Prophets Exam Unit 2 Jonah, Amos, Hosea

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Eighth Century International Scene - Assyria

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1) had been strong in 9th Century (Jehu 841 brought tribute to Shalmaneser III)
2) Weakened and preoccupied with Armenia (Urartu) and internal problems
3) Tiglath-Pileser III (745-727) revived westward expansion
4) Shalmaneser V (727-722) and Sargon II (722-705) destroyed Northern kingdom

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Tiglath-Pileser III

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Ruled Assyria 745-727
revived westward expansion
(Note Destruction of Damascus 732)

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Shalmaneser V

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Ruled Assyria 727-722.
He and Sargon II (722-705) destroyed Northern kingdom

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Sargon II

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Ruled Assyria 722-705
He and Shalmaneser V (727-722) destroyed Northern kingdom

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Eighth Century International Scene - Arameans

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A. C. R. A. P.

1) Assyria - Under pressure from Assyria (until ca. 770)
2) Conquered - Fell to Israel under Jeroboam II (2 Kgs 14.28), ca. 770-750
3) Rezin - after 753 BC (death of Jeroboam II), independent under Rezin (750-732)
4) Allied - allied with Israel against Judah [Syro-Ephraimite war, 732]
5) Pileser - In 732 BC Ahaz of Judah paid Tiglath-Pileser to destroy Damascus (2 Kgs 16.5-9; cf. Am 1.3-5 for the fate of Qir !)

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Eighth Century Internal Conditions - Israel

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1) Jeroboam II 782-753 return to prosperity; restored Solomon’s borders; 2 Kgs 14.23-29

2) Lesser Kings 753-740
Zechariah 753-752 - assassinated
Shallum 752 - assassinated
Menahem 752-742 vassal to Assyria
Pekahia 742-740 - assassinated

3) Pekah 740-732 allied with Rezin of Damascus, against Judah (and Assyria) / Damascus falls in 732 - Pekah assassinated

4) Hoshea 732-722 Fall of Samaria

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King of Israel - Jeroboam II

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Ruled from 782-753
Return to prosperity; restored Solomon’s borders; 2 Kgs 14.23-29

2 Kings 14:24 (ESV) And he did what was evil in the sight of the LORD. He did not depart from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which he made Israel to sin.

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King of Israel - Pekah

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Ruled from 740-732
Allied with Damascus, against Judah (and Assyria) - assassinated

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King of Israel - Hoshea

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Ruled from 732-722
Fall of Samaria

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Eighth Century Internal Conditions - Judah

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796 A-A -J -A -H 715
29-27-8-17-28

1) Amaziah 796-767 good 2 Kgs 14.3

2) Azariah (Uzziah) 767-740 good - 2 Kgs15.3

3) Jotham 740-732 good - 2 Kgs 15.34

4) Ahaz 732-715 bad - 2 Kgs 16.2-3 (trib. to Assyria)

5) Hezekiah 715-687 good - 2 Kgs18.3

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Historical Setting of Jonah

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2 Kgs 14.25: during reign of Jeroboam II, Assyria weakened

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Genre of Jonah

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prophecy in the form of didactic narrative

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Problems with historical setting of Jonah

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no record of these events in Nineveh - but we have only sketchy records from this period, and they’re not of the sort to record this!

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Structure of Jonah

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Symmetry (2:9-10 center)

Two balancing parts (1-2 & 3-4)

Each part begins with a commission and Jonah's response to it. (1:1-3 & 3:1-3)

In each part Jonah's response to the commission brings him into contact with pagans who turn to God and express faith (1:4-16 & 3:4-10)

In the balancing chapters 2 & 4 Jonah and God deal individually with each other... each contain the phrase "and Jonah prayed to the Lord"

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Message of Jonah

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FIRST: Based upon the wordplay: If you repent from your evil way then God will relent from sending the calamity. Conversely, if there comes a calamity, you can know it is God's punishment for your evil.

SECOND: When we consider the features of the story: 1) God's control of the storm, fish, plan, worm and east wind; 2) God's granting repentance and faith to the sailors and Ninevites in spite of Jonah 3) the confession of God's gracious character 4) illustration of grace shown to pagans and Jonah... we can see that this is a message to Israel of rebuke, warning and loving invitation.

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Jonah - Repetition of key words

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gādôl (great)
rāʽâ (evil)
wayӗman (and he appointed)

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Fairbairn's Conditional / Unconditional Category One

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Prophecies whose direct aim is to disclose God’s purpose of grace for his
people – e.g. Messiah

No conditionality

a) doesn’t nullify necessity of human response as the instrumental condition
b) doesn’t guarantee an individual’s enjoyment of these blessings
apart from genuine faith and holiness;
c) doesn't deny that the
specific outworking of a prediction might be “modified” in the course
of human response

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Fairbairn's Conditional / Unconditional Category Two

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Prophecies concerning powers and kingdoms opposed to God’s kingdom
(i.e. prophecies about them addressed to God’s people – so Jonah is not included).

No conditionality

These express God’s love and faithfulness to his covenant people, and therefore his fixed purpose (even though of course individuals may have repented and escaped).

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Fairbairn's Conditional / Unconditional Category Three

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EE. Con. EA. AM

Everything else

Conditional because:
(a) ethical aim of prophecy;
(b) anthropomorphic mode of prophecy – adapted to human expression.

This includes both threatened judgments and promised blessings

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Amos Historical Setting

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during the reign of Jeroboam II (Israel) and Uzziah (Judah)

Earthquake ca. 760 BC (cf. Zech14.5).

Since Amos ministered during reigns of both Jeroboam II and Uzziah, his message and the earthquake came during height of prosperity.

Social conditions seen it: 2.6-8 (below); 3.14; 4.4-5; 8.14

(Amos 2:6) They sell the righteous for silver,and the needy for a pair of shoes (7) they that trample the head of the poor into the dust of the earth, and turn aside the way of the afflicted; a man and his father go in to the same maiden, so that my holy name is profaned; (8) they lay themselves down beside every altar upon garments taken in pledge; and in the house of their God they drink the wine of those who have been fined.

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Outline of Amos

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J - I - V- E

1-2 Judgment: Gentiles, Judah, Israel
3-6 Indictment
7-9:10 Visions - Series of 5
9:11-15 Epilogue: Restoration of Davidic kingdom.

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Flow of Amos

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Collins - Amos is collected sermon notes

vs.

Driver - chs. 1-2 introduce the theme of
the book, judgment upon Israel; chs. 3-6 argue against the privileged guarantee of safety that the Israelites believed they enjoyed; chs. 7-9 reinforce that theme of divine judgment

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Thematic passage Amos 3:1-2 (1 of 2)

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1 Hear this word that the LORD has spoken against you, O people of Israel, against the whole family that I brought up out of the land of Egypt:
2 “You only have I known of all the families of the earth; therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities.

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Thematic passage Amos 5:4-9 (2 of 2)

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4 For thus says the LORD to the house of Israel: “Seek me and live;
5 but do not seek Bethel, and do not enter into Gilgal or cross over to Beersheba; for Gilgal shall surely go into exile, and Bethel shall come to nothing.”
6 Seek the LORD and live, lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and it devour, with none to quench it for Bethel,
7 O you who turn justice to wormwood and cast down righteousness to the earth!
8 He who made the Pleiades and Orion, and turns deep darkness into the morning and darkens the day into night, who calls for the waters of the sea and pours them out on the surface of the earth, the LORD is his name;
9 who makes destruction flash forth against the strong, so that destruction comes upon the fortress.

(vv 14-17 echo these sentiments)

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What does “the day of the Lord” mean in Amos?

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To the people it meant the day when Yahweh would intervene to put Israel at the head of the nations, irrespective of Israel’s faithfulness to him. BUT Amos declares that the day means judgment for Israel.

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What should we make of Amos' view of sacrifice in 5.21-27?

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Amos is a prophet to the Northern Tribe where "worship is hopelessly syncretistic and polluted"

Acceptable worship must be:
(1) exclusively to Yahweh, and in
response to the way he has revealed himself through Moses etc.
(2) according to the outward rites he has given
(3) with integrity of heart (living faith with moral obedience).

The northern kingdom fails on all 3 counts. So we cannot legitimately find Amos opposed to sacrificial worship as such.

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Interpretation of Am 9:11: In that day I will raise up the booth of David that is fallen...

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One need not necessarily presuppose that David’s hut has already fallen. The word is "nōpelet" and we may either take it as “about to fall”, or as “fallen” looked at from the point of view of the fulfillment rather than from the point of view of the prophecy itself.

The setting of the prophecy is a prediction while David’s shelter is still occupied (1.1 Uzziah), but anticipates the fall of Judah.

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In light of the corporate nature of the warning that Amos is giving to Isreal, how might one preach Amos 3:2: "You only have I known of all the families of the earth; therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities.

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A - H - A

1)appreciation instill in the people an appreciation for redemptive history that displays God's determination to call, purify, and preserve a people for himself who will exhibit his love and truth to all the world

2) heirs - help the people to see that they are the heirs and beneficiaries of this story

3) atmosphere urge them to make their congregation, presbytery, and
denomination a place where the atmosphere stimulates all the members to greater and more consistent faithfulness. (And to help one another, not by being sternly judgmental, but by being lovingly helpful and encouraging).

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Date of Hosea

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Bullock gives date ca. 752-724 (last 30 yrs N.kingdom)

Collins "likely placed after Jeroboam's death

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Conditions of Hosea

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Idolatry and immorality intertwined (belief and behavior!); cf. 2.5, 8, 13
Baalism

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Outline of Hosea

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1–3: Hosea’s marriage as a parable
4–14: The parable spelt out

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Thematic passages of Hosea

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Chapter 14 "a magnificent summary" (the whole of the last chapter)

Also

11:8-9: (8) How can I give you up, O Ephraim? How can I hand you over, O Israel? How can I make you like Admah? How can I treat you like Zeboiim? My heart recoils within me; my compassion grows warm and tender. (9)I will not execute my burning anger; I will not again destroy Ephraim; for I am God and not a man, the Holy One in your midst, and I will not come in wrath.

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Key Words, ideas in Hosea

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"to know God/Yahweh"
"prostitution / whoredom"

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Theological Emphasis of Hosea

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13.4-8 cf. 2.8: the one true God to whom his people are bound by covenant (6.6-7).

But also, the nature of God’s grace: parallel between Hosea’s heartbreak over Gomer and God’s heartbreak over Israel – in spite of which he will still take her back! [Strongly anthropomorphic description of the “conflict” within God himself]

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What is the one of the key issues of understanding Hosea's marriage and children?

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The issue (at least partly) turns on whether the
Hebrew [זכה]is properly translated as referring to commercial sex (i.e.
“prostitution”) or to sexual impurity more generally. Collins sees the latter. He notes that sexual impurity or promiscuity is "certainly right" Only Jezereel is said to be Hosea's child, the others are left open to support the imagery.

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Who is the woman purchased in Hosea 3:2?

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Collins believes it to be Gomer. Some say a prostitute - with whom Hosea did not have relations.

Front 37

Is Hosea 6:7 (a) “like Adam”/(b) “as
a man”/(c) “at Adam”:

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ESV, NIV, NASB, Kidner, Keil for (a); Calvin for (b); RSV for (c) [ כ written for ב ]: note relevance to covenant theology and
Gen 2 – 3.

Front 38

What is the view on Gomer and the second woman argued for in Whoredom: God's Unfaithful Wife in Biblical Theology by Raymond C. Ortlund Jr.?

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Ortand takes the command to marry “a woman of harlotry” to be an anticipation of Gomer’s adultery rather than an description of her pre-marital behavior. He also considers the woman of Hosea 3 to be Gomer.

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A tidy summary of the message of Hosea

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The life of whoredom Israel has chosen must be purged from her national soul; but through all the agony required for the cleansing to be thorough, nothing will be able to separate her from the love of Yahweh

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Rulers at the time of Hosea

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Israel:
Jeroboam II 782-753
"Lesser Kings" (Pekah 740-732)

Judah:
Uzziah 767-740
Jotham 740-732
Ahaz 732-715
Hezekiah 715-686