A less-well-defined school of interpretation bases its approach to the prophetic portions of the Old Testament on the theory that the prophet, while bearing messages to the people of his day, also took occasional excursions into the distant future, with the result that many of his forecasts did not apply to literal Israel at all, but were intended exclusively for Israel after the spirit, that is, for the church today. 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). The kingdom was divided following Solomons death (see 1 Kings 11:33-38). EZEKIEL is born Josiah tries to purify the land 612 Ninevah destroyed according to Nahum's prophecy in the Book of Nahum 1:1-3:19 as prophecied in 663-654BC. 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). WebJeremiah 15:1 Then the LORD said to me: "Even if Moses and Samuel should stand before Me, My heart would not go out to this people. The importance of their books cannot be overestimated, as many of these prophecies are yet to be fulfilled. The ministry of Amos may therefore have fallen in the years 767-753 B.C. 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. chapter 9:7; Isaiah 66:23). ), 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. Yet the book contains no clear indication of the time in which the prophet lived. And he did so, walking naked and barefoot. You may not distribute or commercially use the content on any other website or other form of electronic retrieval system. And the Lord shall scatter thee among all people, from the one end of the earth even unto the other (Deuteronomy 28:63, 64). 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). Similarly, the ways in which God dealt with men in crises of the past are often cited as examples of the manner in which He will deal with all the world in the last day (see on Deuteronomy 18:15). 4:3 with Amos 8:8; Hosea 4:15 with Amos 5:5; and Hosea 8:14 with Amos 2:5). It is impossible to date the devastating plague of locusts that the prophet so vividly describes and compares with the terrors of the coming day of judgment. According to Jewish tradition Isaiah was sawn asunder. Those in Israel who put forth their best efforts to cooperate with the revealed will of God realized, personally, a measure of the benefits He had promised. The remaining messages and prophecies, found in chapters 9-14, are not dated, a fact that prevents us from fixing the duration of the prophets activity. 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). WebBut the words of Isaiah live with the Jewish people to this day as fresh and as relevant as ever. [1] The prophet received his call while still a young man, during the thirteenth year of King Josiahs reign, about 627 or 626 B.C. Isaiah was best known as the Hebrew prophet who predicted the coming of Jesus Christ to salvage mankind from sin. Furthermore, the rise of the Chaldeans and their invasion of the West is predicted, but this seemed at that time completely incredible (chapter 1:5-7). 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. Since Jothams sole reign began after the death of his father Uzziah in 740/39, the initial date for Micahs prophetic ministry should probably be placed after that date. In Gods Economy toward His Chosen People 1. Post Exile c. 530 BC First view (and traditional one) is that Daniel was written immediately after the Babylonian exile ended and many Jews returned to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple. Matthew 19:16, 17; 22:36-40). It was last of all that God sent unto them his son, according to Christs own words (Matthew 21:37), but they caught him and slew him (verse 39). 2 Kings 20:1-5; and of promised blessing, see Exodus 6:2-8; cf. He was sawed in half, Menessah killed him. In general, Old Testament promises and predictions were addressed to literal Israel and were to have been fulfilled to them, conditional on obedience. Any interpretation that fails to give these matters due consideration does violence to the Scriptures. God was to be glorified in Israel (Isaiah 49:3) and its people were to be His witnesses (chapters 43:10; 44:8), to reveal to men the principles of His kingdom. But they are to be saved as Christians and not as Jews. For some time he held a high position in Nebuchadnezzars government (chapter 2:48), and became a trusted counselor of the great king. 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. To pray by faith for God to fulfill His promises, we must be obedient to Gods difficult commands. One needs to keep these in mind to better understand the heart of Isaiah's message. 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. In the endeavor to account for this seeming enigma, Bible expositors have set forth various explanations: 1. The kings of Assyria, Babylonia, and Persia, whose dates for this period are well established, are shown in a separate column. Websummer | 4.2K views, 92 likes, 102 loves, 53 comments, 67 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from The Ramp: His presence is here, worship with us at Summer Ramp now!Welcome to Summer Ramp But the Scriptures record the fact that they disobeyed God and proved disloyal to Him instead. In the 5th year of Jehoiachins captivity, 593/92, Ezekiel had his first vision by the river Chebar, a canal near the famous city of Nippur in lower Babylonia (chapter 1:1-3). He probably died in the Nile country. WebIn Isaiah, we read about God's unbroken relationship with His people both the promise and its fulfillment in an ongoing pattern that's visible throughout history. Hosea 2:6-13). They interpreted prophecy in accordance with their selfish desires, because their ambitious hopes were fixed on worldly greatness. In the introduction to his book he declares that he worked under the kings Uzziah of Judah and Jeroboam II of Israel. 4. In so doing we shall be secure against the fanciful explanations sometimes given certain Old Testament prophecies. He quotes Hosea 2:23. Many others, including Lehi and Jeremiah, lived at the same time. 2. 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. 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. The British-Israel movement teaches that the Anglo-Saxon peoples are the literal descendants of the ten so-called lost tribes of the northern kingdom and that the promises will, in large measure, be fulfilled to their modern posterity. Micah was a prophet from Moresheth-gath (chapter 1:1, 14), probably Tell ejJudeideh in southwestern Judah. But he will listen also for the further import the prophets words may have for later times, particularly, our time. 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). The exposition of Scripture attempted by proponents of the British-Israel theory consists of an admixture of selected Bible passages with legend, folk tales, and speculation. Any redistribution or reproduction of part or all of the contents in any form is prohibited other than the following: You may print or download to a local hard disk extracts for your personal use only. The Christian church is a spiritual nation scattered all over the world, and such details obviously could not apply to it in a literal sense. They grasped at the material blessings so generously offered them, but refused the spiritual graces that would have transformed their lives and fitted them to be His representatives. Yet in mercy, God still bore with His people, and in due time Messiah came (Malachi 3:1-3). Since no conclusive evidence for any of these three views exists, all are presented here: 1. Chronologically, Isaiah lived during a time just after the northern 10 tribes of Israel were destroyed by the Assyrians. 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. Nation after nation would come over (Isaiah 45:14), that is, be joined with and cleave to the house of Jacob (chapter 14:1). The Book of Isaiah claims to be written by him, and scholars believe he at least wrote part of it. Now it is spiritual Israel, in the past not a people but now the people of God, that are to shew forth the praises of the One who has called them out of darkness into his marvellous light (1 Peter 2:9, 10). Because I find it hard to think about BC dates, I've also included the number of years since the end of Solomon's, so that we have a scale of increasing year numbers. The material advantages that Israel enjoyed were designed to arrest the attention and catch the interest of the heathen, for whom the less obvious spiritual advantages had no natural attraction. 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). It is true, he says, that national Israel stumbled at the stumblingstone, Jesus Christ (Romans 9:32, 33; 11:11; cf. These are followed by chapters 7, 8, 9, 10. Any nation and kingdom that would not serve Israel was to perish chapter (60:12). The fundamental principle by which we can tell unerringly when any particular promise or prediction of the Old Testament made originally to literal Israel is to meet its fulfillment with respect to spiritual Israel iswhen a later inspired writer makes such an application of it. They were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come (1 Corinthians 10:11). Since the hostile acts of the heathen peoples committed against Judah (chapter 3:4 ff.) Again and again God warned Israel that blessing goes hand in hand with obedience and that a curse accompanies disobedience (see Deuteronomy 4:9; 8:19; 28:1, 2, 13, 14; Jeremiah 18:6-10; 26:2-6; Zechariah 6:15; etc.). The voice of God through the prophets distinctly speaks to us today. It ignores the plain statements of the Old Testament that Gods promises to Israel were all conditional. The transition from literal Israel to spiritual Israel, or the Christian church, is the subject of Romans 9-11. 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. The church in this generation has been endowed by God with great privileges and blessings, and He expects corresponding returns. 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. Answer Isaiah's opening statement in the Book of Isaiah, that he lived during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, means that he actually lived in the eighth century BCE. John 4:23, 24; 2 Tim. No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the L ORD , for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the L ORD. WebThere are four major prophets: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Daniel. This chart shows only those events that are mentioned in the Bible and that are of importance to an understanding of the prophetic messages. Jeremiah 12:14-16). answer. They would have no part in all that Christ stood for (see on Matthew 3:2, 3; Mark 3:14). It is ever the privilege of those who witness the fulfillment of prophecy to remember and believe (John 13:19; 14:29; John 16:4). Dead sea scrolls. Even the heathen would recognize the superiority of those who served and worshiped the living God. ), through the reigns of Jotham and Ahaz, to the end of King Hezekiah's rule in 686 (Isa. 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. They voluntarily accepted God as their sovereign, and this constituted the nation a theocracy. WebBefore we begin our review of the parts of Jeremiahs early ministry, let us first set out the usual and customary picture of it. The people might approach God personally and through the ministry of a mediating priesthood, their representatives before Him; He would direct the nation through the ministry of prophets, His appointed representatives to them. Micah states that his ministry fell in the time of the kings Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah (chapter 1:1). Inasmuch as it is possible to date the kings of Judah and Israel, especially the later ones, with comparatively high accuracy, the various reigns during which these sixteen prophets ministered have been entered in this chart according to the tentative chronology used in this commentary. 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 are called minor prophets because their books are less in size (these books are all very small and contain few We should never forget that whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for the learning of future generations to the end of time, to inspire patience, comfort, and hope (Romans 15:4). After the great final call to the world to acknowledge the true God, those who persisted in refusing allegiance to Him would unite together with the evil thought of laying siege to the city of Jerusalem and taking it by force of arms, in order to appropriate to themselves the material advantages with which God had blessed His people (Ezekiel 38:8-12; Jeremiah 25:32; Joel 3:1, 12; Zechariah 12:2-9; 14:2; cf. The covenant with literal Israel proved faulty, not because God failed to carry out His part of the covenant, but rather because Israels fair promises proved evanescent as the morning dew (Hosea 6:4; 13:3; Hebrews 8:6, 7). As the numbers of Israel increased, they were to enlarge their borders, until their kingdom should embrace the world (cf. There is no surer protection against the speculative vagaries of religious visionaries than a clear knowledge of the historical context of Scripture. Answer Jeremiah was one of the major prophets of ancient Israel and a key figure in the Old Testament. 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. We shall be protected against the grossly literal explanation of some expositors concerning the return of literal Israel to literal Palestine to rule the world for a thousand years prior to the close of human probation, and also against other equally unscriptural interpretations that propose to apply allegorically to the church all the details of the promises originally made to literal Israel. In an age when every wind of doctrine is blowing it is well to make certain that our understanding of Bible prophecy rests upon a positive Thus saith the Lord (see Deuteronomy 29:29; Isaiah 50:11; Jeremiah 2:13; Matthew 7:24-28; 1 Corinthians 2:4, 5, 12, 13; Eph. But when the Jews rejected Christ there was no such assurance of reinstatement. Thus it was with Moses, of whom, to the very day of his death, it could be said that his eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated (Deuteronomy 34:7). Thus it was with Daniel, a bright example of what man may become, even in this life, if he will make God his strength and wisely improve the opportunities and privileges within his reach (see Daniel 1:8-20). This leaves Ezekiel with a ministry of at least 22 years, from 593/92 to 571/70. Seventh-day Adventists believe that, generally speaking, the promises and predictions given through the Old Testament prophets originally applied to literal Israel and were to have been fulfilled to them on the condition that they obey God and remain loyal to Him. Hearing of all the advantages with which the God of Israel had blessed His people and all the prosperity He had procured for them (Jeremiah 33:9), the pagan nations would admit that their own fathers had inherited lies (chapter 16:19). 6465). God provided Israel with every facility for becoming the greatest nation on the earth. A Nebuchadnezzar 59 Q Only when its leaders formally rejected the Messiah and declared before Pilate their allegiance to no king but Caesar (John 19:15) did Israel as a nation irrevocably withdraw from the covenant relationship and the theocracy. Observe the conditional aspects of the prediction and ascertain whether or not, or to what extent, the conditions were met. Nabopolassar 626 B.C. Instead of becoming light bearers to the world they absorbed its darkness and reflected that darkness instead. 2. Through His people Christ is to manifest His character and the principles of His kingdom. 9:129) This verse first Malachi 3:12), and their God the only true God (Isaiah 45:14). Daniel himself so understood these promises (Daniel 9:1-8). 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. Tools. The Temple is mentioned as still existing (chapter 2:20), which shows that the book was written before Nebuchadnezzars destruction of Jerusalem in 586 B.C. 3. But with regards to how Jeremiah died, the Scriptures leave no record. Amos presents himself to his readers as a herdsman and a gatherer of sycomore fruit (chapters 1:1; 7:14). The establishment of the Hebrew monarchy did not affect the basic principles of the theocracy (Deuteronomy 17:14-20; 1 Samuel 8:7). Pride obscured their vision [see Luke 19:42]. Without this, the people of Israel would not qualify to receive the material blessings God designed to bestow upon them. 740-700 B.C. In Him I have placed my trust, and He is the Lord of the Great Throne. (Q.