Prophecy

MAJOR PROPHETS

Major means a longer book.

(YAHWEH is salvation)
Isaiah prophesies about the Messiah, or suffering servant, who will come to bring a new heaven and a new earth.
(exalted of the LORD)
Jeremiah prophesies from Jerusalem just before the city falls to the Babylonians.
(grief and sorrow)
Jeremiah writes a book of five laments, or funeral songs, about the destruction of Jerusalem.
(God strengthens)
While Jeremiah is in Jerusalem, Ezekiel is with the exiles in Babylon. The people don’t take him seriously until Jerusalem is actually destroyed.
(God is my judge)
Daniel is given great authority in Babylon and has many mysterious visions and dreams about Judah’s future.

MINOR PROPHETS

Minor means a shorter book.

(salvation)
The LORD tells Hosea to marry an adulterous woman to show Israel that she is being unfaithful to God.
(the LORD is God)
Judah will suffer the penalty for her sin, but Joel holds out hope that there is still time to repent.
(burden-bearer)
Amos lives in Judah, but the LORD sends him to Israel to warn the people to repent. The LORD, in His compassion, will not destroy them completely.
(servant of the LORD)
Obadiah is sent to the Edomites (a close relative of Israel) to warn them that they will be punished for betraying Israel.
(dove)
Jonah is sent to warn the Assyrians to repent of their sin. They actually listen to him! However, their repentance doesn’t last and they are later destroyed by the Babylonians.
(who is like God?)
Micah warns Judah that if they do not repent, then they will suffer the same fate as the Northern Kingdom of Israel.

(comforter)
God uses evil to punish evil. Nahum comforts Judah with the message that Nineveh will fall to the Babylonians.
(embrace)
The LORD explains to Habakkuk that He is blessing the evil Babylonians so they can carry out His righteous judgment on Judah. Men reap what they sow.
(God has concealed)
The king of Judah heeds the prophet’s warning and repents. Nevertheless, only fifty years later Judah is exiled to Babylon because of their sin.
(religious festival)
Haggai is among the first group of exiles who return to Jerusalem to rebuild the Temple. He warns the leaders to stop working on their own homes and make the Temple their top priority.
(God has remembered)
Zechariah’s visions are much like those of Ezekiel and Daniel. He prophesies about the coming of Jesus, the Messiah.
(my messenger)
This is the final book of the Old Testament. There will be no more prophets until John the Baptist. Malachi calls the Jews to repent of their sin and return to the covenant they have with the LORD.

The prophets wrote their books over a period of 400 years during the rise and fall of several empires. Many of their messages are clearly a call for repentance, but at times their words are mysterious and speak of events that will happen in the distant future.

Try to figure out who the prophetic message was for. Don’t read too much into it.

The Role of the Old Testament Prophets

The prophets were Jewish men that God sent to Israel, Judah, and a few other nations. Their messages were warnings that the nations would soon be punished for their sins if they do not repent. History shows that people were not usually eager to change their ways. The prophets were routinely ignored, humiliated, mocked, abused, and even murdered by the people they were trying to help.

The books written by the prophets are like lawsuits. The prophet is like a prosecuting attorney, the LORD is the plaintiff, and the people are the defendants. Israel and Judah are guilty of breaking their covenant with the LORD. The charges against them include idolatry, murder, sexual sins, and other serious offenses that are punishable by death. They are guilty of these crimes (sins) and have no excuse for their actions. The LORD is merciful and eager to forgive them if they will admit their guilt and turn their hearts back to Him.