Prophetic Books Lesson 12-13 PDF

ACQUISITION OF NEW KNOWLEDGE PROPHETS AND THEIR VOCATION (Role and Mission) Men called by God to speak His word to the people, interpreting their...

ACQUISITION OF NEW KNOWLEDGE PROPHETS AND THEIR VOCATION (Role and Mission) Men called by God to speak His word to the people, interpreting their present situation in the sight of God Addresses and telling them what He would do Interpret the signs problems of the times in concerning the to them human life and fidelity of Israel to indicates what the covenant. God is saying to us They inform and through those form the signs. consciences of the people. Prophets In Israel, they were called and appointed Remind us of by Yahweh as God’s message. communicators of His will to Israel, particularly They call the reminding them of their people back to covenant relationship God. Speak on with their God, and behalf of God reprimanding them to They receive turn away from their their calling through sins and repent. visions, dreams and audible encounters. In turn, they used a variety of means to deliver the Lord’s message, including oracles, sermons, writings and parables.  The calling of a Prophet: Whenever they spoke to the people, it is indicated that the words they delivered were not the products of their own opinion or reflection. It is always preceded by these words: “ Thus says the Lord” or “Thus says God, the Lord.” The calling of the Prophet follows a pattern: (1) God calls, (2) but the one who is called refuses on account of his hesitation or sense of unworthiness. Then, the Lord (3) reveals his task for the prophet, and (4) pledges his assurance of company and protection of the prophet. Only then, the prophet (5) embraces his vocation and is sent to his mission. Such pattern often characterized the calling of most prophets of Israel 8th century prophets 7th century Prophets Amos Zephaniah spoke of the “dark day of the Lord” wherein Israel and condemned the resurgence of blatant idolatry and Judah will be punished but he concluded his prophecy blasphemy in Judah and fearlessly delivered the message of with a message of hope through the restoration of the doom and judgement. But like the prophets of old, he Davidic kingdom consistently promised for the purification and redemption of the punished people. He relayed to the people the certainty Hosea that Judah shall fall under the hand of strong pagan nation, the Babylonians, but leave a message of hope that Yahweh He warned Israel of her infidelity by worshipping the Baals, will redeem them and gather them again in their homeland. as it was beautifully paralleled with the unfaithfulness of Hosea’s adulterous wife, Gomer, but ended his message with Yahweh’s unconditional love and pardon for the Nahum sinfulness of Israel, as shown by the forgiveness of the He prophesied against the wicked city of Nineveh, and its fall prostitute Gomer. under a mightier Babylonian empire. Such prophecy was seen as divine vengeance against the brutal empire of Assyria. Despite the portrayal of Yahweh as an avenger of sin Isaiah of Jerusalem and wickedness, the prophet still gave Nineveh the reminder condemned the alliance entered by the King of Judah to of Yahweh’s forgiveness and mercy by calling them to the pagan Assyrian king repentance. MIcah Habakkuk In a time when Judah enjoyed prosperity and people He condemned the discord and evil of idolatry prevalent in came to forget God in their abundance, the humble and Judah at that time. Habakkuk questioned Yahweh for the passionate prophet Micah “attacked the rich exploiters of violence that will follow but ended up with his complaints the poor, fraudulent merchants, venal judges, corrupt transformed into trust in God’s deliverance of the righteous. priests and prophets but at the same time prophesied for the survival and restoration of Judah, and finally spoke of a descendant of David who would become the Christos, the Anointed One who will redeem all of Israel and Judah. Late 6th or 5th century Prophets 6th century Prophets Joel Jeremiah When Yahweh’s judgment on Judah was made and locusts attacked and ruined the land, Joel gathered the people explicitly condemned the abuses of idolatry and infidelity of together in an assembly, exhorted them to repent and made Judah. He announced that the tragic consequence of the offering to the Lord. To such humility and sincere sinfulness of Judah is to be exiled in Babylon for 70 years. repentance, Yahweh was stirred to concern for his land and However, He assured Judah that Yahweh will not abandon tool pity on his people them in their place of exile and pledged for the return of the faithful remnant to their homeland in Judah. Malachi Obadiah After their return from exile, Malachi directed his vocation of calling people to repentance form their sinful ways. He He prophesied against Edom but emphasized the survival pointed out the following offenses of the Jews: offering of Mt. Zion. blemished sacrifice to the Lord, and mixed marriages and divorce. He spoke about the day of the Lord wherein it shall Ezekiel be preceded by the coming of the messenger who is considered in Jewish tradition as Elijah but is interpreted as He was deported to Babylon. There, he labored to remind referring to the person of John the Baptist for Christians. his fellowmen not to succumb to paganism in order to preserve the remnants from apostacy, destroy the false hopes of an early return to Jerusalem, comfort the captives and assure them of their restorarion, and emphasize the lessons of personal accountability. Haggai and Zechariah Jonah Famous of his story of being eaten by a large fish and They emerged after the Babylonian exile. They called the brought to Nineveh, Jonah spoke the word of Yahweh and people to rebuild the temple but they became warned Nineveh to repent; otherwise, Yahweh will destroy preoccupied with their own concerns and affairs. Hence, the city in forty days. From their kings to the lowly person, the emphasis of the prophets’ message focused on fulfilling Nineveh repented – to the great anger of Jonah who even and prioritizing the duties towards Yahweh rather than be challenged the Lord to take his own life rather than live and engrossed with the promises of material comfort and see Nineveh unpunished for all its brutality, cruelty in war and reward. idolatry.  Major Themes of the Old Testament Prophecy The holiness and greatness of God Justice – The holiness  One of the perennial temptations for the Israelite Oppression of and the Poor and was idolatry greatness of the God  Dismayed by this behaviour, the prophets dispossessed. continually stress the holiness, the greatness and uniqueness of God.  Often the prophets interpret tragedies that befell Israel as punishment for their infidelity to the Trust and Messianism covenant. Fidelity  Because of their innate sense of holiness in God, the prophets speak against formalism in worship Justice – Oppression of the Poor and the dispossessed.  Under kings David and Solomon, Israel became wealthy and powerful nation.  With the division of the kingdom, the prophets of the north and the south have the same message; directed against the injustices that seem to be flourishing in the society. Trust and Fidelity  The prophets would always call the people to have trust in God, for God is always faithful to his promises. Even when the people do not respond to God, He freely gives a total love and fidelity not because of any legal obligation but out of complete goodness and generosity.  These two themes of justice and the love and fidelity that God asks of us is best summarized in the words of the prophet Micah: “ …And what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and walk humbly with your God.” “To do justice” to act justly and with sincerity and integrity in our own lives, to help eradicate injustice in all its forms, which injures the poor and powerless. “To love kindness” to reach out to others, to spend ourselves in the service of others, to “do” our faith. “To walk humbly with your God” to recognize God, who is always with us, to accept in our hearts that this God loves us, to trust our God and to live humbly in his faith and trust.  Messianism  The coming of the Messiah was a deep and constant theme of the prophets. These prophesies are of great importance because of our Christian faith that Jesus is the promised Messiah of God. Conclusion The life of prophet is a testimony of the truth of the divine will. Whether the message was one of consolation or condemnation, the prophets, by divine assistance, fearlessly communicated the word, even if it was against their kings and people. Because of such vocation, the prophets risked and offered their lives to God. Being prophetic then is to give up one’s life and wishes in order to have the courage to speak the word of the Lord. It is a commitment to stand for a certain conviction, uncompromised by selfish desires and personal agenda – truly a life worthy of example and admiration.