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EXPLORING the OLD TESTAMENT Volume 4 EXPLORING THE OLD TESTAMENT Volume 4 The Prophets Gordon McConville studied Modern Languages at Cambridge and The- ology at Edinburgh and Belfast. He is Professor of Old Testament Theology in the University of Gloucestershire, having previously taught the Old Testament in Bristol and Oxford. He has written a number of books on Deuteronomy and the Prophets, and most recently on Old Testament political theology. Exploring the Old Testament The Pentateuch by Gordon Wenham The Histories by Philip Satterthwaite and Gordon McConville The Psalms and Wisdom Literature by Ernest Lucas The Prophets by Gordon McConville Exploring the New Testament The Gospels and Acts by David Wenham and Steve Walton The Letters and Revelation by Howard Marshall, Stephen Travis and Ian Paul EXPLORING THE OLD TESTAMENT Volume 4 The Prophets Gordon McConville Published in Great Britain in 2002 Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge 36 Causton Street London SW1P 4ST www.spckpublishing.co.uk Copyright © Gordon McConville 2002 All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Scripture quotations are taken from the following versions of the Bible: The English Standard Version, Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers, Wheaton, Illinois. The HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Hodder & Stoughton Ltd, a member of the Hodder Headline Plc Group. The New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The Revised English Bible © Oxford University Press and Cambridge University Press 1989. The Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1946, 1952 and 1971 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library ISBN 978-0-281-05432-9 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 Printed in Great Britain by Ashford Colour Press Produced on paper from sustainable forests Contents THE PROPHETS The dates of kings and prophets viii Rhetorical Intention 68 Key to panels ix Jeremiah in the Canon 70 Introduction xi Further Reading 72 Abbreviations xxxi List of maps xxxii 3 Lamentations 75 Date and Destination 75 Critical Interpretation of Lamentations 75 1 Isaiah 1 Date and Destination 1 Structure and Outline 76 Structure 76 Critical Interpretation of Isaiah 3 Outline 76 Identifying Isaiah of Jerusalem 3 The message of Isaiah of Jerusalem 4 Theological Themes 78 The composition of Isaiah 1—39 7 Covenant curse and confession of sin 78 Isaiah 1—39 and 40—66 10 Lamentation and bitter suffering 79 Reading Isaiah as a unity 11 ‘The steadfast love of the LORD’ 79 Waiting for God 79 Structure and Outline 12 A comforter 80 Structure 12 Outline 12 Rhetorical Intention 80 Theological Themes 32 Lamentations in the Canon 81 The story behind the book 32 Further Reading 81 Zion, city of God 34 King and Messiah 35 4 Ezekiel 83 The Servant and the nations 36 Date and Destination 83 Trust in God 37 Place 83 Time 83 Rhetorical Intention 38 To whom is he speaking? 84 Isaiah in the Canon 40 Critical Interpretation of Ezekiel 85 Further Reading 42 Structure and Outline 86 Structure 86 2 Jeremiah 45 Outline 87 Date and Destination 45 Theological Themes 98 Critical Interpretation of Jeremiah 47 Sovereignty of God and human responsibility 98 Prophecy as poetry? 47 The presence of God 99 ‘Deuteronomistic’ sermons? 48 Sin, judgement, purification 100 A deuteronomistic edition? 48 Salvation: a radically new beginning; Zion Is Jeremiah from Jeremiah? 49 and Eden 101 Political/formal and spiritual religion: Ezekiel Structure and Outline 51 as prophet and priest 102 Structure 51 Outline 52 Rhetorical Intention 103 Theological Themes 63 Ezekiel in the Canon 105 Sin as falseness 63 Further Reading 106 Judgement and salvation 64 The New Covenant 65 5 Daniel 109 The individual 67 Date and Destination 109 The Messiah 68 Critical Interpretation of Daniel 111 v Genre 112 Structure 166 Unity 113 Outline 166 Structure and Outline 113 Theological Themes 172 Structure 113 Justice and righteousness, and the ‘good’ of Outline 115 God’s people 172 Theological Themes 125 Justice and creation 173 The kingdom of God 125 The universal God and the election of Israel 173 Divine and human rule 126 Rhetorical Intention 174 Messiah 127 Rhetorical devices 174 God’s faithfulness, human faithfulness 127 Rhetorical levels 175 Rhetorical Intention 128 Amos in the Canon 176 Daniel in the Canon 130 Further Reading 177 Further Reading 131 9 Obadiah 179 The Book of the Twelve 133 Date and Destination 179 Further Reading 134 Subject matter 179 Vocabulary and ideas 179 6 Hosea 135 Critical Interpretation of Obadiah 180 Date and Destination 135 Structure and Outline 180 Religion in Hosea’s time 137 Structure 180 Critical Interpretation of Hosea 137 Outline 180 Structure and Outline 139 Theological Themes 181 Structure 139 Rhetorical Intention 182 Outline 139 Obadiah in the Canon 182 Theological Themes 144 Further Reading 183 ‘No other gods’ 144 Faithfulness and steadfast love 144 10 Jonah 185 Judgement and love: God’s dilemma 146 Date and Destination 185 Rhetorical Intention 147 Dating and genre 185 Hosea in the Canon 149 Critical Interpretation of Jonah 186 Further Reading 150 Structure and Outline 187 Structure 187 7 Joel 153 Outline 187 Date and Destination 153 Theological Themes 189 Critical Interpretation of Joel 154 Working out the sovereignty of God 189 Structure and Outline 155 Worship and thanksgiving 189 Structure 155 Retribution? 190 Outline 155 God’s forgiveness extended to all? 190 Theological Themes 157 Can God ‘repent’? 190 All-powerful God 157 ‘God’ and ‘Yahweh’ 191 The ‘Day of the LORD’ 158 Rhetorical Intention 192 Repentance 158 Jonah in the Canon 192 Nature and history 158 Further Reading 194 The spirit 158 Rhetorical Intention 159 11 Micah 195 Joel in the Canon 160 Date and Destination 195 Further Reading 161 Critical Interpretation of Micah 195 Structure and Outline 197 8 Amos 163 Structure 197 Date and Destination 163 Outline 197 Critical Interpretation of Amos 165 Theological Themes 201 Structure and Outline 166 Judgement and salvation 201 vi Exodus and covenant traditions 201 15 Haggai 229 Prophetic ethics 202 Date and Destination 229 The nations 202 Critical Interpretation of Haggai 230 Rhetorical Intention 202 Structure and Outline 231 Micah in the Canon 203 Structure 232 Further Reading 204 Outline 232 Theological Themes 234 12 Nahum 205 The temple 234 Date and Destination 205 Future help 235 Critical Interpretation of Nahum 206 Rhetorical Intention 236 Structure and Outline 206 Haggai in the Canon 236 Structure 206 Further Reading 237 Outline 206 Theological Themes 207 16 Zechariah 239 Rhetorical Intention 208 Date and Destination 239 Nahum in the Canon 208 Zechariah 1—8 239 Zechariah 9—14 241 Further Reading 209 Critical Interpretation of Zechariah 243 13 Habakkuk 211 Zechariah 1—8 243 Date and Destination 211 Zechariah 1—8 and 9—14 244 Critical Interpretation of Habakkuk 212 Structure and Outline 244 Structure 244 Structure and Outline 213 Outline 245 Structure 213 Outline 213 Theological Themes 251 Between salvation and salvation 251 Theological Themes 215 Messiah 253 How can a just God tolerate evil? 215 The righteous shall live by (whose?) faithfulness 216 Rhetorical Intention 253 Rhetorical Intention 217 Zechariah in the Canon 254 Habakkuk in the Canon 217 Further Reading 256 Further Reading 217 17 Malachi 259 Date and Destination 259 14 Zephaniah 219 Date and Destination 219 Critical Interpretation of Malachi 260 Critical Interpretation of Zephaniah 220 Structure and Outline 260 Zephaniah a ‘drama’? 221 Structure 260 Zephaniah a ‘cult prophet’? 222 Outline 260 Structure and Outline 222 Theological Themes 265 Structure 222 Covenant with Yahweh 265 Outline 222 Particular covenants 266 Form and spirit in worship 266 Theological Themes 224 Eschatology 266 God’s election of Israel, and his kingship in the world 224 Rhetorical Intention 267 More on election: A ‘remnant’ 225 Malachi in the Canon 268 Religion and ethics 225 Further Reading 269 The day of the LORD: Judgement and salvation 226 Rhetorical Intention 226 Index 271 Zephaniah in the Canon 227 Further Reading 227 vii THE DATES OF KINGS AND PROPHETS The dates of the kings of Israel and Judah are account is taken of co-regencies, although disputed. One view of the chronology is given these may be needed to solve some problems in IBD I, pp. 268–77, in which the authors (for example, see Bright, p. 271, n. 8, on the follow the concept of co-regencies proposed by twenty years given to Pekah in 2 Kgs 15:27). E. R. Thiele, The Mysterious Numbers of the Hebrew Kings (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1965). Not For different versions of the chronology of the all scholars are convinced by this solution, and Kings of Judah from Uzziah to Hezekiah see commentators on the prophetic books often F. I. Andersen and D. N. Freedman, Micah accept that dates can only be approximate. (AB; New York: Doubleday, 2000), p. xviii. The dates adopted in the present volume follow J. Bright, A History of Israel (London: In the table below the prophets are aligned SCM, 1972, second edition) which is largely only approximately with the kings, for ready based in turn on W. F. Albright in BASOR 100 reference. The table should be used with (1945), pp.
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