Encouraging Hezekiah and the people through his own trust in God, he was instrumental in saving Jerusalem. The formal rejection of Jesus by the Jews, as a nation, marked the close of their last opportunity as the special agents of God for the salvation of the world. He would have come, He would have died, and would have risen again. 4. Furthermore, it should be remembered that the Messiah, after the flesh, was a Jew, that the charter members of the Christian church were all Jews, and that Christianity grew out of Judaism. Nehemiahs first term lasted from 444 to 432 B.C. As the people cooperated with the directions God gave them in regard to the culture of the soil, the land would gradually be restored to Edenic fertility and beauty (Isaiah 51:3). Nabopolassar 626 B.C. Along with his contemporary, the prophet Micah, Isaiah served the southern kingdom of Judah under the reigns of four kings. Higher than the highest human thought can reach is Gods ideal for His children. The ministry of Amos may therefore have fallen in the years 767-753 B.C. All that had been promised might yet come to pass if they would only love and serve Him (Zechariah 6:15; cf. Many others, including Lehi and Jeremiah, lived at the same time. They interpreted prophecy in accordance with their selfish desires, because their ambitious hopes were fixed on worldly greatness. Gods promises are made conditional upon mans cooperation and obedience. Accordingly, the covenant promises and privileges were all permanently transferred from literal to spiritual Israel (Romans 9:4; cf. These were remedied by the vigorous actions of the governor. On the other hand, the destruction of Nineveh is described as an event still future (chapter 3:7). Skill in agriculture and animal husbandry. But the Scriptures record the fact that they disobeyed God and proved disloyal to Him instead. Prophecies that Inspiration clearly applies to our day were designed of God to inspire us with patience, comfort, and the hope that all things foretold by these holy men of old will soon meet their final and complete fulfillment. He is the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever (Hebrews 13:8). In Abraham God found a man ready to yield unqualified obedience to the divine will (Genesis 26:5; Hebrews 11:8) and to cultivate a similar spirit in his posterity (Genesis 18:19). Owing to the failure of the Jews as Gods chosen people, many of the prophecies of the Old Testament, such as those affirming the worldwide mission of Israel and the ingathering of the Gentiles (see Genesis 12:3; Deuteronomy 4:6-8; Isaiah 2:2-5; 42:6; 49:6; 52:10; 56:6, 7; 60:1-3; 61:9; 62:2; Zechariah 2:11; 8:22, 23; etc. 6. However, all his messages were addressed to the northern nation. Jeremiah 32:17 highlights this point by stating, "O Sovereign Lord! from the ends of the earth (Jeremiah 16:19), to the light of truth shining forth from the mountain of the Lord (Isaiah 2:3; 60:3; 56:7; cf. Four verses, Isaiah 45:12; 48:13; and Jeremiah 10:12; 51:15 use the Qal perfect form. The fourth school of interpretation may, at times, arrive at a valid application of the predictive portions of Old Testament prophecy to the church today and to its future experience, but neglects the primary application of these messages to their historical setting, and proceeds, quite arbitrarily, to determine that certain selected passages were written more or less exclusively for the church today. His call came to him sometime in October/November, 520 B.C., in the same year as Haggais first appearance (chapter 1:1). This period spanned the reigns of five kings of Judah: Josiah, Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, and Zedekiah. Hence, Jonah was probably the earliest of the prophets under discussion. The chart allows both ideas, indicating his possible ministry during the two decades preceding 560 B.C. The church in this generation has been endowed by God with great privileges and blessings, and He expects corresponding returns. Whatever the Jews, as a nation, may do, now or in time to come, is in no way related to the former promises made to them. By nowadays 2 500 years old concerns have simply gone through time changes, but Gods truth spoken by two prophets remains the same. Jerusalem would have become a great missionary center, and the earth would have been set ablaze with the light of truth in one grand, final appeal to those who had not as yet accepted the invitation of divine mercy. The postexilic view.The absence of any reference to a king of Judah or to Assyria or Babylon, the reference to the hostility of Tyre and Sidon, and the mention of Greeks have been taken by some commentators as evidence for a postexilic date for Joel. The transition from literal Israel to spiritual Israel, or the Christian church, is the subject of Romans 9-11. The modernist school of interpretation bases its position on the a priori assumption that any knowledge of the future is impossible, and ignores all evidence to the contrary. Gedaliah is made governor over the small group of Jews that remain in Jerusalem. In that day every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts (Zechariah 14:16; cf. They would gather themselves together and come from far (Isaiah 49:18, 12, 6, 8, 9, 22; Psalms 102:22). They voluntarily accepted God as their sovereign, and this constituted the nation a theocracy. Then came a pause in his activity of almost two years, at the end of which Zechariah received another divine message, on December 6, 518 (chapter 7:1), recorded in chapters 7 and 8. In so doing we shall be secure against the fanciful explanations sometimes given certain Old Testament prophecies. Continuing faithfully under the following three kings, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah (chapter 1:1), he seems to have been fiercely hated by Manasseh, Hezekiahs wicked son. Those nations that rejected the worship and service of the true God, were to be dispossessed, and Israel would inherit the Gentiles chapter (54:3). If Jeremiah had been writing a novel, he would have been the hero of his own story. He played an important role during two momentous periods: (1) under Ahaz, during the war between Syria and Israel (chapters 7-11), and (2) under Hezekiah, during a siege of Jerusalem by Sennacherib chapters 36; 37). Numbers 14:26-34. The various abuses rebuked by Malachi are mostly the same as those Nehemiah found when he returned to Jerusalem for his second term of governorship (Malachi 3:8, 9; cf. It is thought, furthermore, that his ministry fell in the years when the high priest Jehoiada acted as regent for the child king Joash (2 Kings 11:17 to 12:2), which fact would explain why the king is not mentioned anywhere in the book, while at the same time the Temple service flourished. Jeremiah blames the people for ethical misbehavior. The vision concerning Judah and Jerusalem that Isaiah son of Amoz saw during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings They were doing no positive good; therefore they were doing incalculable harm, and their influence became a savor of death. Living in a crisis period of his nation, Jeremiah was called to proclaim many messages of reproof and solemn predictions of doom over his people for their disobedience. Technical know-how would render products made in Israel superior to all others. At the same time, He permitted the heathen nations to walk in their own ways (Acts 14:16), to furnish an example of what man can accomplish apart from Him. The promises and threatenings of God are alike conditional. With the call of Abraham, God set in operation a definite plan for bringing the Messiah into the world and for presenting the gospel invitation to all men (Genesis 12:1-3). Foskey, however, is far from a lock to be selected with one of the 31 first-round selections. Any nation and kingdom that would not serve Israel was to perish chapter (60:12). For some time he held a high position in Nebuchadnezzars government (chapter 2:48), and became a trusted counselor of the great king. 1 Peter 2:6-8; 1 Corinthians 1:23) but this need not mean that they are to fallGod forbid, he exclaims (Romans 11:1, 22). WebIsaiah lived about 100 years before Jeremiah. The present-day return of the Jews to Palestine and the establishment of the modern state of Israel do not imply reinstatement as Gods people, present or future. 19:21; Isaiah 46:10; Acts 5:39; Hebrews 6:17; etc. Between the return from Babylon and the rejection of the Messiah, Israel was to have its second and final opportunity as a nation to cooperate with the divine plan (see Jeremiah 12:14-17). Even to the time of the fall of Jerusalem, Jeremiahs message remained the same: submit to the yoke of Babylonia. Both of these extreme methods wrest the obvious intent of the Scriptures and render a sound understanding of the messages of the prophets for the church today unattainable. Nations that had known nothing of the true God would run to Jerusalem because of the manifest evidence of divine blessing that attended Israel (chapter 55:5). Jeremiah had been chosen by God for his office before birth (chapter 1:5), and was called to be a prophet at a tender age (chapter 1:6, 7). 4:14; Colossians 2:2-4, 8; 2 Peter 1:16; Revelation 22:18). Daniel 2:35). From the visible their minds were to be directed to the invisible, from the seen to the unseen, from the material to the spiritual, from the temporal to the eternal. His work is characterized by skill in the use of language, a well-balanced syntax, and a lively and impressive poetry. They rejected the Light of the world, and henceforth their lives were surrounded with darkness as the darkness of midnight. Isaiahs whole ministry from Uzziah to Manasseh must therefore have lasted more than half a century. When the siege of Jerusalem was temporarily lifted at the approach of an Egyptian force, Jeremiah started to leave Jerusalem to go to the land of the tribe of Benjamin. It was Gods design that the whole earth be prepared for the first advent of Christ, even as to-day the way is preparing for His second coming. They were to be far in advance of other nations in wisdom and understanding. Hence, he seems to have labored at a time before Assyria played a role in Palestinian affairs. Cooperation with the natural laws of body and mind would result in ever-increasing mental strength, and the people of Israel would be blessed with vigor of intellect, keen discrimination, and sound judgment. He was sawed in half, Menessah killed him. That which God purposed to do for the world through Israel, the chosen nation, He will finally accomplish through His church on earth to-day. 9:129) This verse first That the Bible really does claim that the stretching out of the heavens is both finished and ongoing is made all the more evident in Isaiah 40:22. Captivity, he said, had confirmed the curse that came because of disobedience (verses 11, 12) and Jerusalem lay desolate (verses 16-19). Again and again He had warned His people that captivity would be the result of disobedience (see Deuteronomy 4:9; 8:9; 28:1, 2, 14, 18; Jeremiah 18:7-10; 26:2-16; Zechariah 6:15; etc.). At times they had an import, not only for the age in which the prophet lived, but also for a day far future; in other words, they had a dual application. The profound conviction that the messages of the prophets had been fulfilled led many to believe in Christ as the Son of God. A closer dating is impossible in spite of the statement that his first divine message came to him two years before the earthquake (chapter 1:1), because the date of this event is unknown. But to go beyond that which is clearly set forth by Inspirationin the immediate context of the passage concerned, in the New Testament, or in the Spirit of prophecyis to substitute personal opinion for a plain Thus saith the Lord. Where Inspiration has not thus clearly spoken it is our privilege to compare scripture with scripture in an endeavor to understand more perfectly the mind of the Spirit. He will listen to the prophet speaking to Israel of old and endeavor to understand what his words meant to the people who originally heard them. It should be remembered that God does not force the human will, and that Israels cooperation was essential to the success of His plan for the nation. Although the Hebrew term naar, youth, or child, by which the prophet designates himself verse (6), does not give an indication of Jeremiahs exact age at the time of his call, the context of the passage in which this word appears seems to favor the interpretation that he was still very young, perhaps less than twenty. Remember thatgenerally speakingit was originally given with respect to the historical circumstances that called it forth. Paul states the same truth in Romans 9:30, 31, where he makes it plain that the Christian church has replaced the Hebrew nation in the divine plan. WebIsaiah was a prophet of the southern kingdom, living in a critical period of his nation. 2 Kings 20:1-5; and of promised blessing, see Exodus 6:2-8; cf. WebJeremiah was active as a prophet from the thirteenth year of Josiah, king of Judah (626 BC), until after the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of Solomon's Temple in 587 BC. Far from becoming the light of the world, the Jews shut themselves away from the world as a safeguard against being seduced into idolatry (see Deuteronomy 11:26, 27; cf. According to tradition, how was Isaiah killed? The response of the prophets is contrasted: Jeremiah is spontaneous and candid, while Ezekiel makes no spoken reply in the call narrative (pp. Jeremiah 22:26 I will hurl you and the mother who gave you birth into another land, where neither of you were born--and there you both will die. It is important to note that all the Old Testament promises looking forward to a time of restoration for the Jews were given in anticipation of their return from captivity (see Isaiah 10:24-34; 14:1-7; 27:12, 13; 40:2; 61:4-10; Jeremiah 16:14-16; 23:3-8; 25:11; 29:10-13; 30:3-12; 32:7-27, 37-44; Ezekiel 34:11-15; 37; Amos 9:10-15; Micah 2:12, 13; etc.). They looked for Messiah to reign as a temporal prince (cf. However, that earthquake must have been very severe, for the memory of it was still fresh in the minds of people who lived 250 years later, as Zechariah 14:5 shows. God designed that Israels experience should prove to be a warning to Judah (see Hosea 1:7; 4:15-17; 11:12; Jeremiah 3:3-12; etc.). The day, before, He had called it my house (chapter 21:13), but henceforth He no longer owned it as His. A comparison between some of his prophecies and those of Amos indicates that Hosea was a younger contemporary of Amos (cf. The completeness and finality of this rejection is evident from chapter 8:19, 20: As the nations which the Lord destroyeth before your face, so shall ye perish; because ye would not be obedient unto the voice of the Lord your God. The rejection of Jesus by the leaders of Israel (cf. When the probationary period of 490 years ended, the nation was still obdurate and impenitent, and as a result forfeited its privileged role as His representative on earth. Isaiah and Jeremiahs preaching against false idols and false prophets, mutual oppressions between nations, and against general injustice remains timely. Isaiah lived about 700 years before the birth of Jesus Christ. All who have faith in Christ are one in Him, and, as a the spiritual seed of Abraham, are heirs according to the promise (Galatians 3:9, 28, 29). Yet many of the promises, particularly those concerning the giving of the gospel to the nations and the establishment of the Messianic kingdom, could not be fulfilled to them because of their unfaithfulness, but would be fulfilled to the church on earth preparatory to Christs return, particularly to Gods remnant people, and in the new earth. For these reasons his ministry can be dated from about 755 (or earlier) to about 725 B.C. 3. He went to Bethel, a sanctuary city of the northern kingdom, to deliver prophecies of warning, reproof, and doom to Israel. Following this line of interpretation, some have gone to the extreme of proposing a Christian migration to Palestine. In one way or another each of these attempts at interpreting the messages of the Old Testament prophets neglects significant teachings of Scripture, evades fundamental principles of exegesis, and provides a distorted picture of the predictive sections of prophecy. Unparalleled prosperity, both temporal and spiritual, was promised them as the reward for putting into practice the righteous and wise principles of heaven (Deuteronomy 4:6-9; 7:12-15; 28:1-14). In the introduction to his book he declares that he worked under the kings Uzziah of Judah and Jeroboam II of Israel. But, said the angel, Messiah would be rejected and cut off, because of the abominations of Israel, and Jerusalem and the Temple would once more life waste (verses 26, 27). Nick Baumgardner, a senior writer from the same publication, predicts Notre Dames all-time sack leader will fall to the early third round in his latest mock draft.. Daniel Jeremiah, a draft analyst for the NFL Network, concurs. Foskey, however, is far from a lock to be selected with one of the 31 first-round selections. Hence, the year 603 can be considered as the beginning of Daniels ministry as a prophet. WebIsaiah 65:12 I will destine you for the sword, and you will all kneel down to be slaughtered, because I called and you did not answer, I spoke and you did not listen; you did evil in My sight and chose that in which I did not delight." If chapter 52, a historical appendix, was written by the prophet, he must have lived until 561, when Jehoiachin was released from prison by King Evil-Merodach of Babylon (see chapter 52:31). As the numbers of Israel increased, they were to enlarge their borders, until their kingdom should embrace the world (cf. 1:1, 6:1 - 8). 740-700 B.C. There was nothing God could have done for them that He did not do, yet they failed. Any interpretation that fails to give these matters due consideration does violence to the Scriptures. Nation after nation would come over (Isaiah 45:14), that is, be joined with and cleave to the house of Jacob (chapter 14:1). Since only these two kings are mentioned, Amos seems to have prophesied during the time when both kings were sole rulers in their respective kingdoms. Between the first invasion of Nebuchadnezzar in 605 B.C. And he did so, walking naked and barefoot. Jesus own verdict was, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof (Matthew 21:43; cf. ), those pointing forward to the eternal rest in Canaan (Isaiah 11:6-9; 35; 65:17-25; 66:20-23; Jeremiah 17:25; Ezekiel 37; 40-48; Zechariah 2:6-12; 14:4-11), and those promising deliverance from her enemies (Isaiah 2:10-21; 24-26; Ezekiel 38; 39; Joel 3; Zephaniah 1; 2; Zechariah 9:9-17; 10-14; etc.