=covenant loyalty→what God wants)
View of foreign marriages (Malachi 2:10-16)
For Judah has profaned the sanctuary of the Lord, which he loves, and has married the daughter of a foreign god.
Against divination (Hosea 3:4)
For the children of Israel shall dwell many days without king or prince, without sacrifice or pillar, without ephod or household gods. Was also against inquiring of wood (which was a form of divination)
Song of the Vineyard (Isaiah 5:1-7)
For the vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah are his pleasant planting; and he looked for justice, but behold, bloodshed; for righteousness, but behold, an outcry!
Going naked (Micah 1:8)
For this I will lament and wail; I will go stripped and naked; I will make lamentation like the jackals, and mourning like the ostriches.
The author of Jonah's view
God values mercy (by definition unfair) at the cost of justice. Mercy trumps justice.
Zerubbabel
God's Servant & Signet ring
Haggai's Call Narrative
God's command to rebuild the temple with a diarchy theme throughout (Joshua and Zerubabbel)
Isaiah's 3-year sign act! (Isaiah 20)
Goes butt naked for 3 years to show humiliation and that God will use this to humiliate the Egyptians
Intercessory roles (Abraham, Moses, Amos, etc)
Habakkuk interceded on behalf of the Southern kingdom
The Fourth Beast
Has 10 horns = 10 Seleucid kings [successors of Alexander the Great who rule in Syria/Palestine] Has a "little horn" = Antiochus Epiphanes IV [175-164 BCE] [time of Maccabean revolt 168-164 BCE] Waging war against the saints and defeating them [7:12]
Courageous Obadiah
He his persecuted prophets of Yahweh during the reign of King Ahab
Rib/riv/covenant lawsuit (Hosea 4:1)
Hear the word of the Lord, O children of Israel, for the Lord has a controversy with the inhabitants of the land. There is no faithfulness or steadfast love, and no knowledge of God in the land;
597 1st deportation to Babylon by Nebuchadrezzar
In response Jehoiakim refusing to pay tribute, Neb attacks Judah in 597 BCE and deports the upper echelons of society.
Isaianic apocalypse
Isaiah 24-27
Jehoiakim (penknife cutting Jeremiah's scrolls/burning in fireplace Jeremiah 36:20-25)
Jehoiakim told Jehudi to cut off pieces of the scroll (which are the prophecies that Jeremiah had made about Israel, Judah, and other nations) and throw it into the fire
Jeremiah brought to trial (Jeremiah 26)
Jeremiah prophesies against Judah and Judean officials bring him to court. The officials realize that "This man does not deserve the sentence of death, for he has spoken to us in the name of the Lord our God."
"Keeping feasts" (Nahum 1:15)
Josiah's Passover? (2 Kings 23:21-23)
What does God require? (Micah 6:8)
Justice (mishpat), covenant loyalty (hesed), humility
Coming Davidic ruler/"Branch" (Jeremiah 23:5-6; 33:14-26)
Later additions or beginning of apocalyptic? Some people think these are later additions or false apocalyptic hope
Was Jerermiah an ecstatic prophet?
Maybe ("my heart if broken within me, all my bones shake...")
"the mystery surrounding Zerubbabel"
Mystery #1: How and why he disappeared Mystery #2: Why is our text silent about the details? Zerubbabel (the "Signet of God") is not a nobody whose death could easily be passed over Possible Explanations for Mystery 1: o#1: Did Zerubbabel die a natural death? Our texts are silent. o#2: Was he removed from office (and/or killed) by the Persians who felt the need to stem a growing nationalism? Our texts are silent. o#3: Was he removed from office (and/or killed) by a priestly party (the Zadokites?) in some type of struggle for power? Our texts are silent.
Setting and date of the Book of Daniel
Narratives are placed in the Babylonian exile with Nechuchadnezzar ruling (605-562 BCE). Critical scholars assign the date of the writing of the book to the time of persecution of Antiochus Epiphanes IV in 165 BCE
586 destruction of Jerusalem by Nebuchadrezzar; 2nd deportation
Neb comes back in 586 BCE, destroys Jerusalem, burning the temple to the ground. So much for the inviolability of Jerusalem
Dialogue with god (innovative in prophetic literature?) Habakkuk 1-2
Not exactly (cf. Genesis 18, Numbers 12:13)
Third Isaiah's view against foreigners?
Not xenophobic and more inclusive
Jonah (2 options)
Option A: Historical narrative tied to the 8th ct prophet mentioned in 2 Kings 14:25 (see beginning of term sheet) Option B: didactic story (something told with the intention to teach) set in the post-exilic period reflecting debate over foreigners/xenophobia (consensus of critical scholars)
Malachi
Protest literature; question and answer dialogue (disputational) rather than oracular style
Proclamation of fasting/mourning (Joel 1:13-14)
Put on sackcloth and lament, O priests; wail, O ministers of the altar. Go in, pass the night in sackcloth, O ministers of my God! Because grain offering and drink offering are withheld from the house of your God. 14 Consecrate a fast; call a solemn assembly. Gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land to the house of the Lord your God, and cry out to the Lord.
Rebuilding of temple 520-515 BCE
Rebuilding of the Temple •Cyrus pays for the costs associated with the temple. Cyrus, the Yahwist? •How do you interpret Ezra 1:1-4? "Yahweh stirred up the spirit of King Cyrus of Persia..." Perhaps Ezra the Yahwist might have attributed Cyrus' actions to the work of Yahweh even though that was not what he had intended but we only have Ezra's presentation of what Cyrus wrote
What does the Moabite Stone (Mesha Stele) refer to?
Refers to Omri "humbling Moab for many years." Also has the oldest inscription of the name YHWH
Temple sermon (Jeremiah 7)
Reform infected with nationalism; False trust in inviolability perspective (due to Sennacherib episode in 701 BCE). Shiloh as an example (Just because God might reside in the temple, it doesn't mean he can't destroy it)
Paul Hanson's theory: Levites vs Zadokites
Rival Views of the Restoration Process Visionaries (Protestant Literature) •Second Isaiah •Third Isaiah, Second Zechariah •Disenfranchised Levites; Dispirited Zadokites •Malachi •Joel •More Inclusive •Temple abuses Pragmatists (Official cult in charge of 2nd temple) •"P" •Zadokites •Ezra 10/Nehemiah 13 •Temple-centered
Sargon II
Sargon II was a son of Tiglath-Pileser III and appears to have seized the throne from his brother, Shalmaneser V in a violent coup. Sargon was already middle-aged when he came to the throne, and was assisted by his son, the crown prince, Sennacherib. Destroys Northern Kingdom 722 BCE.
Servant of Yahweh (Servant Songs) To whom do these refer? Historical individual theory, collective theory, "messianic" theory
See notes
How is the Greek translation (Septuagint) different from the original Hebrew?
Septuagint (Gk translation of the Hbw) is 1/8 shorter
Characteristics of full-blown apocalyptic genre:
Sociological setting, dualism (using day/night, light/dark language), eschatology (future orientation; final battle that ushers in the Kingdom of God), pseudonymity (to lend credibility and avoid detection), symbolic visions & dreams (sometimes bizarre), numerology (calculating the eschaton), animal symbolism, named angels (e.g. Gabriel, Michael) & demons (e.g. Belial), cataclysmic disturbances in nature accompanying Yahweh's final theophany & judgment, "Endzeit wird Urzeit" motif (="the end become like the primeval times")
Day of Yahweh overtones (2:11-13, 2:28, 2:30-32)
The Lord utters his voice before his army, for his camp is exceedingly great; he who executes his word is powerful. For the day of the Lord is great and very awesome; who can endure it?
Contextualizing Jonah's angry response (and refusal to extend mercy) in light of Ninevite atrocities ("war crimes")
The character of Nineveh (= Assyrian evil extensively portrayed in iconography and in royal annals) is key to interpreting the book's message regarding extending mercy to those who committed heinous violence
Queen of Heaven (Jeremiah 7:16-20; 44:15-20)
The children gather wood, the fathers kindle fire, and the women knead dough, to make cakes for the queen of heaven. And they pour out drink offerings to other gods, to provoke me to anger. 19 Is it I whom they provoke? declares the Lord. Is it not themselves, to their own shame? 20 Therefore thus says the Lord God: Behold, my anger and my wrath will be poured out on this place, upon man and beast, upon the trees of the field and the fruit of the ground; it will burn and not be quenched." (Females leaders chose a goddess to be more appropriate to be worshipped than a god)
Mt. Carmel episode (1 Kings 18:20-40)
The contest was about whether your deity could send fire. It was Elijah against 850 prophets Canaanite prophets. Cf. bloodletting in 1 Kings 18:28 with Nissinen Text #122 "my brothers bathe in their blood like prophets."
Prophet as madman "mishugga" (Hosea 9:7)
The days of punishment have come; the days of recompense have come; Israel shall know it. The prophet is a fool; the man of the spirit is mad, because of your great iniquity and great hatred.
Angel of Yahweh (Isaiah 37:36-37)
The one that killed all the troops when Sennacherib's army was surrounding Jerusalem like a bird in a cage
Yahweh will take pity on (his) people (Joel 2:18)
Then the Lord became jealous for his land and had pity on his people.
Apocalyptic battle: Mt. of Olives split in two (Zechariah 14:1-6)
Then the Lord will go out and fight against those nations as when he fights on a day of battle. 4 On that day his feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives that lies before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall be split in two from east to west by a very wide valley, so that one half of the Mount shall move northward, and the other half southward. 5 And you shall flee to the valley of my mountains, for the valley of the mountains shall reach to Azal. And you shall flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the Lord my God will come, and all the holy ones with him.
Common theme and its causes in Habakkuk (~609 BCE)
Theodicy (divine inactivity in the face of evil). Primary Cause: the silence, inactivity and apparent unconcern of God [cf. Amos 8:11; Micah 3:4] Secondary Cause: Injustice among Habakkuk's fellow Judeans
Zechariah Call narrative 1:1-6
Therefore say to them, Thus declares the Lord of hosts: Return to me, says the Lord of hosts, and I will return to you, says the Lord of hosts. 4 Do not be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets cried out, 'Thus says the Lord of hosts, Return from your evil ways and from your evil deeds.' But they did not hear or pay attention to me, declares the Lord. 5 Your fathers, where are they? And the prophets, do they live forever? 6 But my words and my statutes, which I commanded my servants the prophets, did they not overtake your fathers? So they repented and said, 'As the Lord of hosts purposed to deal with us for our ways and deeds, so has he dealt with us.'"
Oracles against the Edomites (Obadiah 1:10-14, 18)
They didn't go to the aid of Judah; were aloof/gloating when it happened Drawn from a traditional stock of anti-Edomite oracles? (Esau = Edom, cf. Ps 137; Mal 1:2-5)
Polemic against priesthood in Third Isaiah
Third Isaiah: a visionary when it comes to restoring Jerusalem Protest literature: Somebody is really angry with established worship; discontent voiced against the Zadokite pragmatic program of restoration
Boiling pot from the north (Jeremiah 6:22, 4:5-8)
Thus says the Lord: "Behold, a people is coming from the north country, a great nation is stirring from the farthest parts of the earth (referring to Neb)
Baruch, Jeremiah's scribe
Using Baruch as a scribal secretary (Jeremiah didn't write things down himself). Baruch writes biographical material about Jeremiah
Historical setting of Amos
Uzziah & Jeroboam II; prosperity. Israel (northern kingdom) attained territorial expansion and prosperity never reached again that led to increase inequality between the rich and the poor. Threat of expanding Neo-Assyrian empire
Jonah the character's view
Very angry that mercy should be extended to the evil Ninevites
Amos (760-750 BCE)
Was a shepherd of Tekoa who God used as a prophet
Locust plague as army of Yahweh (Joel 1:1-2:27)
What the cutting locust left, the swarming locust has eaten. What the swarming locust left, the hopping locust has eaten, and what the hopping locust left, the destroying locust has eaten.
Corruption of the officials (Malachi 3:8-11)
Will man rob God? Yet you are robbing me. But you say, 'How have we robbed you?' In your tithes and contributions. 9 You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing me, the whole nation of you. 10 Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house.
5 "woe" ('oy-ve) oracles (Habakkuk 2:6-19)
Woes of the Chaldeans (who ruled Babylonia)
Theophany (Nahum 1:2-8)
Yahweh as Divine Warrior
Who was Ezekiel?
Zadokite priest who becomes a prophet; Pre-exilic/exilic (593-573 BCE)
Eight brief visions (Zechariah)
divine horsemen 1:7-17 four horns & four smiths 1:18-21 [JPS 2:1-4] measuring line 2:1-5 [JPS 2:5-9] Joshua & Satan 3:1-10 golden lampstand 4:1-14 two olive trees (=diarchy) flying scroll 5:14 a woman in a barrel 5:5-11 four chariots 6:1-8
Sour grape saying & test case w/ 5 generations (Ezekiel 18)
o"Fathers eat sour grapes and their children's teeth are set on edge." What does this mean? -The fathers do something distasteful and the children bear the reasonability -Basic unfairness: "We are the victims of the situation; we inherited this from our parents" -Shifting the blame: Genesis 3:12-13 Where does this come from? -"I the LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me..." -might stem from the 10 commandments •Jeremiah's response: "But every one shall die for his own sin..." •Ezekiel's response: Righteousness only applies to yourself; it is not transferable oThree Test Case scenarios •Test Case #1 (first generation) Righteous person: + •Test Case #2 (second generation) The evil son of the righteous person: - •Test Case #3 (third generation) The righteous grandson: + Ezekiel says "the son shall not suffer for the iniquity of the father, nor the father suffer for the iniquity of the son." i.e. Hezekiah (+)→Manasseh (-)→Josiah (+) oTwo Additional Test Case Scenarios •Test Case #4 -Wicked person repents: + •Test Case #5 -"Righteous" person shows his true colors: -
Ezekiel's call narrative (Ezekiel 1-3)
oDescription of the chariot and the four cherubim oCulminates in Ezekiel seeing the "glory (kabod) of Yahweh" (theophany) Note qualifiers: He always says "it looked like," "what seemed to be," etc. His concluding line: "such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord" A priest who understands the difference between the sacred and the profane oKabod Yahweh acts as a structural device for the entire book of Ezekiel Why emphasize movement? There is a lot of emphasis on how the Kabod Yahweh is moveable (wings and wheels) -Divine movement = Theodicy -Gods were thought to live in their "houses" (temples) in the entire Near East including Judah -Therefore God leaving the temple prior to 586 BCE symbolically said that God was not destroyed when His house was destroyed and that His departure was willful (not deposed by Marduk) -Movement→to the exiled peoples
Sociological setting of the apocalyptic
oSocially and politically disenfranchised groups oOften a mode of thinking by those without power to influence society oThe collapse of a well-ordered view that defines values and order the universe for people oPeople thrust into unchartered chaos; a feeling of anxiousness and despair oDesire to have a drastically different world oMartyr complex; thought that you might be martyred, but there is going to be a better world
Proto-apocalyptic
still tied to earthly solutions; No cataclysmic disturbances of nature, No end of the world battle, Reform of the current situation with a purified Levitical priesthood
Joshua/Jeshua
two spellings for the same person
Davidic promises democratized (given to the people) (Jeremiah 55:1-3)
•"I will make with you [plural=the people] an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David." Isaiah 55:1-3 •Giving power to the people
Jeremiah (626-587 BCE)
•"Jeremiah, the son of Hilkiah, of the priests who were in Anatoth." Hilkiah: a priest by the name of Hilkiah found the book of the law during Josiah's reform (largely Deuteronomic reformations). Might be from a high priestly line Anatoth: the priest Abiathar was banished to Anatoth by Solomon. Rival priesthood to the Zadokites
Another question of theodicy: How can a holy God use unholy means to accomplish his will? [Habakkuk 1:12-13]
•God's 2nd Answer Habakkuk takes his stand and waits (Cf. prophet as a watchman (Hosea 9:8)) Answer: "write the vision (hazon)" •A window into prophetic phenomenology? •Used for verification and assurance? 2:3b Certainty of legitimate visions (prophecy) coming true ("the righteous person will live by his faith") •Tremendous influence in later Christian traditions Paul in Romans 1:17; Galatians 3:11 Martin Luther: motto of Protestant Reformation (faith alone)
Confrontation with Hananiah (Jeremiah 27-28)
•Hananiah's "quick return" prophecy given in 594 BCE that all the things that Neb. took will be returned. Hananiah dies later because of his false prophecy. (performed sign acts with the yoke bars)
Crowns (for the diarchy, what happened?)
•In the original Hebrew, it mentions crown as plural, and has no mention of "set it upon the head of Joshua." •Also says in verse 13, "And there shall be a priest by his throne, and peaceful understanding shall be between them both." (Other manuscripts say that "there shall be Joshua the priest at his right hand")
Jeremiah's personal laments (Jeremiah 20:7-10)
•Jeremiah 20:14-20—Cursing the day on which he was born •Jeremiah 20:7-10—Suffering mockery, suffering terror/panic, yet compulsion
Book of comfort/consolation (Jeremiah 30-33)
•Jeremiah 31 New Covenant New Community New Heart •Jeremiah 32 Buying land during the siege of Jerusalem Expressing confidence in restoration of Judah •Believes in a New Davidic Ruler "I will raise up for David a righteous Branch"
Babylonians as divine agent (Habakkuk 1:5-11)
•The Babylonians are another people based in Mesopotamia (ancient Iraq) who become the major power in the East after the fall of the Assyrian empire in 612 BCE. They will eventually destroy Jerusalem in 586 BCE. •Cf. Isaiah's use of Assyria as "the rod of God's anger"
Ezekiel's Plan of Restoration
•The Good Shepherd Sheep in wolves' clothing: "Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel...you clothe yourselves with the wool..." God as Shepherd in Ezekiel 34: Count the I's ("I" is used 37 times→Shepherds are worthless; God is the good shepherd) •The Davidic "Prince" not "King" "And I will setup over them one shepherd, my servant David..." The word used is "prince" [nasi'] which means someone who is elevated in power, but not necessary royal or someone who is called king (demotion of the Davidide) •Cleansed Israel; Newness New heart and spirit (Taking out heart of stone and giving them a heart of flesh) New "psyche" i.e. orientation (People can't help but keep the Torah) Motive: "for the sake of my name" (Purely for his reputation) •Valley of dry bones Means that the nation is coming back to life again (there is still hope even for dry bones) •Blueprint for New Jerusalem and Temple Kabod Yahweh again fills temple Blueprint for reconstituted city and temple Polemic against the Levites; Zakokites favored Land allotted to the "prince" (nasi') kept away from the temple. Diarchy (priestly and royal governance), not monarchy Restored/idyllic temple (Water flowing; Water will flow out of the temple to bring life to everyone) New name for the temple: "Yahwah is there"
Alexander the Great (336-323 BCE)
•Toppled the Persian empire in 331 BCE •"Hellenization" of his empire •Dies without an heir •Conquered lands divided between his generals upon his death (Ptolemies controlled Egypt and Seleucids controlled Asia Minor and Syria; 13 Kings of the Seleucid Dynasty bore the name Antiochus)
Branch language in Zechariah
•When it starts talking about the branch, it says that "he shall build the temple of the LORD...shall built the temple of the LORDS, and shall bear royal honor, and shall sit and rule upon his throne." Zerubbabel is the one who had been described as laying the foundation for the temple
Mother imagery for God (Hosea 11:1-9)
"When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son... It was I who taught Ephraim to walk, taking them by the arms; I led them with cords of human kindness, with ties of love...one who lifts a little child to the cheek, and I bent down to feed them." "How can I give you up, Ephraim? How can I hand you over, Israel? My heart is changed within me; all my compassion is aroused."
Huldah
One of only 5 named prophetesses (contrast the many female intermediaries at Mari & Neo-Assyria) The other 4 being Miriam (Exodus 15; Number 12), Deborah (Judges 5), the unnamed woman in Isaiah 8:3 (Isaiah's wife?) and a false prophetess named Noadiah (Nehemiah 6:14). Verifies the book of the law, the centerpiece of Josiah's reform Josiah (A+) & Hilkiah the priest (2 Kgs 22-23). King Josiah and his 5 leaders seek out a divine word from Huldah on behalf of the entire nation.
The tendency to de-Africanize the Bible
Option 1: Cushi, a proper name without African significance (Other locations for Cush: Habakkuk 3:7 Cushan//Midian); Judges 3 Cushan-rishataim//Aram-naharaim = Tigris and the Euphrates Option 2: Cushi with African significance
Was the marriage of Hosea and Gomer historical or literary?
Option A: Never happened. Metaphor only; Genre is allegory. "Literary" prophecy is not history. Cf. symbolic names of children that follow Option B: A Dramatic Sign Act. If so, question of prophetic credibility (loss of status). IF so, legal repercussions? (adultery legislation) Option C: Retrospective editing theory. Perhaps when Hosea married her, she wasn't a prostitute. But after she became a prostitute, they might have referred to her as such from the beginning.
Ahab's major contribution to the Battle of Qarqar (853 BCE)
Part of an anti-Assyrian military coalition of 12 kings for a battle at Qarqar; Ahab contributed 2,000 chariots and 10,000 troops
Acrostic (A,B,C, etc.) in (Nahum 1:2-8)
Poetic technique
Extensive genealogy due to justifying his Ethiopian ancestry
Positive and negative references to Ethiopia in the book itself: 2:12 (-) and 3:10 (+) -Option A: Zephaniah is African through his mother and related to King Hezekiah through his father -Option B: Zephaniah is African through his father's lineage too (i.e. Hezekiah has African heritage too)
Justice perverted (those building Zion with blood & $) [Micah 3:10-12]
10 who build Zion with blood and Jerusalem with iniquity. 11Its heads give judgment for a bribe; its priests teach for a price; its prophets practice divination for money; yet they lean on the Lord and say, "Is not the Lord in the midst of us? No disaster shall come upon us." 12 Therefore because of you Zion shall be plowed as a field; Jerusalem shall become a heap of ruins, and the mountain of the house a wooded height.
Famine of silence of God (Amos 8:11)
11 "Behold, the days are coming," declares the Lord God, "when I will send a famine on the land— not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord.
Elijah's Ascension (2 Kings 2:1-18)
11 And as they still went on and talked, behold, chariots of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them. And Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. 12 And Elisha saw it and he cried, "My father, my father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!" And he saw him no more.
Conflict w/ Amaziah the priest (Amos 7:10-17)
12 And Amaziah said to Amos, "O seer, go, flee away to the land of Judah, and eat bread there, and prophesy there, 13 but never again prophesy at Bethel, for it is the king's sanctuary, and it is a temple of the kingdom."
"I am not a prophet. . ." (Amos 7:10-17)
14 Then Amos answered and said to Amaziah, "I was no prophet, nor a prophet's son, but I was a herdsman and a dresser of sycamore figs. 15 But the Lord took me from following the flock, and the Lord said to me, 'Go, prophesy to my people Israel.'
Royal ideology (2 parts to it) (2 Samuel 7:16)
16 And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.'"
"Bind up the testimony" (Isaiah 8:16)
16 Bind up the testimony; seal the teaching among my disciples.
Day of Yahweh (Amos 5:18-20)
18 Woe to you who desire the day of the Lord! Why would you have the day of the Lord? It is darkness, and not light, 19 as if a man fled from a lion, and a bear met him, or went into the house and leaned his hand against the wall, and a serpent bit him. 20 Is not the day of the Lord darkness, and not light, and gloom with no brightness in it?
3 children of Hosea (symbolic names)
1st son: Jezreel (the valley where Jezebel meets her end and it means "God sows" (negatively [seeds of destruction] and positively [seeds of hope])) Daughter: Lo-Ruhama ("Not pitied/loved") 2nd son: Lo-Ammi ("Not my people")
Funerary lament (Amos 5:2)
2 "Fallen, no more to rise, is the virgin Israel; forsaken on her land, with none to raise her up."
A man and his inheritance (Micah 2:2-3)
2 They covet fields and seize them, and houses, and take them away; they oppress a man and his house, a man and his inheritance. 3 Therefore thus says the Lord: behold, against this family I am devising disaster, from which you cannot remove your necks, and you shall not walk haughtily, for it will be a time of disaster.
Elisha knows "the words the Syrian king speaks in his bedroom" [2 Kings 6:12]
War between Syria and Israel; A frustrated Syrian King. A mole? The Israel King believed there might have been someone acting as a mole (which turned out to be Elisha). Elisha knows "the words the Syrian king speaks in his bedroom."
Theophany on Mt. Horeb (1 Kings 19:8ff)
While Elijah was on Mount Horeb, God passed by him and a great and strong wind tore the mountains and broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire the sound of a low whisper.
Questions of canonical criticism in Nahum
Why was this book preserved and how was it used in the community? A book of hatred or a liturgy exulting the sovereignty of Yahweh (Called a poem of hate with little or no religious value; Nahum didn't write like a prophet, seems like a nationalist) Contrast to the Book of Jonah which was about mercy for Ninevah Seems like emotional literature
"Cows of Bashan" mockery (Amos 4:1)
"Hear this word, you cows of Bashan, who are on the mountain of Samaria, who oppress the poor, who crush the needy, who say to your husbands, 'Bring, that we may drink!'"
Intercessory role (Amos 7:1-6)
"O Lord God, please forgive! How can Jacob stand? He is so small!" 3 The Lord relented concerning this: "It shall not be," said the Lord.
Isaiah's martyrdom (acc'd to later tradition)
Nothing is known about Isaiah's later life. In Jewish tradition, Manasseh (Hezekiah son) martyred him (cut him in two)
Omride Dynasty (stronger than reflected in Biblical Texts)
Omri was a very powerful king of the Northern Kingdom though the bible doesn't give him much attention at all. Omri→Ahab (strong rule for 22 years)→Ahaziah→Jehoram
The "lying spirit" (1 Kings 22:19-23)
20 and the Lord said, 'Who will entice Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead?' And one said one thing, and another said another. 21 Then a spirit came forward and stood before the Lord, saying, 'I will entice him.' 22 And the Lord said to him, 'By what means?' And he said, 'I will go out, and will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.' And he said, 'You are to entice him, and you shall succeed; go out and do so.' 23 Now therefore behold, the Lord has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these your prophets; the Lord has declared disaster for you."
Critique of cult (Amos 5:21-24)
21 "I hate, I despise your feasts, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies. 22 Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them; and the peace offerings of your fattened animals, I will not look upon them. 23 Take away from me the noise of your songs; to the melody of your harps I will not listen. 24 But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.
Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz (Isaiah 8:3-4)
3 And I went to the prophetess, and she conceived and bore a son. Then the Lord said to me, "Call his name Maher-shalal-hash-baz; 4 for before the boy knows how to cry 'My father' or 'My mother,' the wealth of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria will be carried away before the king of Assyria." The name actually means "speed to the spoil, hurry to the plunder"
Yahweh as Divine Warrior (Micah 1:3-4)
3 For behold, the Lord is coming out of his place, and will come down and tread upon the high places of the earth. 4 And the mountains will melt under him, and the valleys will split open, like wax before the fire, like waters poured down a steep place.
Ascending hyperbole on how to please God (Micah 6:6-7)
6 "With what shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? 7 Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?" 8 He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?
"Swords into plowshares" (Isaiah 2:2-4; cf. Micah 4:1-3)
He shall judge between the nations, and shall decide disputes for many peoples; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.
Who was Zephaniah (~630's-620's BCE)
A prophet with a royal lineage (related to Hezekiah). The word came to him during Josiah's reign. He was a Cushite.
Ahab & Jezebel's support of Canaanite worship (Baal & Asherah) (1 Kings 16, 18)
Ahab erects temple and altar to Baal and makes an Asherah (image). He also marries Jezebel who killed Yahwistic prophets and paid the salaries of 450 prophets of Baal and 400 prophets of Asherah "who eat at Jezebel's table."
Butcher and beast metaphor (Micah 3:1-3)
And I said: Hear, you heads of Jacob and rulers of the house of Israel! Is it not for you to know justice?— 2 you who hate the good and love the evil, who tear the skin from off my people and their flesh from off their bones, 3 who eat the flesh of my people, and flay their skin from off them, and break their bones in pieces and chop them up like meat in a pot, like flesh in a cauldron.
Restoration of Gomer (Hosea 3:1-3)
And the Lord said to me, "Go again, love a woman who is loved by another man and is an adulteress, even as the Lord loves the children of Israel, though they turn to other gods and love cakes of raisins." 2 So I bought her for fifteen shekels of silver and a homer and a lethech of barley. 3 And I said to her, "You must dwell as mine for many days. You shall not play the *****, or belong to another man; so will I also be to you."
Covenant lawsuit (rib/riv) (God taking his people to court in Micah 6:1-8)
Arise, plead your case before the mountains, and let the hills hear your voice. Hear, you mountains, the indictment of the Lord, and you enduring foundations of the earth, for the Lord has an indictment against his people, and he will contend with Israel.
Who was Isaiah of Jerusalem (742-700 BCE)
Central→peripheral→central
Chariots of Fire [2 Kings 6:8-23]
Cloaked chariots of fire on mountains. The Lord opened the eyes of the young man which allowed him to see the chariots of fire. Blindness, banquet and an end to war
Oracles against the nations (Amos 1-6)
Common for prophets to criticize Israel's neighbors. All of these states had been either subjects or allies of Israel under David or Solomon. Amos goes roughly counterclockwise from the north, ending climactically with Israel itself
Swords into plowshares (Micah 4:1-3 = Isaiah 2:2-4)
He shall judge between many peoples, and shall decide for strong nations far away; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore
Elijah (1 Kings 17-19, 21; 2 Kings 2:11-12)
Elijah tells Ahab that there will be a drought. God tells Elijah to hide himself in the Brook of Cherith where he should drink of the brook and be fed by ravens. When the brook dries up, Elijah is told to go to Zarephath to meet a widow who will feed him. The woman only had a little flour and oil, but Elijah said that until the rain comes again, that the flour and oil will not run out. Soon the widow's son dies, and Elijah resurrects him. God tells Elijah to reveal himself to Ahab. His servant Obadiah is met by Elijah and told to tell Ahab to meet Elijah. Although he is fearful, he agrees and Ahab meets Elijah. Elijah tells Ahab to gather all the prophets of Baal and Asherah on Mount Carmel where he challenged them to ask their gods to show themselves through fire. They are unable to get their gods to send fire, but Elijah calls on Yahweh and a fire came down to consume the burnt offering that he presented. So Elijah had all the prophets of Baal seized and killed. Afterwards, the Lord finally sends rain, and Ahab goes back to Jezreel and tells Jezebel of all that Elijah had done. And Elijah, fearful of Jezebel, went into the wilderness and hid under a broom tree where he asked for God to take his life. But God gave him food and prepared him for his journey to Mount Horeb where he saw the Lord pass by him as he hid in a cave. God then tells him to anoint Hazael as king over Syria, Jehu as king over Israel, and Elisha as the prophet in his place. So Elijah goes and cast his cloak upon Elisha. After sacrificing some oxen, he goes to follow Elijah. Naboth has a vineyard near King Ahab's palace. Ahab wants the garden, but Naboth says that he cannot give him the inheritance of his fathers. Ahab tells this to Jezebel and she schemes to get Naboth killed. He gets stoned to death and Ahab takes possession over the vineyard. But Elijah comes and tells Ahab and Jezebel that they will die, and that their blood will be licked up by dogs. Ahab is repentant so he tears his clothes and laid in sackcloth. Because Ahab had humbled himself before the Lord, God says that he will not bring disaster upon his household, though he will bring disaster on his son's household. Later, Elijah is taken up to heaven in a chariot of fire.
Elisha (2 Kings 2-9; 13:14-21)
Example of prophetic succession. Elisha had a miraculous life (which was written in the genre of hagiography): •Music induced trance? [2 Kings 3:15] •Multiplying jars of oil [2 Kings 4:1-7] •The Shunammite woman and her son [2 Kings 4:8-37] •Spoiled/poisonous food made edible •Cleans water supply with salt [2 Kings 2:19-22] •Provides abundant water for military campaign [3:9-20] •Multiplies food [2 Kings 4:42-44] •Cures leprosy of Naaman the Syrian general [2 Kings 5] •Iron axe head floating [2 Kings 6:1-7] •Cloaked Chariots of Fire [2 Kings 6:16-17] •Elisha and king making [2 Kings 9:1-10] •Elisha as "baldy" "lethal holiness" [2 Kings 2:23-25] •Elisha's bones [2 Kings 13:14-21]
Who was Micah (750-687 BCE)?
He was "provincial" (from the country) which is why he defended the rights of small farmers against the ruling elite [cf. Elijah ag. Ahab in 1 Kings 21]). Peasant farmer class? Rural upper class? Part of a group known as the "am ha'arets" or "people of the land"? They were rural yet politically active and had monarchic connections (overthrow a Baalist queen (Athalia), bring the Davidide Jehoash to the throne, secure accession for King Uzziah, help put Josiah on the throne, defended the rights of small farmers against the ruling elite, foreclosure, forced labor, false weights, bribery, against landowners, against rulers, against prophets, diviners). Could also have been an elder of Moresheth
Nehushtan (2 Kings 18:4)
Hezekiah broke down the bronze serpent (Nehustan) that Moses had made because people were making offerings to it ever since
Isaiah repeatedly against coalitions (Isaiah 30:1-3)
Hezekiah joins a major anti-Assyrian coalition. Pretty much saying that protection of Pharaoh will turn into your humiliation and shame
Wolff's Levite hypothesis for Hosea
Hosea is a northern Levite writing protest literature against the ruling Zadokites (priestly critique)
Historical Setting of Hosea (750-740 BCE)
Hosea was a Northern prophet who lived during a time of anarchy; 4 kings assassinated in 14 years. "Presiding over the death of a nation," Fall of Samaria in 722 BCE. He is trying to make sense of how to understand this politically and socially.
The Story of the Shunammite's Son [2 Kings 4]
Hospitality to the Revered: "holy man of God"; resurrects a dead child
Micaiah versus Zedekiah [1 Kings 22:10-28]
Inner prophetic conflict; Zedekiah's message was "Go to battle, you will be victorious." Micaiah's first message was "Attack and be victorious" (perhaps he said his disingenuously). Ahab responds with asking for the truth and Micaiah's second message is "You will be destroyed"
Hosea's son "Jezreel" and dealing w/ the Jehu problem
King Jehu was anointed by Elijah and Elisha to fight against the Syrians and Ahab & Jezebel. But then Jehu kills King Joram, King of Israel, kills Ahaziah, King of Judah, & his brothers, kills Jezebel, decapitates 70 sons of Ahab, kills all of Ahab's administration, and does so with prophetic justification (Hosea serves as a type of inner biblical corrective)
Inviolability of Zion
Leads to mistaken 'inviolability of Zion [=Jerusalem]" viewpoint when God destroys Sennacherib's troops. God will protect his house no matter what. Presents problem for Ezekiel when Babylon comes and destroys it.
Micaiah [1 Kings 22]
Like Elijah and Elisha, Micaiah is involved in bringing a prophetic critique against King Ahab, yet he is not as well known. Two kings go forth to battle (northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah go to battle against Syria). They inquire of Micaiah and other prophets to see if they should go to battle.
Elisha cures the leprosy of Naaman the Syrian General [2 Kings 5]
Naaman acquires leprosy; he captured a slave girl from Israel. Royal diplomatic correspondence, and the king questions if he can heal. Elisha tells Naaman to bathe in the Jordan river 7 times, but Naaman questions why he can't just heal him at the moment. The slave girl tells him to humble himself, and he obeys Elisha. He is healed, becomes a Yahweh believer, and asks Elisha for Judean dirt to take back with him (mentality that gods are tied to land)
Still small voice? (1 Kings 19:11-12)
Not in powerful wind, not in earthquake, not in fire, but in "a still small voice." Yahweh reaffirming the fact that there are still people who do not worship Baal; more emphasis on the voice of God, with prophets being the key in interpreting and conveying the voice of God.
Imprecatory psalms (cf. Psalm 137:9 with Nahum 3:10)
Psalms that contain the curses or prayers for the Psalmist's enemies (Yet she became an exile; she went into captivity; her infants were dashed in pieces at the head of every street; for her honored men lots were cast, and all her great men were bound in chains)
Sennacherib
Sargon II's son. Sennacherib at the gates and saying ready to destroy 46 of your cities, and you're putting your people at risk of the torture, so please just give up....you think your God is gonna save you? 185,000 troops destroyed by God.
Who is Immanuel? (Isaiah 7:1-17)
See the sheet given by Professor Lewis
Oracles against the nation
Show Yahweh's sovereignty)
Kuntillet Ajrud
Shows syncretistic/non-centralized worship w/ Yahweh & asherah. It reads "I bless you by Yahweh of Samaria and his asherah"
The finest poetry in Nahum
Staccato in Nahum 3:1-3. Staccato poetry for rapid action; doesn't come across well in English.
Prophet as watchman (Hosea 9:8)
The prophet is the watchman of Ephraim with my God; yet a fowler's snare is on all his ways, and hatred in the house of his God.
Who was Gomer?
The prostitute wife of Hosea; Harlot imagery/metaphor for faithless Israel
Shear-Yashub (Isaiah 7:3-6)
The son of Isaiah who was taken with him to prophesy. Means that "a remnant will return." Can be a positive sign of how God faithfully preserves a remnant of his people despite the worst circumstances or a negative sign that the destruction will be so severe that only a small remnant will survive. (might be more likely to be negative when considering the fact that King Ahaz "did not do what was right in the eyes of the LORD his God", and "he even burned his son as an offering." Ahaz takes plans for a Canaanite altar, and has the altar of Yahweh dismantled to be remodeled as a Canaanite altar
God will hide his face (Micah 3:4) (cf. Amos 8:11)
Then they will cry to the Lord, but he will not answer them; he will hide his face from them at that time, because they have made their deeds evil.
Future/idyllic/illustrious Davidic ruler (Isaiah 9 & 11)
There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit.
Cultic prostitution (Hosea 4:13-14)
Therefore your daughters play the *****, and your brides commit adultery. I will not punish your daughters when they play the *****, nor your brides when they commit adultery; for the men themselves go aside with prostitutes and sacrifice with cult prostitutes, and a people without understanding shall come to ruin.
Anti-monarchical (Hosea 8:4)
They made kings, but not through me. They set up princes, but I knew it not. With their silver and gold they made idols for their own destruction.
Ahab's 400 prophets
They were "yes men"; they said that Ahab should go to battle to please him even though God didn't say that his victory would be secured.
Naboth's vineyard (1 Kings 21)
oProperty=land held in stewardship not ownership ("the heritage/inheritance of my fathers." Naboth was saying that he couldn't sell it even if he wanted to; it belonged to his fore-fathers) oThe wielding of power by Jezebel oProphetic stand against injustice and abuse of power by Elijah because Naboth was falsely killed for the vineyard oAn adjustment to the Ahab prophecy (Originals can be modified and revised into a revision of the original)
Isaiah's Call Narrative (Isaiah 6:1-8)
oTalks about the seraphim (have human head, wings, and a bull's body; also known as cherubim) oIsaiah's lips are touched with burning coal from the altar, which may be a purification ceremony to prepare him to speak on behalf of God oIsaiah is very gung-ho, he responds to God by saying "Here I am, send me." o"Who will go for us?"→perhaps the "us" is in reference to the heavenly host and the angels (later it goes to reference the triune God as opposed to a multiplicity of deities)
Elijah as the New Moses
•Both have theophanies on Mount Sinai/Mount Horeb •People had turned to foreign gods (Baal and golden calf) •Elijah parts the Jordan (Moses split the sea) •Both have minister assistant (Elisha/Joshua) •Both seem to have fasted •Both find shelter in a cave/cleft of rock
Elijah's miraculous life (genre of hagiography; miracles as evidence of extra validation of prophetic status)
•Famine/Fed by ravens or angels [1 Kings 17:1-7] •Controls the weather [1 Kings 18:41-45] •Multiplies food of widow woman from Phoenicia [1 Kings 17:8-16] •Raises her dead son to life [1 Kings 17:17-24] •Runs marathon at incredible speeds [1 Kings 18:46] •At the end of his life, he is carried up to heaven in a whirlwind with a chariot of fire and horses of fire [2 Kings 2:11-12]
Syro-Ephraimite War (734-733 BCE)
•In the days of Ahaz, the son of Jotham, son of Uzziah, king of Judah, Rezin the king of Syria and Pekah, the son of Remaliah, the King of Israel (=Ephraim) came up to Jerusalem to wage war against it, but they could not conquer it. The Syro-Ephraimite War against Judah in 734 BC •Southern Kingdom: Azariah (Uzziah)→Jotham→Ahaz→Hezekiah •Northern Kingdom: Pekah assassinated Pekahiah to get on the throne •Why are they going to war? Strength in Numbers: King Rezin (Syria) and King Pekah (Israel) are trying to form a 3-party coalition (with Ahaz's Judah) to go up against the mightiest power of their day, the Assyrian king (Tiglath-Pileser III) 2 Kings 16:5 •What is frustrating Rezin and Pekah's strategy? Judah doesn't want to join. Therefore the solution is to remove Ahaz from this throne and put in a puppet ruler (Tabeel) in his place whom they can control
5 visions (Amos 7-9:10)
•Locusts •Shower of Fire •Plumb line (Israel being measured up by God; not living up to) •Basket of Fruit (Seeing something that sounds like end/so end of Israel) •The Lord beside the altar
