Page 78 - Old Testament Survey Student Textbook
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When Did the Prophets Write?


               In very general terms we may speak of three sets of historical circumstances that occupied the center
               stage of the prophets' ministries:


               (1) Assyrian Judgment: During the eighth century Assyria became the dominant empire in the ancient
               Near East and thus a great concern to the prophets. In response to prolonged, flagrant sin, God
               determined to use the armies of Assyria to bring judgment against his people. This aggression took place
               in three major stages. First, in c. 734 B.C., the Northern Kingdom of Israel joined forces with Syria to
               resist Assyrian dominance, but this coalition led to Syria's defeat and Israel's harsh subjugation to
               Assyria (2 Kings 15:20-29). Second, in 722 B.C. the Assyrians reacted to further rebellion by destroying
               Samaria, the capital of northern Israel, and exiling many citizens of the nation. Third, in 701 B.C. the
               Assyrian king Sennacherib waged a successful war against Judah and even laid siege to Jerusalem, but
               the Lord turned him back at the last moment (2 Kings 17-19). The prophets who ministered in this
               period spoke frequently about these and related events.

               (2) Babylonian Judgment: In 612 B.C. the Babylonians conquered Nineveh, the capital of Assyria, and
               became the dominant empire in the region. With the northern kingdom of Israel already defeated and
               exiled by the Assyrians, God used the Babylonians to bring judgment against the Southern Kingdom of
               Judah through major incursions and deportations in 605 B.C., 597 B.C., and 586 B.C. The first incursion
               resulted in subjugation and the deportation of some of Judah's elite such as Daniel and his friends (Dan.
               1:3-6). The second incursion brought more hardship and the deportation of more Judahites, such as
               Ezekiel (Ezek. 33:21; 2 Kings 24:14). The third incursion resulted in the destruction of Jerusalem and full-
               scale exile (2 Kings 25:1-21). Many prophets predicted these events, interpreted them as they happened
               and reflected on them once they had occurred.

               (3) Restoration: In 539-538 B.C. the Persian emperor Cyrus defeated Babylon and released the Jews to
               return to Jerusalem. A small number of Jews returned to the land under the leadership of Zerubbabel, a
               descendant of David, and Joshua the high priest. After a delay of some time, the temple was rebuilt in
               520-515 B.C. Despite this relatively positive beginning for the restored community, by the time of Ezra
               and Nehemiah and the decades that followed them (c. 450-400 B.C.), false religion had so taken root
               among the returnees that all hope for the Kingdom of God to reach its glorious end was cast into the
               distant future which we now know as the New Testament period. Many prophets concerned themselves
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               with these events as well.
               The sixteen prophets who wrote the Major and Minor Prophets lived from 750 BC to 400 BC.  The
               prophets lived in Israel or Judah, and some were deported to Babylon or Assyria.

               The chart on the next page includes only the major prophetic figures of the Old Testament period.  The
               period following 750 BC, beginning with Hosea and Amos, is often referred to as the classical period of
               prophecy and those prophets as writing prophets.  Both names are somewhat inaccurate.  There is not
               nearly as radical a break between prophets before the beginning of the "classical" period and those after
               as the name might imply.  Also, not all of the prophets were necessarily writers. In some cases the books
               are a combination of the prophet's words along with later stories about the prophet as well as much
               later application of the prophetic message to new historical contexts.  Amos is a good example of such a
               composite book.  On the other hand, some prophetic books, such as Ezekiel, are relatively coherent
               indicating a great deal of unity of composition.  Yet in other cases, such as the Book of Jonah, the

               15  ttp://reformedanswers.org/answer.asp/file/40899
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