Major Prophets
- Major Prophets
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In the Bible, esp. the Prophets, “hospitality” is closely linked to “foreignness.” The dynamics here are complex, as the prophetic literature makes clear in its own particular way. D. P.’s presentation aims to show, on a thematic and (mostly) synchronic basis, how the prophetic material depicts hospitality extended specifically to foreigners. Her investigation highlights three findings in particular: (1) in accordance with the teaching of the Torah, the prophets insist that the foreigner is to be welcomed and respected; (2) at the same time, the foreigner—whom Israel sometimes wishes to emulate—also appears as an enemy who contrives to overthrow Israel, but who will himself eventually be overthrown by Israel; and (3) Israel’s exclusive status in the eyes of its God, Yhwh, stands in contrast to the kind of welcome Yhwh extends to the foreign nations. [Adapted from published abstract—C.T.B.]
F.’s essay traces the multicentury process of reception of the biblical (OT and NT) traditions concerning women prophet figures in Judaism and Christianity as this manifests itself in theology, literature, and art. While a clear tendency to marginalize the Bible’s women prophets can be observed in this process, F. also calls attention to a long-standing fascination, in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, of Christian authors and artists with the so-called “sybills,” (allegedly) pre-Christian, pagan prophetesses, and their announcements concerning Christ and the future course of history, while noting that Christian tradition eventually lost interest in these figures as well, once it was realized that the words ascribed to them were not of pre-Christian origin. In her conclusion, F. highlights the urgency of rediscovering and honoring the persons and roles of prophetically-gifted women, both in history and today, for contemporary church and society.—C.T.B. [End Page 177]
In this essay, K. surveys the critique of Israelite religious practices by the OT prophets. Among these, Jeremiah stands out for his harsh denunciations of religious practices that were carried out without any concern for the poor and needy. In Jeremiah’s view, cultic worship is useless when the covenant obligations of justice and mercy are disregarded. Amos confronts the economism operative in the religious practice of his time, while Malachi sharply upbraids the hypocrisy of the priests and calls into question the very nature of priesthood and Israel’s religious practices. K. argues that, whereas according to the OT religion and religious practices are intended to promote the well-being and true religiosity of the community, religious practices apart from deeds of righteousness only lead to judgment upon the people. [Adapted from published abstract—C.T.B.]
In this article I study references to the Israelian exile in the prophetic books, using themes drawn from biblical historiography as a framework. Such specific attention to the Israelian exile marks this article as a new contribution to discussions of exile in the Hebrew Bible generally and in prophetic literature in particular. The questions I address are: What explanations are offered for the Israelian exile? What images and metaphors are used to describe it? And what are its theological dimensions? During the investigation, I focus particularly on rhetoric, that is, on the kinds of prophetic arguments that are constructed around the Israelian exile. In so doing, I hope to offer some explanation as to why the Israelian exile is repeatedly mentioned in a prophetic corpus, even those overwhelmingly concerned with Judah. [pp. 233–34, adapted—C.T.B.]
