BOB – The Prophetic Books

by Stephen Rodgers

Comparative Outlines of the Major Prophetic Books

Comparative Outlines of the Minor Prophetic Books

Having briefly dealt with the wisdom books, we now turn our attention to the fourth major section of the OT: the prophetic books. Remember, the OT (as it appears in the Protestant Bible) can be broken down into four major sections:

  1. Law (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy)
  2. History (Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 & 2 Samuel, 1 & 2 Kings, 1 & 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther)
  3. Wisdom (Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs)
  4. Prophecy (Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi)

The 17 prophetic books were written over a period of approximately 300 years and are often divided between the “major” prophets (Isaiah, Jeremiah/Lamentations, Daniel, Ezekiel) and the “minor” prophets (Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi). Incidentally, the minor prophets are not minor in the sense of being “unimportant” (of “minor” consequence) or unskilled/unqualified (“minor” leagues)…rather their books were simply shorter.

Because the prophetic books are organized by length rather than chronologically, and since the books often refer to contextual cues that are utterly foreign to us, they can be confusing on an initial reading.

AUTHOR & COMPOSITION

Unlike the Pentateuch (but like the historical and wisdom books), the prophetic books do not have a single author. Traditional scholarship holds that the books that bear their names were either penned by the prophets themselves (Isa 8:1-2; Jer 1:4-19), or by their disciples and “guilds” (Isa 8:16; Jer 36:1-32).

THE ROLE OF THE PROPHET

Before we explore the prophetic books, let’s take moment to consider the context of the prophet themselves.

  • Prophets were around well before the time of the Prophetic Books. Genesis to Psalms is full of names of individuals that the Bible clearly identifies as prophets: Abraham, Moses, Samuel, Nathan, Elijah, Elisha, Huldah, etc.
  • God’s prophets had standards. Certain principles were non-negotiable: the prophet could never advocate for the worship of any god other than Yahweh (Deut 13:1-11), they were to speak the words of God rather than their own (Deut 18:18), and as a result, they were to be accurate regarding future events 100% of the time (Deut 18:21-22).
  • Prophets were not the “regular” teachers of God’s word. That was the priests’ job (Deut 33:10). Prophets are more specialized than that; when you see a prophet in Scripture, they are a herald of a specific circumstance. It is not “business as usual.”

CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORKS FOR ORGANIZING THE PROPHETIC BOOKS

I’m not trying to improve on Scripture itself, but in an effort to improve your understanding of it, I would suggest there are a couple of ways that you can organize the prophetic books that might be considerably more helpful than the traditional major/minor delineation.

The first would be to divide the prophets chronologically.  Generally speaking, that would break them down into three significant periods:

  • Preclassical – This would be the period of the early monarchy in Israel and Judah (which you are no doubt familiar with since we went through the historical books a little while back). These would be prophets who do NOT have books of their own, but are recorded in the historical books: Samel, Nathan, Elijah, and Elisha.
  • Classical – This is the period of the eighth and seventh centuries BC. Prophecies in this period tend to focus on two major events: the fall of Israel to the Assyrians (Amos, Hosea, Isaiah, Micah), and the fall of Judah to the Babylonians (Zephaniah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Jeremiah).
  • Exilic/Postexilic – This would be the period of Babylonian exile (Ezekiel, Daniel), and the period of Judah’s restoration in Palestine (Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi).
Another way to try to organize the prophets would be geographically. Generally speaking, that would break them down into two significant groups:
  • Prophets to Israel – Amos, Jonah, Hosea, possibly Micah
  • Prophets to Judah – Micah, Isaiah, Nahum, Zephaniah, Habakkuk, Jeremiah, Daniel, Ezekiel, Obadiah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi
In case you didn’t notice, neither of those lists are comprehensive; some of the prophets (Joel, Obadiah, et. all) are very difficult to categorize with absolute certainty.

THEMES

Various sources categorize the themes of the prophetic books in different ways, but in general, a pattern emerges:

  • The Covenant Lawsuit – The prophet declares their status (that they speak for God), affirms Israel’s status as being in a covenant relationship with God, and accuses Israel of breaking that covenant by failing to live up to God’s standard and Law.
  • The (Conditional) Promise of Judgment –  The prophet warns that if Israel does not turn from their sin, then God will bring judgment down on them to eradicate their sin. Alternatively, the prophet may warn that it is too late for repentance, and judgment is imminent.
  • The Hope of Restoration – The prophet promises that restoration and renewal lies beyond the trial and tribulation of judgment. This glorious future sometimes refers to Israel/Judah, and sometimes refers to all the nations. The Messiah will be the catalyst that causes this reality.
Other minor themes and frequently used imagery includes marriage, the enemies of Israel, immorality and social injustice, and true prophecy vs. false prophecy.

Other Works Referenced:

  • ESV Study Bible, “Introduction to the Prophetic Books”
  • Reformation Study Bible, “Introduction to the Prophets”
  • The Baker Illustrated Bible Handbook, “The Prophets”
  • Driscoll, A Book You’ll Actually Read On The Old Testament
  • Knight, The Layman’s Bible Handbook