The Minor Prophets and their Messages

Hosea – Joel – Amos – Obadiah – Jonah – Micah – Nahum –Habakkuk – Zephaniah – Haggai – Zechariah – Malachi

The twelve prophets that follow the Book of Daniel in the canonical Bible arecalled the Minor Prophets, simply because they are shorter than the others, andnot as being in any respect inferior.

Major and Minor Prophets

God’s Divine Purpose for man from the beginning was that man was destined torule over creation. Man was to be king of the earth. However, with the fall of man God has been working direct or through the medium of the prophets, and atlast through the Messiah to restore man as king of the earth. The ultimate andunifying theme of Old Testament theology is “The Kingdom”. The Prophetswere important highlights:1. When the kings apostatised, God raised up prophets as mediators of His theocratic kingdom.2. The prophets had a twofold message, firstly, to exhort the people toobey the Mosaic Law in the theocratic kingdom. Secondly, in prophesyingthe final form of the kingdom: Messiah’s millennial rule.3. Isaiah saw a suffering Messiah as foundational to the future kingdomreign of the World Saviour.

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4. Jeremiah announced the New Covenant as the very basis wherebyGod will bless Israel in the future.5. Ezekiel envisioned a restored worship in the future kingdom.6. Daniel saw the Messiah destroying all earthly kingdoms and theestablishment of the millennial kingdomA prophet received his call or appointment direct from God. Some prophets likeJeremiah or later in New Testament times John the Baptist, were called beforebirth (Jeremiah 1: 5, and Luke 1: 13-16), but their privilege was not a birthright.Their authority came from God alone whose message they bore (Exodus 7: 1). Aprophet sometimes became quite dramatic and acted out his message; forinstance, Isaiah went naked and barefoot for three years (Isaiah 20: 2-3). Ezekiellay on his left side for three-hundred ninety days and on his right side for fortymore (Ezekiel 4: 1-8). Among the Minor Prophets, Zechariah broke two staffs(Zechariah 11: 7-14). Making themselves as such a spectacle, prophets arousedcuriosity but also invited the scorn of their peers (Jeremiah 11:21).Except for God’s Call, prophets had no special qualifications. They appearedfrom all walks of life and classes of society. Important, that God has used peoplein every age to fill the prophetic role of proclaiming His Holy Word.Though Christians know and enjoy certain portions of the prophetic word,without seeing its reference strictly to the remnant of Israel, fail to study theprophets. Not a few think the study to be unprofitable, the subject being toomysterious, they say. One great hindrance to the understanding of the prophets isthat they are not allowed to mean what they say. To allow Israel to signify Israelin its punishment, its restoration, and its future earthly glory, immediately clearsaway a tremendous lot of difficulties. Many sayings of the Lord Jesus Christ andother parts of the Holy Scripture cannot be understood unless a true outline of prophesy be grasped. This being understood, none of the moral teaching andconsolation as to the unchangeable nature and ways of God will be lost.

A final thought on the prophets in general

The prophetic books provide a developing concept of God’s future dealing withIsrael, and indeed the whole world. The prophets provide an expanded picture of the Messiah’s work in His first (earthly state) and second (resurrected state)advents, focussing on the ultimate establishment of the future kingdom theChristians are waiting for. A great emphasis is given to the Messiah’s SecondAdvent and His glorious reign on earth. Meanwhile, closely related to thatparticular event is Israel’s repentance, forgiveness and restoration. The two gohand in hand for it is through Israel that God will bless the nations of the world.Many biblical prophesies have intertwined concepts that the prophets describe,

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for their own present time and the future. The final focus does not rest withIsrael, but also with the glory of God. The prophet Isaiah spoke of a futurekingdom era when only the holy one would communion with a holy God.“And an highway shall be there, and a way, and it shall be called The way of holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it; but it shall be for those: thewayfaring men, though fools, shall not err therein. (Isaiah 35: 8)” (KJV)Ezekiel detailed the future worship of a holy God, glorious in appearancetogether with His people (Ezekiel 43:2, 4 and 5). Zechariah concludes with anemphasis on the holiness of God in the future kingdom era (Zechariah 14: 20-21). So, the recognition as well as the adoration in truth and in spirit will beachieved in the future kingdom age.

Hosea

In general, the Holy Scriptures cover vast topics with few words. Many majorevents are dismissed with one or two senses. With Hosea, we have the writingsof a given prophet, one who spent a lifetime speaking out the major issues of theday.“The word of the LORD that came unto Hosea, the son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel. (Hosea 1: 1)” (KJV)Hosea is supposed to have been of the kingdom of Israel. He lived andprophesied during a long period. The scope of predictions appears to be, todetect, reprove, and convince the Jewish nation in general, and the Israelites inparticular, of their many sins, particularly their idolatry: the corrupt state of thekingdom is also noticed. However, he invites them to repentance with promisesof mercy, and ‘good news’ predictions of the future restoration of the Israelitesand of the Jews, and their final converse to Christianity.Nothing is related to the ancestors of the prophet Hosea, whose name is identicalwith Hoshea, except that he was the son of Beeri. He prophesied during thereigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and of Jeroboamking of Israel. He is essentially occupied with the moral condition of the people,principally of Israel, and the judgments that is to follow. Israel is treated as inrebellion from the beginning. The prophesy divides itself in this way; chapters 1to 3, give God’s plan respecting Israel; and, in chapters 4 to 14, the people areaddressed. There minor sub-divisions within these chapters.