Why So Apocalyptic? Part I: A Matter of God's Justice

A few weeks ago I posted a blog about what an apocalypse is and what it means to be apocalyptic. For review, you can read the whole thing by clicking here, but in summary here are a few things to keep in mind. Apocalypse means an "unveiling" or a "revelation." In biblical studies it refers to a particular kind of literature, one in which a supernatural message is revealed to a human being through or with the help of a heavenly being. To be apocalyptic is to espouse a worldview in which the spiritual realities of God, angels, demons and the like are real and active in the world. God is in control of his creation and has a plan; the forces of good and evil are in conflict with one another as evidenced on earth, and there will be some ultimate and imminent finale to all this in which God and those aligned with him will triumph.

I guess I could have just said that instead of posting a lengthy blog earlier, but brevity has never been my forte, especially with this much time to write. In any case, I ended that post on a cliff-hanger: Why was there an apocalyptic movement? Why did people write apocalypses? These are complicated questions, and anyone who knows me well knows that I'm high-context. So I apologize; I'm going to have to give you a little bit of biblical background. First, I recommend that you check out my blog post from four years ago entitled "Greek Week: The Bible in the Hellenistic Period." It should provide a fairly decent historical backdrop for Jewish apocalyptic literature.

Like you have somewhere to go. It's spring of 2020.

It's important to keep in mind that the books of the Bible come from a variety of different time periods in Judeo-Christian history. While there is continuity in the Scriptures, over time the Bible also reveals an evolution of theology. One issue that the authors of Scripture grappled with is that of God's justice (a.k.a. theodicy). When it comes right down to it, theodicy today and for much of history asks, If God is all good and all powerful, why does evil exist? For the ancient people of Israel, however, this wasn't quite the question that was on their minds. They didn't try to reconcile God's benevolence and omnipotence with the existence of evil in the same sort of post-enlightenment way that we do. They were more comfortable with accepting the reality that evil exists and that bad things happen.¹ Furthermore, the Scriptures frequently remind us that God has a special love for the poor and seeks to rescue the innocent. All that being said, it didn't stop them from asking why good people suffered so much or why corrupt people seemed to have it so easy.

You see, one prevailing notion from an earlier scriptural tradition was that goodness and faithfulness were rewarded in this lifetime and evil was cursed. Proverbs draws upon this theme quite a bit: e.g. Truly the evil man shall not go unpunished, but those who are just shall escape (Prv 11:21). Another earlier belief was that everyone - the just and the unjust, rich and poor alike - had the same fate after death. They would go to Sheol, a sort of shadowy underworld. Belief in a eternal reward or punishment developed later, as did a theology of resurrection. Until then, there wasn't much of any kind of existence to look forward to in the afterlife. So the suffering of the innocent flew smack into the face of their ideology that the righteous would be blessed and the wicked would be cursed. With the belief that everyone shared the same fate after death, where was God's justice to be found?

Various books and literary styles of the Bible deal with this issue differently. Wisdom literature, like Psalm 49 and Ecclesiastes, point to the futility of wealth. They remind their audience that, since both the rich and the poor will die alike, those who amass riches will not be able to take any of it with them. For Ecclesiastes especially, everything was vanity and that suffering was just a part of life, but the author still believed that God had a plan. We just aren't privy to what that plan is. Down the road, apocalyptic literature will be like, "Guys, I have seen the plan, and let me tell you what it is!" But I'm getting ahead of myself.

Job is perhaps wisdom literature's theodicist par excellence. In the midst of his devastating anguish, his so-called friends keep telling him that he should admit that he did something to offend God and therefore deserved his lot. They tow the line that the good are blessed and the wicked are cursed. But Job maintains his innocence and demands that God explain himself. God's answer is, in short, that God is God and Job is not. However, God justifies Job for speaking rightly of him, while his friends are chastised for upholding a flawed concept of God's justice. One message of Job is that it's fair to question God and God's ways and even to cry out to God for suffering that is unmerited. In the end, though, we'll never quite know why. On the other hand, to think that affliction is a curse for evildoing, or even that wealth and comfort are a reward for righteousness, is definitely not the wisdom of God.

Prophetic literature is different in that it's generally more concerned with the whole of the community or nation than with the individual. Communal suffering, therefore, is attributed to social sin. The prophets were not theodicists, asking why bad things happened to good people. Instead, they were the moral conscience of society, beckoning their communities to fidelity to the covenant. They knew why bad things were happening or would eventually happen. They could see the writing on the wall, the consequences of idolatry, injustice, ill-advised foreign policy, etc., and they called their people out on it. Some prophetic literature though, especially after the Babylonian exile, began to look toward an eschatological climax and end to the suffering of the Jewish people.

PAUSE! Yes, eschatology refers to the end times. Eschaton in Greek is related to the last days, or the end. But don't be afraid! It didn't mean the ultimate annihilation of the earth, though it would probably involve some form of destruction. Rather it refers more to the cosmic fulfillment of time, end of oppression, and renewal of heaven and earth. It's not the end of the world per se; it's the end of the world as we know it. 

You should feel fine. This is really good news!

So now we can start talking about an apocalyptic movement, because you can't have apocalypticism without eschatology.  You can't have an apocalyptic ideology without conflict between good and evil and the pronouncement of God's judgement upon the earth. And you can't have apocalyptic literature without a sense that history is moving forward to some ultimate event, resurrection, renewal, and coming of God's kingdom.

After the Babylonian exile and return to Judea there were certain promises that were not fulfilled. The land didn't belong to the Jewish people anymore; it was a province in the Persian empire. Moreover, they did not have a descendant of David on the throne. There was a prophetic movement to rebuild the Temple so as to hasten these expectations, but even when the Temple was rebuilt, it did not seem that God's reign had come. The Gentiles were ultimately in power, internal corruption was rampant, and infidelity to God's law persisted. Some prophets had pointed to a time of doom and God's intervening salvation in the future: "On that day... on that day." But for centuries that day never seemed to come. For those of the apocalyptic worldview, however, that day was near. So what does it take to go from prophetic to apocalyptic eschatology? The same thing it takes for coal to turn into a diamond: pressure. Pressure, in this case, manifested as oppression and persecution, because apocalyptic literature is not written at Starbucks sipping on a latte, folks.²

Again, I recommend that you check out the Greek Week blog post for a little bit more detail on this period in Old Testament history, but let me do a quick run through on some of what went down.

Under Persian rule things were, relatively speaking, not too bad for the return community, especially after rebuilding a temple by 515 B.C.E. Nevertheless, the collective memory of the Babylonian exile and the destruction of Solomon's Temple would forever be with them. It should be noted that Jews were not just living in Judea, but at this point were all over the Mediterranean and Ancient Near East due to the the deportations of Israel and Judah by the Assyrians and Babylonians respectively This is known as the Diaspora. Much of this Persian period saw a consolidation of their traditions and sacred texts. And then came Alexander the Great, who conquers the Persian Empire (and specifically Palestine in 333 B.C.E.).

While the Persians had been pretty chill about their subjects as long as they paid their tribute, the Greeks were all about Hellenism (i.e. Greek culture). They wanted everyone to be Greek, and there were a lot of Jews who, either from pressure and discrimination or by their own will, assimilated to the Greek culture - learning the language, hiding their circumcision in the gymnasium (or foregoing it altogether), intermarrying with Greeks, etc. It was not outright oppression and persecution, but it was certainly perceived that way by some Jews. A dominant, invasive culture was snuffing out their Jewish identity! They had already experienced the destruction of their monarchy, capital city, and temple for not keeping the covenant once before; they weren't going to lose what little they had left because Jews were compromising their faith and identity.

The earth was ripe for cultivating the seeds of an apocalyptic worldview. Prophetic literature had already begun to set the stage for some kind of restorative culmination to the Jewish narrative since the devastation of Babylon. It was clear that there were forces of good (those who kept the covenant) and forces of evil (those who made concessions to their faith and Gentiles who led Jews astray). It was in this time of cultural crisis that early apocalypses were composed, though almost none of them made it into the Jewish canon of Scripture. A radical theodicy was developing in which the suffering faithful would be vindicated and the backsliders and oppressors would get their comeuppance. No more of the equalizing perception of death from the wisdom literature of the past. The theme of judgment becomes very prevalent, and in fact is one characteristic that is in nearly all apocalyptic writings.

One example of an early apocalypse is the Book of the Watchers, which is part of a much larger corpus known as Enochic literature after its protagonist, Enoch. Enoch is an obscure figure from Genesis, and it says of him, "Enoch walked with God, and he was no longer here, for God took him" (Gen 5:24). The mystery surrounding Enoch made him a perfect candidate for someone to have supposedly received a secret revelation from God about the future. So in this book, as with other apocalypses, the visionary is taken on an otherworldly journey and learns of the places of paradise prepared for the righteous and those of torment for the wrongdoers.

The Watchers also draws on another obscure passage from Genesis in which angels from heaven have intercourse with the women on earth and beget giants known has the Nephilim (Gen 6:1-4). Now I urge you not to read too much into that weird passage. I can't say the same thing to the apocalyptists at the turn of the second century B.C.E., though. This narrative from Genesis made some interesting source material for them. We'd probably call it fan fiction today. In Enoch's account, the evil "Watcher" angels teach humans things like weaponry, cosmetics, fornication, and astrology (1 Enoch 8:1-4). Some scholars speculate that this may be an allegorical reference to leaders of the Greek forces teaching the Jewish people their pagan ways.³ Later on in the story we discover that there's a special place in hell (so to speak) prepared for the Watchers. We can assume that the authors felt the same for the Greeks as well as those Jews who had succumbed to Greek ways.

 Whereas the issue at hand in the early stages of this apocalyptic movement had to do with cultural and religious compromise, the pressures from persecution were about to become more dire, and the apocalyptic heat was about to get turned up! It was one thing to feel as though justice was lacking when fidelity to the covenant made life challenging. Even more so when your fellow Jew was living well yet betraying the Torah. But what happens when all perceptions of God's justice go up in smoke and you're put to death because you keep the covenant? Extreme times such as that call for extreme literature!

On that note, I'll leave you with another cliff-hanger until I write again. Next time I shall write about that son-of-a-beast, Antiochus IV, and the effect of bloodshed on apocalyptic writings. I hope, though, that this provides some insight into how apocalypticism developed, especially in regards to the notion of God's justice in the midst of fidelity and compromise to God's Law. In the meantime, my Scripture recommendation for the week is 1 Maccabees 1:1-64. I know it's not in every Bible, so if it's not in yours at home, you can click the link and read it online. This chapter and all the atrocities described within really get at the heart of why there was an apocalyptic movement at this time in Jewish history. As you read it, put yourself in the shoes of the Jewish people living under the reign of Antiochus. What would be your response to God? How would you interpret your experience? What kind of salvation would you look forward to, and how would you want God's justice to unfold?

Until next time,

Peace and all good,
Bro. Ian

P.S. Don't forget that you can subscribe to this blog by entering your email address in the "Follow the Codega" box. You can also also like and follow @biblecodega on Facebook for even more scriptural reflections.

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1 Gregory Stevenson, A Slaughtered Lamb: Revelation and the Apocalyptic Response to Evil and Suffering, (Abilene, ACU Press, 2013), 40-45.^↩
2 Timothy Milinovich, Class Lecture, January 12, 2010.^↩
3 Mitchell Reddish Ed., Apocalyptic Literature: A Reader, (Peabody, Abingdon Press, 1990), 145.^↩

Wonder Woman vs. Jonah

What do Wonder Woman and Jonah have in common?

Not much, actually. The two characters could hardly be more different. The former so enthusiastic to accomplish her mission that she refuses her mother’s wishes to stay put, and the latter a reluctant schmuck. One matures in her understanding of divine justice, while the other pouts over the ethic of mercy. Yet both stories explore the themes of salvation and human nature with surprisingly similar conclusions.

            Normally, I am not prone to viewing super hero flicks in theaters, but a friend asked me to see Wonder Woman with him, and I was pleasantly delighted by the film. (Thanks Mario!) Not surprisingly, the movie integrates moral and religious concepts. Such is typical of the super hero genre, which grapples with questions about justice, goodness, evil, and love. What!? A secular work of fiction that plays on theological truths!? Sure. “There’s nothing new under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:9). See my post on Truth, Mystery, the Bible, and... Harry Potter.

            In one scene of the film, Diana’s ragtag companions drunkenly toast, “May we get what we want; may we get what we need; and may we never get what we deserve!” Clearly, the posse either doesn’t deserve much, or, for some reason or other, they deserve punishment for their transgressions – at least in their minds. But who of us can say that we’re blameless, anyway? Without giving away too much of the movie – nobody likes spoilers – Diana learns an important lesson about who is worthy of salvation. Ultimately, everyone shares in the responsibility of the ills of this world. No one is entirely blameless, and humanity probably does not deserve a hero or savior. But that is precisely why we need one; we’re helpless. And rather than getting our just desserts, we are offered love and mercy instead – even those thought least deserving of it.

            Jonah is taught a similar lesson, although his character sharply contrasts to that of Diana’s. The Book of Jonah is a unique text of the Hebrew Bible– one of my favorites, in fact. It’s short, funny, easy to read, yet deceptively deep and profound. With only four brief chapters, you can easily pick it up after reading this post and enjoy it for yourself. Or better yet, you can read it now by clicking on the link here. As for Wonder Woman, well, you’ll just have to see it theaters or wait until it comes out on DVD or Blu-Ray.

            Jonah may seem like an endearing story to us today, and we probably relish the message of God’s abundant mercy. But this narrative was likely a hard pill to swallow for many in its original audience – as much as it would be today if, say, the U.N. pardoned ISIS of all human rights abuses (assuming its members repented in sackcloth and ashes like the Ninevites). The ending of the story is as startling as it would be if the Boston Red Sox came back from a 10 point deficit in the ninth inning and won the World Series against the Yankees… at Yankee Stadium. I mean, if you’re a Yankees fan or just really hate the Red Sox.

            Jonah was written after the Babylonian Exile, which up until that point was probably the most devastating experience in Israelite history. The Babylonians were merciless to the people of Judah, deporting most of Jerusalem’s population to Babylon and destroying their sacred Temple. Nearly a century and a half before that, the Assyrians had conquered the northern kingdom of Israel, scattering many of its peoples. After the fall of the north, the Assyrians laid an excruciating, but ultimately unsuccessful, siege on Jerusalem in the southern kingdom. The suffering they had inflicted, however, would never be forgotten.

            Naturally, Assyria, Babylon, and their allies were venomously hated for their ruthlessness toward Israel and Judah. The returnees from the Exile had nothing but spite for their enemies, even the memory of those who no longer existed. A lot of biblical ink was spilled in order to hurl curses at these nations. As tends to happen after a country experiences unspeakable trauma, a gross, exclusive sort of nationalism developed among returnees trying to reestablish their religious and political identity in Judah. This party was unforgiving toward foreigners and disdained those who had remained behind after the deportations and inter-mixed with their conquerors. They had a narrow concept of YHWH’s favor, believing that only the pure race of God’s chosen people, Israel, was worthy.

            To critique this mentality, Jonah is presented as a satirical figure, a kind of mirror to be held up to the faces of those who subscribed to the postexilic ideology of exclusivity. Yet for all of Jonah’s zealous contempt for the Ninevite pagans, he proves to have only passive faith in YHWH. When God charges him to preach against Nineveh, Assyria's capital, he goes AWOL, wanting nothing to do with the mission. Twice in the same verse the author stresses that Jonah was getting “away from the LORD.” He sets sail for what might as well have been the farthest corner of the world, and later falls asleep in the depths of the ship. Jonah may be a believer in YHWH, but his actions show that he prefers death over engaging his God with whom he seems at odds. So desperate to get away from the LORD, he apathetically volunteers to be thrown into the sea, an ancient symbol of chaos and death.

            This action only highlights his hypocrisy even more, for even though he just confessed that the LORD is “the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land” (1:9), he doesn’t seem to realize that the deep isn’t going to hide him from the creator of the seas. By contrast, the pagan crew shows amazing faith in YHWH, begging for his forgiveness, offering sacrifice, and making vows to him.  

            The fish episode, like the sea itself, conjures up more imagery of primordial chaos and death. Jonah wants to get as far away from the LORD as possible, and God takes him to the brink. There is no farther place from God than death and the netherworld. Yet even there God’s saving power cannot be held at bay. There in the belly of the fish Jonah represents perhaps all of Israel, who knew that they had sinned against the LORD in the past and, as a result, had been brought to the edge of death in the experience of exile – almost total alienation from their God. Yet their time of exile came to an end, as would Jonah’s time in the sea creature. Jonah’s prayer of thanksgiving is ironic, though. “Deliverance is from the LORD,” he says, but as we see in the end of the story, he’s infuriated that God extends that deliverance to the Ninevites too.

            So Jonah is spewed out on shore, and he preaches throughout Nineveh that they will be destroyed, and, in a shocking twist of events, evil Nineveh repents of their sins in an extravagant display of penance, from the king on high right down to the animals. God relents of the violence he was going to inflict, but this only pisses Jonah off. At first the reader might guess that he’s angry because his prophecy of calamity didn’t come true – a dilemma that might have labeled him a false prophet and cost him his life. But no! He’s mad because God is merciful, and he even admits that that was the real reason why he fled in the first place. Nineveh doesn’t deserve God’s forgiveness! So blinded by his vindictive nationalism is Jonah, that he goes off to brood over the unscathed city.

            But God teaches him a lesson. He provides a plant to grow over Jonah’s head to give him shade, and this makes Jonah happy. But then God sends a worm to kill the plant, and Jonah, being just a tad over-dramatic, becomes so outraged at this point that he prays for death! And with that the LORD nails him with a rhetorical question: You didn’t do anything to merit that plant you liked so much, yet you’re so upset that it died. So why shouldn’t I be concerned about these thousands of pitiful people? Oh and let’s not forget their animals too.

Now, put that in your pipe and smoke it, Jonah!

            Though different in their approaches, it seems that both Wonder Woman and Jonah must grapple with this issue of divine justice. Maybe Nineveh didn’t deserve God’s mercy, and perhaps humanity didn’t merit Diana’s heroic assistance – at least, not in the eyes of Jonah or Diana’s adversary. But, thankfully, this isn’t the way God’s justice seems to work. God's love is universal. The "God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land" extends his care and concern for all of his children, even the seemingly least deserving. This isn’t to say that we are excused from having remorse and contrition for our sins. Salvation is as difficult for those who think they can attain it by their own righteousness as it is for those who cannot humble themselves to ask for mercy with contrite hearts. We can never earn God’s mercy, though. That is what makes it so abundant and free. We can, therefore, only receive it.

            This is the kind of good news we like to hear, but sometimes, like Jonah, we’re faced with applying this ethic of mercy to those persons or groups of people we don’t like. It’s all warm and fuzzy until we realize that God cares as much for our enemies as he does us. God loves those we think, for whatever reason, deserve God’s wrath. Maybe we secretly hope that one day they’ll get their comeuppance, just like Jonah wanted the Assyrians punished. These so-called just desserts may or may not come, but in the meantime, who’s really suffering – your enemies, or you who are brooding over your resentments?

            My reading recommendation this week is, of course, the Book of Jonah. As you read it, though, think of a person or a group of people you might have some bitterness towards. It could be a political figure or party, a co-worker or boss, maybe it’s a national, cultural, or religious group. Or maybe it's the Red Sox. Read the Book of Jonah, and when you get to the last question posed by God, insert that entity you’re thinking of in place of the Ninevites. Pray for that person or group, and open your heart to loving them too. Remember, God loves them as well, and they are as worthy of God’s mercy and protection as you.

Until next time,

Peace and all good!

The Bible Library: The Prophets

           Do you know people who have an uncanny ability to speak the truth? And even if you don't like what they say or the way they say it, you probably know deep down that they're right. Maybe a family member, friend, or co-worker fits this bill. As far as friars go, I have come to know some of these folk within the Franciscan community. Most of the friars and I have a lot of respect and admiration for our brothers' voices, but they do have a propensity for saying things that are unsettling, and it's not because their words are untrue. Rather, just the opposite – it's because we know that the truth of which they speak has not always been lived up to. These kinds of people – friars or otherwise – challenge the status quo, and they can make others feel uncomfortable. This is what comes to mind when I think of a prophet both in our own day and in biblical times.

            I can think of a few prophets of recent history: Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Dorothy Day, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Nelson Mandela, Archbishop Oscar Romero, Malala Yousafzai, and many others. (Click their names to learn more about them on the all-knowing Wikipedia).* Prophets like these challenged the expectations and ambitions of the powerful in their times, and each of them suffered some kind of persecution – some of them paying with their lives. I'm sure you can think of a few others from history. Maybe you personally know some people that might be considered prophetic. Let's hope that they do not suffer any ill fate; I must admit, though, persecution in some form or other kind of comes with the territory.

            Not all of the prophets in the Hebrew Scriptures endured such trials, nor are properly considered social activists like some of the men and women I listed above. Prophets were a common phenomenon in the ancient Near East across cultures and religious traditions. Most of the prophets mentioned in the Hebrew Scriptures were professionals. They earned their living by being prophets and were closely associated with either the king, the Temple or both. In the books of Samuel and Kings we even hear about prophets like Samuel, Nathan, and Elisha appointing a new king. Prophets were often called upon by kings for consultation. Some prophets even had something like a community of disciples gathered around them, and some, like Jeremiah or Ezekiel, also functioned as priests.[1] Of course, not every prophet was a professional. Amos, for example, was a herdsman and a "dresser of sycamores," yet he nevertheless received the call to prophesy in Israel.** The prophetic call is a common characteristic we find among the prophets mentioned in the Scriptures, and oftentimes they are resistant to it – most notably Jonah, who took to the high seas to try to dodge his prophetic vocation.

            When we think about the term "prophecy" today, we may think that it has something to do with seeing the distant future. But the prophets usually were not thinking that far ahead. Prophets, plain and simple, were spokespersons for God, and, for the most part (Joel and Zechariah are exceptions), they were concerned with the present and near future. According to Victor Matthews in his book, The Hebrew Prophets and their Social World, "their role was to challenge the establishment and the social order, to remind the leadership and the people of their obligation to the covenant with Yahweh, and to warn the people of the punishment that would surely ensue if they violated this covenantal agreement."[2] So it is not surprising that prophetic literature does not often give us the warm-and-fuzzies. Their messages typically called people out. This is why I relate today's prophetic voices which challenge the status quo to those prophets of the Hebrew Scriptures.

            Let us now take a brief look at the prophetic books of the Bible. The Christian canon of scripture has 17 or 18 prophetic books listed from Isaiah to Malachi. However, three of these books are not considered part of the prophetic works (Nevi'im) in the Jewish canon of Scripture. The book of Lamentations, discussed in the post on wisdom and poetical books, was thought to be written by Jeremiah (though most scholars would agree that it was not), and so it follows his book in the Christian canon. However, Lamentations is included in the Writings (Kethuvim) in the Jewish Tanakh, which is a more fitting place for it. The book of Daniel is not actually prophetic literature; rather, it's an apocalyptic text. Therefore, it too is among the Writings in the Tanakh. And finally, Baruch is a deuterocanonical book and is in neither the Protestant nor Jewish canons.

            This leaves us with 15 actual prophetic books: The major prophets, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel – called major prophets because their books are much longer in comparison to the others – and the twelve minor prophets, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi. Some of these twelve books are extremely short. Obadiah, for example, is a only 21 verses.

            If you recall from a previous post about the historical series of events in the Old Testament, the kingdom of Israel was divided into the northern kingdom (Israel) and the southern kingdom (Judah) throughout most of its history. Remember also that the northern kingdom fell to the Assyrians in 722 _BCE. The Assyrians invaded the southern kingdom of Judah in 701 _BCE, and decimated many of the cities within it. The capital city of Jerusalem, however, managed to survive (see Isaiah 1:6-9). It's survival was viewed as miraculous, but well over a century later the southern kingdom of Judah fell to the Neo-Babylonians with the destruction of the Temple in 586 _BCE. It's important to keep these events in mind, because they provide some historical context to the concerns of most of the prophets.

            There are two major questions to ask yourself when approaching the prophets: When were they writing (before, during, or after the Babylonian exile)? And to whom were they writing?

The Assyrian Period, roughly 810 _BCE – 625 _BCE (late 9^th through late mid-7^th century)

and Beginning of Neo-Babylonian Period, roughly 625 _BCE  

Pre-exilic Prophet	Addressee	Date (BCE)
Amos	Israel	mid-8th century
Hosea	Israel	late mid-8th cent.
1st Isaiah (1-39)	Judah	latter 8th cent. - early 7th cent.
Micah	Judah	latter 8th cent.
Zephaniah	Judah	latter 7th cent.
Nahum	Assyria	late 7th cent.
Habakkuk	Judah	late 7th cent.?
Jeremiah	Judah	late 7th  – early 6th cent. (witnessed fall of Jerusalem)

The Neo-Babylonian Period

and Beginning of Persian Period, (Persians capture Babylon in 539 _BCE)

Exilic Prophet	Addressee	Date (BCE)
Ezekiel	Exiled Judahites	c. 597-571
Obadiah	Edom	6th cent. After fall of Jerusalem
2nd  Isaiah (40-55)	Exiled Judahites	late mid-6th cent. At the end of the Exile

The Persian Period

Post-exilic Prophets	Addressee	Date (BCE)
Haggai	Judah	520
Zechariah (1-8)	Judah	late 6th cent.
3rd Isaiah (56-66)	Judah	late 6th,  possible early 5th cent.
"Isaiah Apocalypse" (24-27)	Judah	5th cent.?
Zechariah (9-14)	Judah	5th cent.? (difficult to date)
Joel	Judah	5th or 4th cent. (difficult to date)
Malachi	Judah	mid-5th cent.

***

            I hope these charts help. Just remember that when dealing with BCE (Before the Common Era) time is counted backwards. Something that happened in the 8^th century _BCE, therefore, took place in the 700s _BCE. Also, you may have noticed that Jonah is not on this chart. I left him off the list because, although he is not among those books that I dismissed as not being part of prophetic literature, he probably wasn't a historical prophet.

            I highly recommend reading the book of Jonah though. Nay, I strongly urge you to. It is a short and, interestingly enough, rather humorous, book with layers of poignant messages. Jonah is asked by God to preach doom against the Assyrians in their capital city, Nineveh. After fleeing from the call and spending three days in the belly of a great fish, Jonah finally does. But the Ninevites repent and are spared, and this just pisses Jonah off so much that he sits and pouts about it. The book ends with God asking Jonah a thought-provoking question: "And should I not be concerned over the great city of Nineveh, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand persons who cannot know their right hand from their left, not to mention all the animals?" In this Year of Mercy, it may be worthwhile to read this book and reflect on God's mercy upon even those we dislike or consider our enemies. If God is merciful, shouldn't we strive to be so as well?

            As with all of the previous posts about the different parts of the Old Testament, there is so much more that can be said about the Hebrew prophets. Each of the prophets is unique and has a character all his own. Jeremiah, for example, is a rather depressed figure – not surprising given the circumstances of Judah being under pressure by the Neo-Babylonians. Few people wanted to listen to his message that challenged the prevailing ideology of the day. They thought that Jerusalem would never fall, despite their infidelity to the covenant... well, it did, and Jeremiah called it.

            Among the others there is Ezekiel, who sounds like he's tripping on acid. Winged creatures with four faces each. A wheel within a wheel with eyes on the rim. And that's just chapter one! There's Hosea, who is charged by God to marry a promiscuous woman as a sign of Israel's infidelity to YHWH. Amos, who has strong words against those who are comfortable and oppress the poor. Or Haggai, who is concerned with the need to rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem after the exile. And in 2^nd Isaiah (ch. 40-55) we hear a hopeful message about God's preeminence of history and an interpretation of the return from the exile as a new exodus. 2^nd  Isaiah is also punctuated by the beautiful and haunting "Servant Songs" that we hear in liturgy during Holy Week: "Yet it was our pain that he bore, our sufferings he endured. We thought of him as stricken, struck down by God and afflicted,/ But he was pierced for our sins, crushed for our iniquity" (53:4-5a).

            These are just to name a few. It would be too arduous of a task to do justice to all the themes of the prophets or to describe all the characteristics of prophetic literature. I hope this gives you a taste, however, of what the prophets were about. As Matthews has said, their role was to challenge, to call their people back into right relationship with God and to loyalty to the covenant. And, as you can see from the tables, their messages often reflected the impending doom of destruction by either the Assyrians or Neo-Babylonians. Sometimes they grappled with and interpreted the experience of exile in light of their relationship with God. At times their messages were hopeful like parts of  Isaiah, but very often the prophets called people to task, as our prophetic voices in today's world do.

                Along with the book of Jonah I have a few other suggested readings this week. The first is actually two short readings from Amos (2:6-16 & 6:1-7). These are difficult passages to read in both senses of the word. In these texts Amos is calling Israel back to faithfulness to YHWH and to the covenant, of which care for the poor and needy was an essential part. He warns them of the impending attacks of the Assyrians if they don't change their ways. In these readings, listen to what God is saying to you. How is God's Word challenging you today, calling you beyond complacency, or to repentance? Remember, the prophets often disturbed the comfortable, and sometimes we need to be shaken up a bit too.

            My second suggestion is a description of Jeremiah's internal struggle (Jeremiah 20:7-18). He is compelled to prophesy Judah's defeat, and no one, or very few at least, want to hear his message, yet he cannot resist uttering the Word of God, despite the persecution he endures. Consider the prophets of today. What happens when they challenge preconceived notions and ideologies? Has there been a time in your life when you felt rejected by peers, friends, or family for speaking the truth? Has there been a time when you mocked someone else for speaking a truth you didn't like or didn't want to hear? Has God's word deep within you ever been difficult to bear, painful even? Notice, however, Jeremiah's trust in God: "But the Lord is with me, like a mighty champion." Remember, that we are not alone in our sufferings.

            In this season of Advent as we prepare for the joyous Christmas season, it may also be worthwhile to meditate on some of the readings from Isaiah who features prominently in liturgy at this time of year. Isaiah 11-12, I think, is one of the most beautiful passages in all of Sacred Scripture.**** Isaiah 40:1-11; 61:1-3; and 66:7-16 are also great for meditation. Don't worry if you don't understand the context. For these readings, simply savor the poetry, and let God's word touch your heart as you prepare for the Christmas season.

Peace and all good!

* For the record, I realize that Wikipedia is not the most reliable source of information, but I think it gives you a pretty good gist of what a person or event is about.

** I found this on a delightful blog called Bible Saints by a woman named Theresa Doyle-Nelson: "The job of the dresser was to puncture the fruit days before it was to be gathered to help with the ripening process." So there you go. That's what a sycamore dresser does. Thanks Theresa!

*** I didn't find any charts or tables on Google Images that reflected what I thought was a good representation of when the prophets were active. The tables I created aren't perfect, but I based the information in them on what I had read in Michael D. Coogan's book, The Old Testament: A Historical and Literary Introduction to the Hebrew Scriptures. In any case, there is always a lot of debate about when a prophet was active or how much editing was done on the work and when.

**** I just like to point out that in Isaiah 11 it is a wolf that is paired with the lamb, not the lion that is so often depicted in art.

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[1] Michael D. Coogan, The Old Testament: A Historical and Literary Introduction to the Hebrew Scriptures, (New York: Oxford University Press, 2006), 300-301.

[2] Victor H. Matthews, The Hebrew Prophets and their Social World, 2^nd ed. (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2012), 19.