08 Book of The 12 Prophets - Word

Tim Mackie 1
Western Seminary - BLS 502

Book of the 12 Notes ©
The Book of the Twelve Prophets – Literary Design and Main Themes
The Unity of the Book of the Twelve: One Scroll with 12 parts
Ancient sources provide evidence that the Book of the Twelve was not only transmitted on a single scroll, but
considered to be a single book, not twelve. Jesus ben Sirach, Septuagint, Qumran, Josephus, 4 Ezra 14, Baba
Bathra 13b-15a and Jerome all attest to the common transmission of the writings. — James Nogalski, “The
Redactional Shaping of Nahum 1 for the Book of the Twelve,” 193.
The classical Jewish tradition agrees with the Church fathers that the Twelve has been one book since ancient times. — Dale
Allan Schneider, “The Unity of the Book of the Twelve,” 4.
In their current form, these twelve diverse prophecies have been designed to be read together as a single book,
retelling the story of Israel’s covenant failure and future hope beyond the exile. Together, they say more than any
single prophet could have done alone. — Paul R. House, The Unity of the Twelve, 108.
The ancient manuscript remains of the Minor Prophets and the ancient references to them in extrabiblical
literature are nearly unanimous in their attestation of the transmission of these twelve prophetical writings as a
single compendious volume, the Book of the Twelve Prophets. — Barry Alan Jones, The Formation of the book
of the Twelve: A Study in Text and Canon, 1.
The Literary Unity of the Scroll of Twelve

A glance at the superscriptions will show there has been an intentional effort to order these prophetic collections
according to the chronological scheme found in Isaiah 1:1, Jeremiah 1:1-3, and Ezekiel 1:1-3, which are all hyperlinked
to the chronology of 1-2 Kings.
- The gray superscriptions are linked by the royal chronology also found in Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel.
- The green superscriptions are linked by the post-exilic chronology found in Ezra-Nehemiah.
Hosea 1:1 The word of the Lord which came to Hosea the son of Beeri, during the days of Uzziah,
Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and during the days of Jeroboam the son of
Joash, king of Israel.
Joel 1:1 The word of the Lord that came to Joel, the son of Pethuel
Amos 1:1 The words of Amos, who was among the sheepherders from Tekoa, which he envisioned in
visions concerning Israel in the days of Uzziah king of Judah, and in the days of
Jeroboam son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the earthquake.
Obadiah 1 The vision of Obadiah.
Jonah 1:1 The word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai saying,
Micah 1:1 The word of the Lord which came to Micah of Moresheth in the days of Jotham, Ahaz and
Hezekiah, kings of Judah, which he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem.
Nahum 1:1 The oracle of Nineveh. The book of the vision of Nahum the Elkoshite.
Habakkuk The oracle which Habakkuk the prophet saw.
1:1
Zephaniah The word of the Lord which came to Zephaniah son of Cushi, son of Gedaliah, son of
1:1 Amariah, son of Hezekiah, in the days of Josiah son of Amon, king of Judah:
Haggai 1:1 In the second year of Darius the king, on the first day of the sixth month, the word of the Lord
came by the prophet Haggai to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to
Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, saying,
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Zechariah In the eighth month of the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came to Zechariah the
1:1 prophet, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo saying,
Malachi The oracle of the word of the Lord to Israel through Malachi.
1:1
Symmetrical hyperlinks around the Prophets and the Scroll of the Twelve
Adapted from James Nogalski, “Intertextuality and the Twelve.”
Beginning of Conclusion of
the Prophets the Prophets
Beginning of Beginning of
the 1st book in the first book
the latter in Scroll of the
Prophets Twelve
Beginning Final chapters
chapters of the of the last
1st book of the book of the
Latter Latter
prophets prophets
2nd chapter of 2nd to last
the 1st book of chapter of the
the Twelve 2nd to last
book of the
Twelve
Hosea 2:25 Zech 13:9
I will say… I will say,
“you are my “this is my
people.” and people” and
they will say they will say,
“my God!” “Yahweh, my
God!”
Isaiah 1-2 Zech 14 + Mal
Pilgrimage of 1:11:
the nations to Pilgrimage of
the New the nations to
Jerusalem the New
Jeruaslem
Isaiah 1:1 Hosea 1:1
The vision of The word of
Isaiah…durin Yahweh to
g the days of Hosea… in
Uzziah, the days of
Jotham, Ahaz, Uzziah,
Hezekiah, Jotham, Ahaz,
kings of Judah Hezekiah
kings of
Judah…
Joshua 1:7 Malachi 3:22-
Do all the 24
Torah of Remember the
Moses my Torah of
servant… Moses my
servant.
Deuteronomy 34:10-12 Psalm 1

No prophet like Moses has Blessed is the one who
ever arisen… meditates on Torah day and
Deut 18:15 night
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Joshua 1:8 I’m going to
Meditate on send the
Torah day and prophet Elijah
night
Main Themes of Each of the Twelve Prophets

Pre-Exile:
Hosea Israel has broken their covenant, which will result in destruction, exile, followed by restoration.
Joel The Day of Yahweh is coming on Israel and all nations
Amos Judgment is coming on Israel and the Nations, but a remnant will be spared in the messianic
age
Obadiah Yahweh’s kingdom will be established over Edom (= all nations)
Jonah An exposé on Israel’s religious hypocrisy, lack of compassion and racism toward the nations
Micah Judgment on Israel’s apostasy, juxtaposed with Hope for Yahweh’s kingdom and the Messiah
Exile on the Horizon:

Nahum Assyria (= Nineveh) will be judged for arrogance and violence
Habakkuk Babylon will be judged for arrogance and violence
Zephaniah Israel and all nations will be judged for idolatry, leading to restoration after judgment
Post-Exile:
Haggai Restoration of the 2nd temple is a sign of the future messianic age.
Zechariah The restored 2nd temple community must repent to make way for the messianic kingdom.
Malachi Post-exilic Israel is still rebellious and must repent before the future Day of Yahweh.
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Literary Design and Themes in Hosea
Literary Design
1:1 Hyper-linked superscription
1–3 Hosea’s Symbolic Marriage to an adulterous woman

1 Narrative: Hosea’s marriage and children: Judgment > Hope
2 Poetry: Yahweh and Israel’s marriage: Judgment > Hope
3 Narrative: Hosea’s restored marriage and Israel’s future hope
4–11 Poems of accusation and warning and future hope

4-10 Accusation and warning of judgment
11 Future restoration and hope: Israel = Yahweh’s child
12-14 Poems of accusation and warning and future hope

12-13 Accusations of unfaithfulness, past and present
14 Future restoration and hope: Israel = Yahweh’s vine
14:9 Author’s addendum to the reader
Historical Context:
– Lived during in the northern kingdom during the reigns of Jeroboam II and Uzziah-Hezekiah
(roughly 760-700). He watched the flurry of bad Israelite kings that led up to the Assyrian
invasion in 722 B.C. and resulted in the destruction and exile of the northern tribes. Read 2
Kings 14-17 for the context of Hosea’s day.
– There are multiple points where it’s clear that Hosea’s message for the northern kingdom has
been adapted by a Jerusalemite author who shaped the collection for a later audience
• 1:1: Mostly kings of Judah mentioned, then northern Israelite kings
• 3:5: A unified Israel seeking David their future king
• 4:15: Northern Israel’s idolatry becomes a warning for southern Judah
• 5:5b: Judah is added to the list of northern Israelites who stumble in idolatry
• 6:11: Judah added to a list of northern Israelite towns facing judgment for idolatry and
violence
• 10:11; 12:1; 12:3: Judah is included in the descriptions of the apostasy of the northern tribes
The Message of Hosea

1. Chs. 1-3 Hosea’s broken marriage and children are metaphors for the broken covenant between
Israel and Yahweh
 Each chapter retells the story of the marriage as one of betrayal, leading to judgment,
followed by future restoration.
 This establishes the fundamental metaphor of Idolatry as adultery.
Hosea 1:2-2:3 Hosea 2:4-25 Hosea 3:1-5

Prose Narrative + Poetry Poetry Prose Narrative
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Broken 1:2-9: 2:1-13 3:1-3
covenant Marriage > adultery (‫)זנה‬ Accuse the adulteress (‫[ )זנה‬2:4] Marry an adulteress
children born of a broken covenant Yahweh is not “her husband” (‫)איש‬ pay off her debts and remarry
- Jezreel (= God sows seed) led into wilderness for judgment her
- Lo-ruhama (= no compassion) agriculture destroyed many days before
- Lo-ammi (= not my people) wild animals bring destruction consummation
Renewed 1:10-11 2:14-23 3:4-5

Covenant New growth of the people led into wilderness for new covenant many days without kings,
and new marriage to Yahweh “my husband” (‫)איש‬ temple, or priests
Resto- unified Israel with one leader peace with wild animals remnant will “repent” and
ration agriculture restored seek Yahweh
children born of the new covenant new David over Israel
- Jezreel - God will sow new seed - Jezreel: God will sow new seed “in the last days”
- Lo-ruhama - God will again show - Lo-ruhama: God will show compassion
compassion - Lo-ammi: God will enter a new covenant
- Lo-ammi - God will create a new
covenant people
 The conclusion in 3:4-5 casts a forward glance:

o Israel will be destroyed “for many days” without a land or leaders
o “Afterward” the Israelites will return and seek the Lord…and come trembling to
the Lord and his goodness in the last days. How will Israel’s sin and rebellion be
dealt with? This theme will be picked up in chs. 11 and 14.
o “and they will seek David their king” The theme of the future messianic king will
be picked up in Amos 9, Micah 5, and Zechariah.
2. Chs. 4-10 contain poems of accusation and warning that develop the themes of Chs. 1-3:
 Idolatry as Adultery/Prostitution with other gods: 4:10-15; 5:3-4; 9:1-2
o Hosea specifically highlights the altars to other gods in Samaria, Gilgal and
Bethel (“house of God” which he sarcastically calls Beth-aven “house of
wickedness”): 4:15-17; 8:5-6; 10:5; 10:15
 Israel lacks any “knowledge” and “understanding” of Yahweh (Hebrew yada‘ = personal,
relational knowledge): 4:1, 6, 11, 14, 5:4; 8:2
o Hosea highlights social injustice (4:1-2; 8:1-3, 12; 9:15) and the moral corruption
of Israel’s leaders (4:5-9; 6:8-10; 7:1-4) as clear evidence that Israel doesn’t
“know” Yahweh.
 Israel has turned to Egypt and Assyria for political aid : these alliances will lead to
destruction: 7:11, 8:7–14; 11:5–11; 11:12–12:1
 5:14-6:3: If Israel “repents” (Heb. shuv) to Yahweh, it will result in healing and
“resurrection” life. Hosea here adopts poetic “rescue” motifs from the Psalms and applies
them to Israel’s future hope on the other side of exile.
3. Chs. 12-13 contain a series of allusions to key events in Israel’s story from Genesis – Samuel to
highlight Israel’s constant unfaithfulness:
 12:2-4: Jacob’s deceitfulness and treachery; 12:11-12: God’s justice on Jacob
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 12:9 and 13:4-6: The exodus from Egypt and Israel’s rebellion in the wilderness
(Numbers 12-20)
 13:10-12: Israel’s choice of a faithless king Saul (1Samuel 8)
4. There are three passages of hope strategically located at the middle and conclusion of each
section. These are all connected to the concluding passage in 3:4-5 and explore the tension
between Israel’s rebellion and God’s faithfulness.
 5:14-6:3:
 11:1-11
 14:1-8
5. 14:9 stands outside the poem of 14:1-8, and provides a wisdom reflection on the entire book of
Hosea for later generations:
 The reflection is inspired by Moses’ invitation to see Israel’s history as a
demonstration of Yahweh’s character: Deuteronomy 32:4
Deuteronomy 32:4 Hosea 14:10
The rock, his work is whole, Who is wise (‫?)מי חכם‬

for all his ways (‫ )דרכיו‬are justice Then let him comprehend (‫ )בין‬these things (‫;)אלה‬
a God of faithfulness and not unjust (‫)עול‬ insightful, to understand them?
righteous (‫ )צדיק‬and upright (‫ )ישר‬is he For the ways (‫ )דרכי‬of Yahweh are upright (‫)ישר‬,
and the righteous (‫ )צדיק‬walk in them,
and rebels stumble in them.
See also Psalm 107:42-43
Let the upright (‫ )ישרים‬see, and rejoice,
and all the unjust (‫ )עולה‬shut their mouth.
Who is wise (‫)מי חכם‬, then let him keep these things (‫;)אלה‬
let him ponder (‫ )בין‬Yahweh’s acts of covenant loyalty
See also Jeremiah 9:11
Who is wise (‫?)מי חכם‬
Then let him comprehend (‫ )בין‬this,
and what the mouth of Yahweh has said to him,
then let him proclaim:
“Why is the land destroyed?
Ruined like the wilderness,
no one passes through?”
a. “This concluding line significantly affects the interpretation of the entire book of Hosea.
Originally Hosea prophesied only against the northern kingdom, yet the final shape of the
book shows many indications that his words were also (later?) applied to the southern
kingdom. The opening superscription in Hosea 1:1 even listed the kings of Judah before
those of Israel. These leads to the conclusion that a collection of oracles which originally
applied to the northern kingdom was generalized so that it became an address to the
southern kingdom of Judah as well. In continuity with this compositional tendency, this
proverb (Hosea 14:9) has the effect of relativizing even further the original particularity
of the address. The reader is offered a timeless wisdom axiom that transcends the national
identities of pre-exilic Israel and Judah. The teachings of the Hosea scroll are thus
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extended to individuals and now apply to the righteous and rebellious of every generation
who venture upon the paths of Yahweh.” — Gerald Sheppard, Wisdom as a
Hermeneutical Construct.
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Literary Design and Themes in Joel
Literary Design
1:1 Superscription
Part I: 1:2-2:17 Joel makes two announcements of the day of Yahweh and calls Israel to repent
#1 1:2-7 Announcement of Yahweh’s past judgment on Judah: Locust plague
1:8-14 Call to repentance
1:15-20 The people lament and repent
#2 2:1-11 Announcement of Yahweh’s imminent judgment on Jerusalem

2:12-17a Call to repentance
2:17b The priests lament and repent
Hinge: 2:18-27 God accepts the repentance of the faithful and reverses judgment into restoration
Hinge: 2:18-19: God forgives his people
A 2:20-21: God will repel the locust/northerner into the sea
•
B • 2:22-26: Restoration and new abundance from the devastated land
C 2:27: God will take up new residence among his people
•
Part II: 2:28-3:21 Israel’s past judgment, repentance, and salvation in chs. 1-2 become an image
of how God’s people are to respond in the future day of Yahweh.
C 2:28-32 “It will come about after all this”: the outpouring of God’s Spirit on the faithful
’ who repent on the day of Yahweh in Jerusalem
A 3:1-16 “In those days and at that time”…God’s will bring justice on the nations that have
’ ravaged and oppressed Judah
B 3:18-21 “It will come about in that day”: Devastated Jerusalem will become a source of
’ abundance and new creation for the nations.
Historical Context
– Intentionally Unclear: There are references to the Jerusalem temple (1:9, 13; 2:17), but 3:1–3
refers to the exile as though it was in the past. 3:6 mentions the Greeks as a major power, which
was not a reality until the 4th century B.C. There is no mention of Israelite kings, but rather
priests and elders. This leadership structure looks similar to the Jewish community that returned
from Babylonian exile and lived in Jerusalem under Persian rule (see Ezra-Nehemiah).
– The book’s meaning does not seem to be tied to any particular historical context, but rather to its
literary and theological context in the Scroll of the Twelve, and within the TaNaK.
The Message and Themes of Joel

1. Part I (Chs. 1-2): In the past Joel announced the day of Yahweh that took the form of a
devastating locust plague, and he call Israel to repent.
a. In chs. 1-2 (1:2-7 and 2:1-11) Joel announces the arrival of the “day of the Lord” (1:15
and 2:1) and uses a kaleidoscope of images to describe it.
i. A locust plague and/or an invading army?
• 1:4 and 2:25 explicitly mention a locust plague that has already happened
• 1:5-7 calls the locusts a “nation” (‫ )גוי‬that is “mighty” (‫ )עצום‬and on a
destructive rampage, with the teeth of a lion (‫לביא‬/‫)אריה‬.
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• 2:2 mentions a “great and mighty people” (‫ )עם…עצום‬that is yet to come, but
then goes on to describe them as “like horses/cavalry/chariots/an army” (2:3-
11).
• 2:1-11 describes the locust plague with cosmic language drawn from other
prophetic descriptions of the evil nations allied against God; except this time
it’s “Yahweh’s army” (2:2, 11): see Isaiah 13.
b. Following the trail of the locust army. This motif of divine judgment ranges all over the
TaNaK, combining texts and stories and enemies from the entire Bible. This example
shows Joel as an early biblical theologian.
i. A locust swarm was one of the plagues of divine justice on Egypt (see Exodus
10:1-19), and this account influenced specific passages in Joel
Plague of Locusts in Exodus 10 Locusts in Joel 1
Exodus 10:4-5 1:4

the locust (‫ )ארבה‬comes on Egypt, eating (‫ )אכל‬the remainder the 4 kinds of locusts (‫ )ארבה‬have eaten (‫ )אכל‬the remainder
(‫)יתר‬ (‫)יתר‬
2:25
Yahweh will restore the what the 4 kinds of locusts have
eaten (‫)אכל‬
Exod 10:14 2:2

the locust are so heavy on Egypt, there has been nothing like “a people (‫ )עם‬so great and numerous (‫ ”)עצום‬that there has
it (‫ )לא…כמהו‬before, and after (‫ )ואחריו‬there will never be been none like it (‫)לא…כמהו‬, and after (‫ )ואחריו‬there will
never be
Exodus 10:6 2:9

“[the locusts] will fill your houses and the houses of your “they rush about the city, run over walls, into houses they
servants, and the houses of all of Egypt” climb”
ii. In Judges 6 (the Gideon story), the Midianite and Amalekite armies are depicted
as locusts in language drawn from the covenant curse of Deuteronomy 28:38. Joel
recognized this connection, and drew upon both portraits for his own locust army.
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Deuteronomy 28:38 Joel
“You will bring out much seed (‫ )זרע‬of the field, but you
will gather little because the locust (‫ )ארבה‬will reduce it.”
1:4 “the locust (‫…)גזם‬the locust (‫…)ארבה‬the locust (‫…)ילק‬
and the locust (‫ )חסיל‬have eaten what remains.
Judges 6:3-5
“And it came about that when Israel sowed seed (‫)זרע‬, that 1:6 “for a nation (‫ )גוי‬has come up against (‫ )עלה על‬my land
Midian and Amalek and the sons of the East would come up (‫)ארצי‬, mighty and without number (‫)אין מספר‬
against it (‫)עלה על‬. And they camped against them and
destroyed the produce of the land… for they and their flocks
came up and their tents; they would come like locusts in
great amounts (‫)כדי ארבה לרב‬, they and their camels without
number (‫)אין מספר‬
Judge 7:12
And Midian and Amalek and all the sons of the East were
falling upon the valley like locusts in great amounts ( ‫כארבה‬
‫)לרב‬, they and their camels without number (‫)אין מספר‬, like
the sand on the shore of the sea in great amounts.
iii. Joel has also drawn upon many other texts in the prophets that portray invading
imperial armies as locusts
1. Assyria in Nahum
Nahum 2-3 Joel
3:2-3 2:4-6
[2] The noise of the rattling wheel, [4] Like the appearance of horses is their appearance,
galloping horsemen (‫)פרש‬, chariot (‫ )מרכבה‬rushing (‫)רקד‬ like horsemen (‫)פרש‬, so they run
[5] like the sound of chariots (‫)מרכבה‬,
[3] Horsemen going up, they rush (‫ )רקד‬on the hills
flame (‫ )להב‬of sword, gleam of spear, like the sound of flame (‫ )להב‬of fire,
consuming stubble
2:11 “every face gathers pale (‫”)קבצו פארור‬ [6] every face gathers pale (‫)קבצו פארור‬
3:15-17
[15] There fire will consume you,
The sword will cut you down;
It will consume you as the locust (‫)ילק‬. 2:25
Multiply yourself like the locust (‫)ילק‬, Then I will restore for you for the years
Multiply yourself like the locust (‫)ארבה‬. That the locust (‫ )ארבה‬has eaten,
[16] You have increased (‫ )רבה‬your traders more than the The locust (‫)ילק‬, the locust (‫ )חסיל‬and the locust (‫)גזם‬,
stars of heaven— My great army which I sent among you
The locust (‫ )ילק‬strips and flies away.
[17] Your guards are like the locust (‫)ארבה‬
Your marshals are like hordes of grasshoppers (‫)גבי‬
2.
3. Assyria in Amos 6-7

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Amos 6:14-7:1 Joel
“For behold, I am about to raise up against you, house of 1:4 “the mowing locust (‫…)גזם‬the locust (‫…)ארבה‬the
Israel, a nation (‫)גוי‬,” says Yahweh the God of armies, “and locust (‫ …)ילק‬and the locust (‫ )חסיל‬have eaten what
they will oppress you…” remains.
Thus lord Yahweh showed me, and behold, he was
forming a locust swarm (‫ )גבי‬at the beginning of the rise of 1:6 “for a nation (‫ )גוי‬has come up against (‫ )עלה על‬my land
the late growth, and behold, after the late growth of the (‫)ארצי‬, mighty and without number (‫)אין מספר‬
mowing (‫ )גזי‬of the king.”
4. Persia in Jeremiah 51:11, 27

Jeremiah 51:27-28 Joel
Lift up a signal in the land, 2:1
Blow a trumpet (‫ )תקעו שופר‬among the nations (‫!)בגוים‬ Blow a trumpet (‫ )תקעו שופר‬in Zion
Consecrate the nations (‫ )קדשו צום‬against her, let all the inhabitants of the land quake (‫)רגז‬
Summon against her the kingdoms of Ararat, Minni 2:15
and Ashkenaz; Appoint a marshal against her, Blow a trumpet (‫ )תקעו שופר‬in Zion
Bring up the horses like bristly locusts (‫)ילק‬. consecrate a fast (‫)קדשו צום‬
Consecrate the nations against her,
The kings of the Medes… 4:9
let the land quake (‫…)רעש‬ Proclaim this among the nations (‫)בגוים‬,
Consecrate (‫ )קדשו‬a war
iv. Joel has also merged the locust army with the “enemy from the north” in the
prophets as well as the Gog figure in Ezekiel 38-39
Babylon in Jeremiah Joel 2:2
1:14-15 “from the north calamity will open up…kings of A day of darkness and gloom,
the north” A day of clouds and thick darkness.
4:6 “look, I am bringing calamity from the north” As the dawn is spread over the mountains,
5:15 “look, I am bringing a nation from the north against there is a great and mighty people (‫;)עם רב‬
you” There has never been anything like it,
6:22 “look, a people comes from the land of the north, a
great nation is aroused…”
Joel 2:20
Gog in Ezekiel And the northerner I will remove from you,
and I will drive him to a dry and desolate land,
38:6 “[Gog]… from the remote parts of the north and all
his face to the eastern sea,
his armies, many peoples (‫”)עמים רבים‬ and his rear to the western sea,
38:15 “and you will come from your place, from the and his stench will go up, and his stink will rise
remote parts of the north, you and many peoples ( ‫עמים‬
‫)רבים‬, riders of horses (‫…)רכב סוסים‬a great army (‫)חיל רב‬ 2:25
Then I will restore for you for the years
That the locust has eaten,
The locust, the locust and the locust,
My great army (‫ )חיל גדול‬which I sent among you
c. Joel does not name any of Israel’s sins or rebellion that warrant the divine judgment
(unique among all the prophetic books): This is key: The book of Joel presumes the
accusations against Israel and Judah from the book of Hosea.
d. Joel twice calls all Israel to repent: 1:13-14 and 2:12-17.

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i. He highlights the priests (1:9, 13-14; 2:15, 17) as the leaders of repentance (along
with the elders: 1:2, 14; 2:16) and the temple as the center of Israel’s life.
ii. Repentance is to be genuine and not a show (2:12-13), and is meant not to coerce
God to do something he doesn’t want, but trusting God’s character revealed in
Exodus 34:6-7: he loves to show mercy.
e. 2:18-27 is a hinge in Part 1 of the book: Israel responds to Joel’s call to repent and God
promises restoration, reversing every element of judgment.
 2:18: “And God became jealous for his land, and took pity on his people”
i. God will defeat the devastating “enemy from the North” (2:20)
ii. God will restore the abundance of the ruined land (2:22-26)
iii. God will restore his presence among his people in Jerusalem (2:27)
2. Part 2 (2:28-3:21): makes this past experience of judgment > repentance > salvation a paradigm
for the faithful, offering hope for the future. Joel saw in these past events an image of the day of
Yahweh yet to come.
Each paragraph picks up images from chs. 1-2 and extends them into the future in light of other
key prophetic passages.
a. 2:28-32: God’s presence in Zion will take the form of his Spirit upon the faithful and the
repentant who call upon Yahweh (as Joel and the people did in 1:19 and 2:17).
 The coming of God’s Spirit on all his people is similar in effect to Ezekiel’s promise
of a new heart by God’s Spirit (Ezek 36:23-28) and Jeremiah’s hope of the
transformed heart (Jer 31:31-34).
b. Literary Design of 3:1-21: This chapters consists of four literary units that have been
carefully interwoven and designed. The opening unit of 3:1-3 introduces three distinct
motifs that are then explored in reverse order through the rest of the chapter [Nogalski,
Hosea-Jonah, 243]
A 3:1 Yahweh will restore the fortunes (‫ )אשיב שבות‬of Judah and Jerusalem
B 3:2 All nations face divine justice in the valley of Jehoshaphat
C 3:3 The nations punished for selling (‫ )מכר‬God’s people into slavery
C’ 3:4-8 Nations punished for selling (‫ )מכר‬God’s people into slavery
B’ 3:9-17 All nations face divine justice in the valley of Jehoshaphat
A’ 3:18-21 Restoration and repopulation (‫ )תשב‬of Judah and Jerusalem
c. 3:1-17: God will defend Jerusalem from oppressive enemy nations who attacked her like
the locust (the day of Yahweh against enemy nations in 3:14-15 picks up the imagery
from 2:1-2, 10-11).
 The image of God’s final justice on the nations who oppress his people is linked to the
Gog oracles in Ezekiel 38-39, the defeat of Babylon in Jeremiah 50-51, and the final
battle scenes in Zechariah 14.
Tim Mackie 13
c. 3:18-21: God will restore abundance, and the Jerusalem temple will become a source of
new creation to all the nations (the restoration imagery in 3:18 pick up language from
2:19, 24).
 The image of a river coming out of the temple to renew all creation is linked to
Ezekiel 47 and Zechariah 14:8-9.
d. Intertextual links in Joel 3:1-21

i. 3:2, 12 refer to the “Valley of Jehoshaphat,” which is also called “Valley of the
Decision” in 3:14
1. Valley of Jehoshaphat: many verbal links to the battle of Jehoshaphat with
the nations in 2 Chronicles 20
2. Valley of Decision/Threshing (‫)עמק חרוץ‬:
a. The word ‫ חרוץ‬is capable of dual meaning as a homonym: (1) A
noun meaning “threshing blade” (see Isaiah 28:27; Amos 1:3), (2)
A passive participle meaning “what is decided” (see Isaiah 10:22-
23). Both meanings are played upon in this poem and its
intertextual links.
b. the root ‫ חרץ‬is a crucial link in Isaiah’s depiction of the vindication
of Jerusalem in the judgment of all nations: see Isaiah 10:22-23
(‫ כט כלה ונצרצה יהוה עשה בקרב כל הארץ‬:‫)כליון חרוץ שוטף צדקה‬
ii. 3:14-15 are loaded with phrases from Isaiah 13

1. 3:14a: “hordes, hordes” (‫➞ )המונים‬Isa 13:4
2. 3:14b “for the day of Yahweh is near” ➞Isa 13:6
3. 3:15: Sun, moon, stars grow dark ➞Isa 13:10
iii. 3:16, 18 are verbatim links to the beginning and ending of Amos
1. 3:16 = Amos 1:2
2. 3:18 = Amos 9:13
Tim Mackie 14
Literary Design and Themes in Amos
Literary Design
Part 1 1–2 God’s justice on the nations
1:1 Superscription
1:2 Thematic Summary
1:3-2:16 Oracles against the nations, Judah, and Israel
Part 2 3–6 3 Addresses + 2 Woes

3:1-15 “Hear this word…”
4:1-12 “Hear this word…” + [4:13 Creator hymn #1]
5:1-17 “Hear this word…” + [5:8-9 Creator hymn #2]
5:18-27 “Woe!”
6:1-14 “Woe!”
Part 3 7–9 5 Visions + 1 Narrative about the Prophet-like-Moses

7:1-3 Vision #1 | 7:4-6 Vision #2 | 7:7-9 Vision #3
7:10-17 Narrative
8:1-3 Vision #4
8:4-14 Summary
9:1-4 Vision #5
[9:5-6 Creator hymn #3]
Part 4 9:7–15 Final Judgment & Future restoration:

9:7-10 The surviving remnant
9:11-15 The messianic kingdom over the nations
Historical Context
– Amos is the earliest prophet of the 15 named prophets in the OT books.
– The kings mentioned in 1:1 (Jeroboam II and Uzziah) reigned from the 780s-740s B.C., He
likely operated in the 760s (a few decades before Hosea), and while he was from a town in Judah
(Tekoa, south of Bethlehem), but ventured up north to deliver his message up in Bethel of the
Northern kingdom (see 7:10-17).
– Jeroboam II’s reign (cs. 786-746) was the peak of Northern Israel’s wealth, power, and
prosperity (see 3:12-15; 4:1; see 2 Kings 14:23-29). It was a times of great wealth, violence, and
moral corruption in Israel. see 2 Kings 14–16 for the general context.
– In Amos 1:1 and 7:14, Amos identifies himself as a sycamore-fig farmer and a sheep and cattle
breeder. Amos’ life experience in the hills of Judah come to expression in his poetry, especially
about animals: Amos 2:13; 3:3–6, 12; 5:19 6:12; 9:9
Main Themes in Amos

1. Chs. 1-2: Yahweh’s justice is coming on all nations around Israel: Syria, Philistia, Tyre, Edom,
Ammon, Moab all form a perfect circle around … Judah and Israel!
 Note that Israel’s judgment is three-times longer than any other nation. Why?
2. Israel’s special covenant status before God, means they are extra culpable for their sins: 3:2f
Tim Mackie 15
3. Amos’ accusations against Israel:
 Social injustice resulting in neglect and oppression of the poor: 2:6-8; 4:1-3; 5:7-13; 5:21-
26; 8:3-6
 Apathy due to affluence: 6:1-7
 Worship of other gods: 3:14-15; 4:4-5; 5:21-27
 Rejecting the call of the prophets: 2:10-12; 3:7-8; 7:10-17
4. Amos insists that true worship of God involves the maintenance of “justice” (Hebrew mishpat,
see 5:7, 15, 24; 6:12) according to “righteousness” (Hebrew tsedeqah, see 2:6; 5:7, 12, 24;
6:12): see 5:21-24 for the famous expression of this theme.
5. Yahweh’s justice will bring “the day of the Lord” (5:18-20).

a. God has already brought the curses of the covenant upon Israel, but no one has paid
attention, or turned back to Yahweh (4:6-12)
b. God’s power and justice as creator compel him to judge Israel’s sin: the “hymns” of 4:13,
5:8-9, 9:5-6 all make this theological point.
c. God will bring a foreign nation to conquer Israel (3:11, 14-15; 4:2), to decimate and
destroy (2:13-16; 5:1-3) and the Israel into exile (5:5, 27, 6:1–7, 14; 7:10–17).
d. The specific nations is never mentioned, though the narrative of 2 Kings 17 makes it
clear: Assyria.
6. Amos is depicted as a “prophet-servant” like the figures of Moses, Jeremiah, and David
a. He’s depicted as a Jeremiah/Moses figure that has been included within God’s special
council
Amos 3:6-7 Jeremiah 23:18
If a trumpet is blown in a city “But who has stood in the council (‫ )סוד‬of the Lord,
will not the people tremble? That he should see and hear His word?
If a calamity occurs in a city Who has given heed to His word and listened?
has not the Lord done it?
Surely the Lord God does nothing
Unless He reveals His secret counsel (‫)סוד‬
To His servants the prophets.
Both of these texts are developing the image of Moses on top of Mt. Sinai, included in Yahweh’s deliberations
about idolatrous Israel who are below making the Golden Calf (see Exodus 32-34)
b. He intercedes for rebellious Israel as Moses did after the Golden Calf episode
Amos Moses in Exodus 32-34
7:2 “O Yahweh, forgive please!” (‫ )סלח נא‬+ 7:5 “O Exodus 34:9, Moses said to Yahweh, “If please (‫ )נא‬I have
Yahweh, cease please! (‫“➞ )חדל נא‬and Yahweh relented found grace in your eyes O Lord, please (‫ )נא‬let my Lord
(‫ )נחם‬concerning this” (7:3, 6) come in our midst, for this is a people of hard neck. But
forgive (‫ )סלח‬our iniquities and our sins.”
Exodus 32:14 “So Yahweh relented (‫ )נחם‬about the
calamity he said he would do to his people”
Tim Mackie 16
c. Amos speaks of the future of the house of David, just as the prophetic hope was revealed
to David himself.
Amos
Amos 7:14-15 2 Samuel 7:8

Then Amos replied to Amaziah, “I am not a prophet, “Now therefore, thus you shall say to my servant David,
nor am I the son of a prophet; for I am a herdsman and ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts,
a grower of sycamore figs.
But the Lord took me from following the flock and the “I took you from the pasture, from following the flock,
Lord said to me, ‘Go prophesy to my people Israel.’ to be ruler over my people Israel.
Amos 9:11 2 Samuel 7:19, 25

“In that day I will raise up the fallen tent of David, O Lord God, for You have spoken also of the house of
And wall up its breaches; Your servant concerning the distant future.
I will also raise up its ruins
And rebuild it as in the days of old “Now therefore, O Lord God, the word that You have
spoken concerning Your servant and his house,
confirm it forever, and do as You have spoken,
7. Amos holds out hope that despite God’s total judgment on Israel (9:7-10), there is still hope for
his covenant promises (9:11-15)
a. 9:11-12: The messianic kingdom will include all nations: (“Edom” ‫אְֶדֹם‬is a
wordplay/image on “humanity” ‘adam ‫ ;אָ דָ ם‬see the Septuagint translation and Acts
15:16).
Amos 9:11-12 Septuagint Amos 9:11-12 Acts 15:16-17

In that day In that day After these things I will return
I will raise up the tent of David I will raise up the tent of David and I will rebuild the tent of David
which had fallen which had fallen which had fallen
and I will rebuild its cracked parts And I will rebuild its fallen parts and I will rebuild its torn down parts
and its torn down parts I will raise And its torn down parts I will
up raise up
and I will rebuild it And I will rebuild it and I will restore it
just as in days of the past just as in days of the past
in order that they might possess the in order that the remnant of in order that the remnant of humanity
remnant of Edom humanity may seek may seek the Lord
[‫]למען יירשו את שארית אדום‬
and all the nations whom my and all the nations upon whom my and all the nations upon whom my
name is called upon them name is called upon them name is called upon them
says Yahweh who does these things says the Lord who does these says the Lord who does these things
things
• Edom/Adam = Humanity (see Obadiah 15-16)

• Possess [Heb. ‫ ]יירשו‬// Seek [Heb. ‫]ידרשו‬
Tim Mackie 17
b. 9:13-15: Israel will be regathered to a flourishing land: 9:13–15 (quoted by Joel 3:18).
Tim Mackie 18
Literary Design and Themes in Obadiah
Literary Design
1–14 God’s justice against Edom’s pride and violence
15–16 The Day of Yahweh against all nations
17–21 Images of restoration: Land is reinhabited, kingdom of Yahweh
Historical Context
– This prophecy relates to events right after Babylon destroyed and exiled Judah from 600–586BC.
For the events, see II Kings 24–25.
– Edom was unique among Israel’s neighbors, in that there was an ancient ancestral connection
(both nations emerged from the family of Isaac: Jacob and Esau, see Genesis 25). And while
there was tension between the people groups at different times (see Num 20:14-21 and 2Kgs
8:20-22; Amos 1:6-9), there was a family bond that was acknowledged.
– Obadiah 1-14 refers to Edom’s pleasure at Judah’s downfall, and swooping into plunder after the
Babylonian invasion of 587 B.C. (2 Chron 28:17; Ezek 25:12-14).
– This was seen as the ultimate act of betrayal of the family bond. So just as Amos anticipated the
fall of Israel, so now Obadiah looks towards the downfall of Edom. However, the book broadens
the judgment on Edom as a broader example of the “day of the Lord” against all nations.
– Note: Much of Obadiah 1-9 has verbatim overlap with Jeremiah’s oracle against Edom in Jer
49:7-16 and Isaiah’s oracle against Moab (Isaiah 14:13-16) and shows signs of dependence on it
as well as Joel 3 and Amos 9.
Main Themes in Obadiah

1. Vv. 1-14: Edom’s pride and betrayal is described as similar to Isaiah’s accusations against
Assyria (Isa 10:5-12) Babylon (Obad 2-4 = Isa 14:12-15) and Ezekiel’s against Tyre (Ezek
28:17-19).
2. V.15-16 are the book’s interlocking hinge: Yahweh’s judgment on Edom (v.16 “you”) is an
image of the coming day of the Lord against all nations (v.15 “they”)
– NOTE: “Edom” (‫ )אֱדֹ ם‬is spelled with the same letters as “humanity” (“Adam” ‫)אָ דָ ם‬
3. Vv.17-21: Jerusalem will be restored, and the exiled Israelites will reclaim their land: Zion will
become the place from which God’s kingdom subdues evil among the nations.
Tim Mackie 19
Compositional Design of Obadiah
• The entire rhetorical flow of Obadiah has been designed according to the model of Amos 9, the
directly preceding chapter. Point by point the two poetic compositions read similarly [see Nogalski,
Redactional Processes in the Book of the Twelve]
Amos 9 Obadiah
A Vision 9:1 “I saw the Lord standing…” 1 “Vision of Obadiah”
Five “if” (‫)אם‬ 9:2-4: 4-5: five “if” (‫ )אם‬clauses

clauses + “from If they dig into the grave… if you go high like an eagle-vulture
there I will if they go up to the heavens if you make your next in the stars
bring down” from there I will bring them down from there I will bring you down
if they hide themselves on top… if thieves come to you,
if they hide from my eyes down… if destroyers of the night
if they go into captivity if gleaners come to you
Destruction & 9:8-9 5
remnant using I will destroy it from the face of the land; yet I If grape gatherers came to you, wouldn’t they
agricultural will not completely destroy; for behold I am let some remain
images about to command and shake the house of
Israel with all the nations, just as one shakes a
sieve so that not one pebble falls to the ground
Discourse 9:7 “Is it not the case…” (‫)הלוא‬ 8a “Is it not the case…” (‫)הלוא‬
markers 9:11 “on that day” (‫)ביום ההוא‬ 8b “…that on that day…” (‫)ביום ההוא‬
9:7, 8, 13 “utterance of Yahweh” (‫)נאום יהוה‬ 8c “…utterance of Yahweh” (‫)נאום יהוה‬
Day of Yahweh 9:11 “On that day” 8 “On that day…”
15 “The day of Yahweh is near!”
Allusion to 9:11 “the fallen tent of David…their 16 “just as you [= Edom] drank on my holy
Jerusalem’s breaches…its ruins” mountain”
destruction
Restoration of 9:11 “I will raise up the fallen tent of David, 21 “and deliverers will ascend on Mt. Zion,
Davidic and I will repair their breaches and raise up its and the kingdom will belong to Yahweh”
kingdom ruins and rebuild it as in days of old
Remnant will 9:12 “In other that they might possess the 17 “and the house of Jacob will possess their
“possess” (‫)ירש‬ remnant of Edom and all the nations who are possessions…”
Edom and the called by my name.” 19-20 “the Negev will possess the mountain
nations of Esau…and they will possess the field of
Ephraim… and the exiles of this army of the
sons of Israel…and the exiles of Jerusalem…
will possess the cities of the Negev…”
Restoration of 9:14 “I will restore the return of my people 20-21 “and the exiles of this army of the sons
the exiles Israel” of Israel…and the exiles of Jerusalem will
possess”
Rebuilding/rest 9:14b “and they will rebuild ruined cities and 20 “they will possess the cities of the Negev”
oration of dwell in them
cities
Tim Mackie 20
• Obadiah is itself a composite work, drawn from multiple sources, including poems found in
Jeremiah and Isaiah.
Obadiah Intertextual Sources
Obad 1-4 Jeremiah 49:14-16

[1] Thus says the Lord God concerning Edom—
We have heard a report from the Lord, [14] I have heard a message from the Lord,
And an envoy is sent among the nations, And an envoy is sent among the nations,,
“Arise and let us go against her “Gather yourselves together and come against her,
for battle”— And rise up for battle!”
[2] Behold, I have made you small among the [15] “For behold, I have made you small among the
nations; You are greatly despised. nations, Despised among men.
[3] The arrogance of your heart has deceived you, [16] “As for the terror of you,
You who live in the clefts of the rock, The arrogance of your heart has deceived you,
In the height of your dwelling place, You who live in the clefts of the rock,
Who occupy the height of the hill.
Who say in your heart, [And you said in your heart, “I will ascend to the
‘Who will bring me down to earth?’ heavens, above the stars of God I will raise my throne; and
I will dwell in the mount of assembly…but you will be
brought down to the grave” — Isaiah 14:13]
[4] Though you build high like the eagle,
and though among the stars, Though you make as high as an eagle
you set your nest
From there I will bring you down,” declares the your nest,
Lord. I will bring you down from there,” declares the Lord.
Obad 5 Jeremiah 49:9
If thieves came to you, if destroyers by night “If grape gatherers came to you,
O how you will be ruined! Would they not leave gleanings?
Would they not steal until they had enough?
If grape gatherers came to you, If thieves by night,

Would they not leave gleanings? They would destroy until they had enough.
Obad 8 Jeremiah 49:7
I will destroy the wise from Edom, and Concerning Edom.
understanding from the mountain of Esau Thus says the Lord of hosts,
“Is there no longer any wisdom in Teman?
Has good counsel been lost to the prudent?
Has their wisdom decayed?
Obad 15 Isaiah 13:6
“for the day of Yahweh is near against all the Wail, for the day of the Lord is near!
nations”
Tim Mackie 21
Obad 16 Jer 25:15-17
Just as you all drank on my holy mountain, so all the [15] For thus the Lord, the God of Israel, says to me,
nations will drink and gulp and become like “Take this cup of the wine of wrath from My hand and
nothing. cause all the nations to whom I send you to drink it.
[16] “They will drink and stagger and go mad because of
the sword that I will send among them.”
[17] Then I took the cup from the Lord’s hand and made
all the nations to whom the Lord sent me drink it:
• Obadiah 17-21 is a complex interweaving of hyperlinks from the Torah and the Prophets, all focused
on the future messianic kingdom ruling over the nations.
Obad 17, 19-20 Genesis 24:60:
The blessing of Rebekah, mother of Jacob and Esau
[17] “But on Mount Zion there will be those who They blessed Rebekah and said to her,
escape, And it will be holy. “May you, our sister,
And the house of Jacob will possess (‫ )ירש‬their Become thousands of ten thousands,
possessions (‫)מורשה‬ And may your seed (‫ )זרע‬possess (‫)ירש‬
The gate of those who hate them” (‫)שער שאניו‬
[18b] So that there will be no remnant (‫ )שריד‬of the
house of Esau,” For the Lord has spoken. Numbers 24:7, 17-19
[19] Then the Negev will possess (‫ )ירש‬the mountain [7] “Water will flow from his buckets,
of Esau, And his seed (‫ )זרע‬will be in many waters,
And the Shephelah the Philistines; And his king (‫ )מלך‬shall be higher than Agag,
Also, possess (‫ )ירש‬the territory of Ephraim and the And his kingdom (‫ )מלוכה‬shall be exalted.
territory of Samaria, and Benjamin, Gilead.
[20] And the exiles of this valiant host (‫ )חיל‬of the [17] “I see him, but not now;
sons of Israel, the Canaanites as far as Zarephath, I behold him, but not near;
And the exiles of Jerusalem who are in Sepharad A star shall come forth from Jacob,
will possess (‫ )ירש‬the cities of the Negev. A scepter shall rise from Israel,
[21] The deliverers will ascend Mount Zion And shall crush through the forehead of Moab,
To judge the mountain of Esau, And tear down all the sons of Seth.
And the kingdom (‫ )מלוכה‬will belong to Yahweh. [18] Edom shall be a possession (‫)אדום ירשה‬
Seir, its enemies, will be a possession (‫)שעיר איביו ירשה‬
While Israel performs valiantly (‫)חיל‬
19 “One from Jacob shall have dominion,
And will destroy the remnant (‫ )שריד‬from the city.”
Amos 9:11-12
[11] “In that day I will raise up the fallen tent of David,
And wall up its breaches;
I will also raise up its ruins
And rebuild it as in the days of old;
[12] so they may possess (‫ )ירש‬the remnant of Edom
(‫)שארית אדום‬, all the nations who are called by My name,”
Declares the Lord who does this.
• Genesis 24 promised that Rebekah would have a seed that possessed that gates of it enemies, and
Genesis 25 gives us the names of her seed: Esau and Jacob
• Numbers 24 points forward to a royal seed that will come from Jacob that will possess Seir
(wordplay on Gen 24:60).
• Amos 9 drew upon these Torah texts to anticipate the restoration of the Davidic kingdom and the
possession of Israel’s neighbors as an image of the universal kingdom of God.
Tim Mackie 22
• Obadiah has compiled a series of Edom oracles to show how the particular rise and fall of Edom is
one aspect of the coming kingdom of God over all nations.
Tim Mackie 23
Literary Design and Themes in Jonah
Literary Design
1 Jonah’s disobedience + Pagan Sailor’s repentance
2 Jonah’s “repentance”
3 Jonah’s “obedience” + Pagan Nineveh’s repentance
4 Jonah’s anger at Yahweh’s grace
Historical Context
– Not specified: Assyria was Israel’s greatest threat from around 750–600BC. The story seems to
be purposefully disconnected from any specific time period.
Main Themes in Jonah

1. Jonah the “Hebrew” (1:9), is disobedient (1:3), complacent (1:5), knows how to spout pietistic
babble (1:9), would rather die than follow Yahweh’s word (1:12)
2. The pagans respond to Yahweh’s power (1:10), and are quick to repent (1:14), and worship
Yahweh (1:15–16).
3. Yahweh’s rebellious prophet is “swallowed by the sea monster”

Jeremiah 51:34-35 Jonah 2:1
“Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has devoured me, And Yahweh appointed a huge fish to swallow (‫)בלע‬
he has drained me, Jonah, and Jonah was in the bowels of the fish for
He has set me down an empty vessel; three days and three nights.
He has swallowed (‫ )בלע‬me like a sea monster,
He has filled his stomach with my delicacies;
He has washed me away…”
Say the inhabitants of Zion
4. Jonah’s prayer of “repentance” (2:1–9) is a hodge-podge of quotations from the psalms (i.e.
nothing original here) > Yahweh’s response? Vomit (2:10)
Jonah 2 Hyperlinked Psalms
1 In my distress I called to the LORD, and he Ps. 120:1

answered me. In my distress I cried to the Lord,And He answered
me.
From the depths of the grave I called for help, Ps 18:5-6
and you listened to my cry. The cords of Sheol surrounded me;
The snares of death confronted me.
In my distress I called upon the Lord,
And cried to my God for help;
3 You hurled me into the deep, into the very Ps. 42:7
heart of the seas, and the currents swirled about Deep calls to deep at the sound of Your waterfalls;
me; all your waves and breakers swept over me. All Your breakers and Your waves have rolled over
me.
Tim Mackie 24
4 I said, `I have been banished from your sight; Ps. 31:22
yet I will look again toward your holy temple.' As for me, I said in my alarm,
“I am cut off from before Your eyes”;
Nevertheless You heard the voice of my
supplications
When I cried to You.
Ps 5:7
But as for me, by Your abundant lovingkindness I
will enter Your house,
At Your holy temple I will bow in reverence for You.
5 The engulfing waters threatened me, the deep Ps. 69:2
surrounded me; Save me, O God,
seaweed was wrapped around my head. For the waters have threatened my life. (= come unto
my neck)
6 To the roots of the mountains I sank down; Ps. 103:4
the earth beneath barred me in forever. Who redeems your life from the pit,
But you brought my life up from the pit, Who crowns you with lovingkindness and
compassion;
7 When my life was ebbing away, Ps.143:4-5
I remembered you, LORD, Therefore my spirit is overwhelmed within me;
and my prayer come to you, to your holy My heart is bappalled within me.
temple. I remember the days of old;
I meditate on all Your doings;
Ps 77:3
I remember God, then I am disturbed;
I sigh, then my spirit grows faint.
Ps. 88:3
Let my prayer come before You;
Incline Your ear to my cry!
For my soul has had enough troubles,
And my life has drawn near to Sheol.
8 Those who keep worthless idols9 forfeit the Ps. 31:6
grace that could be theirs. I hate those who keep worthless idols,
But I trust in the Lord.
9a But I, with a song of thanksgiving, will 116:17-18

sacrifice to you. To You I shall offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving,
What I have vowed I will make good. And call upon the name of the Lord.
I shall pay my vows to the Lord,
9b Salvation comes from the LORD. Ps. 3:8

Salvation belongs to the Lord;
Your blessing upon Your people
5. Jonah announces a half-hearted sermon (3:1–4)

Tim Mackie 25
6. The pagans believe (3:5), are quick to repent (3:7–9), along with the cows (!, 3:7)
7. Jonah is angry at Yahweh’s grace (4:1–4), and would rather die than acknowledge Yahweh’s
grace toward outsiders (4:9–10).
8. Yahweh’s Question: Should I not have compassion on those not like you? (4:11)
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Literary Design and Themes in Micah
Literary Design
1–2 Justice and Restoration: Cycle 1
1:2–2:11 Justice on Israel’s sin
2:12–13 Images of Restoration: Messiah, regathering to the land
3:1–4:7 Justice and Restoration: Cycle 2

3:1–12 Justice on Israel’s sin
4:1–7 Images of Restoration: New temple, Torah to the nations, kingdom of Yahweh
4:8–5:14 Hope for Israel’s future restoration

Hope of the messianic kingdom
4:8–10 “And you…” (‫)ואתה‬
4:11–5:1 “And now…” (‫)ועתה‬
5:2–5a “And you…” (‫)ואתה‬
Hope of judgment on oppressive nations
5:5b-6 “and it will be…” (‫ – )והיה‬restored Israel as a blessing to the nations
5:7-9 “and it will be…” (‫ – )והיה‬restored Israel as instrument of justice among the nations
5:10-15 “and it will be…” (‫ – )והיה‬God’s justice on Israel and the nations
6:1–70 Justice and Restoration: cycle 3
6:1–16 Justice on Israel’s sin
7:1–20 Prayer for restoration
Historical Context
– Micah lived around 750–700BC, and was a contemporary of Isaiah. Morosheth was a town in the
lower hills West of Jerusalem, on the borderland with the Philistine territory.
– See II Kings 17–20: Micah reflects the period after the downfall of the northern Kingdom (722
BC) and the Assyrian threat against Jerusalem (701 BC).
Main Themes in Micah

1. Yahweh is bringing a case against Israel and Judah: 1:2–7; 6:1-4
a. Samaria has been leveled by Assyria (1:5-7) and Judah is next in line(1:8ff.)
b. The lament in 1:8-16 names towns of Judah attacked by the Assyrian armies after the fall
of Samaria [note the wordplays]
2. Israel has broken the covenant by...

– social injustice: 2:1–2 (allusion to Ahab’s theft of Naboth’s vineyard 1Kings 21)
– corrupt leadership [chs. 2-3]
o Prophets for hire 2:6-11; 3:5-8 (while rejecting Yahweh’s prophets)
o Rulers who are unjust: 3:1–4, 9–12
– idolatry and sorcery: 5:10–15
3. The announcement of consequences:

a. Northern Israel and its capital Samaria will be destroyed: 1:5-7
b. Jerusalem and its temple will be destroyed: 3:10-12 (quoted in Jer 26:18!)
c. Exile to Babylon: 4:10
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4. Yahweh will bring restoration on the other side of judgment:

– Jerusalem’s destruction will be reversed so that it becomes the rallying point for the
nations to learn the Torah and come under Yahweh’s kingdom (4:1-5)
– Yahweh will regather his oppressed and scattered people (2:12-13; 4:6-7)
– Oppressive nations will attack Jerusalem but be repelled and defeated (4:11-5:1; cf.
Isaiah 10:24-26 and 14:24-27)
– Restoration from exile and the Messianic kingdom 4:1–5:9
– Forgiveness of sins and covenant renewal 7:14–20
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Literary Design and Themes in Nahum
Literary Design
1:1–2:2 Broken Alphabet Poem: God’s Justice on Nineveh = Salvation for Judah
1:1–8 Yahweh’s justice on the nations
1:9–2:2 Justice on Nineveh = Salvation for Israel
2:3–13 Nineveh’s downfall + taunt (2:12-14)
3:1–19 Woe to Nineveh + taunt (3:18-19)
There is actually a more nuanced compositional design than the above outline reflects: Based on James
Nogalski, “The Redactional Shaping of Nahum 1 for the Book of the Twelve, p. 198.
1:1 Superscription
1:2-12b Broken acrostic about Yahweh’s covenant justice against all nations
[Compositional pieces in 1:2b, 4b, 6a, 7b-8a are adapted from hyperlinked texts]
A1 1:11-12a The numerical strength of Nineveh will not deliver from destruction
A2 1:13-14 The preparation of the grave for the king of Nineveh

2:1-3: Fall of Assyria = Good News for Judah (hyperlink to Isaiah 52:7-10)
B 2:4-14 [EV 2:3-13]: Nineveh’s destruction in the coming war
B’ 3:1-15: Ninveh’s downfall and the resulting shame among the nations
[vv. 12-14 Taunting song about Nineveh’s powerless fate]
A1 3:16-17 The numerical strength of Nineveh will not deliver it from destruction
A2 3:18-19: Taunting funeral dirge at the grave of the king of Assyria
Historical Context
– The Assyrian (capital city = Nineveh) empire destroyed the kingdom of northern Israel (2 Kings 17),
and ravaged Judah (2 Kings 18-20) when it rose to power in the mid-700s B.C. It’s empire lasted
nearly 500yrs and came crumbling down between 640–610BC, as Babylon revolted and eventually
conquered Assyria.
– The Babylonians rebellion began in the 620s, and the city of Nineveh fell to Babylon in 612 B.C.
Main Themes in Nahum

1. The book is an oracle “about Nineveh” but the half-acrostic poem that opens the book (1:2-11)
makes it clear that Assyria is here an archetype of any and all rebellious nations and how God’s
judgment will (1) confront evil among the nations and (2) result in the deliverance of his people.
a. 1:1-9 are a “broken acrostic”: Nahum has taken up a pre-existing alphabet poem and
adjusted its contents to fit with his own compositional aims, to show how the fall of
Assyria fits into a larger pattern of the day of Yahweh.
b. 1:2b-3a are an addition to the poem (they break the acrostic) and clearly allude to Exodus
34:6-7, and show that Nineveh’s downfall is an act of justice performed by the God of
Israel on behalf of his people.
c. In 1:7-9 there are many allusions to the role of Assyria as Yahweh’s instrument of
judgment from Isaiah (Isa 8:8; 10:22-27; 14:24-27; 28:18, 22) show that Assyria’s double
Tim Mackie 29
role as the instrument and recipient of God’s judgment is an archetype that comes to
include all nations (like Babylon in Isaiah and Habakkuk).
Nahum 1 Hyperlinked Texts

2a [‫ ]א‬A passionate and avenging God is Yahweh Joel 2:13
Yahweh is vengeful and wrathful; Yahweh is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger,
2b[Yahweh is an avenger against his foes and great in covenant love, and relenting from calamity
and he stores up wrath for his enemies; Joel 4:21
3a Yahweh is slow to anger and great in power And I will punish for their shed blood which I have not
he shall not leave evil unpunished] punished…
3b [‫ ]ב‬in whirlwind and storm are his way Exod 34:6-7
and the cloud is the dust under his feet; Yahweh, a God compassionate and gracious, slow to
anger, abounding in covenant loyalty and truth…he will
not leave evil unpunished
d. The addressees in 1:2-2:3 trade back and forth between Assyria and Judah to show how
God’s justice among the nations is part of how he delivers his people:
i. To the Reader: 1:2-8: half-acrostic: God’s judgment (vv.2-6) comes on the
wicked, but spares those who take refuge in his mercy (v.7)
ii. To Assyria 1:9-11:
iii. To Judah 1:12-13
iv. To Assyria 1:14
v. To Judah: 1:15
vi. To Assyria 2:1-2
2. Nineveh is highlighted as a brutal oppressor of God’s people

– They have plotted evil against Yahweh: 1:9-11
– They have worshipped idols: 1:15
– They are a violent and oppressive regime: 3:1–4, 18–19
3. Nineveh’s judgment = salvation for Israel: 1:15–2:2
4. Nahum’s words mark the fulfillment of earlier prophets’ predictions that Assyria would fall one
day in the future: Isaiah 10:5–34, Micah 5:5b–6
5. Nahum portrays the downfall of Nineveh in vivid poetry about the final battle
a. 2:3-13: appearance of warriors > chariots in the streets > Nineveh’s soldiers fail > the city
gates are breached > prisoners taken into exile > the city is plundered > reflection on the
downfall of Nineveh (lion imagery)
b. 3:1-19:
i. 1-7: a woe oracle: accusation (v.1) > disaster announced (vv.2-3) > reason (v.4) >
God’s response (vv.5-7)
ii. 8-17: Nineveh’s fall compared with Egyptian Thebe’s [which Assyria conquered
in 663 B.C.] (vv.8-11) > Nineveh’s fate after defeat by the locust-like armies
[note connections to Joel 1:4] (vv.12-17)
iii. 18-19: The king of Nineveh is helpless and dishonored.
Tim Mackie 30
Note: Yahweh’s judgment against Assyria is used here as one specific example of Yahweh’s universal justice
working itself out among all the nations (i.e. Nahum 1:1–8).
Brevard Childs, Introduction to the Old Testament (443-444), “[T]he prophetic threat against
Nineveh does not stem from the personal hatred of its Jewish author against Assyria... Rather
the biblical author uses the poem in ch. 1 to establish a larger context for the prophecy of
Nahum... Nineveh becomes an illustration of God’s power against human evil and nationalistic
arrogance … a type of a larger and recurring phenomenon in history against which God
exercises his eternal power and judgment… The book of Nahum confirms the promise of divine
justice to suffering Israel, under the domination of Assyria, Babylon, or Rome.”
Tim Mackie 31
Literary Design and Themes in Habakkuk
Literary Design
1:1 Superscription
1:2–4 Habakkuk’s 1st complaint: Where is Yahweh as Judah spirals down into violence and
injustice?
1:5–11 Yahweh’s 1st answer: I’m raising up the Babylonians to bring justice on rebellious Judah.
1:12–2:1 Habakkuk’s 2nd complaint: But Babylon is just a bad, even worse, than Judah!
2:2–20 Yahweh’s 2nd answer:
2:2-4 Write down a vision of hope: the righteous are those who trust and wait
2:5-20 Pronouncement of judgment and woe on Babylon.
3:1–19 Habakkuk’s prayer of response:

3:1-2 Habakkuk’s plea that God intervene and bring his judgment on evil
3:3-8 Poetic depiction of God’s appearance (= “theophany”)
[similar theophany texts: Exodus 3:1–5, 19:16–19; 24:15–17; 1 Kgs 19:11–12]
3:9-15 Poetic depiction of God’s victory over chaos and evil
[similar divine warrior texts: Exod. 15:1–18; Pss 24:7–10; 68; Isa. 34:1–15; 51:9–10]
3:16-19 Habakkuk chooses joy and trust despite the difficulties of living in a world fraught with evil
Historical Context
– There is no explicit information giving the date and circumstances of Habakkuk.
– The only concrete detail is the naming of the Babylonians (= “Chaldeans” in 1:6), which places ch.1
in the transition between the Babylonian victory over the Assyrian empires (late 600’s B.C.).
– However, ch.2 accuses Babylon of terrible violence and oppression, which seems to reflect a post-
exile perspective (Jerusalem was under Babylonian attack from 597-587 B.C.).
– The poem in chapter 3 appears to be very ancient, but has been adapted into the literary context of
the Nebi’im to develop the archetypes of the divine savior and the anti-messiah figure.
Unique Feature of Habakkuk

– Habakkuk doesn’t proclaim God’s word to Israel in the traditional sense. Rather, the book reflects
his personal journey of coming to terms with God’s providence and the tragic evils of history.
Main Themes in Habakkuk

1. Habakkuk struggles with the tension between
– (1) the reality of a world full of violence and injustice (1:2–4, 12–17)
– (2) his belief that Yahweh is good and just and cares about his world (1:12-14)
• Habakkuk is present as a righteous sufferer who is contesting God’s policies. His opening
complaint is hyperlinked to the portraits of both Jeremiah, Job, and the afflicted one of the
Psalms.
Habakkuk Jeremiah and Job and the afflicted one

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1:2a Ps 13:1
How long (‫ )עד אנה‬Yahweh? How long (‫ )עד אנה‬Yahweh?
I cry out (‫)שוע‬, but you do not listen Will you forget me forever?
1:2b I cry out (‫ )זעק‬to you, “Violence!” Jer 20:8
but you do not deliver As often as I speak I cry out (‫)זעק‬,
1:3a Why do you make me see trouble? I proclaim, “Violence (‫ )חמס‬and destruction (‫”)שד‬
and make me stare at wickedness? Job 19:7
1:3b Destruction (‫ )שד‬and violence (‫ )חמס‬are before me When I cry out (‫)זעק‬, “Violence! (‫)חמס‬,
there is no answer.
I cry out (‫)שוע‬, but there is no justice (‫)משפט‬.
1:3c Jer 15:10
so let there be a complaint/case (‫)ריב‬ Woe to me, O my mother, that you bore me,
and let a contention (‫ )מדון‬be raised up. a man of complaint (‫ )ריב‬and contention (‫)מדון‬
1:4a Jer 2:8
Therefore, Torah (‫ )תורה‬is nullified The priests do not say, “Where is Yahweh?”
and justice (‫ )משפט‬never goes out. and those who handle the Torah (‫ )תורה‬do not know me
1:4b Jer 12:1-2
for the wicked (‫ )רשע‬surrounds the righteous, You are righteous (‫ )צדיק‬Yahweh,
therefore justice (‫ )משפט‬goes out distorted so I will lodge my complaint (‫ )ריב‬with you,
indeed I will speak justice (‫ )משפט‬with you:
Why does the way of the wicked (‫ )רשע‬prosper,
all the treacherous who act treacherously (‫)בגדי בגד‬
2. Yahweh’s answer: Trust in my plan revealed in scripture (2:2–4), which announces the downfall
of arrogant human empires (2:5-19), though it may seem delayed (2:3)
3. Habakkuk looks back to Yahweh’s deeds from the past (3:2)...

– The Sinai appearance and God’s power over creation (3:3–7)
– The Exodus victory over evil (3:8–15)
4. ...and on that basis he looks with hope to the future (3:16–19)
“Habakkuk serves, through... the autobiographical style of a confession, as an example of a faithful response
of one person living between the promise of restoration and its arrival.” — Brevard Childs, Introduction to the
Old Testament, 455.
“The role of Habakkuk here is exactly like that of Jeremiah (see Jer 15:10): he is disputing with
Yahweh, complaining that the Lord has not fulfilled his covenanted promises to his people and, more
particularly, to his prophet. Jeremiah’s statement that he has lodged his complain with Yahweh (Jer
11:20; 20:12) means more than handing over for God’s judgment his quarrel with those who persecuted
him. When he calls on God to “listen to the voice of my disputes” (Jer 18:19), he is reminding God of
his promise to deliver him (Jer 1:19; 15:20). There were many times in Jeremiah’s life when this
promise must have seemed empty; for at one point Jeremiah desperately accuses Yahweh of deceiving
him in this matter (Jer 20:7). The distress of Habakkuk is similar to that of Jeremiah. Their sense of
desertion, like that of Job, Jesus, and countless others, arises from the failure of God to protect or rescue
those who trusted him. In the case of Habakkuk, the resolution of this crisis for faith, expressed in Hab
3:17–18, provides a tangible link between the closing hymn and the opening prayer. And it shows the
Tim Mackie 33
whole book to be an intensely personal “passion” of the prophet himself.” — Francis Andersen,
Habakkuk, 131.
In the Bible, there are bold spirits who dare to indict God for his failure to manage this world in a way
that a good, just, and competent Creator should. Moses and Jeremiah were remarkably outspoken on this
subject; but their audacity rises from a core faith that God is just. Similar criticisms of God’s regime can
be made speciously, for paradoxically, the dismissal of such a God is vacuous if there is no such God!
This kind of comment can be mere sophistry. There are many profound, sensitive, and morally serious
persons who find the way things are unacceptable and reject with understandable loathing and justifiable
indignation the trite demands of some religious people to believe in a good God blindly, in spite of
everything. It is to the credit of the Bible that it faces that dilemma. The best exemplar of such honesty is
Job, and Habakkuk is very much like him. — Francis Andersen, Habakkuk, 132.
Tim Mackie 34
Literary Design and Themes in Zephaniah
Literary Design
1:1–2:3 Day of Yahweh’s justice Judah and Jerusalem
1:2–3 Universal Judgment [reversal of Genesis 1]
1:4–18 Day of Yahweh against Judah and Jerusalem
2:1-3 Call for repentance
2:4-3:7 Judgment on the nations and Jerusalem

2:4–15 Judgment on Philistia, Moab, Ammon, Assyria [reversal of Genesis 10]
3:1–7 Judgment on Jerusalem
3:8–20 Judgment and Restoration for the nations and Jerusalem

3:8 Universal Judgment
3:9-10 Restoration of the nations [reversal of Genesis 11]
3:11-20 Restoration of Jerusalem
Historical Context
– Zephaniah lived in the reign of Judah’s last good king (Josiah, in the late 600’s BC) who brought
about religious reform in Jerusalem (see 2 Kings 21-23). But Judah was too far gone, and the corrupt
legacy of Manasseh the previous king had determined Jerusalem’s fate.
Main Themes in Zephaniah

1. The day of Yahweh’s is coming to bring justice on Jerusalem and all nations
– There is an intentional juxtaposing of poems about judgment
o 1:2-3: the ruin of Judah will be like the ruin of all creation [reversal of Genesis 1:20-
26 + “new flood” of Gen 6:7; 7:4]
Zephaniah 1:2-4a Genesis 1:20-26

[2] “Sweeping away I will sweep away all things God makes fish (1:20a), birds (1:20b), then beasts
from the face of the earth,” declares the Lord. (1:24), then humans (1:26) who rule over “the fish of
[3] I will remove human and beast; the sea, the birds of the sky, and the beasts of the land.”
I will sweep away the birds of the sky
And the fish of the sea, Gen 6:7
And the ruins along with the wicked; “I will wipe away human from the face of the earth”
And I will cut off human from the face of the earth,” Gen 7:4
declares the Lord. “I will wipe away from the face of the earth every
[4] So I will stretch out My hand against Judah living thing”
“In Gen. 1 God creates the living beings in the following order: fish (vs. 20a), birds (vs. 20b), beasts (vs. 24), and
finally man (vs. 26). Gen. 1:26, the passage in which God gives man dominion over these creatures, even uses the
same phrasing as Zeph. 1:3: “over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the skies and over the beast.” The crux
of Zephaniah's oracle, however, is that he reverses the order of these beings from that in the creation account.
Thus, Zephaniah is not simply announcing judgement on mankind… he is proclaiming man's loss of dominion
over the earth, and more importantly, the reversal of creation. He is reaching far back into the epic traditions of
Israel for the purpose of announcing Yahweh's judgement upon his people. Since Zephaniah is alluding to (indeed
reversing) creation, Yahweh's first act in establishing his people Israel, the oracle naturally has a universal tone to
it. However, first and foremost this passage is an oracle of judgement directed against Israel. ” — Michael De
Roche, “Zephaniah 1:2-3: The ‘Sweeping’ of Creation,” Vetus Testamentum 30 (1980), 106.
Tim Mackie 35
o 1:4-13: the downfall of Jerusalem and Judah [alluding to 2 Kings 23:4-15]

o 1:14-18: the catastrophic day of Yahweh [alluding to Joel 2-4]
o 2:4-15: All the nations around Judah, including Assyria [reversal of Gen 10:8-11]
o 3:1-7: Jerusalem
o 3:8: All nations [alluding to Joel 3:2]
– All of this is brought under the umbrella of the “Day of Yahweh”: 1:7-10, 14-18, 2:1-3
2. 2:1-3: In the face of divine justice, a remnant is called to repent and be spared from God’s
judgment:
– While judgment is unavoidable for the nation, a remnant can show humility and be sheltered
from the day of Yahweh (allusion to Amos 5:14-15)
3. 2:4-15: Zephaniah’s oracles against the nations are a thematic reversal of the founding of the
lines of Japheth and Ham in Genesis 10
Zephaniah 2:4-15 Genesis 10
2:4-7: Oracle against the Philistines 10:2-5 + 10:6-20 The sons of Japheth merged with
- 2:4 “Gaza will be abandoned…” the sons of Ham
- 2:5 “Woe to the inhabitants of the coast of the - 10:5 “from [Japheth] the islands of the nations
sea…Canaan, the land of the Philistines…” were divided
- 10:8, 11: From Ham: “Cush became the father
2:8-10: Oracle against Moab and Ammon of Nimrod…who went out into Assyria and
- 2:9 “Moab will become like Sodom, and the built Nineveh”
sons of Ammon like Gomorrah” - 10:19: The border of Canaan…went as far as
2:11-15: Oracle against Cush, Assyria, and Gaza as Sodom and Gomorrah
Nineveh
- 2:11 “all the islands of the nations”
- 2:12-13 “Cushites…Assyria…Nineveh will
become a desolation”
“The specific combination of nations in Zephaiah 2 have been deliberately singled out as those
whose fate diminished as a result of the events of the 7th century, but the vocabulary employed is
intentionally drawn from the table of nations in Genesis 10 in order to invert the rhetorical purpose of
that text, to describe the founding of of the family of Japheth and Ham… This provides clues for
understanding why the nations in Zephaniah 2:4-5 receive attention in the first place. They do not
represent a random collection of nations, but those whose fate was dramatically affected when Assyria
was defeated at the end of the 7th century B.C. In this way, the message of Zephaniah 2:4-15 correlates
the events of the 7th century with an experience of the day of Yahweh, that brought about a reversal of
Genesis 10 and the founding of Assyria and its allies after the flood.” — James Nogalski, “Zephaniah’s
use of Genesis 1-11,” 249-250.
4. Yahweh’s justice will result in restoration and renewal for all nations: 3:8-9 is the hinge
– Yahweh’s justice is a purification process (3:9) to unify the nations in worship of the one true
God (cf. 2:11) as a reversal of Genesis 11.
Tim Mackie 36
– Restoration for Jerusalem and its remnant (3:10–20)
Zephaniah 3:8-10 Hyperlinks
3:8 Joel 3:2

For my decision (‫ )משפט‬is to gather (‫ )קבץ‬the I will gather (‫ )קבץ‬all nations…and enter into
nations, to assemble kingdoms judgment (‫ )משפט‬with them
Nahum 1:6
to pour out on them my wrath (‫)זעם‬ before his wrath (‫)זעם‬, who can stand?
all the heat of my anger (‫)חרון אפי‬ and who can arise in the heat of his anger (‫)חרון אפו‬
3:9-10 Genesis 11:1, 6-7, 9
For then I will transform/turn over for peoples And all the land had one lip (‫“ …)שפה אחד‬Behold,
a pure lip (‫ ברר‬+ ‫)שפה‬, they are one people (‫)עם אחד‬, with one lip ( ‫שפה‬
so that all of them can call upon the name of ‫…)אחת‬come, let us confuse their lip (‫ בלל‬+ ‫…)שפה‬
Yahweh (‫)קרא בשם יהוה‬ so Yahweh scattered (‫ )פוץ‬them…therefore its
to serve him with one (‫ )אחד‬shoulder name is called Babylon (‫)בבל‬, for there Yahweh
from across the rivers of Cush, confused the lip (‫ )בלל שפה‬of all the land.
my worshippers (‫)עתרי‬, Isaiah 18:1, 7
the daughter of my scattering (‫)פוץ‬ …from across the rivers of Cush…a people tall
they will carry (‫ )יבל‬my offering and dark will carry (‫ )יבל‬tribute to Yahweh
Zephaniah 3:8-10 combines multiple themes. The violent names face divine justice, not to destroy
them, but to purify them, so that they can be reconciled to Yahweh (see Joel 3 and Nahum 1). This
them is combined with the restoration of Jerusalem, which is viewed as an “anti-Babylon.” By
alluding to Genesis 11:1-9 and the story of the tower of Babel, Zephaniah 3:9-10 portrays the
restoration of Zion as the undoing of the human dispersion. Rather than the tower of Babylon,
Jerusalem operates as the center of a new humanity unified in worship of Yahweh with a purified
language.” — James Nogalski, “Zephaniah’s Use of Genesis 1-11,” 253.
Interval: Between Zephaniah and Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi the exile has come and gone (i.e.
we’ve jumped from 600BC to 500BC). Haggai-Malachi all relate to the circumstances of the people
after the exile, as they wait for the fulfillment of Yahweh’s promises.
Tim Mackie 37
Literary Design and Themes in Haggai
Literary Design
1 Call to repent and rebuild the temple
2:1–9 Yahweh will bring glory to the temple
2:10–19 Yahweh will bless the temple if they repent, otherwise it is defiled
2:20–23 Yahweh will bring glory to the temple and raise up an heir from David’s line
Historical Context
– The Israelites returned from Babylonian exile when the Medes and Persians allied to overthrow
Babylon in 539BC. (see the “Behistun Inscription”)
– Some exiles returned and started rebuilding the temple around 538BC at the commission of Cyrus
(see Ezra 3:1-9). The project was frustrated by opposition (Ezra 4:4-5), and the stood uncompleted
for some 15yrs. In 522BC the work of rebuilding the temple was restarted (Ezra 5-6), and Haggai,
Zerubbabel, and Joshua, played a key role in kick-starting the process (he’s mentioned in Ezra 5:1).
– In God’s promise to David (2 Samuel 7), the hope for a future messianic king was bound up with the
hope for a glorious temple where God’s presence would dwell (2 Sam 7:13). As the exiles returned,
these twin hopes were anticipated, but not realized: the temple was less impressive than hoped (see
the laughing/crying scene in Ezra 3:12-13), and Zerubbabel, the grandson of the exiled king
Jehoiachin (see 2Kgs 25:27-30) didn’t turn out to be a messianic king.
– The book expresses a dissatisfaction with the return from exile (similar to Neh 9:32-36) and holds
out hope for a yet future fulfillment of God’s promise to David (similar to Daniel 7-12)
Main Themes in Haggai

1. Those who returned from exile have not been faithful to Yahweh, and have continued to suffer
the consequences of covenant violation (famine, drought, see Deut 28:23-24, 38-40): 1:2–11,
2:15–19
2. This word from Haggai motivates the building of the temple (1:12-15, see Ezra 5:1-2), which
brings a promise of the future glory of the temple and the pilgrimage of the nations to Zion: 2:1-
9.
3. But the promise is contingent on the people’s purity and repentance (2:10-10):
a. The current temple project is ‘impure’ (2:10-14) and so experienced covenant curse
(2:15-17, echoes Deut 28:22, 38-40; Amos 4:9); only repentance (= “take it to heart”
2:15, 18) will secure a future of covenant blessing (2:20)
4. The (contingent) future covenant blessing involves…

a. …the glorification of the temple and the pilgrimage of the nations (2:21 recalls 2:6-9)
b. …the downfall of oppressive nations (2:22 recalls the Exodus story in Exod 14:26-
29/15:3-5 merged with the Midianite deliverance in Judges 7:22)
c. …the restoration of the Davidic, messianic kingship, of which Zerubbabel is the current
representative: 2:23 (quoting Jeremiah 22:24 of Jehoiakim’s ‘removal’)
Literary Design and Themes in Zechariah

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Literary Design
1:1–6 Call to repentance
1:7–6:8 Zechariah’s eight visions

1:7–17 Vision #1 Four horsemen
1:18–20 Vision #2 Four horns and four craftsmen
2:1–13 Vision #3 Jerusalem measured and rebuilt
3:1–10 Vision #4 Joshua and the temple purified
4:1–14 Vision #5 Zerubbabel and the temple empowered
5:1–4 Vision #6 The flying scroll
5:5–11 Vision #7 Judah’s evil taken to Babylon
6:1–15 Vision #8 Four chariots
7–8 Call to repentance > Restoration

7:1–13 Call to true repentance
8:1–23 Images of restoration
9–14 Images of God’s judgment and restoration

9:1–8 Yahweh’s justice against the nations
9:9–17 The messianic deliverer + salvation for Israel
10 Yahweh will regather Israel
11 Yahweh punishes evil leaders (= bad shepherds)
12 Salvation for Judah through David’s line
13 Judgment on Judah’s leaders > restoration
14 Jerusalem restored > kingdom of Yahweh
Historical Context
– The Israelites returned from Babylonian exile and starting rebuilding the temple about around
538BC at the commission of Cyrus (see Ezra 3:1-9). However, that was frustrated by opposition
(Ezra 4:4-5), and the project stood uncompleted for some 15yrs. In 522BC the work of rebuilding the
temple was restarted (Ezra 5-6), and Zechariah played a key role in kick-starting the process (he’s
mentioned in Ezra 5:1). The temple was finished in 518 according to Ezra 6:15
– The dates given in 1:1, 7 and 7:1 are from 520-518BC, near the end of the temple construction
process.
Main Themes in Zechariah 1-8

1. Israel has returned from exile, but the grand hope of the prophetic promises has not come to pass.
WHY? The current generation needs to repent: 1:2-6 (the date overlaps with Haggai). Will they?
a. 1:2-6a represents Zechariah’s message to his contemporaries about their ancestor’s sin
and covenant rebellion
b. 1:6b is most likely the narrator’s description of their response to Zechariah’s message.
2. Zechariah’s night visions:

a. The visions are arranged in a symmetrical structure, and all correspond to a 4-part
pattern, except #3 (3:1-10)
1:7–17 Vision #1 Four horsemen + Oracle [1:14-17]
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 The image is of the heavenly council (cf. 1Kgs 22; Job 1), and a patrol has just returned
(cf. Job 1:7) to report to the council on the state of things in the world: there is peace and
quiet.
 This prompts the question: is the 70yrs of Israel’s exile up? The question is rooted in
Jeremiah’s promise that exile would last 70rs (Jer 25:11; 29:10; 33:14).
 God responds that the time is up, and he will begin acting to fulfill his promises that will
involve two things: (1) divine wrath on the nations that carried his judgment of Jerusalem
too far (1:15), and (2) comfort for Jerusalem and rebuilding of the city and temple (1:16-
17).
1:18–20 Vision #2 Four horns and four craftsmen

 This vision develops the idea of God’s judgment on the nations that destroyed Jerusalem
(1:15).
 Horns symbolize power and strength (of God’s power: Deut 33:17; 2 Sam 22:3; of kings:
Daniel 7-8), and symbolic metal horns, like those used by the prophets in 1 Kings 22:11
may be intended (thus the “craftsmen”). The number “4” seems connected to the other
uses in the visions (‘four winds, four horses, four chariots’), for the four directions of the
compass, i.e. the nations of all the earth.
 Craftsmen (who work with wood, stone, and metal, Isa 44:12; 2 Chron 24:12) are sent to
scatter them. If the horns are symbolic, made of metal (as in 1 Kgs 22:11), then craftsmen
are just the ones to deal with them (the image is perhaps derived from Ezek 21:36). They
‘terrorize and cast down” the horns, and here we develop the common prophetic motif
(cf. Isaiah 10, Habakkuk) of God using the nations for his purposes and then
orchestrating their downfall.
2:1–13 Vision #3 Jerusalem measured and rebuilt + Oracle [2:6-13]

 The vision scene is of the rebuilding of Jerusalem and a promise of its repopulation (2:1-
5). The city is measured (picking up the motif from vision #1, 1:16) and readied for a
new burgeoning population.
 The city has no walls (2:5), which is shocking from an ancient point of view, because
God himself will renew his “Exodus presence” (the wall of fire recalls Exod 13:21)
 The vision is supplemented by a series of poetic oracles (2:6-13) that bring together the
themes of visions 1-3:
o 2:6-7: A call to the exiles to leave the nations where they’ve been scattered (‘the
four winds’ = ‘land of the North’ = ‘inhabitants of Babylon’) and come back to
Jerusalem.
o 2:8-9: God has sent the prophet to predict the downfall of the nations that
plundered Judah. Israel is God’s special people (‘daughter of his eye’ cf. Deut
32:10; Ps 17:8)
o 2:10-12: After a universal judgment, the remaining nations will be joined to
God’s covenant people, when he comes to inhabit Zion and reinstate Israel as his
covenant people.
 This sequence of ideas: judgment of the nations, restoration of Jerusalem as a dwelling
place for the remnant and all nations is key to the first three visions, and points forward to
the rest of the book.
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3:1–10 Vision #4 Joshua and the temple purified
 Joshua the high priest stands before the divine court, and while the accuser tries to
prosecute him (as in Job chs. 1-2; cf. Ps 109:6), God defends him and has new clothes
and a new turban placed on him, all as a symbol of his renewed commitment to the
people and a removal of their sin (3:4).
 The renewed priest is given a choice, however (3:7): he must obey the terms of the
covenant, and if he does, he will become a symbol (3:8) of the people who are prepared
for “my servant the branch” (cf. Isa 11:1; Jer 23:5; 33:15). The future king from the line
of David, who is here portrayed as an ideal possibility. Zerubbabel could become this if
he and the people obey, but that is not certain.
 The stone described in 3:9 is most likely an elaboration on the jeweled, priestly head-
piece described in Exod 28:36-38, which is worn in the rituals that provide atonement for
the sin of the people. Joshua could wear this headpiece and atone for Israel’s sin, that is,
if he listens to the divine command.
 The promise of 3:10 about sitting under fig trees is a stock image of abundance from the
golden days of Solomon’s reign (see 1 Kgs 4:25), that became an icon of restoration for
the later prophets (see Micah 4:6).
4:1–14 Vision #5 A lamp, olive trees, and Zerubbabel

 The composition of this vision is odd: the prophet sees the lampstand and trees (4:1-6a)
and receives an explanation about them (4:10b-14). However, the vision and explanation
have been split apart, and a poetic oracle about Zerubbabel and the temple (4:6b-10a) has
been inserted in between them.
 The lamp is not like the golden menorah found in the temple or tabernacle (Exod 25:31-
40; 1Kgs 7:49), rather it is simply “a bowl” with seven indentations for holding wicks
(see below: lamp from Tel Dan, 9th cent. BC)
 There are two olive trees beside the lamp, and we find out in 4:11-12 there
are two spouts connecting the trees to the lamp, so that there is a continual flow of
olive oil being fed to the lamps. In other words, the lamps never go out. The lights are
a symbol (4:10b) of the perpetual “eyes” of God watching the land (similar to the four
horsemen who watch over the earth; cf. Job 1:7, 2:2)
 The two olive trees are identified as two “sons of oil” (= “anointed ones”)
who serve God, i.e. the only two anointed individuals in Israelite culture were the
priest (Lev 8:1-12) and the king (1 Sam 16; Psalms 2, 110)
 The intervening oracle clarifies who the two trees are: Joshua the high priest has been
introduced in 3:1-10, but Zerubbabel hasn’t been mentioned by name, only hinted at as
“branch” in 3:8. The inserted oracles are broken in two: 4:6b-7 and 4:8-10a
o 4:6b-7: A challenge that the rebuilding of the temple cannot fulfill God’s
covenant promises if it represents a merely human or political effort. Rather, it
must be an event orchestrated by God’s Spirit. This creates a similar conditional
nature to the temple rebuilding as in 3:7, making the effectiveness of the
priesthood conditional.
o 4:8-10a: A promise that Zerubbabel will finish his temple work, and despite
opposition (“who despises” 4:10a), there will be rejoicing.
 This vision, while a challenging composition to read, is an affirmation that Zerubbabel’s
efforts to rebuild the temple are part of God’s plan to care for and watch out for Israel’s
Tim Mackie 41
well being and future (similar to vision #1). The emphasis here is on the nature of Israel’s
institutions and leaders (Priest and king) as divine gifts to restore his people. However,
the success of Israel’s priest and king are conditional upon obedience (3:7) and
dependence on God’s Spirit (4:6) instead of political maneuvering.
5:1–4 Vision #6 The flying scroll

 The sight is bizarre, both the size of the scroll (30ft long x 15ft tall!) and the fact that it’s
flying. He’s told it’s a “curse,” in other words it’s a symbol of the consequences of
violating the covenant. The curse will find people who have up to this point remained
unaccountable.
 The two crimes come from the ten commandments (lying and stealing), and the curse
finds people in their homes and destroys them (5:4). The destruction of their homes may
indicate that God is here accusing people of illegal land theft (see Ezek 11:15 for this
same problem: the exiles’ land being stolen by those left behind).
 The main idea is that many among Israel remain violators of the covenant, and God will
ensure that these are held accountable no matter what.
5:5–11 Vision #7 The basket of evil

 The medium size basket contains a tiny woman, who is a symbol of “evil.” She is
contained in the basket, carried by two stork-women to the land of “Shinar” (an ancient
name for Babylon: see Gen 10:10; 11:2; Isa 11:11; Dan 1:2) where a shrine is built for it.
 This vision builds on the previous: God is currently removing evil from the returned
exiles and sending it back where they came from, so that the remnant can be pure (similar
to Haggai’s concerns in 2:10-15).
6:1–15 Vision #8 Four chariots + Bonus Oracle [6:9-15]

 The appearance of the four horsemen and chariots are deliberately paired with the four
horsemen of vision #1 (1:8-10). They come out of God’s presence (“two bronze
mountains” perhaps echoing the two bronze pillars of the temple, 1 Kgs 7:21), and spread
out in all directions (‘four winds’ 6:5) to patrol the land (cf. 1:10-11). The patrols to the
north are highlighted as they bring peace to that region (6:8). The ‘land of the north’ is
ominous in the prophets as the land from which Israel’s conquerors came (Isa 14:31; Jer
1:14-15; Ezek 38:6; Zeph 2:13), and to which the exiles went and would return (Isa 43:6;
Jer 3:18; 16:15). The point is that the heavenly patrol finds even the most scary and
dangerous part of the world at peace.
 The oracle attached to this vision (6:9-15) shows the result of God’s providence
preparing the way for coming kingdom:
o A group of exiles are called to prepare “a crown” and place it upon the head of
Joshua the high priest (6:9-11). He is put forward as a symbol (recall 3:8) of the
coming “branch,” the messianic priest-king who will build the new temple and
rule from his throne as a priest.
o This depiction is similar to the hope of Psalm 110, where Melchizedek, the
ancient priest-king of Jerusalem becomes a symbol of the future messianic king
(cf. 3:8).
o It is surprising here, that Zerubbabel is not mentioned, and it seems purposeful.
Joshua is the symbol of the coming ‘branch,’ so that the reader isn’t confused by
thinking Zerubbabel was the referent of the promise (different from Haggai 2:23)
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 6:15: This promise of the new temple and the coming priest-king is conditional. It’s
contingent upon the people’s repentance and obedience (“if you listen to the voice of the
LORD your God,” verbatim from Deut 28:1). Only then will the messianic king come so
that the nations can participate in the new temple (cf. 8:21-23).
3. Chs. 7-8 conclude with another call for the current generation to repent and embrace covenant
faithfulness.
a. 7:1-3: People who are either (1) remaining from the former northern tribes (in Bethel) or
(2) recent returnees from the Babylonian exile come to the new temple and ask if they
should keep up their ritual mourning for the destruction of the temple and Jerusalem.
i. The date given in 7:1 (Dec, 518 BC) marks 69 years since the fall of Jerusalem.
So the question coincides with the rebuilding of the new temple and the approach
of the 70th anniversary.
ii. The direct answer to the question is delayed until 8:18-23, and in between the
Question and Answer, 7:4-8:17 has been added as a two-panel composition to
emphasize the conditional nature of Israel’s future.
b. 7:4-14: God accuses the people of fasting under false pretenses for the last 70 years (“was
it for me you really fasted?” 7:5), echoing the similar accusations of the pre-exilic
prophets (see Isaiah 1:10-18; Jeremiah 7). He summarizes all of the social and ethical
challenges given by the prophets (7:9-10 also echoes Isa 1 and Jer 7), and shows how
their ancestors ignored and rejected these prophetic words and came to ruin (7:11-14).
c. 8:1-17: Zechariah paints a picture of a different future for this generation by summarizing
his message from chs. 1-6: God will personally return to Jerusalem and live in the temple
(8:2-3 = 1:14, 16; 2:14); Jerusalem will be repopulated (8:4-5 = 1:17, 2:8); he will gather
his scattered people and renew the covenant (8:7-8 = 2:15); the rebuilding of the temple
will unleash covenant blessing and the fertility of the land (8:9-13 = Hag 1:10, 2:18-19),
and God will reverse the covenant curse into a blessing (8:14).
i. BUT, Zechariah makes it clear that all this covenant blessing is contingent on the
obedience of this new generation, and so 8:16-17 repeats the challenge of the
former prophets to their ancestors (= 7:7-10).
ii. Justice, defense of the poor, right relationships are to permeate their communal
life on every level.
d. 8:18-23: The delayed response to the initial question of the Bethel delegation from 7:1-3
is a negative answer: all the ritual fasts and days of mourning over the fall of Jerusalem
are to be reversed and turned into days of rejoicing and celebration for the new thing God
is doing.
i. And Zechariah ramps it up by incorporating the hope of Isaiah 2:1-4 and Micah
4:1-4, that all nations will participate in the new Jerusalem and come to seek the
God of Israel (picking up 2:15 and 6:15).
4. Chs. 9-11
a. 9:1-17 This chapter contains a series of poems that paint in vivid colors the basic
prophetic hope of God confronting evil among the nations and taking up residence in his
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temple (9:1-8), sending the messianic king (9:9-10) and bring about the great final battle
with evil to rescue his people.
i. 9:1-8: God’s justice travels in a great counter-clockwise circle defending
Jerusalem against its neighboring enemies (Syria, Phoenecians, Philistines) to
nothing. But the conclusion involves an incorporation of the Philistines into the
clans of Israel (9:7-8), when God comes to personally dwell in Jerusalem.
ii. 9:9-10: The promised king of Judah’s line (link to 9:7) comes to Zion, fulfilling
the promise of Genesis 49:9-14. He will end all wars, bring peace to the nations,
and establish a universal kingdom (clear link to Psalm 72:8).
iii. 9:11-17 depicts in opaque poetic images a call for the oppressed remnant of Judah
to return from the prison of exile and oppression to the rebuilt Zion (9:11-12).
There God will defend his people, and even arouse them to victory over the
Greeks (! This has implications for the date of chs. 9-14). God will appear in
glorious power (9:14 alludes to Habakkuk 3) to defeat the enemy nations and
rescue his people, so that they can flourish in the land (the flock and crown
imagery in 9:16) and experience its abundance (covenant abundance images in
9:17).
b. 10:1-11:3: Similar to 9:1-17, this series of poems envisions a restoration of the Davidic
kingdom that involves a final battle with evil nations. But this section differs from ch.9
by focusing on both Judah and the northern tribes of Ephraim (10:7-11:3) as part of the
restoration kingdom of God’s people.
i. 10:1-2: Keying off the abundance images from 9:17, the prophet calls the people
see their God alone as the source of renewal and hope, not the idols of the nations.
The fact that this needs to be said indicates a lack of good leaders, and so the
shepherd/flock metaphor is introduced (10:2b: “therefore the people wander like
sheep… for there is no shepherd.”)
ii. 10:3-6: God voices his anger with Israel’s shepherds (with images taken from
Jeremiah 23 and Ezekiel 34) and so establishes the house of Judah as the leader of
his lost people (the cornerstone [from Ps 118:22], tent-peg [from Isa 22:23-25; cf.
Ezra 9:8], and battle bow images focus on rescue and renewal).
iii. 10:7-12: God promises a parallel rescue and renewal for the northern tribes of
Ephraim, that they will also be regathered to the promised land despite the terror
and tragedy of their exile.
iv. 11:1-3: An opaque warning to the region of the northern tribes (Lebanon and
Bashan) that its territory will be retaken. This poem follows well after 10:7-12
that explores the same topic.
c. 11:4-17: A sign-act about Israel’s worthless shepherd-leaders. The “shepherd” is a core

prophetic image of Israel’s kings and leaders (2 Samuel 7, Jeremiah 23, Ezekiel 34), and
so this story is an opaque sign-act of the dissolution of Israel’s leaders, and how the
prophet is sent to turn the tide and ultimately fails, which itself becomes a sign. There are
two basic ways to see how the story contributes to the context: (1) It’s a retrospective on
how Israel’s leaders have continually rejected God’s prophets, leading to ruin or (2) It’s a
prophetic allegory for historical events happening in Judah during the period after Ezra-
Nehemiah.
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i. 11:4-6: The prophet is called to shepherd a flock that is currently being abused by
its shepherds, and God is allowing it to happen.
ii. 11:7-8: The prophet attempts the lead the flock, and symbolizes his task with two
staffs (‘favor’ and ‘union’). This led to a conflict with existing leaders that he had
to depose, resulting in tension and anger.
iii. 11:9: This tension and conflict forces the prophetic shepherd to resign, and to
leave the flock to its fate under bad shepherds.
iv. 11:10-12: The prophet breaks his 1st staff (‘favor’) because he’s clearly lost favor.
He breaks his commitment to the people and asks to be paid. He is paid an
absurdly low amount (equal of the sale of a slave, see Exod 21:32).
v. 11:13: God commands the prophet to reject the payment and throw it into the
temple treasury (an indication of the money’s source?).
vi. 11:14: The prophet breaks his 2nd staff (‘union’) as a symbol of the broken family
ties between Judah and the northern tribes. This shows that the entire story is a
parabolic sign-act for the leadership of the post-exilic community in Judah.
vii. 11:15-17: The prophet is commanded to take up the role of shepherd yet
again, this time as a symbol of another shepherd God will raise up. But he’s a
horrible shepherd, another abuser of the flock, and so the story ends with the
prophet announcing a curse (11:17) upon this evil shepherd, that his skills (eye
and hand = understanding and power) to lead be taken from him.
5. Chs. 12-14
a. 12:1-14: A collection of 7 “in that day” oracles (12:3, 4, 6, 8 [2x], 9, 11), exploring two
main themes that are a part of Zechariah’s vision of restoration: (1) dealing with evil and
hostility among the nations, and (2) dealing with the royal house of David’s rebellion and
bringing about a time of mourning for past sin and rejection of the prophets.
i. 12:1: The universal creator speaks. God’s role as creator underlies his role as the
one guiding historical events for his purpose.
ii. 12:2-6: All nations are gathered to oppose God in Zion, only to be overcome.
Zechariah draws on Exodus images (12:4 also echoes the covenant curses in Deut
28:28). The ideas here are common to Isaiah (chs. 10, 13-14), Micah (chs. 5-6),
Joel (ch.3), and Zephaniah (ch.3). The “clans of Judah” (12:5-6) are highlighted
as especially heroic in the final battle.
iii. 12:7-8: Once external threats are dealt with, the history of corrupt leadership
within Israel must be dealt with. God will exalt the people of Judah before the
house of David, and even the weakest member of the people will become great.
This reversal of status is surely meant as a critique of the wealth and corruption of
David’s descendants over against the people.
iv. 12:9-14: After the final battle, God will transform the house of David to show
favor and sorrow as they “look to me [Yahweh] concerning the one they have
pierced” (12:10). God will change the posture of the house of David towards
someone they have persecuted and killed. Most likely this is a reference to the
long tradition of true prophets that the house of David rejected, persecuted, and
killed through its history (see the same rare verb in 13:3). The mourning will be as
intense as the Canaanites for their gods (Hadad-Rimmon, 12:11) as well as the
traditional mourning for Josiah’s death in the same valley (“valley of Megiddo”
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cf. 2 Chron 35:22-25). Every layer of Israel’s royal (David, Nathan) and priestly
(Levi, Shimei) leadership will be engaged in the mourning.
v. 12:12-14 develops the ritual of mourning across all levels of Jerusalem’s society
(the houses of David, Nathan, Levi, Shimei).
b. Key Question of Ch.12: There is a great battle between Jerusalem and the nations,
followed by a great period of mourning in Jerusalem, and the hinge statement is in 12:10:
“I will pour out on the house of David a spirit of favor and supplication, and they will
look to me, the one whom they have pierced and they will mourn over him…”
i. Q: Who looks at whom? Who pierces? Who is pierced?
ii. A1: The house of David looks to Yahweh concerning the nations they just
defeated, and begins to weep over them.
iii. A2: The nations look at Yahweh, whose people they’ve been fighting and begin to
mourn their enmity against Israel.
iv. A3: The house of David looks to Yahweh, about the one whom they have
attacked.
c. 13:1-9: Three sections that continue the theme of restoring and correcting the past wrongs
of God’s people. The royal house will be purified (13:1), the people will no longer be
deceived by false prophets (13:2-6), and
i. 13:1: The restoration of God’s people will involve a total purification of the royal
house of David and of the new Jerusalem, dealing with their sin and ritual
impurity.
ii. 13:2-6: God will remove idolatry from the land, and God’s people will adhere to
the covenant call to remove false prophets (13:3 derives from Deut 13:6-11). Two
scenes are painted where people deny their association with prophetic activity.
iii. 13:7-9: God orders again that “my shepherd” (a reflective description of the house
of David, see 2 Sam 7:8) be destroyed, with the result that the flock is scattered
(i.e. the exile). This image is derived from the past demise of the house of David
and now projected out into the future. The story of Israel’s judgment and exile is
being repeated again: the remnant imagery is derived from Ezekiel (5:1-12): God
will deliver yet another remnant, purify them, and they will be the ones to reflect
a true covenant relationship with God (13:9). The last line contains an echo of
Malachi 3:1 (testing metals) and Hosea 2:23 (covenant formula).
d. 14:1-21: A kaleidoscopic collection of scenes exploring the “day of the Lord” from
various angles. They offer conflicting images on a literal level (e.g. Jerusalem is attacked
and defended, the remnant is saved and flees), but are meant to be reflected on together as
a prophetic collage. “On the day” occurs seven times (14:4, 6, 8, 9, 13, 20, 21)
i. 14:1-5: The final battle is portrayed with echoes of Zeph 3:8 and Joel 3:2:
Jerusalem will be attacked, and only a remnant will survive. But God will come to
confront the evil nations and save his remnant (14:1-3). God’s appearance echoes
the theophanies from earlier in the book (Micah 1:2-7; Nahum 1:2-5), and splits
the Mt. of Olives in half, creating an escape route for his people
ii. 14:6-11: The recreation of the land includes the banishment of winter cold (14:6,
eternal summer!), the banishment of darkness (14:7, eternal day, see Gen 1:6), a
permanent river of fresh water flowing from Jerusalem to the Dead Sea and the
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Mediterranean (cf. Joel 3:18; Ezek 47:12; Gen 2:10-14). Yahweh will be the only
named king in Jerusalem (Exod 15:21 and Deut 4:4-6). The mountainous terrain
around Jerusalem will be leveled into a plain, Jerusalem at its center (14:10)
living in a state of peace and harmony.
iii. 14:12-15: Plague and Panic on the nations: The scene returns to the final battle of
14:1-5, but now focused on the fate of the evil nations. They will be struck with a
plague and so become like Egypt (Exod 9:14). They will be struck with ‘panic’
(see Exod 14:24 and 1Sam 5:9, 11; 6:4 for the same words), defeated, and then
plundered. These are all Exodus motifs, now applied to the deliverance of
Jerusalem.
iv. 14:16-19: The remnant of the nations: After the final battle, there suddenly
emerges a remnant from the nations to match the remnant from Jerusalem, and
both come to acknowledge Yahweh as king of the world. The nations worship at
the annual feast of booths, which in Israelite practice could include resident
immigrants (Deut 16:11, 14). This feast had several unique things that suggest its
importance here: (1) It was the fall harvest festival, and so acknowledged God as
creator and provider of food (Exod 23:16 and Deut 16:13); (2) it commemorated
Israel’s liberation from Egypt and God’s provision in their wilderness wanderings
(Lev 23:42-43); (3) It was the feast with which Solomon inaugurated his great
temple (1Kgs 8:1-2, 65-66) and was followed by Joshuah and Zerubbabel in the
inauguration of the second temple (Ezra 3:1-6); (4) It was during this feast that the
entire Torah was to be read aloud to the people (Deut 31:10-14), a practice
reinstituted by Ezra (Neh 7-8).
v. 14:20-21: The entire city of Jerusalem becomes purified and as holy as the inner-
parts of the temple. It’s a similar vision to the conclusion of Ezekiel (chs. 47-48).
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Literary Design and Themes in Malachi
Literary Design
Disputes 1-3: Exposing Israel’s Corruption

1:2–5 Dispute #1 – Yahweh chose Israel and not Edom
1:6–2:9 Dispute #2 – Israel has defiled the rebuilt temple
1:6–14 Dispute with the people for lame sacrifices
2:1–9 Dispute with the priests for false instruction
2:10–16 Dispute #3 – Israel has been unfaithful by divorcing their wives
Disputes 4-6: Confronting Israel’s Corruption

2:17-3:5 Dispute #4 – Israel questions Yahweh’s justice
3:6–12 Dispute #5 – Israel is withholding offerings from the temple
3:13–4:3 Dispute #6 – Israel questions Yahweh’s justice again
3:13-15 Israel’s accusation: Faithfulness to God doesn’t pay
3:16-18 Narrative: God observes the faithfulness of his people in writing
4:1-3 Announcement of the Day of the Lord to separate the remnant from the wicked
Canonical Transition between the Torah & Prophets and the Kethivim
4:4 Call to follow the Torah of Moses… [links to Joshua 1:7-8 and Psalm 1]
4:5-6 …until God sends a new Elijah to prepare Israel for the Day of the Lord [links to Deut 34:10-
12]
Historical Context
– After the first wave of Babylonian exiles have returned to Jerusalem and rebuilt the temple (see
around 520 B.C., see Ezra 1-6). Malachi presumes that the temple has been operational for some
time, and that things are not going well. Ezra-Nehemiah began their reforms nearly 70 years later (in
the 450s B.C.), and Malachi’s words may reflect a time period either before or after their work.
Special Note
– The prophet’s name “Malachi” is standard Hebrew for “my messenger” (Heb. mal’akiy) which
occurs in 3:1. The ancient Greek translation (the Septuagint) translated malakiy as “his messenger”
(Grk. angelou autou).
– It’s possible that Zechariah-Malachi actually represent multiple, originally distinct collections of
anonymous prophetic oracles that have been brought together under two superscriptions (Zech 1:1;
Mal 1:1.
Zech 1:1 In the eighth month of the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came to
Zechariah the prophet, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo saying
Zech 7:1 In the fourth year of King Darius, the word of the Lord came to Zechariah on the
fourth day of the ninth month, which is Chislev.
Zech 9:1 An oracle (‫)משא‬. The word of Yahweh against Hadrakh…
Zech 12:1 An oracle (‫)משא‬. The word of Yahweh against Israel…
Mal 1:1 An oracle (‫)משא‬. The word of Yahweh to Israel, by the hand of Malachi
Tim Mackie 48
Main Themes in Malachi

1. The book is designed as a series of arguments (see “Literary Design” above), where God will
make a claim of some kind, only to face a refutation or reactive question from the people. This
literary technique portrays God in a dialogue with his people, but they come off as quarrelsome,
disrespectful, and full of doubt about God’s commitment to them.
2. God remains committed with covenant love for his people: 1:2-5
3. But despite Israel’s return from exile, they still persist in rebellion
– They are defiling the 2nd Temple with lame offerings: 1:6–14, 3–12
– The priests are corrupt leaders: 2:1–9
– They have practiced widespread idolatry and divorce: 2:10–16
4. Yahweh calls them to repent/return: 3:6–7
5. Because of Israel’s rebellion, God will bring yet another act of judgment to purify Israel
– A messenger will come announcing judgment: 3:1–4
– This judgment will create a “true Israel” made up of only those who are loyal to Yahweh
(“his special possession” that fears him and is given the “scroll of memorial” 3:16-17) and
excluding those who are not: 3:16-18 and 4:1–6
6. The book ends with an appendix that weaves the themes of the prophets into the entire TaNaK
– 4:6: Adherence to the Torah of Moses is still the standard of faith and allegiance (cf. the
same terminology in Joshua 1:1-8)
– 4:5-6: Elijah the prophet’s return and the coming day of Yahweh
o Elijah also confronted an Israel that was compromised and dishonoring Yahweh (1
Kings 18)
o Elijah was a “prophet like Moses” (see Deut 34:10-12 and 1 Kings 19) who called the
people to allegiance to Yahweh alone (1Kings 18:20-21).
o His coming is connected to the Day of Yahweh in Joel 3:4, that will make clear the
difference between the righteous and the wicked (3:18 “you will see between the
righteous and the wicked” ➞Psalm 1, the righteous vs. the wicked)
o His mission is to “return the hearts” of the people (= repentance, see Deut 4:39 and
30:1-2; and 1 Kings 18:28-32) and bears a resemblance to the vocation of Isaiah’s
servant (Isa 49:1-2).
Torah Former Latter Writings

Prophets Prophets
Josh 1:7-8 Mal 4:4 Psalm 1
Deut 34:10-12 Meditate on Remember Mal 4:5-6 Meditate on
Prophet like Torah day and Torah Prophet like Torah day and
Moses still to night Elijah still to night
come come

08 Book of The 12 Prophets - Word

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Tim Mackie 1

Western Seminary - BLS 502

The Literary Unity of the Scroll of Twelve

Deuteronomy 34:10-12 Psalm 1

Main Themes of Each of the Twelve Prophets

Exile on the Horizon:

1–3 Hosea’s Symbolic Marriage to an adulterous woman

4–11 Poems of accusation and warning and future hope

12-14 Poems of accusation and warning and future hope

14:9 Author’s addendum to the reader

The Message of Hosea

Hosea 1:2-2:3 Hosea 2:4-25 Hosea 3:1-5

Renewed 1:10-11 2:14-23 3:4-5

 The conclusion in 3:4-5 casts a forward glance:

The rock, his work is whole, Who is wise (‫?)מי חכם‬

#2 2:1-11 Announcement of Yahweh’s imminent judgment on Jerusalem

The Message and Themes of Joel

Exodus 10:4-5 1:4

Exod 10:14 2:2

Exodus 10:6 2:9

3. Assyria in Amos 6-7

4. Persia in Jeremiah 51:11, 27

d. Joel twice calls all Israel to repent: 1:13-14 and 2:12-17.

B 3:2 All nations face divine justice in the valley of Jehoshaphat

C’ 3:4-8 Nations punished for selling (‫ )מכר‬God’s people into slavery

B’ 3:9-17 All nations face divine justice in the valley of Jehoshaphat

A’ 3:18-21 Restoration and repopulation (‫ )תשב‬of Judah and Jerusalem

d. Intertextual links in Joel 3:1-21

ii. 3:14-15 are loaded with phrases from Isaiah 13

Part 2 3–6 3 Addresses + 2 Woes

Part 3 7–9 5 Visions + 1 Narrative about the Prophet-like-Moses

Part 4 9:7–15 Final Judgment & Future restoration:

Main Themes in Amos

5. Yahweh’s justice will bring “the day of the Lord” (5:18-20).

Amos 7:14-15 2 Samuel 7:8

Amos 9:11 2 Samuel 7:19, 25

Amos 9:11-12 Septuagint Amos 9:11-12 Acts 15:16-17

• Edom/Adam = Humanity (see Obadiah 15-16)

Main Themes in Obadiah

A Vision 9:1 “I saw the Lord standing…” 1 “Vision of Obadiah”

Five “if” (‫)אם‬ 9:2-4: 4-5: five “if” (‫ )אם‬clauses

Obad 1-4 Jeremiah 49:14-16

If grape gatherers came to you, If thieves by night,

Main Themes in Jonah

3. Yahweh’s rebellious prophet is “swallowed by the sea monster”

1 In my distress I called to the LORD, and he Ps. 120:1

9a But I, with a song of thanksgiving, will 116:17-18

9b Salvation comes from the LORD. Ps. 3:8

5. Jonah announces a half-hearted sermon (3:1–4)

3:1–4:7 Justice and Restoration: Cycle 2

4:8–5:14 Hope for Israel’s future restoration

Main Themes in Micah

2. Israel has broken the covenant by...

3. The announcement of consequences:

4. Yahweh will bring restoration on the other side of judgment:

A2 1:13-14 The preparation of the grave for the king of Nineveh

Main Themes in Nahum

Nahum 1 Hyperlinked Texts

2. Nineveh is highlighted as a brutal oppressor of God’s people

3. Nineveh’s judgment = salvation for Israel: 1:15–2:2

3:1–19 Habakkuk’s prayer of response:

Unique Feature of Habakkuk

Main Themes in Habakkuk