Lesson 01
Who are the major prophets?
Ezekiel 3.1-3, 17-21
1 And he said to me, “Son of man, eat what is before you, eat this scroll; then go and speak to the people of Israel.”
2 So I opened my mouth, and he gave me the scroll to eat.
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3 Then he said to me, “Son of man, eat this scroll I am giving you and fill your stomach with it.” So I ate it, and it tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth.
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Ezekiel 17-21
17 “Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the people of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me.
18 When I say to a wicked person, ‘You will surely die,’ and you do not warn
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them or speak out to dissuade them from their evil ways in order to save their life, that wicked person will die for their sin, and I will hold you accountable for their blood.
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19 But if you do warn the wicked person and they do not turn from their wickedness or from their evil ways, they will die for their sin; but you will have saved yourself.
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20 “Again, when a righteous person turns from their righteousness and does evil, and I put a stumbling block before them, they will die. Since you did not warn them, they will die for their sin. The righteous things that person did will not be remembered,
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and I will hold you accountable for their blood.
21 But if you do warn the righteous person not to sin and they do not sin, they will surely live because they took warning, and you will have saved yourself.”
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For they have not listened to my words,” declares the LORD, “words that I sent to them again and again by my servants the prophets. And you exiles have not listened either,” declares the LORD.
Jeremiah 29.19
GOLDEN TEXT
* Identify the Major Prophets, their biographies and the time in which they lived;
*Know the authorship, message and date of writing of the books;
* Know the importance of the prophetic ministry in the history of Israel and in biblical history;
OBJECTIVES
*Understand the relevance of the prophets’ message for modern humanity.
OBJECTIVES
The prophets were ordinary men who received a specific message from God for their generation. Some of these messages have been fulfilled in the past; others are being fulfilled at this time; and others will be fulfilled in the future.
INTRODUCTION
WHO THE PROPHETS ARE
1 - WHO THE PROPHETS ARE
Prophets
Servants
Watchmen
Men of God
The Holy Scriptures present some titles that specify this vocational function, namely:
1 – WHO THE PROPHETS ARE
1.1. Prophets
Prophets were representatives of God and interpreters of the divine message (Dn 2.25-45). They served as a vital link in revelations of God's direction to his people. They were intermediaries of spiritual knowledge (Jer 18:18).
1.1. Prophets
They must possess some main qualities, such as: (a) ability to listen carefully to the Word of God (Is 6.8); (b) ability to proclaim it with precision and clarity (Jer 2.1,2); and (c) care and focus to minister it with authority and power (Jer 29.10,21).
Anonymity was one of the striking characteristics of the prophet-servant, after all, the Lord should be in evidence, not man. God brought from the Kingdom of Judah an anonymous servant, who prophesied against the altar erected by King Jeroboam in Bethel and even performed miracles for his glory (1 Kings 13).
John the Baptist, considered the prophet of prophets, proclaimed: He must become greater, and I must become less (John 3:30).
1.2. Servants
As servants of the Lord, prophets were to be obedient in proclaiming the message (Amos 3:7). There are two basic principles related to this obedience: the first is the care to receive the word of the Lord accurately (1 Sam 3.10,11).
1.2. Servants
The second resides in the reliable delivery of what is received from God, without cuts or additions of human opinions that differ from his will (Jer 7.1-13).
1.3. Watchmen
Watchman, in Hebrew, is tsaphar, which corresponds to sentry. Sentinels had the responsibility of observing, guarding and taking care of a property or city to warn about the invasion of wild animals on a plantation; robbery by robbers and enemy army attack.
1.3. Watchmen
As sentinels, the prophets had to remain in constant vigilance to receive the message from God and, with an attitude of responsibility and urgency, deliver it to the people (Ez 33.77-20).
1.4. Men of God
Man of God is one of the expressions used for prophets such as Moses (Dt 33.1), Elisha (2 Rs 4.9) and Samuel (1 Sam 9.6). They were men who had a life completely dedicated to the Lord and had a message from him for their generation.
1.4. Men of God
These men also received other titles in the Scriptures, such as: seers or visionaries (1 Sam 9.9,19; 1 Chr 29.29); messengers of God (Hag 1.13; Mal 3.1); holy men of God (2 Peter 1:21); and holy prophets (Luke 1:70).
UNDERSTANDING MAJOR AND MINOR PROPHETS
Meaning of terms;
2. UNDERSTANDING MAJOR AND MINOR PROPHETS
Division of the prophetic block in the Hebrew tradition
Major prophets
2.1. Meaning of terms
The designation Major Prophets and/or Minor Prophets emerged in Christian theology at the beginning of the fourth century AD. C. Such qualification does not concern the importance or length of ministry of the heralds, but the volume of each book.
2.1.1. Division of the prophetic block in the Hebrew tradition
In the Hebrew Canon, the prophets occupy the second section known as Nebiim, which is divided between Previous Prophets and Later Prophets.
2.1.1. Division of the prophetic block in the Hebrew tradition
The book of Daniel is found in the third group, called Ketuvin, or Hagiographical (writings). The book of Lamentations is part of the Megillôt (The Scrolls), read on the anniversary of the destruction of the city of Jerusalem and the Temple on every ninth day of Av (July and August).
2.2. Major prophets
There are canonical and non-canonical prophets.
The non-canonical ones received from God the grace to prophesy His Word. Although their ministries are mentioned in Scripture, they did not write books.
2.2. Major prophets
The canonical ones not only delivered the Lord's words, but received authorization from him to record his Word, such as: Isaiah (Is 8.1; 30.8); Jeremiah (Jer 30.1,2; 36.2-4,27-32); and Habakkuk (Hc 2.1,2).
2.2. Major prophets
The Major Prophets total five books - Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel and Daniel -, written by four prophets.
MAJOR PROPHETS, THEIR TIME AND MESSAGE
3. MAJOR PROPHETS, THEIR TIME AND MESSAGE
Prophets were men who lived in a specific time, faced crises and experienced great adversity, tribulations, suffering and loss. Understanding the historical context of each of them is fundamental to understanding the core of their messages.
3.1. – Isaiah, prophet of salvation
Isaiah is the first book in the block called Major Prophets. His name means the Lord is salvation.
He was the son of Amoz (Is 1.1), married (Is 8.3,4) and father of two children, who received prophetic names (Is 7.3; 8.3.4 18).
The prophet exercised his ministry in the Kingdom of Judah for 60 years (740-681 BC), during the period of four kings: Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah.
His time (eighth century BC) became known as the golden age of prophecies. The prophets Micah (Judah), Hosea and Amos (Israel) were active.
He is also known as an evangelical prophet, because he presents the most comprehensive and clear testamentary exposition of the person and earthly ministry of Jesus.
3.1. – Isaiah, prophet of salvation
The prophet exercised his ministry in the Kingdom of Judah for 60 years (740-681 BC), during the period of four kings: Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah.
3.1. – Isaiah, prophet of salvation
His time (eighth century BC) became known as the golden age of prophecies. The prophets Micah (Judah), Hosea and Amos (Israel) were active.
3.1. – Isaiah, prophet of salvation
He is also known as an evangelical prophet, because he presents the most comprehensive and clear testamentary exposition of the person and earthly ministry of Jesus.
3.2. – Jeremiah, prophet established by God
Jeremiah means Jehovah establishes and elevates. God had established it as a fortified city (Jer 1:18,19); however, he was the most hated and persecuted prophet in the entire history of Israel.
3.2. – Jeremiah, prophet established by God
Jeremiah was called to the prophetic ministry when he was 20 years old (Jer 1:2,5) and received instruction from the Lord not to marry (Jer 16:2-4).
The prophet exercised his ministry for 45 years.
3.2. – Jeremiah, prophet established by God
He became known as a prophet of transition, precisely because he lived in the period before the Babylonian exile. He had as contemporaries the prophets Habakkuk and Obadiah and, in exile, the prophets Daniel and Ezekiel.
3.2. – Jeremiah, prophet established by God
Jeremiah lived during the period of the last great revival of Judah and the moral and spiritual decay of the Kingdom. His prophetic work can be divided into: rebuke of Judah (Jer 1-25) and judgment and captivity (Jz 26-52).
3.3. – Ezekiel, prophet of hope
The name Ezekiel means, in Hebrew, God strengthens.
The son of the priest Buzi, was called to the prophetic ministry at the age of 30 and exercised it for a period of 22 years in Babylon. God called him to be a watchman (Ez 3.17-21; 22.1-20) and a sign for the house of Israel (Ez 24.24).
3.3. – Ezekiel, prophet of hope
The prophet was married and his wife died at the beginning of the Babylonian siege of the city of Jerusalem (Ez 24.1, 15-18).
3.3. – Ezekiel, prophet of hope
The prophet was married and his wife died at the beginning of the Babylonian siege of the city of Jerusalem (Ez 24.1, 15-18).
Ezekiel was in the second group of captives from Judah, deported to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar (2 Kings 24. 10-16).
3.3. – Ezekiel, prophet of hope
Jeremiah and Daniel were his contemporaries in prophetic activities.
He is known as an audiovisual prophet due to his constant visions and figures of speech (Ez 4.1-17; 5.1-4,11-13; 6.11,12).
3.4. – Daniel, apocalyptic prophet
Daniel means God is my judge. In Nebuchadnezzar's Babylonian court, his name was changed to Belteshazzar, which means Bel projects his life, corresponding to a Babylonian deity (Dn 1.7).
3.4. – Daniel, apocalyptic prophet
The prophet was born in Jerusalem and belonged to a noble family in the Kingdom of Judah.
Daniel was in the first group of captives who went to Babylon in 605 BC. His contemporaries in the prophetic ministry were Jeremiah and Ezekiel.
3.4. – Daniel, apocalyptic prophet
He was a man of prayer and student of the Scriptures (Dn 6.10,11; 9.2,3). He had nobility of character, having been exalted by God himself (Ez 14. 14,20).
Divine grace was revealed through the lips of Isaiah: the Lord promised protection and deliverance to the city of Jerusalem from the power of the Assyrian armies and fulfilled His promise (Is 37).
CONCLUSION
In the midst of the moral, social, political and spiritual sins of the Kingdom of Judah, Jeremiah stood up, who pointed to repentance as the only way out to avoid captivity.
CONCLUSION
Among the captives in Babylon, he did not let hope die, but used his messenger, Ezekiel. Among the powerful in the Babylonian court, he sent a servant of character, Daniel, to announce that only the Lord is God.
CONCLUSION
GOD BLESS YOU!
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