Abschnittsübersicht

  • Prophetic books "with date" are specific in that they explicitly state the date when the oracles they claim to contain were uttered. That is, they attach an interpretation key to the statements; they provide the reader with a background against which the statements should be interpreted. They thus become, in a sense, "comments" on the history of Israel, resp. probes into the life of Israel commented on by the voice of God. These are the books (chronologically): Amos, Hosea, Isaiah, Micah, Zephaniah, Jeremiah, Baruch, Ezekiel, Haggai and Zechariah.

    Literature: 
    - Rendtorff, Rolf, The Old Testament, p.190-214; 216-218; 220-223; 228-230; 234-232. 
    - ABD 1:618-620 (Baruch) 
    - Mackerle, Adam. The Dynamics of Violence in Micah. In BER, Viktor (ed.) Nomos and Violence: Dimensions in Bible and Theology,     Wien; Zürich; Münster: LIT Verlag, 2019, pp. 107–121. 
    - Goldingay, John. An Introduction to the Old Testament. Exploring text, approaches and issues. Inter Varsity Press 2015. Read the sections 3.44-3.49 (pp. 228-239) devoted to Jeremiah. 


    Biblical texts for final exam: 

    The student is supposed to have read and to know all and entire Old Testament books; however, at the final exam (s)he will be confronted with one of these texts:

    Hos 1,1-9 (the life of the prophet as a message)

    Hos 2,1-25 (infidelity and conversion)

    Hos 11,1-11 (God's love for Israel)

    Am 1,3-2,16 (oracles against nations)

    Am 3,3-8 (Prophet and God's word)

    Am 5,18-20 (the day of the Lord)

    Am 7-8 (the third and fourth vision)

    Isa 2,1-5 (nations journey toward Jerusalem)

    Isa 5,1-7 (vineyard song)

    Isa 6,1-13 (vocation of Isaiah)

    Isa 7,10-25 (prophecy of Emanuel)

    Isa 14,3-23 (the end of the king of Babylon)

    Isa 25,6-9 (banquet of nations)

    Isa 40,1-11 (comfort my people!)

    Isa 42,1-9 (the servant)

    Isa 49,1-6 (the servant)

    Isa 50,4-11 (the servant)

    Isa 52,13 - 53,12 (the servant)

    Isa  61,1-11 (prophet's mission)

    Mi 3,1-12 (oracles against misuse of power and greedy prophets)

    Mi 5,1-5 (Messiah)

    Mi 6,1-8 (God's trial with his people)

    Zeph 3 (sin and conversion of Israel)

    Jer 1,4-10 (vocation of Jeremiah)

    Jer 2,1-13 (trial with Israel)

    Jer 7,1-15 (oracle against the Temple)

    Jer 12,1-13; 20,1-13 (Jeremiah's confessions)

    Jer 23,1-8 (the true shepherd of Israel)

    Jer 30-31 (renewal of Israel)

    Jer 36 (Baruch's scroll)

    Bar 6 (Jeremiah's letter) 

    Ez 1,1-28 (Ezechiel's vision)

    Ez 28,1-19 (oracle against the king of Tyre)

    Ez 34,1-31 (shepherds of Israel)

    Ez 36-37 (renewed Israel)

    Ez 47,1-12 (temple spring)

    Hag 1,3-15 (building the God's house)

    Zec 9,9-10 (the humble Messiah)

    Zec 14,1-21 (the last judgment)



    Verifying comprehension: 

    1. What books talk about a "new covenant", or "new heart"? In what context? 
    2. If does it mean if we say that the main theme of the book of Ezechiel is the Glory of the Lord? 
    3. What are the common traits and themes of the preexilic prophetic books? 
    4. What binds together the book of Jeremiah and the book of Baruch? 
    5. What is the diachronical situation of the book of Isaiah?