Major Lessons From Minor Prophets

Amos himself was from the southern kingdom and seems to have been a poor shepherd who also took care of "sycamore fruit," a labor-intensive cousin of the fig. His rustic agricultural life contrasted with the luxury-loving people he was sent to warn. Israel at the time also "seemed very religious. However, Amos condemned their hypocrisy. The poor were oppressed, religion was insincere. It took a brave man to denounce the nation in God's name.

Major Lessons From Minor Prophets

He called for justice to 'flow like a stream. What agricultural examples did God use for Israel's sins and eventual restoration? The basket of ripe summer fruit represented the fact that Israel's sinful fruit made them ripe for punishment. But God promises that when they repent, they will be blessed with good fruit and never uprooted again.

Obadiah is the shortest book in the Old Testament, and it contains prophecies against the Edomites for their sins, both in ancient times and in the end times. Obadiah "You should not have entered the gate of My people in the day of their calamity. Indeed, you should not have gazed on their affliction in the day of their calamity, nor laid hands on their substance in the day of their calamity.

Major Lessons from Minor Prophets #7 - Malachi

Obadiah shows God's justice in the face of treachery and that His way wins in the end verse God explained to Jonah that He loved everyone—even these enemies of Israel. He wants those who have no spiritual discernment now to someday understand His truth, repent and be saved 1 Timothy 2: Jonah is the story of mercy triumphing over judgment and, in a way, of prophecy failing or, more correctly, being delayed James 2: God wants people to take warning and repent so He can withdraw the punishment. The people of Nineveh, however, were a rare example of people who actually did listen and repent.

Micah, who prophesied during the days of Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, seems to have preached in Judah as well, but his message involves the northern kingdom more directly than Isaiah's work did compare Micah 1: And unlike Isaiah, who apparently grew up with connections to royalty, Micah grew up far from the court life of Jerusalem—in the rural village of Moresheth Gath verses 1, 14 , also known as Maresha verse 15 , in the Judean lowlands near Philistia.

Compare, for example, Micah 1: Micah also gives important details about the coming Messiah, as Isaiah did. Whether Micah borrowed this passage from Isaiah or vice versa, or both of them wrote it independently of the other, one thing is certain: God inspired both of them in any case. In the preceding verses, God contrasted sacrifices and offerings with these godly characteristics He is looking for.

God's purpose has always been to help us think and act as He does, in the way that would be most beneficial for us. The sacrifices were meant to be a reminder of sin and a foreshadowing of the perfect sacrifice of Jesus Christ—the only sacrifice that can wipe away our past sins. The people of Israel had come to focus on the sacrifices as if they were primarily what God wanted, so God makes clear that what He really wants much more than sacrifices is righteous, merciful and humble behavior.

The perfect example of this behavior was the Messiah, Jesus Christ. Micah also prophesied that Bethlehem would be the place of the Messiah's birth Micah 5: The book of the vision of Nahum the Elkoshite. God is jealous, and the Lord avenges; the Lord avenges and is furious. The Lord will take vengeance on His adversaries, and He reserves wrath for His enemies; the Lord is slow to anger and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked….

The time of his prophecy is ascertained from two key facts. And the fall of Nineveh, which occurred in B. So Nahum must have written between these dates…. Assyria, portrayed as a den of ravaging lions feeding on the blood of the nations, was brutal beyond imagination 2: Though Nineveh had temporarily repented at Jonah's preaching around years before and had been spared, the capital city of Assyria is now marked for destruction.

And God will bring infinitely more power and finality than Assyria had brought upon her enemies. There are clear indications that it is also an end-time prophecy. First is the mention of the 'day of trouble' 1: Then there's the fact that God's people will be afflicted no more verse 12 , the wicked enemy never again allowed to pass through their land verse 15 —which has not been true of the Jewish people in the more than 2, years since the fall of ancient Nineveh. And finally, the description of Nineveh as the great harlot of sorceries 3: At the end, modern Assyria will once again arise as the foe of Israel see Isaiah As explained in the Bible Reading Program highlights on Isaiah 10 , it is the people of Central Europe who are, in large part, descended from the ancient Assyrians.

Nineveh may represent the seat of power of a future Central European nation or of the empire this people will come to dominate. For modern Assyria will be the foremost nation of the coming Beast power, end-time Babylon, which will once again enslave Israel and then fight against Christ at His second coming see Revelation 13; 17; And once again she will be brought to utter destruction! However, it is a book of blessing and great comfort to all who will stand with God and put their trust in Him Nahum 1: Ultimately, under the rule of Christ, the Assyrian nation will repent and serve God alongside the Israelites Isaiah But dark times will precede this wonderful future.

The Lord responds by explaining His plans to judge 1: This is followed by five woes that taunt those who have committed evil with their certain doom 2: Though Habakkuk asked sincere questions about what God was doing and why, his book conveys a message of faith in the sovereign God. We have no knowledge of his background except for what is given in verse 1 regarding his lineage. He was a fourth-generation descendant of Hezekiah. Most sources believe this refers to Hezekiah the king, which would make him a cousin of Josiah, though others correctly maintain that we can't know for sure.

In favor, however, is the fact that his lineage is traced back four generations. Commentator Charles Feinberg remarks, 'No other prophet has his pedigree carried back so far' The Minor Prophets, , p. Thus, the Hezekiah mentioned would seem to be someone of distinction. The Day of the Lord was a warning to seventh-century-B. Judah that God would punish them when their sins came to a climax—but, more directly, the words of the prophet mainly allude to the coming great Day of the Lord that is in the future. The language of 1: Even God's jealous anger, provoked by the destructiveness of sin, is evidence of His love.

His mercy will ultimately lead to a time of joy. The Book of Haggai is a collection of short messages 'from the Lord' through the prophet, delivered in B. Haggai calls on the people to get their priorities right. Finish rebuilding the temple. God will bring peace and prosperity if his people turn from their own selfish concerns and put first things first" Eerdmans' Family Encyclopedia of the Bible, , p. Part of what Haggai and Zechariah are addressing is the need to rebuild the physical temple in Jerusalem.

But some of what they preached also applied prophetically to the future need to build God's spiritual house, the Church, after Christ came to earth and established it. This is especially obvious in passages like Haggai 2: Three weeks after Haggai's first message, the people were busy working on the temple—a wonderful example of prophecy having its intended effect. And so God blessed them for their obedience. Messianic references include mentions of Christ's lowliness and humanity 6: They describe His betrayal by Judas Zechariah also speaks of the Messiah's being struck down by the Lord['s command] In few Old Testament books do we find such constant attention given to the coming Saviour" Bible Reader's Companion, introduction to Zechariah.

Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, lowly and riding on a donkey, a colt, the foal of a donkey" [fulfilled in Matthew So I took the thirty pieces of silver and threw them into the house of the Lord for the potter [fulfilled in Matthew Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn" [fulfilled in John The Nelson Study Bible points out, "In fact, chs.

In that day it shall be "the Lord is one," and His name one… And this shall be the plague with which the Lord will strike all the people who fought against Jerusalem: Their flesh shall dissolve while they stand on their feet, their eyes shall dissolve in their sockets, and their tongues shall dissolve in their mouths [fulfilled in Revelation Times were hard; and people were still badly off. They felt let-down by God. He calls the priests and the people to respect and obey him. They were not giving God his due in sacrifice, worship or right living.

God will judge and destroy all evil, but will bless those who repent. He will send his messenger before him to prepare the way" Eerdmans' Family Encyclopedia of the Bible, , p. And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple, even the Messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight. Behold, He is coming," says the Lord of hosts. Here Malachi refers to an end-time messenger who will come in the spirit and power of Elijah and John the Baptist Luke 1: Read through the short book of Malachi.

Write down three or four actions and attitudes that are still problems in today's world. Think about how these problems affect you and your family. Write down what you can do to address these problems as they impact your life. Questions about this lesson? Feedback about this lesson? You Can Understand Bible Prophecy. Perhaps it can be best expressed by the famous quote, in which Ellen G. The message is that God wants to save us from our sins, to save us from the devastation that sin, rebellion, and disobedience bring.

Over and over in these books we see the Lord pleading with His people to repent, to put away their sins, to return unto Him and to find life not death, salvation not damnation, hope not despair. He is married to Bozana, a math professor, and they have two sons. The family treasures fond memories of their twelve-year mission service in East Asia and also their twelve years of teaching at Walla Walla University.

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“Seek the Lord and Live!” Major Lessons from Minor Prophets

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