Large Christian library. Introduction to the Old Testament. Books of the prophets

The historical books of the Old Testament, from Genesis to Esther, tell of the restoration and fall of the Jewish people.

Books of poetry, from Job to Song of Songs, roughly speaking, describe the golden age of the Jewish people.

The prophetic books, from Isaiah to Malachi, refer to the fall of the Jewish people.

There are 17 prophetic books, and 16 prophets, since the prophet Jeremiah wrote two books: one is named after him, and the other - the lamentations of Jeremiah.

Prophetic books are further subdivided into books of "major" and "minor" prophets.

Great prophets: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel.

Minor prophets: Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi.

These divisions are based on the size of the books. Each of the books of the three prophets: Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel, individually, is greater than all 12 books of the minor prophets combined. The book of Daniel is almost the same size as the two large books of the minor prophets, Hosea and Zechariah. All Bible readers should memorize the names of the prophets in order to quickly find their books.

Divisions of the prophets by time: 13 of them were associated with the destruction of the Jewish kingdom, and three prophets contributed to its restoration.

The destruction of the nation took place in two periods:

The northern kingdom fell in 734-721 BC. Before this period and during this period, the prophets were: Joel, Jonah, Amos, Hosea, Isaiah and Micah.

The southern kingdom fell in 606 - 586 BC. At this time, the prophets were: Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Obadiah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah.

The restoration of the kingdom took place in 535 - 444 BC. The prophets Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi took part in this, Their prophecies were mainly directed as follows:

Prophet Amos and Hosea - to Israel.

Prophet Jonah and Nahum - to Nineveh.

Prophet Daniel - to Babylon.

Prophet Ezekiel - to the Babylonian captives.

Prophet Obadiah - to Edom.

Prophet Joel, Isaiah, Micah, Jeremiah, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi - to Judah.

Historical Events The ministry of the prophets was caused by the departure from God of the ten tribes at the end of Solomon's reign (see 3 Kings 12) For political reasons, in order to keep the two kingdoms separate, the northern kingdom introduced the Egyptian religion of calf worship in its midst. To this they soon added the worship of Baal, which later spread to the southern kingdom. At this critical time, when the name of God was no longer mentioned and falling away from God threatened God's plans for the salvation of the human race, God began to send his prophets.

Prophets and priests. Priests were usually appointed to be teachers among the people. They were a hereditary class and at times were the most perverted people in the people. Yet they were considered religious teachers. Instead of keeping the people from sinning, they sinned together with them and were the leaders of iniquity. The prophets were not a hereditary class. Each of them had his own calling from God. They came from every rank.

Jeremiah and Ezekiel were priests, and possibly Zechariah and Isaiah. Daniel and Zephaniah were from the royal family Amos was a shepherd. Who the others were is unknown to us.

The ministry and word of the prophets:

1. Save the people from idolatry and lawlessness.

2. Not having achieved this goal, declare their destruction to the people.

3. But not complete destruction. The remainder will be saved.

4. From this remnant there will be someone who will convert all nations to God.

5. This person will be a great man who will come from the house of David. The prophets called it "the branch." The clan of David, at one time very strong, in the days of the prophets became very weak and needed restoration, so that from this clan the “branch” of being the king of kings would arise.

The Period of the Prophets The time of the prophets spanned approximately 400 years (800-400 BC). The main event of this time was the destruction of Jerusalem, chronologically, in half of this period. In connection with this event, one way or another, seven prophets served the people. Their names are: Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Obadiah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah. The fall of Jerusalem was the most powerful time of the activity of the prophets who tried to explain and prevent its fall. Humanly speaking, God himself allowed it to fall, but did everything possible to prevent its destruction. Sometimes the Lord admits the existence of some institution that testifies to God, if this institution is even full of wickedness and apostasy. It is possible that on this basis God allowed the existence of the papacy in the Middle Ages. During this time, God sent a number of prominent prophets to save Jerusalem. Having failed to save the apostate holy city, the prophets very clearly gave divine explanation and assurance that the fall of God's people does not end God's intentions and that after the punishment there will be restoration and a bright future for God's people.

Public sermons of the prophets In modern literature about the prophets, much attention is paid to the public sermons of the prophets, their condemnation of political corruption, oppression and moral decay among the people. Most of all, the prophets were concerned about idolatry among the people. It is surprising that many of today's researchers of prophetic speech do not attach any importance to this.

The predictive meaning of speeches

Some critical scholars diminish the predictive and prophetic content of the Bible. But it's in the books of the Bible. The most prevailing thought in the Old Testament is that Jehovah, the God of the Jews, will at a certain time become the God of all the peoples of the world. A successive generation of Old Testament writers, from general descriptions to detailed descriptions, tells how this will happen. And although the prophets themselves did not always understand the full meaning of their words, and even if some of the predictions are clouded in historical events their time - yet the complete picture of the teachings of Christ and the spread of Christianity throughout the world is very clearly predicted in detail, in a language that cannot be attributed to anything else.

The ideas of each prophet, expressed in one line:

Joel: Vision of the Gospel Age, Gathering the Nations.

Jonah: The God of Israel's Interest in Israel's Enemies.

Amos: the house of David will rule the world.

Hosea: Jehovah will at a certain time be the God of all nations.

Isaiah: God will have a remnant for a glorious future.

Micah: The Coming King of Bethlehem and His World Power.

Nahum: The impending punishment of Nineveh.

Zephaniah: A New Revelation Given a New Name.

Jeremiah: the sin of Jerusalem, its fall and future glory.

Ezekiel: The Fall and Restoration of Jerusalem and Its Future.

Obadiah: Edom will be completely destroyed.

Daniel: Four Kingdoms and God's Eternal Kingdom.

Habakkuk: the complete triumph of Jehovah's people.

Haggai: the second temple and the most glorious temple to come.

Zechariah: The Coming King, His House and Kingdom.

Malachi: The Final Prophecy of the Messianic People.

History and approximate time of the prophets

01/16/15. Live radio "Radonezh" Archpriest Andrei Tkachev

We have repeatedly said that if there will be a memory of some of the saints in the calendar who left a written monument of his life in the Bible in the form of a book, or whom the Bible mentions not as a writer, but as a doer, then it is necessary honor him by reading these Bible pages. For example, the memory of Elijah - you need to read the corresponding book of Kings, the memory of Moses - you need to read something from the Pentateuch, the memory of Isaiah - you need to read Isaiah, the memory of Luke - you need to read the Gospel of Luke or Acts. Today the memory of Malachi is being celebrated - the last prophet of the Old Testament, from whom before Christ the King there were four hundred years of spiritual emptiness, a complete absence of spiritual writers.

Malachi. The last book of the Old Testament. "Seal of the Prophets" - is called Malachi by the Fathers. With this name, Muslims call Mohammed, meaning that the prophecies continued. They believe that there were many prophets afterwards, and our Lord is numbered among the prophets, and Moses is the last. But this name - "Seals of the Prophets", we learn from the teachings of the Church as a prophet Malachi, he is the last prophet. Then John the Baptist is not so much a prophet as a witness, i.e. not speaking by the hearing of the ear and by the inspiration of the heart from God, but already seeing the Lord and saying that he sees: he is already a witness, from the word “to see”. In fact, he stands between the prophets and the apostles, not being fully either one or the other, performing a special chosen ministry. And Malachi is indeed the "Seal of the Prophets", and today we honor his words, the small four chapters of his prophecy. It's worth knowing how the Old Testament ends. Once we read Zephaniah with you and found a lot of interesting things there. We, of course, will not read everything in a row, we will read selectively, some things that are especially significant for us. This is the prophetic word of the Lord to Israel through Malachi.

First chapter.

6 The son honors his father and the servant his master; if I am a father, where is the reverence for Me? and if I am the Lord, where is the reverence for me? saith the Lord of hosts to you, priests, who dishonor my name. You say: "How do we dishonor Your name?"

7 You offer unclean bread on my altar, and say, "How do we dishonor You?" - By saying: "The Lord's meal is not worth respect."

Those. disregard for worship. The service is long, tedious, burdened with all sorts of particulars, sacred details, and they say that all this is not needed. By this they dishonor the Name of the Lord. In addition, they sacrificed unnecessary in the flock. Since the sacrifices were bloody - it was necessary to bring lambs, oxen - they strove to bring something that a person does not need in the herd: something lousy, blind, lame, barren.

8 And when you sacrifice the blind, is it not evil? or when you bring the lame and sick, is it not evil? Bring this to your prince; Will he be pleased with you and will he accept you favorably? says the Lord of hosts.

9 So pray to God to have mercy on us; but when such things go out of your hands, can He graciously receive you? says the Lord of hosts.

There is such a proverb: "God is on you, what is not suitable for us." By the way, we priests also know this. Somehow there was such a fad - bringing things to the temples. Sometimes they bring normal things that can be worn for a homeless person or for a simple poor person, such a second-hand, and sometimes they carry such rubbish, such bags of garbage, rags that parishes turn into incinerators. A lot of humanitarian aid, the so-called gracious offerings, are, in fact, some kind of rubbish that needs to be disposed of. These are such strange types of charity, when people give what they themselves do not need at home. They carry it is not clear what.

Malachi prophesies that the Jews, who do not honor God well, will give up their place. As usual: if you do not store it, if you do not value it, you will lose it. “What we have, we do not store; when we lose, we cry.” He says that Israel will give priority, and many will recognize God. Such a unique opportunity, in fact, in the singular among nations - to pray to the living true God - will be taken away from the Jews. He says:

11 For from the east of the sun to the west, my name will be great among the nations, and in every place they will offer incense to my name, a pure sacrifice; My name will be great among the nations, says the Lord of hosts.

These are very important words, because Jewish worship, I remind you, is tied to one place. Jews can have only one temple in the whole earth. And not where you want, but only in Jerusalem. And not anywhere in Jerusalem, but only on Mount Moriah. Only there can be a temple. If he is not there, then he is not at all. And only there, in Old Testament times, sacrifices were made to the true living God, who created heaven and earth, - to God, sung by David, Solomon, worshiping Him through the prophets, and who revealed Himself to Israel. And here we hear a clear prophecy about the change of times, that new times of worship are coming. A completely new time, as the Lord said to the Samaritan woman: "Woman, believe Me, the time is coming when they will worship neither on this mountain, nor on this one, but in Spirit and Truth they will worship God in every place." This is what Malachi is talking about four hundred years before the coming of Christ. This is a clear prophecy about the spread of the knowledge of God throughout the world, which has happened and continues to be fulfilled, and as the great prophets say: "As the sea is filled with waters, so the world should be filled with the knowledge of the Lord." These verses, by the way, are sung at the meeting of the bishop: “From the east of the sun to the west, glorious is the Name of the Lord! Blessed be the Name of the Lord from now on and forever! " - the choristers sing loudly when the bishop enters the temple of God to perform divine services. Since the bishop is the bearer of apostolic grace, and on his shoulders, in fact, lies the responsibility for ensuring that "from the east of the sun to the west," that is, the name of the Lord was praised all over the world, then it is greeted with the singing of verses, a paraphrase from the prophet of God Malachi.

13 Moreover, speak(These blasphemers, tired of worshiping God. - Fr. Andrei) : "That's how much work!"(Well, really, there is a lot of work during divine services, with sacrifices. On any holiday, try to prepare the temple for the holiday, remove the temple after the holiday. Now the consecration of water will be - this is how much fuss, how many preparations with water, with this, with this. And then try Give all this after consecration, so as not to lose the world, give each harmful supplicant an eggplant, and then stay to clean it all up until late at night. Each holiday is a punishment for the servants of the Church. and a servant - this is another serious test, there is a lot of work. This is with us: we have no blood, no sheep, no fire, no knife, no bloody victims. And then? I have no idea how it was possible to cut all these animals from morning to evening, burn, shake, separate, sing, pray, blow into the pipes, walk, squelching, on blood, on the altar. There is a lot of work. Well, they say that there is a lot of work. - Fr. Andrey) And you despise it, says the Lord of hosts, and bring the stolen, lame and sick, and bring the same grain gift: can I with grace receive it from your hands? says the Lord.

14 Cursed is the liar, who has an uncorrupted male in the flock, and he made a vow, but sacrifices the damaged one to the Lord: for I am a great King, and my name is fearful among the nations.

If all this is transferred to the New Testament relationship, the result is the same: if you promised - do it, no matter what - don't bring it to God. Sacrifice is what comes off the heart. Sacrifice is what you yourself need. What you yourself do not need, but you brought is not yet a sacrifice, a sacrifice is what you took from yourself and brought to God, or your neighbor, or God in the person of your neighbor. What is taken away - it, in fact, has a price.

Second chapter. Dedicated to priests.

1 So for you, priests, this commandment:

2 if you disobey and if you do not take it to heart to give glory to my name, says the Lord of hosts, then I will send a curse on you and curse your blessings(There is probably nothing more serious and terrible than such words, because the priest blesses, and if God curses his blessings, then what's the point of the priest if instead of blessing he sends curses around him. - Fr. Andrey) , and already I curse, because you do not want to attach your heart to it.

We didn’t read this carefully at the seminary, I don’t remember that. Here Malachi says that God's covenant with people, through Levi, through the Old Testament priesthood, was the covenant of life and peace:

5 My covenant was with him covenant life and peace, and I gave it to him for fear, and he feared Me and was in awe of My name.

6 The law of truth was in his mouth, and unrighteousness was not found in his tongue; in peace and truth he walked with me and turned many away from sin.

This is the task of the priesthood: to have the law of truth on their lips, not to carry it in the tongue of unrighteousness, to walk in peace and truth before God, and to turn many from sin. Essentially, the main tasks of the priesthood have been formulated. This is followed by praise for the priesthood, high praise.

7 For the lips of the priest are to keep knowledge, and they seek the law out of his mouth, because he is a messenger(Bulletin is an angel, in Slavonic - Fr. Andrey) Lord of hosts.

Leading is deep knowledge. When Isaiah lists the gifts of the Holy Spirit, he also lists knowledge: “The Spirit of knowledge and piety,” - there the gifts of the Holy Spirit go in pairs, and here is the spirit of knowledge and the spirit of piety. Piety is the right way of life, and knowledge is profound knowledge. There is a spirit of knowledge, but this is the spirit of primary learning, and there is a spirit of knowledge - deep knowledge, from the word “to know”. "For lack of knowledge," says the prophet Hosea, "my people will be rejected from the sacred rite." Where there is no striving for deep knowledge, where knowledge is abhorred, moving away from knowledge, fleeing from it, not interested in it, directing their thoughts wherever you want, just not to the depths - there the sacred rite ceases, there comes abomination and desolation ... And the lips of the priest must keep the knowledge, "... they seek the law from his mouth, because he is the messenger of the Lord of hosts." That is how it should be.

8 But you turned aside from this way, for many you served as an offense in the law, broke the covenant of Levi, says the Lord of hosts.

9 For this, I also will make you despicable and humiliated before all the people, because you do not keep my ways, you are treated with persons in the works of the law.

Hard. Ezekiel and other great prophets also have a similar harsh speech about the priesthood. Ezekiel says (from memory): “If you do not tell the sinner that he is sinning so that he stops, then he will die for his sins. But I will ask his soul from you. If you tell the sinner to stop, but he does not stop, then he will die for his sins. But you saved your soul because you told him. If you told him and he obeyed, then you both saved your souls. " A priest should be a preacher of truth, even for the sake of personal safety: if he does not say anything, then a person dying of ignorance, dying of ignorance (ignorant of the truth) risks shifting the responsibility for his blood onto the shoulders and head of the one who did not teach him. All the prophets talk about this, this is a kind of commonplace, in fact, and it is strange that it still sounds like something new, as if we hear it for the first time every time. The prophet lists the sins of the people. The prophets look at the life of the people with the stern gaze of a stranger, so to speak, i.e. a person who looks at the world not from the point of view of the layman, but from the point of view of God. And the first thing that catches your eye is the various iniquities. And here's what Malachi notes, which is interesting:

13 And Here's Another Thing You Do(Of your sins - Fr. Andrey) : You make the altar of the Lord to pour out tears with weeping and crying, so that He no longer looks at the offering and does not accept the atoning sacrifice from your hands.

This means that you are doing something so that the Lord no longer listens to you, He does not listen to your prayers.

14 You say: "for what?" Because the Lord was a witness between you and the wife of your youth, against whom you acted treacherously, while she is your friend and your lawful wife.

These words denounce the violation of marital fidelity. Here's another thing you do: you offend your wife, make her weep at the altar, shed tears on the altar, and her tears become a wall between you, praying, and her, offended. And God no longer wants to listen to you, because He was a witness between you and the wife of your youth, and you acted treacherously. But Jews are cunning people, and we are all cunning too: commandment for commandment, law for law, rule for rule. They say that Abraham also had several wives: he had Sarah, had Hagar, had Hitura. You never know the righteous had many women ... And so Malachi's thought goes further to Abraham:

15 But did not one do the same, and an excellent spirit dwelt in him?(He alludes to Abraham, who had several wives. However, other Old Testament righteous people had many wives. - Fr. Andrew) what did this one do? he wanted to receive offspring from God(i.e. Abraham lived in a state of waiting for a seed from the Lord, and he did not live with his wives out of lust, did not jump on them as frantic, but looked at the union with his wife precisely as waiting for offspring. Therefore, the possibilities of retreating or wandering around are indirectly discussed here “Cunning mind.” The mind - it winds like a snake. The fallen mind winds along the earth like a snake in the sand. - Fr. Andrey). So take care of your spirit, and do not act treacherously against the wife of your youth.

Such is the resounding truth. I think this is a very relevant thing, because standing in confession, reading books like a kind of chronicle modern life delving into newspapers, sociological research, talking with psychologists, you see that this is the scourge of our time. Infidelity eats away at life. And where infidelity has corroded life, there gradually, into this crack, which has been eaten by rot, everything in the world wakes up: health, happiness, peace, and wealth - everything disappears from fornication and everything that goes with it. Therefore, "... take care of your spirit, and no one act treacherously against the wife of your youth."

17 You anger the Lord with your words and say, "How do we anger him?" By saying: "everyone who does evil is good in the eyes of the Lord, and He delights in such," or: "Where is the God of justice?"

This is just today's business, we can see people just today saying: “The Lord is merciful to sinners. There they are doing villainy after villainy. And where is the Lord, what is He doing? " We do this to anger God. (further verses from the third chapter)

16 But those who fear God say to one another: "The Lord listens and hears this, and a book of remembrance is written before Him about those who fear the Lord and honor His name."

So say those who fear God.

17 And they will be mine, says the Lord of hosts, mine property in the day that I will make, and I will have mercy on them, as a man has pity on his son who serves him.

18 And then again you will see the difference between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not serve Him.

This is an encouragement to us, so that we do not think and do not hastily repeat the evil words of an evil person.

14 You say, “It is in vain to serve God(Many people say so, they say, what's the point: pray, pray - don't pray ... - Fr. Andrey) , and what good is it that we kept His ordinances and walked in mournful clothes before the face of the Lord of hosts?

15 And now we consider the haughty ones happy(Impudent people, rich men, thieves, rogues, where there is nowhere to put the stigma. We consider them happy: they are shown about them on TV, they are printed in newspapers, on posters we see their faces, their faces are everywhere ... - Fr. Andrey) : those who do iniquity are better suited(This is what the wicked say. Listen carefully, check your thoughts. The wicked believe that they are the best in their lives who do lawlessness. - Fr. Andrey) , and although they tempt God, they remain whole. "

These are literally today's speeches. I have already said that reading the prophets is reading the morning newspaper. What Malachi, Zechariah, Zephaniah, Haggai, Micah, Amos say - this is all today. This is so relevant, although it was said more than two thousand years ago, that it is simply amazing. We must check our inner way of thinking against the tuning fork of prophetic words, in order to unmistakably determine - here it is false: here there is a knock on wood, here on metal, here a knock on gold, and here on concrete. Those. where there is concrete inside us, where is wood, where is gold, where is silver.

Third chapter. Prophetic. Great chapter.

1 Behold, I am sending my angel, and he will prepare the way before me(Do you hear? Soon there will be the Baptism of the Lord, soon we will read these words, which Mark quotes, the beginning of the Gospel of Christ the Son of God: “Behold, I send My Angel before Your presence, who will prepare Your way before You.” “My Angel” is the Forerunner Is the Forerunner an Angel? No, he is a man. Why is he called an Angel? Because he is a messenger, the word "angel" is translated as a messenger. Earlier, in the second chapter, all the priests were called Angels of the Lord of hosts. Law is sought from the lips of the priest, and he is the Angel of the Lord of hosts. The Forerunner is a man of flesh and blood, his mother gave birth, his father conceived, and lived in the desert and ate akrid and wild honey. - Fr. Andrew) and suddenly the Lord, whom you are looking for, will come to the temple(This is Christ. They were looking for Christ, eagerly awaiting Him, persistently begging for Him to come quickly. And now He will suddenly come to His temple - the Lord, Whom you are looking for, will come. - Fr. Andrew) and the Angel of the covenant that you desire(The angel of the covenant is already concerning the Lord. Why is He called an Angel? Because He is also a messenger. His Father sent into the world. Everyone who is sent is a messenger, and a messenger is an “angel” in Greek. Christ is the Angel of the New Testament - He is the Angel of the Father , The Angel of the face of God, the face of the Father, the Angel of God whom you desire. - Fr.Andrew) ; behold, He is coming, says the Lord of hosts.

2 And who can endure the day of His coming, and who can stand when He appears?(Malachi looks further than the First Coming. He sees the First Coming, with the Forerunner, with Christ, and then immediately sees the Second Coming. He sees the cleansing fire, the fire of the Second Coming, the fire of the Last Judgment, when all evil spirits will be cleansed like dirt in alkali. - Fr. Andrey) For He is like a melting fire and like a cleansing liquor,

3 And he will sit down to melt and refine silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and melt them .......

5 And I will come to you for judgment(The following is a listing of the seven main sins that Malachi sees in the surrounding people. All these sins concern us directly. - Fr. Andrew) and I will be a quick denouncer of sorcerers(Grandmas, fortune-tellers, paths, "battle of psychics", horoscopes, fortune-telling, recognition of the future. We are not talking about any satanists, love spells, summoners of the dead, charms, whisperers, etc. - Fr. Andrey) and adulterers and those who swear falsely and withhold wages from the mercenary(They negotiate for work and keep the money: they don't pay on time, they don't pay everything, they find flaws in the work they've done, they don't give back the money they've earned in full. - Fr. Andrey), oppress the widow and orphan(They offend the most defenseless. - Fr. Andrey) and they repel the stranger, and they are not afraid of Me, says the Lord of hosts.

6 For I am the Lord, I do not change; therefore you sons of Jacob were not destroyed.

The coming of God will be the conviction of sin, and Malachi lists the most egregious sins. In addition, he says that the people are robbing God:

8 Can a person rob God? And you are robbing Me. You will say: "How are we robbing you?" In tithes and offerings.

9 You are cursed with a curse, because you - all the people - are robbing Me.

The Lord bound Israel with the commandments of tithing. Everything that I earned, everything that worked out, everything that made a profit, everything that I collected from my field - be so kind as to divide it by ten and a tenth, take it to God. After the tenth given, the remaining nine-tenths are consecrated. As we have already said with you: give away one-tenth - nine-tenths of the remaining will be sanctified, it will be holy. You boldly use it, it is sacred. Only you give one tenth - the drop sanctifies the sea. Give back the piece, but the whole remains holy. This applies to everything: time, effort, words. For example, out of ten words, one should be about the Lord, and out of ten thoughts, one should be toward God. Learn to dedicate everything that is to the one who lives forever - the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Well, and then there is money, and things, and the products of the earth, and so on. If a person does not do this, then, in fact, he does not give God what belongs to God. "You are robbing me," says the Lord. Are we robbing the Lord? We do not have an order on tithing in the New Testament Church. We do not have such firm discipline that everyone is obliged to pay tithes of what they have gained or earned or received. There's no such thing. If you want, bring everything, if you want half, if you want five, at least nine, at least tithe. But many use this freedom to their own detriment and do not wear anything. In fact, God does not need anything from us, He just knows that - you bring back, and the rest will be for your benefit. And if you use everything on yourself, then it will go down your throat. It will not benefit you what you use alone in proud and selfish loneliness. Giving is a holy thing, for giving is more blessed than receiving. Therefore, Christians, judge for yourself and learn to give. Give little by little, little by little. You don’t have to give half — just tithe. Give a little bit not only from things and monetary gains, but also thoughts, words, time, deeds, heartfelt efforts, all that, in fact, constitutes the inner treasury of a person. Giving is more blessed than receiving. If everything is spent on oneself, then it will be sadness, misfortune and loss of living space. Thus, we rob the Lord of hosts.

Fourth chapter. The last chapter of the Old Testament.

1 For behold, the day is coming that will burn like an oven; Then all the haughty and wicked ones will be like straw, and the day to come will burn them up, says the Lord of hosts, so that he will leave them neither root nor branch.

2 But for you, who are in awe of My name, the Sun of righteousness and healing in His rays will rise, and you will go out and leap like fat calves;

“The Sun of Truth” - remember, we, having recently celebrated Christmas, sang: “Your Christmas, Christ our God, ascend the world the light of reason, in it I learn to bow down to the stars serving as a star, to the Sun of Truth, and guide You from the height of the East. Lord, glory to Thee! "There is the word" lead ", that is. know deeply. Here about knowledge, it is said that knowledge is sought from the lips of the priest. And "The Sun of Truth". Those. two words used by the prophet Malachi are found in the troparion to the Nativity of Christ. Now look: "... for you, who revere my name, the Sun of righteousness will rise" - this is Christ. This is said to people who lived four hundred years before the Lord Jesus Christ, before His Coming. What is four hundred years? This is one thousand six hundred years, if you count from us now four hundred years ago. What happened four hundred years ago, sixteen hundred years ago? It was confusion. 1612: the Polish-Lithuanian invasion, the siege of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, False Dmitry I, False Dmitry II, Marina Mnishek, and a full bunch of various outrages, when it was not clear what would happen next, live or not live on the Russian land. The interregnum, the death of the Rurikids, the emergence of the Romanovs ... The saints appeared to Hermogen, who was dying of hunger in the Chudov Monastery, and Sergius of Radonezh told him that through the prayers of the Mother of God, the judgment on the Fatherland was changed to mercy. Was it long ago or not? It was a very long time ago - four hundred years, the seventeenth century. Imagine that from Malachi to the Lord four hundred years. And here is Malachi - the last prophetic word, encouraging the Jews who need to wait for the Mission. After all, at least sixteen more generations of Jews died without waiting. “And for you, who revere My name, the Sun of righteousness and healing in His rays will rise ...” - this is how they from year to year, from generation to generation repeated these words to each other, with dying hope, but not completely disappearing ... Trust in the Lord, trust in Him, and you will see the mercy of God. And one generation dies, and the second is trying to keep the faith. And then, this faith is so weak, it tries to hold on like a trembling little wick. One more generation ... - we did not wait for the Mission. And the baton of faith is passed on to the next generation. They say you believe, believe, believe, because the Sun of righteousness will rise, and healing is in His rays. Imagine such a feat of faith that has been carried on for centuries. And generations die, one after another, without waiting, and not seeing with their own eyes the fulfillment of the promised. However, faith does not quench, and the righteous, as Scripture tells us, will live by faith. An arrogant person, like a wandering wine, will not rest, but a righteous person will live by faith.

3 And you will trample the wicked, for they will be dust under your feet on the day that I will make, says the Lord of hosts.

4 Remember the law of Moses, My servant, which I commanded him on Horeb for all Israel, as well as the rules and regulations.

There is a law, there are rules, there are statutes - these are different things. The law speaks of the main commandments. Then there are the rules: the rules of life, worship. And the statutes defining different aspects of liturgical and private civil life. This is all that a person needs: law, rules and regulations.

5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the Lord.

And when John the Baptist came, in the spirit of Elijah (and he came, as the Scripture says, in the spirit and power of Elijah), and was dressed like Elijah - in a hair shirt, tied at his hips with a belt of leather, he was asked: "Are you Elijah?" He says, "No." - "Are you the Mission?" - "Not". - “And what do you baptize? (everyone was waiting for Elijah, but John came) ”Elijah will come, but Elijah will be the prophet of the Second Coming of Christ. It is for the court. When the Lord will already go to judgment before the coming of the great and terrible day, exactly as it is written. Elijah will come, and he will denounce the Antichrist, he will cheer up the last remnants of Israel. He will amuse everyone, those who believe in God, will say "Do not be afraid."

6 And he will turn the hearts of fathers to children and the hearts of children to their fathers, so that when I come, I will not smite the earth with a curse.

These are the last words of the Old Testament. Then there is a period of silence for four hundred years, as if we had not a single saint in Russia from Patriarch Hermogenes, right up to this day. Can you imagine that? Hardly. But this was the case.

We have read the book of Malachi with you, because the past today has been dedicated to the memory of this holy man of God.

Memory of Thy Prophet Malachi, Lord, celebrating, so we pray to Thee: save our souls. Amen.

— Glory to Jesus Christ, father, bless, this is Sergey from Nikolaev. Father Andrei, in your last program you said that Russia is the last beacon of this world. I absolutely agree with you, but I would like to hear from you in detail: there are Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Serbia, in the end Greece, Orthodox Athos. What is the irreplaceable role of Russia in the fight against the advancing kingdom of Antichrist?

“We have a lot of God's people scattered all over the world. In Greece, in Bulgaria, in Georgia, and in the same Hungary, there are probably some kind of servants of God, secret or overt. As Scripture says: "In every nation who fears God and works righteousness is pleasing to Him." There is no reason to doubt that there are holy people on all continents, at least the righteous people of God. What is the unique ministry of Russia? A huge geographic space in contact with the entire universe, in fact. As Rainer Maria Rilke said: "Russia borders on God." The physical strength of the state, which, under favorable conditions, can protect that small Christian flock, which is the salt of the earth, with an external force and external support - this is what we can have, unlike, for example, those countries that today renounce Christian morality, and Christians are gradually turning into a persecuted community, as long as it is not yet killed and not driven out, but no longer has any rights. At the end of time, Russia may show a certain approximation to a symphony, to a certain harmonious coherence of the state machine and the church organism so that the state protects the outer frontiers of people's life, and the Church fills the inner space of people's life with the correct meanings. Russia has such an opportunity. There is a lot of work here. But there is such a possibility. Nobody else has such an opportunity. Everything else, one way or another, lies under the roller of globalism. We ourselves suffer under this skating rink, but we do not lie to the extent that our enemies would like. But keep in mind that there are very few countries around the world that are truly sovereign. The sovereignty of countries has become ephemeral. For example, here is Germany: the gold reserves in America. Sovereignty, then, is already zero. Although this is a very strong country, and a very hard-working people, and a great history. Or the same Japan ... All those countries that follow in the wake of the States are, in principle, countries that have lost sovereignty, retained formal sovereignty: as they are ordered, they will do so. There are only a few countries in the world that are truly sovereign: this is Russia, this is China, this is a number of Latin American countries, this, of course, is the United States - the locomotive of globalism and all the complex processes taking place in the world. Of the Orthodox countries, only one Russia is a truly sovereign country, which has the right to conduct a more or less independent policy in the surrounding world, and in the event of a favorable situation for us, believers, this country is able to preserve traditional values ​​in a huge world space, to defend them and let no one trample on the soul of the common man. These are completely unique properties. Russian Federation, to date. That's not all. Even if we imagine that the Divine Liturgy is being celebrated from Kamchatka to Kaliningrad, on the vast expanse of the Russian land, this is already enough. You can talk a lot about this in detail, but something has already been said. Thanks for the question.

— Hello. Father Andrew, what is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit in our time? Here we have many baptized, they will now go for some water, but they do not need the sacraments. Is this not a blasphemy against the Holy Spirit?

I have a very big request to pray for our daughter Natalia, she has cerebral palsy, for her husband Andrey and me, Galina. Thanks a lot.

- With regard to these people whom you named - there is no blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is a conscious rejection of the truth. This is the contemplation of the truth, standing before it and deliberately rejecting it. Where there was no knowledge of the truth, there can be no talk of blasphemy. There can be talk about stupidity, about insanity, about delusion, about something, said involuntarily, or without understanding what is said. But blasphemy is a conscious opposition to the truth, it is a demonic state. Demons believe and tremble. They hate God with their whole being, despite the fact that they perfectly understand with their angelic mind the absurdity of their state and the hopelessness of their situation. Here, about the same applies to the human race. By the way, this is a lot, fortunately, of a small number of people. Deep knowledge of the truth and open resistance to it - this is the quality of blasphemy.

— Father Andrey, good evening. You just talked about tithing, and in general, sacrifice to God. Tell me, is tithing, a sacrifice to God, giving to the poor?

- Of course, a sacrifice for a person in need can be safely included in the number of what you give to the Lord. Of course, we should not narrow it all down to temple use, they say, just bring it to the temple, just give it to me - no, in no case. Let's just say, if we take it scrupulously ... Here you have earned, relatively speaking, fifty thousand rubles. Divide by ten, that's five. You put these five aside, and who you give them to is your business. Suppose you found a family in need, and you directly brought these five thousand, and gave them. Everything, you have already given ten percent of yours. Basically, that's it. The rest is sacred. The rest of your forty-five - they are already holy. You can divide these five thousand by two, for example, and for two five hundred buy candles, notes and prosphora, and distribute the other two five hundred to all the beggars who catch your eye. And so good. You can give two thousand to the priest, and use three thousand in your own way, for some good deeds. As you wish. I think it is very dangerous here to try to create some kind of formal scheme that is the same for all people. Because people live in different ways, earn in different ways, spend in different ways, and everyone's heart desires to spend are also different. One will buy books, distribute to someone, the other will do something else, for example, go to the hospital, buy bandages or pills with ointments. It is important that we separate from the earned something equal to a tenth or more, if we want, and spend it for the glory of Christ on those who need it. You can donate to a church, especially to poor ones under construction, or to rural dying parishes. Note that city parishes should not be forgotten either, but things are somehow easier for them. And there are also priests with many children ... In one church I saw such a booklet about the dead, deceased priests who left behind wives with three, seven children, there is a whole site, it turns out, about helping widowed mothers. Usually, if a priest has seven children, and the priest serves, then mother does not go to work, she fiddles with the children from morning to evening. Here the breadwinner died, that's it. Need to find correct application earned, and be fairly free to formally express their alms. I think so. And may the Lord instruct every good soul to properly spend the money earned to help a person in need. This is a very important thing. If we learn to use these things, we will wipe out thousands of tears and straighten many paths. The crooked will straighten, and the sinner will be corrected.

— Good evening, father Andrey. In the Gospel of Luke, the 22nd chapter, it is said that when the Savior with the disciples was in the Garden of Gethsemane, He walked away from them at the distance of a thrown stone, and an angel appeared to Him from heaven and strengthened Him. Here the emphasis on the word strengthened. And in the Gospel of Mark, the first chapter, the thirteenth verse, we read that at the very beginning of His ministry, the Lord was in the wilderness for forty days, tempted by Satan, and was with the beasts, and the angels served Him. How can angels serve or strengthen the Lord? Thank you.

- Well, how can an angel serve a man? How can a person serve a person? He can support him, he can talk to him, he can comfort him in some way, he can pray beside him, for him, next to him. Can amuse him with her presence. In empty places, in deserts, where there is not a single person, the Lord fasts, and the angels of God can brighten up His fasting work with their prayerful presence. You never know how an angel of God can serve his Lord, who has become a man. As for the Gethsemane prayer, here, in full measure, Christ, like a lamb, on which the sins of men were weighed down, made it possible for His humanity to be exhausted, tormented from all the sins that He came to take upon Himself. And here He, as a man, as a servant of Jehovah, as a lamb of God, suffered, and someone from the highest, of course, not just angels, but someone from those standing before the face of the Lord in heaven, came to Him in order to support Its the way it was with Daniel, as it was with Moses, as it was with Jeremiah or with other of the prophets. Those. serve Him according to the suffering humanity of Christ. Angels, as if they do not know how to suffer, do not know what pain in a tooth is, for example, or pain in a broken finger, or pain in a coiled cheekbone. This is completely unfamiliar to them. But they can support, strengthen that person who suffers, and they served the suffering humanity of Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, who decided to take on the sins of the world. Strengthening and service, here, are some synonyms, with the difference that in the wilderness the Lord fasted and suffered from fasting, and the angels served Him, strengthening Him and sharing prayer work with Him. He didn't just fast, He prayed. And in Gethsemane there was a cross without a cross - there was suffering: no one beat Him yet, but He was already exhausted and tormented in this invisible spiritual struggle. And one of the archangels stood before Him in this, serving Him and strengthening His humanity in this struggle. There is nothing surprising here, although everything is above the mind, here everything is above words - these things are above words. You read all this again, just quietly, and stop with your mind on these words. Ask God to make your heart feel the meaning of what you read. I think it will be more useful than talking about it on the air. Because the sufferings of Christ are not expressed adequately in words, it is difficult to express them in words. The experience of the suffering of Christ is given to a person during Great Lent. Some kind of more or less approximation to the understanding of the suffering of Christ, as well as angelic participation in it - it is given to a person during Great Lent. At this time, a person can understand what it is about. That, in fact, awaits us soon, and I think we will feel it more deeply.

— Christ was born! Father Andrew, why did the Lord not destroy evil before the creation of man?

- Such a global issue ... If it is fast, then evil should be trampled by a person and not released from the underworld. A person should not let the “genie out of the bottle” with the help of God. God doesn't have to do everything for man. As in that joke - a man who asked God for money heard from heaven: "You at least buy a lottery ticket." Those. I’ll give you money, but you’ll do something yourself. You cannot do everything for a person, and evil cannot be destroyed by God, Himself, without a person. A person must himself be an active fighter against evil. God is ready to give him help in this, but it would be completely rude to demand that God do everything without us. Who are we then? Then we would not be human. Human dignity, human nature is like that. Man himself is such in his bodily-mental free volitional composition and his intelligent being that he is obliged to be a participant in cosmological processes, everything depends on him. And what's the point ... “Buy me a ticket to the Maldives, pay the way back and forth, make me happy, and don’t interfere with my life,” - this position is certainly funny, I understand it, because I myself a lawless man. But I perfectly understand that all this is nonsense, and as long as a person does nothing himself, the Lord will stand by and will not do anything either. Therefore, He does not destroy evil without our personal effort.

— Father, bless, servant of God Sergei from Moscow. I have a question about the last words of Christ on the cross: "Lord, Lord, why did you leave me?" What was it?

- It was something that exceeded the measure of natural suffering - Christ tasted unnatural pain. Having incarnated, He took upon Himself human limitations, for Him it would have been unnatural, for example, the feeling of fatigue, hunger, suffering from heat or cold, or sleep on the ground, or hitting a stone with a foot, etc. He became a man out of love and took upon Himself all our limitations. But He did not part with the Father. And all human troubles come from the fact that we have lost God. We have not just lost paradise in the fall, we have lost God. And Christ did not lose this just. He took upon Himself all our sinful conventions. In fact, he retained complete unity with the Father. He was never alone, He said: "I and My Father are One." Those. I am not alone, everything that I tell you, I do not speak from Myself, I speak from the Father who sent Me - complete Unity. And on the cross He plunged into what humanity plunged into. It was an unnatural suffering of Christ, He felt God-forsaken. What happened in this case, we can hardly speak in human language, but Christ took everything upon Himself, and therefore took upon Himself the complete loss of God, the meaning, the meaning of life. He lost the Father, for a few seconds, maybe a split second. He plunged into real hell. When there is no Father, when there is no sense, when a person is alone, when the whole burden of this godless world falls on him alone. All this He also experienced. Hence the cry: "My God, My God, why did You forsake Me." He fully drank the whole cup of human suffering.

Love Scripture, Christians, read it, beg God to have mercy on you, and look for opportunities to propitiate God with good works. This, in fact, is the whole secret of our life. Talk to the One Who created us, praise the One Who created us, try to please the One Who created us, and bring Him humble repentance for His sins, because He loves us and is ready to forgive us everything, not only up to seven times seven times , but also up to seventy times seven, and even more.

To Him be glory and power, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, both now and forever and forever and ever.

I wish everyone to celebrate the feast of the Epiphany in an uplifted spirit and understand that on the day of the Epiphany God revealed himself as a Trinity, and Jesus of Nazareth revealed Himself as Christ. He did not become Christ, He revealed Himself as Christ - He is Christ from the very birth. But He manifested Himself as Christ on Jordanian water, as the Holy Spirit testified in the form of a dove, and the voice of the Heavenly Father said: "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." Let us bow to him.

I. Biblical prophecy concept.

1. Prophet.

The prophet spoke on behalf of God (in general).

Prophecy does not always relate to the events and heroes of the future. It can both predict the future and convey an immediate message from God regarding the present.

The prophets of the Old Testament were not only patriots of their country, but also reformers bringing revival to their people.

The prophets of the New Testament cannot be called reformers, rather, they were heralds of truth, 1 Cor. 14: 3; Ephesians 4:11.

The question arises about the presence of prophets today. We can say that there are people who oppose corruption and depravity, but if you adhere to a clear Biblical definition, then we do not see prophets today. Undoubtedly, there are preachers who come out with the denunciation of injustice, but they do not always claim to be the gift of prophets.

2. The message of the prophet.

The prophecies spoke, first, about the people of Israel, in relation to the Biblical Covenant made with them; secondly, about the pagans, to whom Nahum, Obadiah, Jonah, Daniel, 2, 7-8 addressed their word; thirdly, about the future of Israel, fourthly, about the two comings of Christ and, finally, fifthly, about social injustice.

3. The power of a prophet.

The power of the prophet of the Old Testament was equated with the royal power, and sometimes even surpassed it. The king could have killed the prophet, and so it was. But the prophet could dictate to the king, directing his actions:

4Ki. 2:15, 3:15; 1 Chron. 12:18; 2 Chronicles 24:27; Isa. 11: 2, 42: 1, 61: 1; Ezek. 1: 3, 3:14, 3:22, 11: 5; Joel 2: 28-29.

4. The election of a prophet.

The prophet was chosen by God and had authority given by God.

The prophet did not always like the message he conveyed: Saul, - 1Ki.10: 11.19: 24.

Balaam - Num. 23: 5-10.

Caiaphas, - John 11:52.

The prophetic ministry lasted a lifetime, from the moment the prophet was called by God.

1. The fulfillment of the prophecy.

The test of the truth of the prophet was the literal fulfillment of all prophecies. So in the book. Daniel 11: 1-35 contains about 135 prophecies, and all of them were literally fulfilled.

If part of the prophecy was not fulfilled, the person was executed as a false prophet.

6. History of prophecy.

We identify four major prophets of Scripture.

Abraham. The Abrahamic Covenant was one of the greatest prophetic statements in human history. Many points of this Covenant have already been fulfilled literally: Gen. 112: 1-3; 15: 13,14. Other points of this prophecy still await their literal final fulfillment.

Moses. The greatest prophet of the Old Testament. Deut 34: 10-12. He saw (foresaw) the stay of the people of Israel in the land, their scattering and captivity, their gathering together and the blessing of God. God revealed to Moses the events of the future, and in his thinking these events became reality. This is faith.

Daniel. Outlines two essential prophetic purposes:

The first refers to Israel, Daniel 9: 24-27. It took 490 years to fulfill the prophecy of Israel; in 483 years the prophecies before the death of the Messiah were fulfilled, 7 years before the final restoration of the land by Israel, the remaining prophecies about Israel will be fulfilled.

The second one speaks of the pagans, their history, and their acquisition of power in the world.

Christ. Greatest of the prophets. The teaching of Christ illuminates all the major doctrines of systematic theology.

Prophecies of Christ (highlights):

Ethics of the Kingdom, Matthew 5-7;

The main features of the present age, Matthew 13;

Events concerning Israel, before Christ's return to Earth, Matthew 24-25, this has nothing to do with the rapture of the church. Israel is going through a period of tribulation;

Church life - events in the upper room.

Let us separately note the ministry of John the Baptist. He was filled with the Holy Spirit from the womb of his mother, Luke 1:15. His conception was a miracle, Luke 1:18; 36-37.

John came to prepare the way for Christ, was the forerunner, proclaimed the proximity of the Kingdom of Heaven. The word "close" in gr. Sounds like “close at hand”. This means that there is no barrier between the Kingdom of God and Israel. The kingdom only had to come.

John the Baptist introduces Jesus as king. Came into the world to illuminate it before the coming of the Messiah, John 1: 6-7.

Jesus Christ calls John the Baptist the greatest prophet before Him, Matthew 11: 11-15. John by his prophetic ministry carried the word from God, being the prophet of the New Testament.

Throughout Scripture we see examples false prophets... They will become especially active lately. A false prophet knows the truth but does not proclaim it. The main false prophet is Satan. He uses false prophets to instill insecurity in people and belittle the truth that others are proclaiming.

A false prophet always speaks on behalf of God, calling himself an angel of light, a bearer of truth. These people always strive to give themselves importance in the eyes of others, beginning their speech with the words “Thus says the Lord”, Matthew 7:15; 24: 11-24; Mark 13:22; Acts 16:16; 1 Cor. 14:29; 2Pt.2: 1; 1 John 4: 1; Rev. 18:13, 19:20, 20:10.

Prophets of the Old Testament.

(approximate dates of the prophecy):

1. Prophecy of Nineveh, prophet Jonah 862. BC

2. Prophecy to the ten tribes of the north - the prophet Obadiah 877. BC

Prophet Joel 800g. BC

Prophet Amos 787 BC

Prophet Hosea 785 -725 BC

3. An appeal to Judea - Isaiah 760 - 698. BC

Micah 750-710 BC

Naum 713 BC

Habakkuk 626 BC

Zephaniah 630 BC

Jeremiah 629 - 588 B.C.

4. Prophets of captivity

Ezekiel 595-574 B.C.

Daniel 607 - 534 BC

5. Prophets after captivity

Haggai 520 B.C.

Zechariah 520-487 BC

Malachi 397 BC

II. An overview of Bible prophecy.

Key themes of Old Testament prophecy.

1. Pagans.

1.1 Early predictions:

A) The coming Messiah will triumph over Satan, Gen. 3:15.

B) The earth will be cursed, and man in the sweat of his brow will have to get his bread, Genesis 3: 17-19.

C) Three sons of Noah will become the founders of a new human race, Genesis 9: 25-27.

D) The offspring of the sons of Noah, given in Genesis, 10.

1.2. Trials of the nations that will surround Israel:

A) Babylon, Chaldea, Is.13: 1-22; 14: 18-23; Jer. 50: 1-51: 64.

B) Assyria, Is. 14: 24-27.

C) Moab, Isa. 15: 1 - 16: 4.

D) Damascus, Is. 17: 1-14; Jer. 49: 23-27.

E) Egypt, Is. 19: 1-5; Jer. 46: 2-28.

F) The Philistines (Palestine) and Tire, Isa. 23: 1-8; Jer. 47: 1-7.

G) Edom, Jer. 49: 7-22.

H) Ammonites, Jer. 49: 1-6.

I) Elam, Jer. 49: 34-39.

1.3. Times of the Gentiles. When the Gentiles are superior to the people of Israel. When Christ returns, Israel will be above the Gentiles.

This time begins in 605. BC the fall of Jerusalem, its capture by Nebuchadnezzar, and will end with the return of Christ to Earth.

Before the time of the Gentiles, God used Israel as a vehicle to communicate with the Gentiles; in the days of the Gentiles, God works through the Gentiles to communicate with humanity.

1.4. Governments, monarchies:

A) Daniel 2.7-8.

B) Babylonian Empire.

C) Medes and Persians.

D) Greece.

F) Before Babylon, there were two early empires, Egypt and Assyria, but during the prophecy of Daniel, they lost their power, disappearing from the historical field of action.

G) The times of the pagans begin with the time of the Babylonian Empire.

1.5. The judgment of the pagan peoples.

The final judgment over the pagan peoples will take place when Christ returns to Earth, Ps. 2: 1-10; Is. 63: 1-6; Joel 3: 2-16 Soph. 3: 8; Zech. 14: 1-3.

1.6. Pagan peoples and eternal condemnation.

The unsaved goats go to hell, Matthew 25:41.

The born-again Gentiles will enter the Kingdom along with the believers in Israel.

1.7. Gentiles and the Kingdom.

Christ will rule from Jerusalem, Ezek. 34: 23-24; 32:24.

Gentile nations will share in the blessing of the Kingdom, Is.11: 10; 42: 1-6; 49: 6-22; 60: 62-63.

2. Prophecies about the early history of Israel.

2.1. Possession of the land, Gen. 12: 7.

2.2. Slavery in Egypt and liberation, Gen. 15: 13-14.

2.3. The character and fate of the sons of Jacob, Gen. 49: 1-28.

2.4. The conquest of Palestine by Israel, Deut 28: 1-67.

3. Prophecies about the people of Israel.

Covenant blessings have continued throughout human history. The blessing will stop only temporarily, the reason for the temporary cessation of the blessing is the sin of the people.

For the blessing not to stop, it is necessary to remain in communion with God, to remain in the Holy Spirit.

4. Prophecies about the scattering and reunification of Israel.

It was predicted about a threefold dispersion and threefold return to their land:

First, slavery in Egypt, second, Assyrian captivity, VIII-VI centuries. BC, and third, through the rejection of Christ, the people of Israel lose their land until Christ returns, Deut 30: 1-10; Is 11: 11-12; Jer. 23: 3-8 Ezek. 37: 21-25; Matthew 24:31.

5. Prophecies about the coming of the Messiah.

5.1. The Old Testament prophets could not see the difference between the first and second coming of Christ, 1Pt.1: 10,11.

5.2 Isaiah 61: 1-2 mentions both the first and second comings.

5.3. Christ was to come from the tribe of Judah, Gen. 49:10,

5.4. Christ must be a descendant of David, Isa. 11: 1; Jer. 33:21.

5.5. He must be born of a virgin, Isa. 7:14.

5.6. Must be born in Bethlehem of Judea, Micah 5: 2.

5.7. Must die a sacrificial death, Isa. 53: 1-2.

5.8. Crucifixion, Ps 21: 1-21.

5.9. Resurrection from the dead, Ps 15: 8-11.

5.10. The Messiah will come to earth a second time, Deut 30: 3.

5.11. Will come to Earth on the Cloud, Dan. 7:13.

5.12. He will be buried by a rich man, Isaiah 53: 9.

6. Prophecies of the Great Tribulation.

Predictions say that the Great Tribulation will come before the second coming of Christ, Deut.4: 29,30; 12: 1; Ps. 2: 5; Isa 26: 16-20; Jer. 30: 4-7.

When Christ returns, the pagan rule will be completely destroyed, their religious organizations and structures will be abolished, the Earth civilization will completely change, Rev.17,18,19: 17-21.

7. The Day of the Lord and the Messianic Kingdom.

The Day of the Lord refers to the period of time that begins at the Rapture of the church, includes the Great Tribulation, the Kingdom, and the final judgment.

The Day of the Lord has to do with the judgment of a person's sin.

Isa. 11: 1-16; 12: 1-6; 24: 22-27: 13; 35: 1-10; 52: 1-12; 54: 1-55: 13; 59: 20-66: 24; Jer. 23: 3-8 31: 1-40; 32: 37-41; 33: 1-26; Ezek. 34: 11-31 36: 32-38; 37: 1-28; 40: 1-48: 35; Dan. 2: 44.45; 7:14; Os 3: 4-5; 13: 9-14: 9; Joel 2: 28-3: 21; Am. 9: 11-15; Soph. 3: 14-20; Zech. 8: 1-23; 14: 9-21.

Least of all in the Old Testament we find prophecies about the Day of the Lord, in them everything looks like this Day is about to begin. This Day is not an allegory, and it will definitely come.

The book of Siza "The Gospel in the Stars" was published, which claims that the stars can read God's plan of salvation, even the names of the stars reflect His plan. The original interpretation of the planets by people was correct, the whole world was waiting for the birth of the Savior; but with the advent of Greek culture and religion, astrology appears, which departs from the correct interpretation of the meaning of the heavenly bodies.

The main themes of the prophecies of the New Testament.

1. New century.

The new century was a mystery, that which was hidden and revealed now. The new age is the Kingdom of Heaven, God's rule on Earth, including the present age and the millennial Kingdom. We find the characteristics of the new age in Matthew 13, as well as the characteristics of the church. In this age, both evil and good coexist and develop. Evil will increase during the period of the Great Tribulation, let's call this period the most evil time in the history of mankind, until that time a person did not experience the fullness of evil. Evil is growing now, and it will be so until the time of judgment comes. Tomorrow will be worse than yesterday, the world will not be better. Evil means not only actions, evil is thinking, philosophy of life. You can tell good from evil only by knowing Bible truth. The most dangerous thing is that evil wants to penetrate the churches.

2. A new divine plan - the Church.

The church referred to in Matthew 16:18;

The church is made up of Gentiles and Jews, Eph. 3: 6, 2: 12-3: 21.

When the Church reaches fullness, that is, everyone who should be there will enter into it, Christ will call her home. The church will be raptured, John 14: 2-3; 1 Thess. 4: 13-17.

3. The people of Israel.

Currently, Israel, as a political force, is on the sidelines. He is spiritually blinded, Rom. 11:25.

Before God by position, every Gentile is on the same level as a Jew, Rom. 3: 9; 10:12.

True Israel is hidden today, Matthew 13:44.

144 thousand Israelites will survive during the Great Tribulation, Rev. 7: 3-8; 14: 1-5. Many of the people of Israel will be martyred, Rev. 7: 9-17; Zech 13: 8-9.

The pious remnant who survived the Great Tribulation, the saints of the Old Testament and the saints of the Great Tribulation, will rise from the dead and enter the Kingdom, Dan.12: 2; Revelation 12: 13-17, 20: 4-6.

Note: In the kingdom there will be people with resurrected bodies, and people with human bodies. Although the second group of people will not get sick, they will live longer than usual, but they will die in due time. Both those and others will communicate with each other.

4. Pagans.

The time of the Gentiles will end when Christ returns, Luke 21:24. Then the Gentiles will be judged, Matthew 25:31: 46, Rev.19: 15-21.

5. Great Sorrow.

By the Great Tribulation we mean the last three and a half years of the Tribulation period, Matthew 24: 21-27; Revelation 3:10; 6: 1-19: 6. Some people mean by the Great Tribulation all seven years, but the first three and a half years will be peaceful.

It will be a time of suffering and destruction ... the world has never seen such a thing! Although the destruction is now gaining momentum: the earthquake in Pakistan claimed the lives of 73 million. man, hunger, hurricanes ... The days are crafty, you need to be faithful in serving the Lord, for the hour is near ...

6. Satan and the forces of evil.

Beginning with the origin of Satan (this creation had a beginning), Isa. 14: 12-17; Ezek. 28: 11-19, we see the whole picture of the future. Satan will be cast out from heaven three and a half years before the coming of Christ to Earth, Rev. 12: 7-12. Accordingly, these last three and a half years, the Great Tribulation, will be the most terrifying time on Earth. During this time, Satan will be confined to the Earth, kept on it.

When Christ returns to Earth, Satan will be tied up and thrown into the underworld, Rev. 20: 1-3. He will be released by the end of the 1000-year kingdom and will rebel against the Lord, Rev. 20: 7-9.

Then Satan will forever be cast into the lake of fire, Rev. 20:10.

Satan will empower the man of sin, Rev.13: 2-4; 2 Thess. 2: 3; Dan. 7: 8, 9: 24-27, 11: 36-45.

The man of sin will be destroyed at the second coming of Christ, 2 Thess. 2: 1-12. The government of the man of sin will also be destroyed, Rev. 13: 1-10; 19:20; 20:10.

7. The second coming of Christ.

It was predicted by man, prophecy of Enoch, Jude: 14,15. The last passage of the Bible says about the same, a request to Jesus about His early return, Rev. 22:20. The Gospels speak about the return of Christ, Matthew 23: 37-25: 46; Mark 13: 1-37; Luke 21: 5-38.

Paul predicts the return of Christ to Earth, Rom. 11:26, 1 Thess. 3:13; 5: 1-4; 2 Thess. 1: 7-2: 12.

The second coming is foretold by Jacob 5: 1-8;

Peter, 2Pt. 2: 1-3-3: 18;

John in the book of Revelation.

8. Messianic kingdom.

It was proclaimed by Christ in the Gospels as "one who has drawn near." In the Sermon on the Mount, He sets out the ethics of the Kingdom. Matthew 13 talks about the mystery of the Kingdom.

In Matthew 24 and 25 we learn about the events leading up to the establishment of the Kingdom. The kingdom will last for 1000 years. The Kingdom will be followed by an Eternal State.

Jesus died as King of the Jews, before that He enters Jerusalem as King (palm Sunday) and His resurrection gives Christ the right to reign forever.

9. The eternal state.

The description of the Eternal state is found in Revelation 21-22, about the same Daniel prophesies, 7: 14-26.

The condition of lost unbelievers is described in Revelation 20: 11-15.

Chapter III

PROPHECIES.

1. Prophecies related to the Lord Jesus Christ.

1. The origin of Jesus. Seed.

1.1. The first prediction about the seed, Gen. 3:15.

1.2 Through Abraham, Gen. 12: 1-2;

Isaac, Gen. 26: 2-4;

Jacob and his sons, Gen. 28: 13-15.

1.3. Then through Jude, Gen. 49:10.

1.4. The promise made to David about a king who ascended the throne of David, the seed of David, 2Ki. 7: 12-16, 1Par. 17: 3-5.

1.5. The descendants of David occupied the throne until the Babylonian captivity.

1.6. King Joachim destroyed the prophecy scrolls of Jeremiah.

1.7. As a consequence of this, a curse comes from God on the descendants of Joachim: none of his descendants will occupy the throne of David, Jer. 36: 30-31.

1.8. The genealogy of Jesus Christ goes from Joseph to Joachim, to Solomon and David, Matthew 1: 1-16.

1.9. Joseph was the rightful heir to the throne, but his line was cursed, so it is impossible for Joseph to become the physical father of Jesus.

1.10. The lineage of Mary, mother of Jesus, can be traced back to David through Nathan, Luke 3: 23-38.

1.11 The legal title belonged to Jesus through Joseph's lineage, but physically His connection with David was traced through Mary.

1.12. Christ was the Son of David in a literal sense, Ps. 88: 20-37; Jer. 23: 5-6 33:17; Matthew 21: 9; 22:42; Mark 10:47; Acts 2:30, 13:23, Romans 1: 3.

1.13 Only one whose lineage corresponded to both genealogical lines could be the Messiah and the son of David.

In the time of Christ, the right to legal inheritance was passed on through the father's line, and nationality was passed on through the maternal line. The genealogy records were kept in the Temple and were publicly available. After the destruction of the Temple, the only evidence found in the Gospels of Matt. and Luke.

2. Prophet.

2.1. Moses predicted that the Messiah would be the greatest of all prophets, Deut. 18: 15,18-19.

2.2. Nathanael acknowledges this in John 1:45.

2.3 Peter acknowledged this fact, Acts 3: 22-23.

2.4. Stephen admitted it, Acts 7:37;

2.5. Jesus acknowledged his position as a prophet, John 7:16.

2.6. Jesus conveyed the message of God, John 7:16; 12: 45-50; 14:24; 17: 8. He told people about what God told Him.

2.7. You can write a systematic theology based on the prophetic ministry of Jesus that touches on every topic of theology.

3. Priest.

3.1. Before the Law of Moses, the head of the family was the priest in the family.

3.2. During the period of the Law of Moses, Aaron and his descendants become priests for the people. The priesthood for Israel was essential for the unification of the people.

3.3. Melchizedek is a type of the priesthood of Christ, Gen. 14: 18-20; Psalm 109: 4; Heb. 5: 4-10.

3.4. The death of Christ fulfills the priesthood of Aaron, completing it, Heb. 8: 1-5; 9: 23-28.

Further fulfillment of the ministry of Aaron by someone no longer has any spiritual value.

3.5. Christ's intercession as our High Priest will last forever, John 17: 1-26; Rom. 8:34; Heb. 7:25.

3.6. When a Christian prays, he joins a prayer meeting in Heaven that never ends his prayer. Therefore, in prayer it is important not only to speak, but also to be able to listen ...

3.7. Believers are priests under the leadership of the High Priest - Christ, 1Pt.2: 9.

4. Jesus the King.

4.1. Christ is King in the line of David.

4.2. Covenant with David, 2Ki. 7: 12-16; 1Pr. 17: 3-15.

According to 2Ki.7: 12-16, the King will ascend to the throne of David and will reign forever.

a) Amillennialists and postmillennialists believe that this passage should not be interpreted literally. If these verses are taken literally, their systems fail.

b) When the Angel announced to Mary about the birth of Christ, He confirmed the literalness of this covenant, Luke 1: 31-33. Then amillennialists and postmillennialists must answer why the Angel lied to Mary.

4.3. God's love for David will never be taken away. Christ will occupy the throne forever.

4.4. Psalm 88 once again affirms the law with David.

4.5. Christ has repeatedly said that He is King.

4.6. Christ convinced the disciples that His kingdom would come, Matthew 19:28.

4.7. Christ entered Jerusalem as King of Israel, Matthew 21: 9; Zech. 9: 9.

5. Two Comings of Christ.

5.1. First Coming.

A) Predicted immaculate conception, Is.7: 14; 9: 6-7. The virgin birth was necessary for Christ to be sinless and become a perfect sacrifice.

B) Born in Bethlehem, Micah 5: 2.

C) His death, Gen. 3:15, Ps.21: 1-21; Is. 52: 13-53: 12.

D) His resurrection was predicted, Ps.15: 1-11; 21: 22-31; 117: 22-24.

E) There are 300 prophecies about the first coming of Christ, and all of them were literally fulfilled.

5.2. Second coming.

A) Christ will return, Zech. 14: 4. To deny the second coming of Christ is to deny Scripture.

B) Christ will return personally, it will be He, Matthew 25:31, Rev.19: 11-16.

C) He will return on the clouds, Matthew 24:30; Acts 1:11; Revelation 1: 7.

D) There are 44 predictions in the Bible that directly point to the second coming of Christ, Deut 30: 3.

E) At least 7 explicit prophetically indicated events of the Second Coming:

1. Christ (namely He, himself) will return in the same way as He ascended.

2. He will sit on the throne of David.

3. Christ will return to a world that has rebelled against God.

4. Judgment will overtake Israel, Gentiles, Satan and the man of sin.

5. Nature will be delivered from the curse, Rom. 8: 18-22.

6. Israel will repent and be saved.

7. The millennial kingdom will come.

5.3. Comparison of the First and Second Comings.

A) The first time Christ came as the Redeemer from sin; the second time He will come to deliver Israel from persecution.

B) At the time of the First Coming, Christ peacefully entered Jerusalem on a donkey; the second time He will come in great glory and power.

C) He was rejected by people during the first coming, the second time of His coming to Earth, He will be the ruler.

D) He provided salvation for Jews and Gentiles, everyone who believes in Him, He will come the second time to execute judgment on both Gentile nations and Jews.

E) During the First Coming, He condemned Satan and rebelled against him, during His return, Christ will bind Satan and break the forces of evil.

1. Prophecies related to the covenants with Israel.

Note: Prophecies pertaining to Israel and the covenants with it are the primary factor in the understanding of prophecy.

Prophecy cannot be correctly interpreted if there is no understanding that God has a clear plan for Israel, a plan for the Gentiles, and a vision for the Church. These plans cannot be mixed.

1. Covenant with Abraham.

1.1. The first mention of this is found in Genesis 12: 1-3, further development in Genesis 13: 14-17; 15: 4-21; 17: 1-8; 22: 17-18.

1.2. The covenant with Abraham is unconditional. It is backed by God's faithfulness. Abraham's whole life is a lesson in trusting God.

1.3. The covenant with Abraham began in time but will continue forever.

1.4. The main provisions of the covenant:

A) a great people will come from Abraham, Genesis 12: 2, through Isaac and Ishmael, Esau and the children of Khetura. Both Arabs and Jews are children of Abraham.

B) The promise of blessing, Genesis 12: 2. “I have blessed you in the past and will bless you in the future,” is how these words sound in the language of the Jews.

C) “I will make your name great”, Gen. 12: 2. It was fulfilled: Judaism, Islam, Christianity view Abraham as a great man and a prophet.

D) “You will be a blessing”, Gen. 12: 2. Through the Messiah, Abraham became this blessing to the whole world, Gal. 3: 13-14.

E) “I will bless those who bless you and I will curse those who curse you”, Gen. 12: 3.

As we look at the course of history, we note that the nations that treated Israel well received the blessing of God. The nations that did not show mercy to Israel were judged by God: Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Medo-Persians (Iran), Greece, Rome, Spain, modern Germany, modern Russia, USA, Deut. 30: 7; Isa. 14: 1-2; Zech. 14: 1-3; Matthew 25: 31-46.

F) “All nations will be blessed through you”, Gen. 12: 3. Prophets, government according to the law, knowledge of God, understanding of faith - all this is a blessing for us from Abraham. Here we also include the concept of aesthetics, art, the presence of letter writing, musical and visual arts.

G) “and I will give you this land”, Gen. 12: 7. The boundaries of the land in question: Genesis 15: 18-21, From the Egyptian River (Nile) to the Euphrates River.

1.5. The Abrahamic covenant is fundamental to other covenants that either build on it or explain it.

In order to understand the events of the present time, it is necessary to know the covenant with Abraham.

2. Covenant with Moses.

2.1. It was given to the people of Israel through Moses, Ex. 20: 1 - 31:18. This covenant included provisions regarding moral life (commandments), civil law and social life (courts), and religious life (rituals).

2.2. This law was the rule of life, not salvation.

2.3. The Law of Moses was abolished with the death of Christ.

2.4. The law revealed sin as lawlessness.

2.5. The law was the guide to a holy life. We can say that keeping the law does not make a person holy. Holiness is a state of mind and heart ... Although theoretically, a person who fulfilled the law could be called a saint.

3. Covenant with David.

3.1. This covenant was given to David, 2Ki. 7: 11-16.

3.2. The covenant is unconditional and eternal.

3.3. A descendant of David must sit on the throne forever.

3.4. The fulfillment of the covenant with David implies the return of Christ to the earth and His rule over it.

3.5. The Jews expected the literal fulfillment of this covenant.

4. New Testament.

4.1. The covenant with Moses was temporary, and was in force until the advent of the New Testament, which took its place, Jer. 31: 31-34.

4.2. The coming of Christ brought with it a new order, John 1:17.

4.3. Amillennialists claim that the New Testament is being embodied in the church today.

4.4. Postmillennialists say the New Testament has already been in the process of being embodied in the glory of the church for the past 1000 years.

4.5. Premillennialists disagree on their interpretation of the New Testament. There are three main groups that express different opinions on this matter:

a) was given to Israel, with the application of this New Testament by the church;

b) it is a covenant of grace that applies to any people with whom God deals;

c) two covenants were given, one for Israel and will be fulfilled during the 1000-year reign; the other is being fulfilled in the church today.

The New Testament is also described in Isaiah 61: 8-9 and Ezekiel 37: 21-28.

If promises are taken literally, then it takes 1000 real years for their fulfillment. The view of the two new testaments is based on the letter to the Hebrews. The point is that the New Testament has physical and spiritual aspects. The physical side of this covenant will literally be fulfilled in the 1000 year kingdom. The spiritual aspect also applies to the church today. In the Kingdom, the spiritual aspect will also apply to Israel.

Premillennialists rely on a literal interpretation of Scripture, while postmillennialists and amillennialists interpret this question allegorically.

5. Seven Provisions of the Covenant with Israel.

5.1. Israel, as a people, will never cease to exist, eternal people, Jer. 31: 31-37; Rome 11. The foundation of Israel's restoration will be the eternal love of God for this people, Jer. 31: 3-4.

5.2. Land given forever, land forever, Gen. 15:18.

Israel was three times deprived of the land due to its unfaithfulness: the Egyptian captivity, which Abraham prophesied about, the Babylonian and Assyrian yoke, and, finally, the scattering of the people of Israel throughout the world, Gen. 15: 13-14,16; Jer. 25: 11-12; Deut. 28: 63-68.

Accordingly, we can talk about three restorations in the possession of the land: the exodus from Egypt, from the Babylonian and Assyrian captivity, and the future restoration after the world dispersion.

Genesis 15:14; Joshua 1: 2-7 Dan. 9: 2; Jer. 23: 5-6 Jer. 25: 11-12; Ezek. 37: 21-25; Acts 15.14-17.

We can talk about the future repentance of Israel, Zech. 12: 10-14; Is.61: 2-3; Matthew 5: 4; 24:30; about the return of the Messiah, Am. 9: 9-15; Tue 30: 3-6. The restoration of Israel to earth will follow the return of the Messiah, Is.11: 11-12; Jer. 23: 5-8 Matthew 24: 29-31; Genesis 15: 18-21.

Israel will turn to God as a people, Ezek.20: 33-34; Mal. 3: 1-6; Matthew 24: 37-25: 30; Rom. 11:26:27, Deut. 30: 4-8.

Israel's oppressors will be judged, Matthew 25: 31-46.

The nations will be blessed through Israel, Ps. 71: 1-20; Is. 60: 1-22; 62: 1-12; 65: 17-25; Is.66: 10-14; Ezek. 37: 21-28.

5.3. Israel will have a king forever, 2Ki.7: 16; Ps. 88:36; Jer. 33:17.

5.4 The Throne Forever, Ps. 88: 36-37; Is 9: 6-7; Luke 1: 31-33.

5.5. Kingdom forever, Rev.19: 5-6; Zech. 2: 10-12; Mal. 3: 1-4; Ps. 49: 3-5; Deut. 30: 3.

5.6 New Testament Forever, Jer. 31: 31-34.

5.7. The everlasting blessing will be with Israel, Isa. 35: 5-10; Jer. 31:33; Ezek. 37:27; Zech. 8: 8; Revelation 12: 8-11.

6. 490 prophetic years of Israel.

Daniel 9 is one of the most important prophetic chapters in the Old Testament.

Poems 1 and 2 - Daniel reads Jeremiah 25:11, 29:10.

The first year of the Medo-Persian reign in Babylon dates back to 539 B.C. Daniel learns from Jeremiah that the captivity will last 70 years.

The captivity began in 605. BC - Jerusalem was captured by Babylon.

Approximately 67 years pass. Daniel asks God to restore Israel, 9:14-19 ... We find the answer to his prayer in the book of Ezra, when 50,000 Jews return to their land.

Daniel took Jeremiah's prophecy literally. He did not take the prophet's words allegorically. During prayer, the Angel Gabriel comes to Daniel and brings him a message, :20-23 .

6.1. 70 weeks.

:24 70 weeks (70 weeks). The number 70 should be taken literally. A week in this context consists of 7 years, not days. Daniel's word allows us to make just such a calculation. 70 times 7, we get 490 years of Israel's future history. There are 6 main prophecies during this period:

First, “to cover up the crime, put an end to the crime,” since Israel was breaking the Law.

Second, “put an end to sin, sins were sealed”, an end to the rebellion against God.

Third, “iniquities are blotted out (redeemed or covered),” Christ accomplished this on the cross.

Fourth, “eternal righteousness has been set in motion”, Jer. 23: 5-6, the period of the 1000-year Kingdom.

Fifth, "the vision and the prophet are sealed," the cessation of prophecy.

Sixth, “the Holy of Holies is anointed”, this prophecy is understood in different ways: either it is about the eternal reign of Christ, or about the New Jerusalem (Rev. 21: 1-27), or about the new Temple in the 1000-year kingdom.

All these prophecies should be fulfilled in 490 years, but we do not see this, what is the key to understanding the time of fulfillment of Daniel's prophecies?

The fact is that according to the following verses, 490 years are divided into three temporal parts:

4 9 years (7 days) + 434 years (62 days) + 7 years.

The first segment, 7 weeks, 49 years, the restoration of Jerusalem, after the walls were rebuilt by Nehemiah.

Then there are 62 weeks, we multiply 62 by seven, we get 434 years, in general, the fulfillment of the first two time periods of the prophecy takes 434 + 49, 483 years. After that and before the beginning of the last seven years, two main events take place: Christ was put to death, and, second, Jerusalem was destroyed in 70 AD.

Finally, the third segment - the last seven years, the period of tribulation, the beginning of the seven years - the confirmation of the covenant, will be divided into two parts, three and a half years each, the last half of the seven years will begin with the breaking of the covenant. The leader is a man of sin, presumably he will be related to Italy, a Roman, according to Paul.

6.2. Interpretations

Non-Christian interpretation, regarding the execution time:

a) some argue that all difficulties begin with the time of the persecution under Antiochus Epiphanius, 175-164 BC.

b) others, that this 70th week begins in 605. BC, which does not explain the first 69 years.

c) for someone, the seventieth week begins in 568. BC This has nothing to do with the prophecy of Jeremiah.

d) some argue that Daniel was wrong about the time frame.

e) Some Jewish interpreters say that the prophecy was fulfilled in 70 AD. according to R.Kh.

Christological interpretation.

The problem arises, where to start calculating the 490 years?

It is proposed to consider 4 decrees:

Cyrus' decree on the restoration of the temple, 2 Chronicles 32: 22-23; Ezra 1: 1-4; 6: 1-5.

The decree of Darius, which confirms the decree of Cyrus, Ezra 6: 11-12.

Artaxerxes decree, Ezra 7: 11-26.

Artaxerxes decree to Nehemiah (March 5, 444 BC) on the restoration of the city, as well as on the rebuilding of the wall, Neh. 2: 1-8. It is on the latter decree that the prophecies should be based.

The wall was rebuilt around 444 BC, which coincides with the 9th century, 25th century. Daniel's prophecies.

Now let's make a mathematical calculation: the prophetic year or the year of the Old Testament lasted 360 days. If we calculate, then seven weeks and 62 weeks are 483 years. 483g ends right before the death of Christ, although some argue that we are talking about the solemn entry of Christ into Jerusalem.

6.3. Views on the events of the last seven years of Daniel's prophecy.

A) Some believe that Daniel's prophecy does not imply a certain period of time, and will not be fulfilled until the end of the history of mankind.

However, if the first 483 years are taken literally, then there is no reason to interpret the last week allegorically. In addition, the last seven years are literally divided into two periods of three and a half years.

B) The second point of view of the interpretation of the last week is as follows:

483 years were fulfilled by the time of the baptism of Christ, respectively, three and a half years were fulfilled at the time of the crucifixion.

But where, then, is the explanation regarding last three and a half years?

The sacrifices and offerings did not end with the death of Christ on the cross. They stopped in 70 AD. AD when Titus destroyed the temple.

The death of Christ does not occur in the middle of the last week, but occurred earlier, before the last seven years and after 483 years.

The cessation of sacrifices and offerings takes place after 483 years and before the beginning of the last week.

3. Prophecies Pertaining to the Gentiles.

3.1. The judgment of Cain, Genesis 4: 10-12.

3.2. The world will not be drowned again, Gen. 7: 1-9: 18.

3.3. The curse of Ham, father of Canaan, Genesis 9: 22-27.

Let's trace how the prophecies affect individual states:

1. Egypt and Assyria.

How powers existed before Babylon.

EGYPT, Gen. 10: 6. The first prophecy is associated with the name Mitsraim. That was the name of one of the sons of Ham, from his name Egypt gets its original name. Later, presumably, by the name of Pharaoh Egyptus (1485 BC), it takes on the name we are now familiar with - EGYPT.

The Egyptians call their land Hemmet, which means " black earth, black soil ”. Also, Egypt is called “the land of Ham”, because it is inhabited by the descendants of Ham.

The Egyptian river, the Nile, was to become the border between Egypt and the land promised to Abraham, Gen. 15:18.

We know that the daughter of Pharaoh of Egypt was one of the wives of Solomon, 3Ki. 3: 1. Despite God's warning, Solomon bought Egyptian horses and chariots, Deut 17:16.

The future devastation of Egypt was predicted by the prophet Joel, Joel 3: 9.

Micah 7:12, Zech. 10:10 predicted about the withdrawal of Israel from Egypt.

Egypt will be in the 1000 year kingdom, Zech. 14: 18-19.

God used Assyria to judge the northern tribes of Israel, 4Ki.15: 19-20.

Perhaps Assyria (now, this is Syria) will be one of the northern countries that will invade Israel during the Great Tribulation, Dan.11: 40. There will be some northern alliance that will conquer Israeli territory at the beginning or middle of the Great Tribulation. We are confident that one of these northern states will be Russia.

In the future kingdom, both Egypt and Assyria will worship God, Isa.19: 23-29.

2. BABYLON.

In the Old Testament, we find over 600 references to Babylon.

The time of the Gentiles begins its countdown from 605 BC, the time of the conquest of Jerusalem by Babylon.

From the New Testament, Rev. 14: 8, 16:19, 17: 5, 18: 2,10,21, we learn the following about Babylon:

first, Babylon will be a city;

secondly, he will represent a political force;

third, he will represent false religion.

Modern Babylon (now, this is Iraq) The events in Iraq are alarming.

Today there is also a religious aspect of Babylon - it was borrowed by the Roman Catholic Church, which is manifested in the worship of the Virgin, the crown of the Pope, etc. in the Babylonian religion there was a cult of worshiping a sinless baby who was killed and became the savior of the world. His sinless mother ascended to heaven alive.

In the XIX century. The book "Two Babylonians" is published, in which descriptions of many mysteries of the RCC are given, the parallels with the Babylonian religion are obvious. The concept of salvation, along with faith, includes the observance of the sacraments and laws of the Roman Catholic Church.

RCC theology calls Rome Babylon.

Many believe that Babylon will be rebuilt as a city. They are trying to rebuild it today, in Iraq (formerly Assyria). Saddam Hussein managed to partially restore the city.

Others believe that Babylon will be destroyed by an earthquake, Rev. 16: 19-21.

3. THE MEDIANS AND THE PERSONS.

Babylon fell, unable to resist the Medo-Persians, in 539. BC The Empire of the Medo-Persians existed for almost 200 years, until 330. BC

Isaiah 13:17 predicted the attack of the Medes on Babylon; Jer. 51: 11-28 predicts the conquest of Babylon by the Medes.

In Jeremiah we also read about the persecution of Israel by the Medes, which will bring the wrath of God on the persecutors, Jer. 25:25.

Medo-Persia was more friendly towards Israel than other empires.

Even before the birth of Cyrus, Isaiah prophesied that he would command to rebuild the temple and the city of Jerusalem, Isa. 44:28.

In Dan.8: 21 we find a mention of the "shaggy goat", we are talking about the king of Greece. In Greece, before Alexander the Great's father, there was no kingdom, there were independent city-states. These cities were united by Philip the Great, Alexander's father. The first king of Greece was Alexander the Great, Alexander the Great, the “big horn”.

This “goat” quickly and successfully moves across the entire earth, “without touching” it, gaining victories, thanks to the rapid movement of troops, Dan.8: 5.

Ptolemy stands over Egypt:

Seleucus receives Syria, Israel and the eastern countries;

Lysimachus gets Asia Minor;

Kassander receives Macedonia and part of the Egyptian lands.

From 175 to 163 BC Syria is ruled by Antiochus Epiphanes (Antiochus IV). As Daniel 11: 21-35 predicted, this king desecrated the temple, brought a pig to the altar, sacrifices to the Lord ceased during his reign, everywhere there was “an abomination of desolation”. Jesus said that the repetition of the events of the time of Antiochus foreshadowed the imminent coming of the Lord.

The wicked actions of Antiochus led to an uprising led by Judas Maccabee. Antiochus, in retaliation, kills thousands of Jews. Some religious scholars even believe (erroneously, of course) that Daniel was an eyewitness to what was happening - all events are described so accurately.

Antiochus Epiphanes is a type of the last world ruler in the time of the Gentiles, Matthew 24: 15-22; 2 Thess. 2: 3-4, Revelation 13: 1-8.

Daniel 2:40. The fourth empire can only be Rome; none of the others fit the proposed description.

Daniel 7:24. Ten horns - ten nations. Perhaps we are talking about the revived Roman Empire.

The fulfillment of the prophecies about Rome stopped with the first coming of Christ, perhaps it will resume during the ascension of the Church.

A number of researchers suggest that today the Roman Empire exists in the form of the Roman Catholic Church.

We believe that the renaissance of the Roman Empire will consist of three stages:

A) The appearance in the political arena of 10 kingdoms, once under the rule of Rome, 10 horns Dan. 7: 7 and Rev. 13: 1.

B) The appearance of another horn, Dan. 7: 8, a dictator who will unite 10 peoples in a political union. This is a man of sin, he will exalt himself above God, Rev. 11:36.

C) Dan.9: 27, “an agreement with many”, the Empire (union of 10 nations) will spread its influence throughout the world, and will last for three and a half years, Dan.7: 23; Revelation 13: 5,7.

In our opinion, humanity at this stage is going through the most interesting time in its history. Many prophecies are being fulfilled before our eyes. Here's how the events of the last stage of the revival of the Roman Empire will unfold:

the first half of seven years will be represented by the world church, Rev. 17, the highest manifestation of the ecumenical movement, in the last three and a half years a world religion will be established, worshiping a world dictator, open worship of Satan. The False Prophet will lead the world religion. So it will be until the second coming.

The world ruler, Rev. 13:17, will control the world economy. No one can buy or sell without his sign.

By the way, modern technology is progressing in this regard: laser marking of cattle from a helicopter, which appears only in ultraviolet light, etc.

It is clear that people with the mark do not inherit eternal life.

The man of sin will proclaim himself to be God, Dan.11: 36,37. It is likely that many will believe him. He will recognize only the military power and the power of Satan, Dan.11: 38-39.

At this time, the Earth will be shaken by all sorts of terrible catastrophes, Rev. 6: 12-17.

Satan will untie the last world war, Revelation 16: 13-16.

Satan, the world ruler and the False Prophet will be cast into the lake of fire, Rev. 20:10.

4. Prophecies about Satan and the forces of evil.

4.1. Satan's judgment.

A) Satan is judged on the cross.

B) Satan will be cast down from heaven to Earth, after the defeat of the angels in the war, Rev. 12: 7-12.

C) Satan will be cast into the abyss, and will be there under the seal for 1000 years, Rev. 20: 1-3.

D) Then he will be released for a short time, Rev. 20: 3, 7-9.

E) Satan will be cast into the lake of fire, Rev. 20:10.

Note: The first judgment was sovereignly proclaimed by God and executed by Him. The rest of the courts are yet to come.

Note: Evil is behind every bad deed. Actions in themselves can be immoral, sinful, but exactly what is behind the actions, the intentions of a person are evil. While a person thinks that sin is an action, he does not realize the seriousness of the current situation, because sin is what is in the mind of a person. The devil controls the mind of an unsaved person. The mind does not have a neutral state: it is moved either by the power of the Holy Spirit or by the power of Satan. The mind of a spiritual person is renewed.

A) The sins of Israel will end at the return of Christ, Dan.9: 24; Rom. 11: 26-27.

B) Evil in the 1000-year kingdom will be immediately punished by the King himself, Isa. 11: 3-4.

C) Unbelievers will be judged at the end of the 1000 year kingdom.

D) Evil will be destroyed, it will not enter the New Heaven and the New Earth, 2Pt.3: 13; Revelation 21:27.

4.3. Man of sin.

In our opinion, the man of sin cannot be called the Antichrist, although in a sense, he is the Antichrist, however, like many others who do not recognize Christ as Lord, denying His divinity, that He is the second person of the Trinity, in a word, the Antichrist can be name everyone who is against Christ.

A man of sin is a certain person who lives at a certain time and does certain things.

In the book. Daniel 7: 8 it is called a little horn.

Perhaps he will be recognized before the rapture of the Church, 2 Thess. 2: 1-4. Although most premillennialists disagree with this opinion, the time of the rapture of the Church is hidden from humanity, and if the world recognizes the man of sin before this event, the time of the rapture will become apparent.

When a man of sin gains power over 10 nations, he will conclude a peace treaty with Israel, Dan.9: 24-27, will confirm the covenant.

The man of sin will either be of Roman origin or in some way connected to Italy.

5. Day of the Lord, Day of Christ and Day of God.

5.1. Day of the Lord.

A time of great suffering and grief. The day of the Lord is a terrible period of time when the judgments of God will be carried out, Is.13: 6-9; Ezek. 7:19; 13: 3; Joel 1:15; 2: 1-11.31; 3:14; Am. 5: 18-20; Avd. 15; Sof.1gl; 2: 2; Zech. 14. Refers to the world, to the Earth.

5.2. The Day of the Lord and the man of sin is spoken of in 2 Thess. 2: 3-10. The Day of the Lord is the time of the last week, judgment on Israel and sinners, judgment on sin.

Article 2. speaks of the Day of Christ, which is used to denote the rapture of the Church. In a minority of translations, the name Day of the Lord is used.

There are a number of understandings about the beginning of this period. In our opinion, this time will begin with the rapture of the church; Rev. Fr. Shannon believes, on the basis of Article 3, that the man of sin will be revealed before the rapture of the Church. The man of sin will manifest himself at the time appointed by God. A great apostasy of people who left the faith will begin.

Note: Some people call modern liberalism such apostasy, but the goal of liberalism was not apostasy from the faith, the liberals wanted to attract educated, intellectual people to the faith. At the origins of liberalism are religious philosophers (philosophical atheism). But since the 60s. Many begin to deviate from the faith, which we call practical atheism: a person can agree with all doctrines, but not have life, have no relation to God, the truth is not significant for such people. We can also talk about the existence of militant atheism, which is established in the countries of the communist regime.

The man of sin will claim to be God. He is part of the satanic “trinity”, the purpose of which is to exalt the man of sin: Satan wants to be like God the Father, the man of sin is God the Son, the False Prophet takes the place of the Holy Spirit. The man of sin will sit in the Temple. Christ will destroy him at the Second Coming.

The man of sin will have the power of Satan, he will be directly connected with the devil. He will deceive unbelievers. 2 Thessalonians 2: 11-12 indicates that people will believe the deception of Satan, and for this they will fall under the influence of error: people will live in a lie and will be judged. In churches it is necessary to preach about the Second Coming, about the rapture of the Church. This will give people the information they need and keep them from cheating.

The man of sin will be thrown into the lake of fire.

The Lord's Day ends with the Second Coming of Christ to Earth.

5.3. Day of Christ.

2 Thess. 2: 1-10, the Day of Christ will begin with the rapture of the Church and refers to the Church, which is in heaven during the Great Tribulation, the Day of Christ will end at the beginning of the 1000-year reign, 1 Cor. 1: 8; 2Cor1: 14; Phil. 1: 6, 10; 2:16.

5.4. Day of God.

The period of time after the Day of the Lord and including the eternal future, 2Pt 3:12.

6. Prophecies of apostasy from Christianity.

In Christianity, the existence of apostate Christianity can be noted, which has most clearly manifested itself over the past 200 years.

Man knows the truth and deliberately turns away from it, becoming an apostate. Such a person draws along with him many who are not well versed in the Word; we do not reckon such leading ones as apostates.

6.1. Matthew 13: 24-30 and 36-43 tells about the present age, about the Church. Goodness in Jesus' parables is represented by wheat, flour, pearl, fresh fish. Israel is a treasure here; evil - birds, tares, leaven, rotten fish.

The Church Age is characterized by the presence of both good and evil.

With the admiration, all good will be taken from the midst of evil.

6.2. What will happen to the bad, evil (apostate Christianity)?

A) Rev. 17 Ch. draws the harlot, the Wife sitting on the beast; purple and purple in the description of a woman symbolize a bad wife, a harlot.

B) Also, these colors (purple, scarlet, gold, with precious stones and pearls) are associated with false religion.

C) Many associate the harlot with the RCC.

D) Perhaps Roman Catholics, Orthodox and ecumenical Protestants will enter a certain world church, whose teachings will be saturated with liberal theology. Communication with God will be identified with love for one's neighbor, pleasing human weaknesses.

E) The Crimson Beast refers to the political power described in Rev. 13.

F) During the first half of the Great Tribulation, the harlot woman will be especially active.

G) Rev.17: 5 represents the descriptive title of this woman, she is the mother of abominations and harlots of the earth. She was drunk with the blood of saints, persecuted the believers, Rev. 17: 6.

Throughout history, the Roman Catholic Church and all Orthodox churches have killed more people than political and other organizations.

H) The apostate religion will be destroyed by the 10 kings of the revived Roman Empire after three and a half years, preparing the way for the final formation of the world religion. This world religion will be destroyed by Christ.

I) Rev.17: 17,18 - Great city. Some believe that this city is the reborn Babylon. Isaiah's prophecy of Babylon in 13: 6-13 has not yet occurred in history. For this prophecy to be fulfilled, the city must be rebuilt. Today Saddam Hussein made an attempt to rebuild Babylon, but he succeeded only halfway.

Also in Revelation 17: 9 we find an indication of 7 hills, or mountains, the City on the seven hills is Rome. (although both Moscow and Constantinople stand on seven hills).

This city will be destroyed by the greatest earthquake in the history of the Earth.

Note: In chapter 17. book Revelation presents a religious portrait of Babylon, we are talking about religion; in chapter 18 - his political image.

God will judge a religion that is some kind of professional religious activity or is a force to manipulate people.

J) The final judgment over the apostate church is the return of Christ to Earth.

7. Prophecies regarding the Tribulation period.

7.1. The Tribulation will be a time of suffering unprecedented in scope and severity. The history of the world has never experienced such torment ...

7.2. After the rapture of the church, 10 nations, kingdoms will appear, Dan.7: 24.

7.3. The head, the King of this confederation of ten, will try to resolve Israel's problem with its neighboring countries, guaranteeing peace and security.

7.4. This peace will last 42 months or three and a half years.

7.5. Obviously, something terrible will happen, causing the man of sin to feel the power of Satan and break the covenant with Israel. Apparently, this will be an attack on Israel. Russia will conquer Israel, Ezekiel 38, 39 (the time of the conquest is debatable: either the beginning, or the middle, or the end of the Tribulation period). No Army can resist Russia.

7.6. God will fight against Russia and the aggressor countries, Ezek. 38: 19-22: earthquakes, pestilence, hailstones, fire and brimstone, calamities and diseases will befall Israel's enemies.

The enemy's army will be destroyed, and Israel will need seven months to bury the dead, Ezek. 39:12.

What will this Army, or the Northern Coalition, be? The names appearing in the text of the Bible, in our opinion, are the ancient names of the countries participating in the Northern Union, Ezek. 38: 1-39: 25; Dan 11:40; Joel 2: 1-27 Is.10: 12; 30: 31-33; 31: 8-9.

Gog is the leader of the confideration, most likely this is the title;

Magog is the land of Gog;

Magogits - the people living in Magog, sometimes they are called Scythians, geographically this name refers to Ukraine;

Rosh - Russia, Prince Rosha - the leader of Russia;

Meshekh - according to some linguists, this is the name of Moscow, Ezek. 27:13; 32:26; 38: 2.3; 39: 1.

Caucasus - the fortress of Gog;

Sarmatia is the place from which the Slavs or Russians came.

Persia - modern Iran;

Homer - Germany, east. Europe. It is believed that Germany will be divided in two and will not come under the control of the Roman Empire;

Fogarma is the ancient name of Armenia;

Foot is a land close to Iran, possibly modern-day Iraq.

The United States does not appear in the prophecies, apparently not being a world power in the future.

7.7. After this, the man of sin will gain power over the world, Rev. 13: 4. He will have no opposition. He will require worshiping himself as God. Failure to fulfill this requirement will be punished with death, Rev. 13: 8,15.

7.8. The judgments of God during the Great Tribulation, in the last three and a half years of the last week, will be so terrible that if they had not been reduced, there would be no one alive. From terrible earthquakes, gigantic hail and other disasters, 80-90% of the world's population will die.

Here are the Scriptures about the Great Tribulation, in addition to the book of Revelation:

Is. 24: 20-23; Jer. 30: 7-9 Dan.9: 27; 12: 1; Matthew 24: 21-30; Mark 13:24; 1 Thess. 5: 1-8.

8. Prophecies related to the Church.

8.1. The last days of the Church in the world.

This will be the end time last days, Dan. 8: 17-19; 9:26; 11: 35,40,45; 12: 4.6.9. It will begin with the destruction of the Temple and end with the destruction of the power of the pagan world during the Second Coming of Christ, Matthew 24:15; 2 Thess. 2: 8.

This will be a period of apostasy and evil, 2 Timothy 3: 1-5. The people leading the apostate church will pretend to be Christian, but they will be far from the faith, preaching the false gospel.

Note: Dr. Fr. J. Shannon knows a man, a pastor who knows the gospel, but who does not allow the preaching of the gospel in his church for fear of conflicts. In conversation with parishioners, this pastor agrees with each interlocutor; because of his silence and fear of offending someone with the gospel, the church turns into apostate, and he turns into a false prophet and false teacher.

The Bible describes seven cases of resurrection from the dead: 3Ki.17: 22; 4Ki. 4:35; 13:21; Matthew 9:25; Mark 5:42; Luke 7:15; John 11:40; Acts 9:40.

Obviously, all these people later died again.

Enoch and Elijah were transferred to Heaven.

People who are born into the world will never cease to exist; they will exist in eternity, whether they die or are raptured, Dan.12: 2; John 5: 28-29; Acts 24:15.

The first resurrected person is Jesus Christ. He not only rose from the dead, He received a new body. This body does not know death, Mark 16:14; Luke 24: 33-49; John 20: 19-23. People who were resurrected before Him remained in their former bodies.

The resurrection of Christ was predicted by the prophets: Ps.15: 10; Matthew 16:21; 26:32; Mark 9: 9; John 2:19; Acts 26: 22-23, and it was announced by the angels, Matt. 28: 6; Mark 16: 6; Luke 24: 6. The resurrection of Christ was accompanied by a number of proofs, Matthew 27:66; Luke 24:39; John 20:20; Acts 1-3.

The death of Christ was accompanied by a great earthquake, when the tombs were opened and the dead came out of the graves. No explanation is given so that we can more understand what is happening at that moment, Matthew 27: 51-53.

The saints who were resurrected then, perhaps, represent the first fruits, about which it is written in the Old Testament, Lev. 23: 9-14. In this case, it is a symbol of the future resurrection.

The resurrection of Christ and the saints is first and second resurrection.

Third the resurrection is the rapture of the Church, 1 Cor.15: 52; 1 Thess. 4:16. Here, the “dead in Christ” are those who are in the body of Christ, born again. The Old Testament saints are in Christ, thanks to their expectation of Christ, but they are not part of the Church, as the body of Christ.

Fourth resurrection is the resurrection of two witnesses, Rev. 11, who will prophesy and testify for three and a half years (we do not know which three and a half years are being said - either the first half of the Tribulation, or the Great Tribulation, the second half of the seven years). At the end of three and a half years, God will allow the death of two witnesses. They will be killed and lie in the streets of Jerusalem for three and a half days, then they will be resurrected and ascend to Heaven.

Fifth resurrection - martyrs of the Great Tribulation period, Rev. 20: 4. They will be martyred for their faith. This resurrection implies that by that time the Church will already be raptured.

Sixth the resurrection is the Old Testament saints who will be resurrected immediately after the Great Tribulation, Isa. 26:19. Dan 12: 2 and 11: 36-45 refer to the Great Tribulation and indicate that this resurrection will take place at the end of the Great Tribulation and before the 1000 year kingdom.

Dan 12: 2 speaks of two resurrections: one - to life (Old Testament saints who will enter the 1000-year kingdom), the other - to eternal reproach (the unsaved). The resurrected body of believers (and saints of the Old Testament) will be free from disease and beautiful.

Seventh resurrection is a speech about the unsaved (both the Old Testament period and the New Testament period), about those whose names are not written in the Book of Life, Rev. 20: 11-15. They will receive new bodies that will experience suffering and torment forever in the lake of fire.

The unsaved will be judged by their works. They will want to know how godly they are and whether they can enter Heaven. However, a place in Heaven cannot be earned or earned by deeds, no one is able to earn Heaven by human efforts. Christ is the way ...

8.3. The time of the rapture of the Church.

In our opinion, this issue is the weakest link in theology. There are four main opinions about the time of the rapture of the Church: before the Tribulation period, in the middle of the Tribulation period, partial rapture, after the Great Tribulation.

Only premillennialists are of the opinion about the rapture of the Church Before the tribulation period. They are based on two important principles: the Church is a group of holy people, different from the saints who lived before the Church Age and from those who will live after it. In addition, the literal interpretation of Scripture is taken as a basis, literally placing the time of the Tribulation in a time period of unprecedented early suffering in the world, from the end of the age of grace until the return of Christ.

In the middle the Tribulation period, after the first three and a half years. If the first three and a half years on Earth will be peace and security, there is no need to pick up people earlier. This view is especially popular after the Second World War.

Partial rapture suggests that only spiritual Christians will be raptured. An excellent position to intimidate believers, as spirituality is determined by the preacher. It also includes legalism and salvation by works. The soulless will stay here and go through purification.

After During the Tribulation period, Christ will return and meet His Church, which will not suffer from judgments. However, Matthew 23 and 24, Jesus explains exactly to the Jews what the time will be before His coming. In addition, it turns out that the Second Coming of Christ and the rapture of the Church coincide, which is impossible. There is much to happen before the Second Coming ...

2 Thess. 2: 2 warns us not to believe that the time of the Tribulation is already in the past, 1 Thess. 5: 9; 2 Thess. 2: 7. The Tribulation period cannot be called “blessed hope,” Tit.2: 13. In addition, admiration is impending and can come at any moment.

The survivors of the Great Tribulation (righteous Jews) will enter the 1000 year kingdom in their bodies. If the rapture is after the Great Tribulation, then there will be no one left on Earth (believers will be delighted, and unbelievers will perish) and there will be no one to fulfill the prophecies of the Millennium, Matthew 24: 39-41. Luke 17: 34-37.

According to Scripture, it is impossible to prove the time of the rapture of the Church, it is important that it will take place. According to Rev. Fr.J. Shannon, the rapture will happen before the Tribulation. This is the only point of view supported by the verses of Scripture. Sorrow is judgments over Israel, over the sin of the world, over those who rejected Christ - the Church is free from this.

It is important to understand the contrast between the rapture of the Church and the Second Coming.

First, during the rapture, Christ will meet the saints of the Church in the air; during the Second Coming, He meets the Tribulation Saints on Earth.

Second, the Mount of Olives will not change with the rapture of the saints; at the Second Coming the Mount of Olives will be divided in two, Zech. 14: 4-5.

Thirdly, during the rapture of the saints, new bodies will be given that do not know death; saints on earth will not receive an immortal body.

Fourthly, the rapture presupposes the movement of the saints from earth to heaven; during the Second Coming, the movement will have the opposite direction: from Heaven to Earth.

Fifth, the world will not be judged during the rapture; at the time of the Second Coming, all of humanity will be judged.

Sixth, the rapture will take place in the twinkling of an eye, 1 Cor. 15: 51-53; The second coming will take time, Rev. 19.

Seventh, the rapture will not affect Satan; at the time of the second coming, Satan will be bound for 1000 years.

8.4. Judgment Seat of Christ, 2 Cor. 5:10.

We are not talking about the White Throne Judgment. The concept of a judgment seat means the place where the ruler of the city or the judge is located, to which they come with a case that requires immediate consideration. The verdict is immediately pronounced. In the event of a conviction, the executioner, who is near the seat of the judge or ruler, enforces the sentence.

J. Wesley said that as soon as a person dies, he immediately begins to judge himself. Rev. Fr.J. Shannon believes that after death, a person instantly begins to realize whether he was able to fulfill the will of God or not. If a person was successful in any useful work, but did it not according to the will of God and relying only on his own strength, not on the Holy Spirit, his work will burn up.

This judgment has nothing to do with sin. After the rapture, believers will already have glorified, immortal bodies, respectively, there will be no sin in the body.

The Judgment Seat of Christ will condemn deeds: did a person benefit from his deeds or not. Every Christian will give an account of how he worked, 1 Cor. 3: 11-15. We are not talking about salvation, we are talking about the reward that a person will receive, according to the life he has lived.

Most of the works done by Christians are not completed due to ignorance and unfaithfulness. People give up too quickly when faced with difficulties. Paul writes about the good deed that he fought - it was a struggle, not an easy battle. He accomplished what he was called by Christ, not giving up and keeping the faith. It's important to be faithful ...

8.5. The marriage feast of the Lamb.

The church is a bride waiting for Christ, her bridegroom, 2 Cor. 11: 2.

A marriage takes place in several stages:

First, the bride's parents are supposed to bring the ransom. Christ brought the ransom with his blood.

Similar information.

In Old Testament times, the position of the prophet was the position of divine leadership. God sent a prophet to lead the people of Israel. At that time, the prophet was called the "seer":

“Before in Israel, when someone went to inquire of God, they said:“ Let us go to the seer ”; for he who is now called a prophet was formerly called a seer ”(1 Samuel 9: 9).

The Hebrew word ra-ah, meaning “to see” or “to discern,” gives an idea of ​​what the prophet's ministry was. And another word, "hazen" - "one who sees visions" - was also used to refer to a prophet or seer.

A total of seventy-eight different prophets and prophetesses are mentioned in the Bible. If we deeply and thoroughly investigated everything that is said about them from Genesis to Revelation, we could get comprehensive information about everything that is associated with the prophets.

“The Lord God formed out of the earth all the beasts of the field and all the birds of the air, and brought them to man to see what he would call them, and that as a man called every living soul, so was its name” (Gen. 2:19) ...

In this situation, Adam acted in the spiritual realm. He somehow foresaw the lifestyle and habits of each of the animals and gave them the appropriate names. This was a prophetic definition.

Enoch

Enoch is one of the most remarkable prophets of the Old Testament. Genesis 5:21 says, "Enoch lived sixty-five years, and begat Methuselah." One of the possible translations of the name Methuselah sounds like this: "after his death, waters will be sent." God took Enoch when he was 365 years old, and his son Methuselah lived for 969 years. By comparing the dates of the life of Methuselah and the date of the great flood, you will find that he really died in the year when the flood came to this earth. I believe that the flood began at the same hour that Methuselah died, because his name meant, "After his death, waters will be sent."

Additional information about Enoch's prophecies we find in the Epistle of Jude, in verses 14 and 15:

“About them Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about them, saying:“ Behold, the Lord comes with thousands of His saints (Angels) - to execute judgment on all and to expose all the wicked among them in all the deeds that their wickedness has done, and in all cruel words. which the wicked sinners spoke against Him. "

This has not happened yet and should happen in the future. So, we see that Enoch prophesied not only regarding his son and the judgment of God that came to this world after his death - after 969 years - but he also predicted that God (in Christ Jesus) will come one day “with thousands of saints ( Angels) His ". Enoch was only the seventh generation from Adam, how could he know that Jesus would have to return to earth with an army of saints? From what source did he get the ability to see the future and predict what he could not even imagine in his own mind? It was certainly a prophetic vision.

So, the ministry of a prophet is nothing new: even at the dawn of mankind, prophets predicted dramatic events in history. In no natural way could they know what they were prophesying about. Enoch did not perform astrological calculations and did not go to fortune-tellers. He spoke what God had revealed to him. Enoch was such a godly man that he did not see death - he was miraculously taken to heaven at the age of 365.

The next prophet as great as Enoch was Noah. Genesis 6: 8,9 says:

“Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. Here is the life of Noah: Noah was a righteous and blameless man in his kind: Noah walked with God. "

For about a hundred years, Noah proclaimed that a great flood would come and cover the whole earth. Noah was a true prophet, but he had to wait over a hundred years before his prophecy came true.

Imagine that you are a prophet (or a prophetess) and your prediction has not been fulfilled for about a hundred years - quite a long time, isn't it? They will mock you and say that all this is empty inventions. Naturally, it’s easy to get discouraged in such a situation.

However, Noah walked with God. For a hundred years, he did not lose faith in the words spoken by the Lord. (Some believe that this went on even longer - one hundred and twenty years). And then one day in the sky clouds began to thicken, lightning flashed, thunder rumbled, and a great flood hit the earth. The prophet of God said it would happen, and it did. This is what it means to be a biblical prophet.

Anything a true prophet predicts must happen, for the Holy Spirit who revealed it to him cannot lie. The Bible says that God never lies. “God is not a man to lie to Him, and not a son of man to change Him. Will he say, and you will not speak, and will not fulfill? " (Num. 23:19). Therefore, when one of God's prophets - a man anointed by God - predicts something, it will surely come true.

Abraham

Another great prophet of God was Abraham. In Genesis 24: 6,7 we read how Abraham sent his servant to the land of his fathers to find his wife Isaac:

“Abraham said to him [the servant], beware, do not return my son there. The Lord, the God of heaven, who took me from my father's house and from the land of my birth, who spoke to me, and who swore to me, saying: "I will give this land to your descendants" - He will send His Angel before you, and you will take a wife to your son mine from there. "

Abraham said about God: "He will do it." And his words were prophetic. Abraham gave instructions to his servant: “Go to the land of my father - since God wants to preserve the purity of our family - and there you will find a girl who will become a wife for my son. She will be there and you will bring her here. "

This was a real prophecy. And when the servant brought back the charming young girl, Isaac went out into the field: he was waiting for her arrival. From this we can conclude that Isaac believed in the prophecy spoken by his father. He knew that the events predicted by Abraham would surely take place.

Jacob

Now Jacob is next. Genesis 49: 1 says: "And Jacob called his sons, and said, Get together, and I will declare to you what will be with you in the days to come." And then he told them what kind of tribes (tribes of Israel) they would become and what kind of life they would lead. These words remain true to this day.

Jacob predicted that his sons would leave the country in which they were then and take possession of the land that was promised to them. He also predicted how they would treat each other and get along with each other. There is no doubt that Jacob was a prophet.

Joseph

About Joseph, Genesis 41: 15,15 says the following:

“Pharaoh said to Joseph: I had a dream, and there is no one to interpret it, but I heard about you that you can interpret dreams. And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying: This is not mine; God will give an answer for the good of Pharaoh. "

Through this dream, the Lord wanted to tell Pharaoh about His intentions: that there will be seven years of abundance in that country, followed by seven years of famine; and if people do not prepare, they will perish. And it happened exactly as Joseph predicted.

Moses

If we examine the Scriptures, we find that Moses wrote 475 prophetic verses, not too little compared to other prophets. In Exodus 11: 4,5 Moses said:

“Thus says the Lord: at midnight I will pass through the middle of Egypt, and every firstborn in the land of Egypt will die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh, who sits on his throne, to the firstborn of the slave girl who is with the millstones, and all the firstborn of livestock.”

It took a lot of courage for Moses to proclaim such words. Moreover, he not only predicted that this would happen, but also indicated a specific time when it would happen. And if all the firstborn in Egypt had not died the next morning, Moses would have been a false prophet.

“And there will be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, which has not been and which will not be again. But among all the children of Israel, the dog will not move his tongue against man or cattle, so that you may know what a difference the Lord makes between the Egyptians and between the Israelites. And all these thy servants will come to me, and worship me, saying: "Go out, you and all the people whom you are leading." After that I will go out. And Moses went out from Pharaoh with anger ”(Ex. 11: 6-8).

Moses was not superman, he was just like you and me. But he submitted to God and allowed these words to come out of his mouth.

In Exodus 12: 29-51, all the foretold events happened in a mighty, miraculous and glorious way, and we cannot but admit that Moses was one of the greatest prophets of all time.

Or me

In the days of his life, Elijah was known as the prophet of God. He was a seer - he saw the future and predicted in advance the events that were yet to happen.

In 1 Kings 17: 1, Elijah said to King Ahab: “As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, before whom I stand! in these years there will be neither dew nor rain, unless at my word. " In essence, Elijah said, "It won't rain until I let it."

Would you dare to say that in our time?

In I Kings 18:41 we read: “And Elijah said to Ahab, Go eat and drink; for the sound of rain is heard. " By that time, not a single drop of water had fallen to the ground for three years, but Elijah heard the sound of rain. Not a cloud was visible in the sky. Where did this noise come from? It sounded in the spirit of Elijah. Verse 45 says, "Meanwhile the sky became dark with clouds and with the wind, and it rained heavily."

Isaiah

In his book Isaiah reveals to us one of the greatest prophecies that ever came from the heart and lips of man: "So the Lord Himself will give you a sign: behold, the Virgin, she will receive in her womb, and give birth to a Son, and they will call His name Immanuel" ( Isa. 7:14).

“He was despised and belittled before people, a man of sorrows and who knew sickness, and we turned our faces away from Him; He was despised and we valued Him for nothing. But He took our infirmities upon Himself, and bore our diseases; and we thought that He was smitten, punished, and humiliated by God. But He was wounded for our sins and we are tormented for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we were healed. We all wandered like sheep, every one turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the sins of us all. He was tortured, but he suffered willingly, and did not open his mouth; like a sheep, He was led to the slaughter, and like a lamb dumb before its shearer, so He did not open His mouth. He was taken from bondage and judgment; but who will declare His generation? for He is cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was put to death. He was assigned a tomb with evildoers, but He was buried by a rich man, because He did not sin, and there was no lie in His mouth. But the Lord was pleased to smite Him, and He gave Him up to torment; when His soul offers the sacrifice of propitiation, He will see long-lasting offspring, and the will of the Lord will be successfully carried out by His hand. Ha, He will look at the feat of His soul with contentment; through the knowledge of Him, He, the Righteous, My Servant, will justify many and bear their sins on Himself. Therefore, I will give Him a portion among the great, and with the mighty he will share the spoil, because He gave His soul to death, and was numbered among the evildoers, while He bore the sin of many and became an intercessor for criminals ”(Isaiah 53: 3-12).

The prophet Isaiah spoke of Jesus' ministry and atoning sacrifice seven hundred years before His birth, and every word of this prophecy was fulfilled exactly.

David

Although we often think of David as a shepherd boy, or a warrior, or as a poet or king, he is called a prophet in the New Testament (Acts 1:16). David is the author of 385 prophetic verses - verses related to the future.

In Psalm 21:19 we read: "They divide my garments among themselves, and they cast lots for my clothes." David saw Golgotha ​​and knew what events would take place there, how the soldiers would divide the clothes of Christ and cast lots for them. Yes, he saw this scene in his spirit and knew that it would take place in the distant future.

Jeremiah

As we finish talking about the prophets, let's look at Jeremiah. In his book, he wrote down 985 prophetic verses in which the events of the future are foretold. Moreover, some of his prophecies were by no means good news. Jeremiah foretold the Babylonian captivity of Judah. What will happen to the Jews during their stay in Babylon, and how the remnant of God's people will one day return to their land. He told the whole story before it happened. Jeremiah's words made the people so angry that they threw him into a well to die there. (Before praying for the prophet's ministry, you should probably consider the price you might have to pay. You may not be thrown into a well like Jeremiah, but persecution and persecution can manifest itself in different ways.)

Here is one of the prophecies recorded by Jeremiah in chapter 8, verse 11: "And the daughter of My people heals the wound with frivolity, saying:" Peace, peace! "But there is no peace." These words are in full accordance with what was said in 1 Thessalonians 5: 3 regarding the second coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Most of the prophecies of Jeremiah were addressed to the people of Israel, because they constantly forgot God, turned away and departed from Him, they themselves went into slavery. And so it happened - exactly as the prophet had predicted.

From Jeremiah to Malachi, the Bible contains the books of fifteen more prophets who wrote down their prophecies, and their words also came true. This is really wonderful.

Groups of prophets

Having considered some of the prophets, let us now talk about the groups of prophets that are mentioned in the Bible.

The seventy elders of Israel:

“And the Lord came down in a cloud, and spoke with him (with Moses), and took from the Spirit that was on him, and gave to seventy elders (those who surrounded Moses and supported him). And when the Spirit rested on them, they began to prophesy, but then they stopped ”(Num. 11:25).

God used the great prophet Moses and through him - perhaps by the laying on of hands - authorized seventy other men to be prophets.

Host of prophets

“After that you will come to the hill of God, where the Philistine guard detachment is; and when you enter the city there, you will meet a host of prophets descending from a height, and before them a psalter and a tympanum, and a flute and a harp, and they (this whole group) prophesy; and the Spirit of the Lord will come upon you, and you will prophesy with them, and you will become another person. When these signs are fulfilled with you, then do what your hand can, for God is with you. And you go before me to Gilgal, where I will also come to you to offer burnt offerings and peace sacrifices; wait seven days until I come to you, and then I will show you what to do. As soon as Saul turned to walk from Samuel, God gave him a different heart, and all those signs came true that very day. When they came to the hill, behold, they met a host of prophets, and the Spirit of God descended on him, and he prophesied among them ”(1 Samuel 10: 5-10).

Here we see a whole host of prophets who, as a group, prophesied about the future. He told this young man who should become king over Israel and what would happen next — and that is what happened.

Sons of the prophets

“And Elijah said to Elisha, Stay here, for the Lord is sending me to Bethel. But Elisha said: The Lord lives and your soul lives! I will not leave you. And they went to Bethel. And the sons of the prophets who were in Bethel went out to Elisha ... ”(2 Kings 2: 2,3).

This group is called the "sons of the prophets." I assume they quit their job (some other occupation) and came to Bethel to become disciples of the prophets.

The Hebrew Bible combines the books of Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel with the books of the twelve prophets called “Late Prophets” and places them after the group of books from Joshua to Kings (the so-called “Early Prophets”). In the Greek Bible, the Septuagint, the prophetic books are placed after the poetical-didactic “(Holy) Scriptures” or “Hagiographers,” in a sequence that deviates from the Hebrew version and does not coincide in individual manuscripts. Further, it includes the Lamentations of Jeremiah and the book of the prophet Daniel, which the Hebrew Bible places in the last part of its canon, in the “Scriptures,” as prophetic books, and contains texts that are either not written in Hebrew, or have not survived in this language: the book the prophet Baruch (after Jeremiah), the Epistle of Jeremiah (after the Lamentation) and additions to the book of Daniel. In the Latin translation of the Bible, the Vulgate, this order is essentially preserved, only shifted, as in the Hebrew text: twelve “small” prophets - after the four “great” ones, and the Epistle of Jeremiah, which in modern editions follows the Lament, is transferred to the end of the book of the prophet Baruch.

The phenomenon of prophecy

The great religions of antiquity, in varying degrees and in varying forms, are familiar with the phenomenon when people in spirit claim to speak in the name of a deity. So, if we talk primarily about the peoples neighboring with Israel, there is a known case of prophetic ecstasy in the Bible in the 11th century. BC; in the VIII century. BC clairvoyants and prophets are attested in Hamath on the river. Oronte (western Syria). Among the thousands of cuneiform tablets found in the city of Mari in the middle reaches of the Euphrates, there are also some prophetic texts of the 18th century. BC; the information they contain, addressed to the king, is similar in form and content to the words of the ancient prophets of Israel mentioned in the Bible. The Old Testament itself gives the example of the non-Israelite clairvoyant Balaam, who was invited to prophesy by the king of Moab (Numbers 22-24), and mentions 450 prophets of Baal, brought by Jezebel from Tire, whom the prophet Elijah destroyed after their failure to sacrifice on Mount Carmel (1 Kings 18 : 19-40); The following is an account of the 400 prophets whom Ahab asked (1 Kings 22: 5–12). They, like those prophets mentioned above, are a crowd engulfed in wild ecstasy; however, they claim to speak in the name of Yahweh. And although their claims may be false, as in this case, it is clear that in those ancient times, such a practice for the religion of Yahweh was not considered illegal. A host of prophets meet with Samuel (1 Samuel 10: 5; 19:20). During the time of the prophet Elijah (1 Kings 18: 4), groups of prophetic disciples were associated with Elisha (2 Kings 2: 3-18; 4:38 ff; 6: 1 ff; 9: 1), and after that they are not mentioned until Am 7:14. To the stirring music (1 Kings 10: 5), the prophets entered into a state of collective ecstasy and madness, which they infect others with (1 Kings 10:10; 19: 21-24), and also performed symbolic actions (1 Kings 22:11).

It has already been mentioned how Elisha, before prophesying, called for help from music (2 Kings 3:15). The most often mentioned are the symbolic actions of the prophets: Ahijah the Silomite (1 Kings 11:29 ff), as well as Isaiah (Isa 20: 2-4); often - Jeremiah (Jer 13: 1 ff; 19: 1 ff; 27: 2 ff), but above all - Ezekiel (Ezekiel 4: 1–5: 4; 12: 1–7.18; 21:23 ff; 37 : 15 cl). In the course of these actions, or even independently of them, the prophets sometimes demonstrate strange forms of behavior and can even fall into abnormal mental states, but the unusual external forms are far from the most important thing among the prophets, whose actions and words are conveyed by the Bible. These prophets are distinctly different from the ecstatic members of the ancient prophetic communities.

However, they are all united by their special designation - nabi... And although the verb formed from this word, due to the appearance of ecstatic prophets, can also mean “to rave about the attack of an evil spirit” (cf. 1 Samuel 18:10 and elsewhere), this use does not correspond to the original meaning of the original word. This noun, in all likelihood, goes back to the root with the meaning "to call out." So nabi- this is the one who is called, as well as the one who calls, proclaims; the meaning of "called herald" and brings out the essence of Israel's prophecy. The prophet is the messenger and herald of God. This is directly stated in two parallel passages, see Ex 4:15 - Aaron should be the herald of Moses, as if he were his “mouth”, and Moses was the “god” who instructs him to speak, and Ex 7: 1 - Moses must become "God to Pharaoh", and Aaron - his nabi, a prophet. This is reminded of the words of Yahweh to Jeremiah: “I have put my words in your mouth” (Jer 1: 9). The prophets are aware of the divine origin of their proclamations, which they begin with "thus spoke Yahweh," or "the word of Yahweh," or "spoken by Yahweh."

The words that come to them compel them to speak; they cannot be silent: "The Lord God said - who will not prophesy?" - exclaims the prophet Amos (Amos 3: 8), and Jeremiah in vain opposes the onslaught of God, leading him away (see Jer 20: 7-9). At some point in their lives, God invincibly calls them (Amos 7:15; Is 6; see especially Jer 1: 4-10); chooses as his messengers (Is 6: 8). And how the attempt to evade this calling turns around - the beginning of the story about Jonah shows. They are sent to proclaim the will of God, so that their whole existence may become a "sign." Not only their speeches, but also their actions, but their very life, everything is a prophecy. The unsuccessful marriage actually contracted by Hosea is a symbol (Hosea 1–3); Isaiah's nakedness is an omen (Isa. 20: 3), and he and his children are “indications and omens” (Isa. 8:18). Jeremiah's life is a lesson (Jer. 16). When Ezekiel follows God's “strange” commands, he is “a sign to the house of Israel” (Ezekiel 4: 3; 12: 6-11; 24:24).

The prophet can perceive the command of God in different ways: in a vision, which, however, is always accompanied by sound perception, as in Is 6; Ez. 1, 2, 8, etc .; Dan 8-12; Zach 1-6; less often - in a dream, cf. Numbers 12: 6, like Dan 7; Zach 1: 8 & sl; it can be perceived only by hearing (Jer 1). But most often, perhaps, simply by inner insight (this is how one should usually understand the verbal formulas “the word of Yahweh came upon me ...”, “the word of Yahweh to…”), which sometimes comes quite suddenly, and sometimes it can be caused by some completely an everyday circumstance, such as the sight of a staff of an almond tree (Jer 1:11) or two baskets of figs (Jer 24), a visit to a potter's house (Jer 18: 1-4).

The perceived mission is mediated by the prophet in equally diverse ways: verse and prose, in parables or in frank words, but above all - using specially developed speech genres (words of threat and reproof, admonition, promise, or the word of salvation). Other literary forms are also used, such as the saying of wisdom, a psalm, an accusatory speech, historical digressions, songs (love, funeral, comic), etc.

This heterogeneity in accepting and proclaiming one's mission largely depends on the personal disposition and natural talent of each of the prophets. But at the heart of this diversity lies something essentially the same: every true prophet is deeply convinced that he is only an instrument, that the words that he will utter are both his and not his. He is unshakably convinced that he has received the word from God and must communicate it. This conviction is based on a mysterious, one might say - mystical experience of direct connection with God. At the same time, as already mentioned, it happens that this seizure by God causes outwardly abnormal manifestations, but they, like the great mystics, are not the most essential. Rather, it should be said (just as with the mystics) that the penetration of God into the soul of the prophet causes supernormal mental states. To deny this would be to reduce the essence of prophecy to the level of poetic inspiration or the imagination of false prophets.

Rarely does a prophecy refer to a specific person (Is 22:15 ff); in such cases it is for the most part included in the larger sequence of passages (Jer 20: 6; Am 7:17). An exception is the king, leader of the people (cf. Nathan and David, Elijah and Ahab, Isaiah, Ahaz and Hezekiah, Jeremiah and Zedekiah) or the high priest, head of the post-captive community (Zech 3). All messages about the calling indicate that the prophet was sent to the people (Am 7:15; Is 6: 9; Eze 2: 3), and Jeremiah - even to all nations (Jer 1:10).

The mission of the prophets concerns the present and the future. The Prophet is sent to his contemporaries, to whom he conveys the message of Divine will. But insofar as he is the herald of God, he stands above time; what he "predicts" serves as confirmation and development of what he "expresses." He can herald an event in the near future - as a sign that will justify his words and his mission at the moment when this event occurs. He foresees adversity as punishment for the wickedness that he exposes, good as the reward for the conversion he demands. In the later prophets, the veil hiding the future is lifted until the end of time, until the final victory of God, but this look into the future at the same time always remains an indication for contemporaries. However, since the prophet is only an instrument, there is a meaning in his mission that goes beyond the circumstances under which the prophetic word is pronounced; this meaning goes beyond the consciousness of the prophet himself. The prophet's word remains shrouded in mystery until the future reveals it through its fulfillment; for example, this is the case with all messianic promises.

Jeremiah was sent “to destroy and destroy, build and plant” (Jer 1:10). The prophetic mission shows a double appearance, it threatens punishment and portends salvation. However, it is often harsh, full of threats and rebuke, so that harshness may just seem like a sign of genuine prophecy (Jer 28: 8-9; 1 Kings 22: 8). In the face of sin that interferes with the plan of divine salvation, the true prophet is horrified. Nevertheless, the hope of salvation never disappears. The Book of Consolation of Israel, Is 40–55, is the culmination of prophecy, and it is unfair to deny the earliest prophets that their mission brought joy; this can be found already in Am 9: 8–15 (however, the authenticity of this passage is disputed), as well as in Hos 2: 16–25; 11.8-11; 14: 2-9. In the acts of God, His people can see blessing and punishment at the same time.

The prophet is sent to the people of Israel, but his horizon is broader, like the power of God, whose deeds he proclaims. The books of the great prophets contain collections of speeches against the Gentiles (Isa 13-23; Jer 46-51; Eze 25-32). The book of the prophet Amos begins with a poem directed against Israel's neighbors. The prophet Obadiah has a parable about Edom. The main part of the small book of the prophet Nahum consists of a word against Nineveh, where the prophet Jonah was sent to preach.

The prophet is sure that he is speaking on behalf of God, but how can his listeners know that before them is a true prophet? For there are also false prophets that are often found in the Bible. They can be honestly convinced people who have fallen under the power of the imagination, or notorious charlatans, but in their outward behavior they do not differ from true prophets. They deceive the people, and true prophets are forced to enter into confrontation with them, like the prophet Micah, the son of Imlai, with the prophet Ahab (1 Kings 22: 8 ff), the prophet Jeremiah - with the prophet Ananias (Jer 28) or with false prophets in general (Jer 23); prophet Ezekiel - with prophets and prophetesses (Eze 13). How can you know that the mission of a prophet is truly from God? How to discern true prophecy? There are two criteria in the Bible: the fulfillment of prophecy (Jer 28: 9; Deut 18:22; cf. also the above-mentioned texts about the proclamation of the near future as a “sign” of true prophecy), but above all - the correspondence of the teaching of the prophet to faith in Yahweh (Jer 23 : 22; Deut 13: 2-6).

The aforementioned texts of Deuteronomy make it possible to see in prophecy one of the principles recognized by the official religion. More than once the prophets appeared next to the priests (Jer 8: 1; 23:11; 26: 7 ff; Zech 7: 3 ff). We learn from Jeremiah that in the Jerusalem temple there was “the room of the sons of Anan, the man of God” (Jer. 35: 4), probably a prophet. From these indications and from the similarity of some of the prophecies with the liturgical texts, it has recently been tried to conclude that the prophets, including those most known to us, belonged to the staff of the sanctuary and played some role in the cult. This hypothesis is broader than the texts on which it is based allow. In fact, one can see only a certain connection between the prophets and the centers of religious life, as well as the influence of worship on the construction of some prophetic speeches, especially in Habakkuk, Zechariah and Joel.

The main impression of the prophecy, which consists of a variety of facts and texts, will obviously be as follows: a prophet is a person who has direct experience of communion with God, who has received the revelation of the sacred will of God, who judges the present and contemplates the future in Divine light and who is sent by God to remind people of His will and guide them in obedience to Him and love for Him. Understood in this way, prophecy is something peculiar to Israel, one of the forms by which God's providence guides the chosen people.

Prophetic movement

As long as this is the originality and tasks of the prophets, it is not surprising that the prophetic series in the Bible is headed by the Pentateuch of Moses (Deut. 18: 15,18), and that Moses is regarded as the greatest of the prophets (Num. 12: 6-8; Deut. 34: 10-12), - after all, he contemplated Yahweh face to face, spoke with Him and transmitted His law to the people. These prophetic privileges did not dry out in Israel with his death: already Joshua, the successor of Moses, was “a man in whom is the Spirit” (Num. 27:18; cf. Deut. 34: 9). In the days of the judges, the prophetess Deborah (Judges 4-5) and a certain unnamed prophet were known (Judges 6: 8). Following them rises great image Samuel, the prophet and seer (1 Samuel 3:20; 9: 9; cf. 2 Chronicles 35:18). The spirit of prophecy spreads in ecstatic groups; the unusual performances of their members were mentioned above (1 Samuel 10: 5; 19:20). Later, you can find more moderate communities of "disciples of the prophets" (2 Kings 2, etc.), and upon returning from captivity, the Bible mentions more prophets in plural(Zech 7: 3). But apart from the existence of these communities, the influence of which on the religious life of the people is not quite clear, bright personalities appear: Gad, the prophet of David (1 Samuel 7: 2; 12: 1; 3 Samuel 24:11); Nathan, a prophet under the same king (2 Samuel 7: 2 pp; 12: 1 pp; 3 Kings 11:29 pp; 14: 2 pp); Achaia - under King Jeroboam I (1 Kings 11:29; 14: 2); the prophet Jehu, the son of Ananias, under Baasom (1 Kings 16: 7); the prophets Elijah and Elisha at the time of Ahab and his successors (1 Kings 17 - 4 Kings often); prophet Jonah - under Jeroboam II (2 Kings 14:25); the prophetess of Aldama under Asaiah (2 Kings 22:14), the prophet Uriah under Joachim (Jer 26:20). To this series of the book of Chronicles, they also add the prophet Samei under Rehoboam and Abijah (2 Chronicles 12:15; 13:22), the prophet Azariah under Asa (2 Chronicles 15: 1), the prophet Oded under Ahaz (2 Chronicles 28: 9) and beyond. that - some of the prophets who are not named.

Most of these prophets are known to us only by passing mentions, but some of them are more clearly outlined. Nathan proclaims to David the continuation of his lineage, on which the grace of God rests; it is the first link in a chain of increasingly clear prophecies about the Messiah, the son of David (2 Samuel 7: 1-17). However, the same Nathan severely rebukes David for his sin with Bathsheba; when the king repents, he proclaims to him Divine forgiveness (2 Samuel 12: 1-25). In the books of Kings, the narrative reveals in detail the stories of Elijah and Elisha. At a time when the religion of Yahweh was threatened by the penetration of alien beliefs, Elijah rebelled as the defender of the true God and at the top of Carmel won a brilliant victory over the prophets of Baal (1 Kings 18). His meeting with God on Horeb, on the mountain where the Covenant was made, brings him closer to Moses (1 Kings 19). As a defender of the faith, Elijah is also the guardian of morality and legal order; he announces God's punishment to Ahab, who killed Naboth in order to take possession of his vineyard (1 Kings 21). A mysterious end (2 Kings 2: 1–18) surrounds his image with glory that grows in Jewish tradition.

In contrast to Elijah, the lonely prophet, Elisha was in the thick of the events of his day. He appears during the war with the Moabites (2 Kings 3) and the Syrians (2 Kings 6-7); he plays a role in the accession of Hazael in Damascus (ibid.) and Jehu in Israel (2 Kings 9: 1-3); noble people refer to him as a counselor (Joash in Israel, 2 Kings 13: 14-19, Ben-hadad in Damascus, 2 Kings 8: 7-8, Naaman the Syrian, 4 Kings 5). In addition, he is associated with a group of “disciples of the prophets” who tell miracles about him (2 Kings 4: 1-7, 38-44; 6: 1-7).

Naturally, we are best aware of those prophets found in the Scriptures who are named. More details about them will be discussed in the introductions to the individual books of the prophets; here it is enough to point out their side by side. The first of these, Amos, served in the middle of the 8th century BC, about 50 years after Elisha's death. In this case, the great era of the prophets before the beginning of the Babylonian captivity lasted only two centuries. It was marked by the appearance of such important persons as the prophets Hosea, Isaiah or Jeremiah; the prophets Micah, Nahum, Sophronia, Habakkuk also belong to this period. The end of Jeremiah's work coincides in time with the beginning of the work of Ezekiel. A change in the atmosphere is also associated with this prophet in exile: less immediacy and passionate tension; grandiose but complex visions and meticulous descriptions; a growing interest in the end times are signs heralding apocalyptic literature. But at the same time, a great direction in prophecy emanating from Isaiah breaks through, which is sealed in a new majestic form in Second Isaiah (Isaiah 40–55). The horizons of the prophets Haggai and Zechariah who returned from captivity are limited: their interests are focused on the restoration of the temple. The prophet Malachi, who followed them, denounces the vices of the new community.

A small book of the prophet Jonah presents a prelude to literary form midrash... She uses ancient sacred texts to teach new teachings. The apocalyptic current, beginning with Ezekiel, appears in a renewed form in the prophet Joel and in the second part of the book of the prophet Zechariah. The book of the prophet Daniel is also imbued with apocalypticism, in which the events of the past and the future are combined into a single picture that overcomes the time frame and depicts the destruction of evil and the coming of the Kingdom of God. Now, the great spiritual gift of prophecy seems to have died away; while referring to the former "prophets", see Dan 9: 6,10; Wed already Zech 7: 7,12. Prophet Zechariah (Zech 13: 2-6) foresees the end of a prophecy defamed by false prophets. But Joel (Joel 3: 1–5) heralds the descent of the Spirit in the time of the Messiah. It was fulfilled, according to Acts 2:16 ff, at the time of Pentecost. This is where the real foundation of the new era was laid, which was opened by the preaching of John the Baptist, the last prophet of the Old Testament, “the prophet<…>and more than a prophet ”(Matt 11: 9; Luke 7:26).

The teachings of the prophets

Prophets played a significant role in the religious development of Israel. They not only kept the people on the paths of true faith in Yahweh and led them along these paths, but were also the main carriers of the development of Revelation. In this complex process, each of them performed their own task, however, all the diversity of their efforts fit into three main directions that make up the difference between the religion of the Old Testament: monotheism, morality, messianic aspirations.

Monotheism. Israel only gradually came to a theoretically mature confession of monotheism: to affirm the existence of the One God and to deny the existence of any other god. The basis of communion with God in Old Israel was the historically formed conviction that Yahweh favors this people to an absolutely incomparable degree and that therefore one should completely and inseparably surrender to this One God. The “oneness” of Yahweh for Israel justifies the worship only of Him and the exclusiveness of the confession of faith only in Him. And although for a long time the idea was accepted that other peoples can worship other gods, but Israel itself recognized only Yahweh; He was the most powerful of the gods, and only he was to be worshiped. The transition from this “monotheism of religious practice” to conscious monotheism was the fruit of a prophetic message. When Amos, the oldest of the canonical prophets, portrays Yahweh as the only God who commands the forces of nature and is the absolute Lord of people and history, he recalls ancient truths that only give true weight to the threats he presents. But the content and significance of the ancient faith are looming more and more clearly. Since the revelation of the One God at Sinai was associated with the election of the people and with the conclusion of the Covenant with this people, Yahweh was revealed as the God characteristic of Israel, its land and shrines. Although the prophets insist on the bonds with which Yahweh tied His people to Himself, they simultaneously show that He has control over the destinies of other nations (Amos 9: 7). He establishes small and great kingdoms (Amos 1–2 and all the parables against the Gentiles), He gives them power and takes it away from them (Jer 27: 5–8), He uses them as a weapon of His wrath (Am 6:11; Isa 7: 18-19; 10: 6; Jer 5: 15-17), but stops them when he wants to (Is 10-12). And although the prophets proclaim that the land of Israel is the land of Yahweh (Jer 7: 7) and the temple is His house (Is 6; Jer 7: 10-11), nevertheless they predict the destruction of holy places (Mic 3:12; Jer 7: 12-14; 26), and Ezekiel sees the glory of Yahweh leave Jerusalem (Eze 10: 18-22; 11: 22-23).

Yahweh, Lord of all the earth, leaves no room for other gods. Prophets fight against the influence of pagan cults and the temptations of syncretism, which threatened the faith of Israel, and thus affirm the impotence of false gods and the madness of idolatry (Hos 2: 7-15; Jer 2: 5-13, 27-28; 5: 7; 16: twenty). When, during the time of captivity, the collapse of national hopes could awaken doubts about the power of Yahweh, the polemic against idols became even sharper and deeper (Is 40: 19–20; 41: 6–7, 21–24; 44: 9–20; 46: 1– 7; compare Jer 10: 1-16, and later Jeremiah, Var 1: 6; also Dan 14). Contrasted with the doubt of the weary and desperate is the jubilant confession of monotheism (Isaiah 44: 6-8; 46: 1-7.9).

The one God is transcendental; the prophets express this transcendence of God primarily by saying: "He is holy"; this is the favorite theme of Isaiah's proclamation (Is 6; further - Is 1: 4; 5: 19,24; 10:17, 20, etc.; also Hos 11: 9; Is 40:25; 41: 14,16, 20, etc.; Jer 50:29; 51; 5; Habakk 1:12; 3: 3). God is surrounded by mystery (Is 6; Eze 1). He is infinitely exalted above the "sons of men" - this expression is repeated by the prophet Ezekiel in order to emphasize the distance separating the prophet from the God who speaks to him. Yet He is close in His goodness and merciful love, which He reveals to His people, which is represented - primarily in Hosea and Jeremiah - by the allegory of the marriage union between Yahweh and Israel (Hosea 2; Jer 2: 2-7; 3: 6-8 ), which is widely deployed in Ezekiel (Ezek.16; 23).

Morality... The holiness of God is opposed to human depravity (Isa. 6: 5). This contrast sharpens the prophets' perception of sin. This morality is just as not new as monotheism: it is already set forth in the Decalogue and on it is based the coming of Nathan to David (2 Kings 12) and Elijah to Ahab (1 Kings 21). But the prophets of Scripture come back to this again and again: sin is what separates people and God (Isa. 59: 2). Sin is an encroachment on the God of righteousness (Amos), on the God of love (Hosea), on the God of holiness (Isaiah). We can say that Jeremiah's sin is at the center of his prophetic vision; it extends to all the people, who appear finally, irreparably corrupted (Jer 13:23). Such falling into evil causes God's punishment, the great judgment of “the day of Yahweh” (Isa 2: 6–22; 5: 18–20; Hos 5: –14; Joel 2: 1–2; Sof 1: 14–18); foretelling disaster for Jeremiah is a sign of true prophecy (Jer 28: 8-9). Sin, being the sin of the whole people, demands the same collective retribution; the idea of ​​individual retribution, however, is found in Jer 31: 29-30. (cf. Deut. 24:16) and is repeated repeatedly in Eze 18 (cf. Eze 33: 10–20).

What has been called the "ethical monotheism" of the prophets is not anti-law. The reason for their moral proclamation lies in the fact that the law approved by God was violated or perverted; cf., for example, the words of Jeremiah (Jer 7: 5-10) and their connection with the Decalogue.

In parallel with this, understanding of religious life is deepening. To avoid punishment, one should “seek the Lord” (Amos 5: 4; Jer 50: 4; Sof 2: 3); this means, as the prophet Zephaniah explains, to seek truth and humility, cf. Isa 1:17; Am 5:24; Os 10:12; Mic 6: 8. What God requires is a religion that permeates the whole person, and above all all his inner being, his heart; for Jeremiah it becomes a condition of the New Testament (Jer 31: 31–34). This spirit should animate all religious life and all external cult activities. The prophets strongly opposed external rituals, divorced primarily from moral efforts (Isa 1: 11-17; Jer 6:20; Hos 66; Mic 6: 6-8). But it would be a mistake to portray them as opponents of the cult: for Ezekiel, Haggai, Zechariah, the temple and worship occupy a central position.

Messianic Aspirations. However, punishment is not the last word God who does not at all want to completely destroy His people. Even if these people fall away from Him again and again, He is faithful to His promise and fulfills it. He will spare the “remnant” (Isa 4: 3). This concept appears in Amos and is developed in subsequent prophets. In the views of the prophets, the two levels of the forthcoming punishments and the Last Judgment of God are layered on each other: the “remnant” are those who avoid the temptations of this world and, at the same time, those who gain final salvation. The distinction between these two levels looms in the course of history: after each trial, the “remnant” is a group of survivors: the population that remained in Israel or Judea after the fall of Samaria or the campaign of Sennacherib (Am 5:15; Is 37: 31-32), Babylonian exiles after the destruction of Jerusalem (Jer 24: 8), the community returned from captivity (Zech 8: 6,11,12; 1 Ezra 9: 13-15). But at any time, this group is both a branch and a root of the chosen people, to whom the future is promised (Is 11:10; 37:31; Micah 4: 7; Eze 37: 12-14; Zech 8: 11-13).

This future will be an era of unprecedented happiness. The Diaspora of Israel and Judah (Is 11: 12-13; Jer 30-31) returns to the Holy Land, which is blessed with miraculous fertility (Is 30: 23-26; 32: 15-17), and God's people will take revenge on their enemies (Micah 4 : 11-13; 5: 5-8). But this expectation of material abundance, prosperity and power is not the most essential; it only accompanies the coming of the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God assumes that all human life is completely imbued with moral and spiritual principles: justice and holiness (Is 29: 19-24); here is the conversion of the heart and the forgiveness of God (Jer 31: 31–34), the comprehension of God (Is 2: 3; 11: 9; Jer 31:34), peace and joy (Is 2: 4; 9: 6; 11: 6 –8; 29:19).

To build up and rule His Kingdom on earth, the King of Yahweh will appoint His Steward through the anointing: He will be the “Anointed One” of Yahweh, in Hebrew Messiah... And the prophet Nathan, promising David the long-term existence of his house (2 Samuel 7), for the first time, thus, finds expression for the royal messianism, the echo of which is found in many psalms; see "Tsar's Psalms" (in magazine No. 4 (7) for 1995 - Ed.). However, the failures and misbehavior of many of David's successors may have seemed a departure from this “dynastic” messianic expectation; hope centers on a certain special King, whose coming is expected in the near or more distant future: on that Savior whom the prophets foresaw — first of all Isaiah, but also Micah and Jeremiah. This Messiah will be from the lineage of David (Isa 1:11; Jer 23: 5; 33:15); He, like David, comes from Bethlehem-Ephrath (Mic 5: 2). He is called the highest names (Isa 9: 6), and the Spirit of Yahweh rests on Him in the fullness of His gifts (Is 11: 1–5). For the prophet Isaiah He is ‘immanu’ El “God is with us” (Isa 7:14), for the prophet Jeremiah — Jahwe zidkenu “The Lord is our justification” (Jer. 23: 6), two names that perfectly express the ideal of the Messiah.

This great hope has survived the collapse of the dream of world domination and the bitter lessons of captivity; but perspectives have changed. Despite the fact that the prophets Haggai and Zechariah pinned certain hopes on the descendant of David Zerubbabel, royal messianism is going through a phase of an eclipse: the descendants of David no longer sat on the throne, and Israel was under the rule of foreigners. Although Ezekiel awaits the coming of a new David, he calls him “prince” and not “king”; he portrays him as a shepherd and mediator rather than as a mighty ruler (Eze 34: 23-24; 37: 24-25). The prophet Zechariah announces the coming of a humble and peace-loving King (Zech. 9: 9-10). For the Second Isaiah, the Anointed King is not a king from the tribe of David, but the Persian king Cyrus (Is 45: 1), the instrument of God for the liberation of His people. But this same prophet sees the Other, bringing salvation: this is the Youth of Yahweh, Who will become the Teacher of the people and the Light for the pagans. He will proclaim the judgment of God in mercy; He will remain neglected with his own, but will bring them salvation at the cost of His life (Isa 42: 1-7; 49: 1-9; 50: 4-9 and especially 52:13; 53:12). Finally, the prophet Daniel sees “as it were the Son of man” walking with the clouds of heaven, who received power over all nations from God, but His kingdom will not pass away (Dan 7). However, this was also a revival of ancient ideas: by the beginning of the Christian era, the expectation of a certain Messiah-King was widespread, but some were waiting for the Messiah-High Priest, others - for the non-worldly Messiah.

The first Christian communities attributed these prophetic texts to Jesus, Who combined in Himself all the opposite properties of the Messiah. He is Jesus, that is, the Savior; Christ, that is, the Anointed One; He is from the lineage of David, was born in Bethlehem, the King over the land of the prophet Zechariah (Zech 14: 9) and the Man of the sorrows of Deuteronomy (Is 53: 3); He is the youth Immanuel announced by Isaiah (Isa 7:14; 8: 8) and, in addition, is the Son of Man from heaven, whom Daniel contemplated (Dan 7:13). But this correlation with ancient promises cannot hide the primordial nature of Christian ideas about the Messiah, arising from the Person and life of Jesus. In Him is the fulfillment of prophecies, but He goes beyond them and Himself rejects the traditional political ideas about the reigning Messiah.

Books of the prophets

Those prophets who are considered the authors of any of the books of the biblical canon are usually called prophets-writers. After what has been said above about the prophetic ministry, it is clear that this definition is inaccurate: the prophet is not the one who writes; above all - and in the highest degree - he is an orator and preacher. The prophetic proclamations were first pronounced, so you still need to figure out the path from the proclaimed word to the written book.

These books contain three main elements: 1) “the words of the prophets”: prophetic sayings, in which God Himself speaks, then the prophet on behalf of God, or poetic texts that contain a teaching, proclamation, threat, promise, etc .; 2) messages from the first person, in which the prophet tells about his experience and, in particular, about his calling; 3) messages from a third party, telling about events in the life of the prophet or the circumstances of his activities. These three elements can be interrelated; for example, messages of the third type often include messages of the second type (on behalf of the prophet) or of the first type (the word of the prophet).

Fragments written in the third person indicate a different author than the prophet himself. This is clearly attested in the book of the prophet Jeremiah. The prophet dictates to Baruch (Jer 36: 4) all the speeches that he has been proclaiming on behalf of Yahweh for 23 years, cf. Jer 25: 3. After the collection of texts was burned by King Jehoiakim (Jer 36:23), the same Baruch rewrote the scroll (Jer 36:32). The account of this event can only belong to Baruch himself, to whom, obviously, subsequent biographical messages (Jer. 37-44) should be attributed, although they end with the words of consolation with which Jeremiah addresses Baruch (Jer. 45: 1-5). In addition, it says that to the second scroll of Baruch “many similar words were added (Jer 36:32), by Baruch or others.

Similar circumstances could be imagined for the compilation of other books. It is possible that the prophets themselves wrote down or dictated part of their words and narratives in the first person, cf. Is 8: 1; Jer 30: 2; 51:60; Eze 43:11 Hab.2: 2. It is possible that part of this heritage was preserved only thanks to the oral tradition in the circles of the prophets or their disciples (Isaiah's disciples fairly reliably testifies to Isaiah 8:16). In the same circles, the memories of the prophets were kept alive, which contained, among other things, prophecies, such as the legends about Isaiah, collected in the books of Kings (2 Kings 18–20), from where they got into the book of Isaiah (Isa 36–39), or the story of the encounter between the prophet Amos and Amaziah (Amos 7: 10-17). Collections of texts were composed of such fragments; they were joined to each other by equivalent sayings or prose texts devoted to the same topic (as, for example, the texts against other nations by Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel) or texts where curses for uncleanness are balanced by the promises of salvation (as in the prophet Micah ). These scriptures were read, meditated on; they contributed to the preservation of religious movements, at the origins of which were the prophets: the contemporaries of the prophet Jeremiah quote the word of the prophet Micah (Jer. 26: 17-18); ancient prophets are also often quoted: Jer 28: 8 - a motive repeated as a formula; Jer 7:25 25: 4; 26: 5, etc .; then - Zech 1: 4-6; 7: 7.12; Dan 9: 6.10; Ride 9:11. The books of the prophets retained all their relevance for devout people, whose faith and piety were nourished by them. As in the case of the Scroll of Baruch (Jer 36:32), “many more words like these” were added to the books on divine inspiration to suit new circumstances and the urgent needs of the people, or for the sake of their fullness. In some cases, these additions, as we will see in the books of the prophets Isaiah and Zechariah, could occupy a significant amount. The spiritual heirs of the prophets, as soon as they did so, were convinced that they would preserve the treasure they received and would contribute to it to bear fruit.

In the Greek and Latin translations of the Bible, the books of the four “great” prophets are arranged in chronological order. The arrangement of the books of the twelve "minor" prophets is more arbitrary. We, as far as possible, will try to represent the temporal the sequence of their occurrence.

Isaiah

The prophet Isaiah was born in 765 BC In the year of the death of King Uzziah (740), he was called to prophesy in the Jerusalem temple to announce the fall of Israel and Judah - punishment for the unfaithfulness of the people. Its activities spanned a forty-year period. These years are characterized by the growing threat that Assyria posed to Israel and Judea. There are four periods into which the prophet's speeches can be divided with more or less certainty. one). His first speeches refer to the short period of time between his calling and the beginning of the reign of Ahaz in 736. Then Isaiah first of all opposed the moral decay to which the prosperity led to Judah, see Isa 1-5 (large part). 2). The second period is the time when the king of Damascus Rezin and the king of Israel Pekah wanted to draw the young Ahaz into an alliance against Pheglatfelassar [Tiglathpalassar III - Per.], king of Assyria. When Ahaz opposed this, they attacked him, and he turned to Assyria for help. Isaiah opposed this, trying in vain to oppose such an all-too-human policy. The “book of Immanuel” dates back to this time (7: 1-11: 9 (most), and also 5: 26-29 (?); 17: 1-6; 28: 1-4). After the collapse of his mission with Ahaz, Isaiah withdrew from public life (cf. 8: 16-18). 3). Ahaz's appeal to Tiglathpalassar for help put Judea under the control of Assyria and hastened the fall of the Northern Kingdom. After Assyria seized part of the Northern Kingdom in 734, foreign oppression grew steadily; in 721 Samaria fell under the rule of the Assyrians. In Judea, Ahaz was succeeded by Hezekiah, a devout king inspired by the spirit of reform. But political intrigues did not stop; this time attempts were made to secure aid from Egypt against Assyria. Isaiah, true to his principles, wanted his compatriots, avoiding all military alliances, to rely on God. This early period of Hezekiah's reign includes the fragments (14: 28–32); (18; 20); (28: 7-22); (29: 1-140); (30: 8-17). After the suppression of the rebellion, when Sargon took Azot (see 20), Isaiah withdrew in silence. 4). Its reappearance took place in 705, when Hezekiah was involved in the anti-Assyrian rebellion. In 701, Sennacherib laid waste to Palestine; nevertheless, the king of Judah decided to defend Jerusalem. Isaiah strengthened him in his resolve to resist and promised him God's help; and indeed the siege was lifted. This latter period includes the prophetic words of Isa 1: 4-9 (?); 10: 5-15, 27b-32; 14: 24-27 and those passages from Is 28-Is 32 that do not belong to the previous period. We know nothing more about the life and work of Isaiah after 700. According to Jewish tradition, he endured martyrdom at Manasseh.

Such an active participation in the affairs of the country turns the prophet Isaiah into a national hero. Moreover, he is a genius poet; in his brilliant style and colorful images, he is a “classic” of the Bible. His creations are a powerful whole, full of majestic strength and harmonious sublimity that have never been achieved again. But his greatness is based primarily on religious principles. Isaiah forever preserved the impressions of the episode of his calling in the temple, where the transcendence of God and the unworthiness of man were revealed to him. His monotheism is something triumphant and at the same time terrifying: God is Holy, Strong, Strong, He is the King. Man is a creature stained by sin, and God demands that he be raised, for He seeks righteousness in relations between people and purity of heart in worship. He wants people to follow Him, look for support in Him, and believe Him. Isaiah is a prophet of faith; in the severe crises that his people are going through, he demands that people rely and hope only on God: this is the only way to be saved. He knows that the test will be bitter, but he hopes for the salvation of the “remnant”, whose king will be the Messiah. Isaiah is the greatest of the Messianic prophets. The Messiah whom he proclaims is a descendant of David. Under him, peace and truth will triumph on earth, and the knowledge of God will be established (Isa 2: 1-5; 7: 10-17; 9: 1-6; 11: 1-9; 28: 16-17).

Of course, such a religious genius could not help but influence his time and create a school. His words were kept and supplemented. The book named after him is the result of a long creative process, the individual phases of which no longer lend themselves to complete reconstruction. The final corpus resembles the book of the prophet Jeremiah (in Greek translation) and the book of the prophet Ezekiel: gl. 1-12 - speeches against Jerusalem and Judea, gl. 13-23 - speeches against the pagans, gl. 24–35 are promises. But this structure is not strictly enforced. On the other hand, the analysis showed that, judging by the chronology, the book does not quite correspond to the writings of Isaiah. It was collected gradually, using several collections of sayings. Some phrases go back to the prophet himself, cf. Is 8:16; 30: 8. His immediate students or followers added to them several more collections, in which in some cases the teacher's words are provided with interpretations or additions. The prophecies about other nations (Isa 13-23) incorporated later passages, especially in chap. 13-14 - against Babylon (from the era of captivity). Further, there are extensive additions: Isaiah's Apocalypse, gl. 24-27, which, judging by the literary form and the teachings contained in it, could not have arisen earlier than the 5th century. BC; prophetic revelation (Is 33); The “minor apocalypse” (Is 34-35), which traces the influence of Deuteronomy. Finally, as an appendix, the account of Isaiah's participation in the struggle against Sennacherib (Isa 36-39), taken from 2 Kings 18-19, was attached; it included a post-captivity psalm on behalf of Hezekiah (Isaiah 38: 9–20).

This book has been greatly expanded. Chapters 40-55 cannot belong to the 8th century prophet. Not only is his name never mentioned in them, but the historical framework is related to the era not earlier than two centuries after the time of his life: Jerusalem is captured, the people are in Babylonian captivity, Cyrus appears on the horizon, who will become an instrument of liberation. Undoubtedly, the omnipotence of God could move the prophet into the distant future, pull him out of his time, change his images and thoughts. But this would imply a split in his personality and neglect of his contemporaries - and he, after all, was sent to them. All this would be unprecedented in the Bible and, moreover, would contradict the very concept of prophecy, when the proclamation of the future is always carried out for the sake of the present. These chapters contain the sermon of an unknown prophet by name who continues the theme of Isaiah and is as great as he. In research, he is given the name Deuteroisaiya (Devteroisaiya). He preached in Babylon between the first victories of Cyrus (550 BC), which saw the impending collapse of the Babylonian kingdom, and the emancipation decree of 538 allowing the first re-emigration. The corpus of chapters 40–55, although not written in one breath, shows more inner cohesion than chapters 1–39. It begins with a text that matches the message of the prophetic calling and ends with a conclusion (55: 6-13). According to the first words: “Comfort, comfort my people” (40: 1), it is also called “Consolation of Israel”.

This is truly the main theme of the book. Prophetic speeches in chap. 1–39 were in in general terms threats full of allusions to the events of the reigns of Ahaz and Hezekiah. Speeches in chap. 40–55 refer to completely different historical circumstances; these are words of consolation. The judgment was brought about by the destruction of Jerusalem, and the time of its restoration is near, when a complete renewal will take place. The significance of this thought is reflected in the extent to which the theme of God the Creator emphasized here is combined with the theme of God the Savior. A new exodus, even more wonderful than the first, leads the people to a new Jerusalem, more beautiful than the previous one. This distinction between two times - "past" and "future" - marks the beginning of eschatology. Compared with the First Isaiah (Protoisaiya), there is a deeper theological development of the idea. The presentation of the principle of monotheism is of a didactic nature; the insignificance of false gods is proved by their impotence. The incomprehensible Wisdom and Providence of God are especially noted. For the first time, the principle of religious universalism is clearly formulated. All these truths are expressed in emotional language with impressive laconicism; the brevity here reflects the inevitable proximity of salvation.

The book contains four poems - songs of the “servant of God”: 42: 1–4 (5–9); 49: 1-6; 50: 4-9 (10-11); 52: 13–53: 12. They portray the perfect disciple of Yahweh, who gathers his people and brings light to other nations, preaching the true faith. By his death, he atones for the sins of people and is glorified by God. These poems are among those Old Testament texts that are best researched and most often contested. There is no generally accepted opinion about their origin or their meaning. With a high degree of probability, the first three songs can be attributed to Deuteronomy; the fourth may belong to one of his students. The question of with whom the “servant of God” can be identified is widely discussed. He is often seen as a personification of the community of Israel, which other texts of Deuteronomy and in fact call "the slave." But personality traits are more clearly emphasized, so other exegetes, who are now in the majority, see in the “slave” a historical character of the past or present. From this point of view, there is much evidence for the identification of the “slave” with Deuteronomy himself; in this case, it is possible that the fourth canto was attributed after his death, and the "slave" in it is seen as someone who personifies the fate of the entire people.

In any case, an interpretation limited to the past or present does not fully reveal the texts. "Boy of the Lord" - Mediator of the coming salvation; this justifies the messianic interpretation that the Jewish tradition of interpreting these fragments sometimes gives, albeit without mentioning the torment of the cross. On the contrary, Jesus chooses precisely the texts about the suffering of the Child and His substitutionary Atonement and applies them to Himself and His mission (Luke 22: 19–20, 37; Mark 10:45). The ancient Christian preaching saw in him the perfect Child and Lamb proclaimed by Deuteronomy (Matthew 12: 17-27; John 1:29).

In recent studies, the concluding part of the book, chapters 56–66, is viewed as the creation of another prophet, the so-called Third Isaiah (Tritoisai). Now, generally speaking, it is not customary to attribute it to one author; it is considered a collection. The psalm in chapters Is 63: 7–64: 11 seems to refer to the era of the end of the captivity; the prophecy of Isa 66: 1-4 dates back to the time of the rebuilding of the temple (c. 520 BC). Chapters 60-62 on thinking and style are close to Deuteronomy. Chapters 56-59 can mainly refer to the 5th century. BC Gl. 65–66 (with the exception of 66: 1–4), bearing the stamp of apocalypticism, some exegetes refer to the era of Hellenism; other researchers attribute them to the times soon after their return from captivity. Taken as a whole, this third part of the book appears as the work of the successors of Deuteronomy. Thus, here we have before us - the last fruit of the tradition of Isaiah, which retains the influence of this great prophet of the 8th century. B.C.

In one of the caves of the Dead Sea, a complete manuscript of the book of Isaiah was found, which possibly dates back to the 2nd century. BC It differs from the Masoretic text in a special manner of writing and variations, some of which are of significant value for compiling a critically verified text.

Book of the prophet Jeremiah

A little over a century after the prophet Isaiah, c. 645 BC, in a family of a priest who lived near Jerusalem, the prophet Jeremiah was born. We know more about his life and work than about any other prophet, thanks to biographical messages from the third person interspersed in his book (their chronological sequence: 19: 1–20: 6; 26; 36; 45; 28–29 ; 51: 59-64; 34: 8-22; 37-44). Jeremiah's “confessions” (Jer 11: 18–12: 6; 15: 10–21; 17: 14–18; 18: 18–23) belong to the prophet himself. This is not an autobiography, but living evidence of the internal crisis through which he went through and described it in the genre of a psalm-complaint. Called by God in his youth, in 626, the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah (Jer 1: 2), he witnessed the tragic period during which the fall of the kingdom of Judah began and ended. Josiah's religious reform and national restoration awakened hopes, which, however, were lost due to the death of the king at Megiddon in 609 and in connection with dramatic changes in the Ancient East - with the fall of Nineveh in 612 and the rise of the Babylonian world empire. From 605, Nebuchadnezzar subjugated Palestine to his power, then Judea revolted, incited by Egypt, which supported this policy of resistance until the sad end. In 597 Nebuchadnezzar laid siege to Jerusalem and captured some of its inhabitants. A new uprising in the country once again entailed an occupation by Chaldean troops. In 587, Jerusalem was captured, the temple was burned to the ground, and a second deportation was carried out. At such and such a time of violence and catastrophe, the prophet Jeremiah lived. He preached, threatened, predicted doom, in vain warned weak kings who succeeded each other on the throne of David. The military leadership accused him of corruption, he was persecuted and imprisoned. After the fall of Jerusalem, Jeremiah remained in Palestine under Gedaliah, whom the Babylonians appointed ruler, although the prophet's hopes for the future were associated with the exiles. When Gedaliah was killed, a group of Jews, taking Jeremiah with them, fled for fear of reprisals to Egypt. He probably died there.

The life of the prophet Jeremiah is marked by drama not only because of the events in which he was involved; this drama is inherent in the very personality of the prophet. Sensitive by nature, he strove to live in love and silence, and his ministry was to “uproot and destroy, destroy and destroy” (Jer 1:10); he was to “cry out for ruin” (Jer 20: 8). He was looking for peace - and had to fight all the time: against loved ones, kings, priests, false prophets, - against all the people; he was “a man who strives and strife with the whole earth” (Jer 15:10). He was inwardly tormented by his task and, however, could not avoid it (Jer 20: 9). His inner dialogue with God reveals heartfelt anguish: "Why is my disease so persistent?" (Jer 15:18); let us also remember those amazing words that already anticipate Job: “Cursed is the day on which I was born” (Jer 20:14).

However, this suffering prepares his soul to open up for life with God. Until he could express his faith in the words of the promise of the New Testament (Jer. 31: 31–34), he lived the religion of the soul and heart, which is why he is so dear and close to us. Such a personally perceived attitude towards God leads him to deepen the traditional teaching: God tests and tests hearts and womb (Jer 11:20), He judges everyone according to his deeds (Jer 31:29:30); love of God is corrupted by sin from an evil heart (Jer 4: 4; 17: 9; 18:12). In his insight, he approaches the prophet Hosea, under whose influence he was; in its rootedness in the law, as well as in what role is assigned to the heart in relation to man's relationship to God and in emphasizing human individuality, he is close to Deuteronomy. Jeremiah undoubtedly welcomed the reform of Josiah, which was inspired by this book of the Bible, but he was deeply disappointed in this reform due to the fact that it could not change the moral and religious life of the people.

During the life of the prophet Jeremiah, his mission fails, but after his death the importance of this person is constantly increasing. Through his doctrine of the “New Testament,” based on the religion of the heart, he became the father of Judaism in its purest form. Let's note his influence on Ezekiel, Deuteronomy and some of the psalms. During the Maccabean era, he was considered one of the patrons of the people (2 Mac 2: 1-8; 15: 12-16). Due to the fact that he emphasized the priority of spiritual values ​​and showed how deep the connection of man with God should be, he prepared the New Testament in Christ Jesus. The image of the man of sorrows in Isa 53 may have absorbed some of the features of the life of the prophet Jeremiah, although the features of Jesus are already showing through in the suffering of his life and in humility before the Divine calling.

This unrelenting influence suggests that the speeches of the prophet Jeremiah were often read; thought over them, they commented. The duration of the influence on the entire sequence of spiritual successors was reflected in the structure of the book of the prophet Jeremiah. It in no way looks like it was written in a single breath. In addition to poetry sections and biographical descriptions, this book contains prose utterances written in a style close to that of Deuteronomy. Their primacy has been disputed; they were attributed to the "second-law" post-prison editors. In fact, their style corresponds to the style of Jewish prose VII - early. VI centuries. BC, and their theology - to the religious movement, in the mainstream of which are both the book of the prophet Jeremiah and Deuteronomy. These sayings are the exact echo of the sermon of the prophet Jeremiah, conveyed by his listeners. In general, the tradition dating back to Jeremiah did not find a uniform continuation. The Greek translation offers an edition of the text that is significantly (1/8) shorter than the Masoretic version and often diverges from it in details; the Qumran finds prove that both of these editions go back to the Hebrew text. In addition, the Greek translation places the word against the Gentiles after Jer 25:13, that is, in a different sequence than the Hebrew in which it appears at the end of the book (Jer 46-51). In the end, it is possible that these prophecies to other nations constitute a special collection and that not all of them belong to the prophet Jeremiah; at least the speeches against Moab and Edom were heavily revised, and the long speech against Babylon (Jer 50-51) refers to the end of the captivity age. Ch. 52 acts as a historical application that finds its parallels in 2 Kings 24: 18–25: 30. Here and there, other smaller additions are inserted into the book, indicating that it was used and highly valued by the Babylonian exiles and the post-captive community. Few repetitions of text also suggest editorial processing. Finally, numerous chronological data are not in true sequence; thus, the current disorder of the book is the result of a long history of its compilation, it is very difficult to highlight the individual stages of this book.

However, Ch. 36 gives us a valuable indication: in 605 BC, the prophet Jeremiah dictated to his disciple Baruch the words that he proclaimed from the very beginning of his activity (Jer 36: 2), that is, from 626 BC. the scroll burned by Jehoiakim was rewritten and supplemented (Jer 36:32). The original content of the text can only be guessed at. Apparently, it began with Jer 25: 1–2 and was a collection of fragments dating back to 605 BC, which are now included in gl. 1-18, but the ancient speeches against the Gentiles in it were after 36: 2, and now they are located in 25: 13-38. Then were added passages from the time after 605, and words against the Gentiles, which are still in the same places today. Consequently, the text included episodes of the “confession” cited above in detail and, in addition, two small books: about kings (21: 11–28) and about prophets (23: 9–40), which were originally created separately.

Thus, the book is divided into two parts: one contains a threat to Judea and Jerusalem (1: 1-25: 13), the other - a word against the Gentiles (Jer 25: 13-38; 46-51). Gl. 26–35 form the third part, in which the speeches fulfilled by the promises are collected without much ordering. These are mostly prosaic passages, which mostly relate to the biography of Jeremiah attributed to Baruch. The exception is gl. 30–31, - a poetic book of consolation. The fourth part (Jer 36–44) continues the biography of Jeremiah in prose and tells about his sufferings during the siege of Jerusalem and after it. It ends, as it were, with the signing of the prophet Baruch, see Jer. 45: 1–5.

Lamentations of Jeremiah

In the Hebrew Bible, this little book appears after the Scriptures (Hagiographers). The Septuagint and Vulgate place it behind the book of the prophet Jeremiah under a title that points to him as the author. This tradition, based on 2 Chronicles 35:25 and reinforced by the content of the book itself, which may indeed be from the time of Jeremiah, is unlikely, however, to stand up to serious reasoning. Based on what we know about Jeremiah from his true words, he could not say that the prophetic gift was extinguished (Lamentations 2: 9), could not praise Zedekiah (Lamentations 4:20) and hope for the help of the Egyptians (Lamentations 4:17 ). His inherent spontaneity could only be violently squeezed into the sophisticated literary form of Lament. The first four songs of the book are alphabetical: the first letters of their stanzas are arranged in alphabetical order; in the fifth canto the number of verses (22) exactly corresponds to the number of letters of the alphabet.

Songs 1, 2 and 4 are in the genre of funeral songs; the third is a personal complaint, the fifth is a collective complaint (in Latin it is called “The Prayer of Jeremiah”). They were laid down in Palestine after the destruction of Jerusalem in 587 B.C. and were probably used in worship, which, according to (Jer 41: 5), continued to be performed on the temple grounds. In them, the author or authors describe the grief of the city and its inhabitants in living words, but from these cries of suffering a feeling of irresistible trust in God and deep repentance arises, which is the lasting value of the book. Jews read it during fasting in memory of the events of 587 B.C. Church (Western - Ed.) addresses her on Holy Week, recalling Calvary.

The Book of the Prophet Baruch

The book of the prophet Baruch is one of the Deuterocanonical books that are absent in the Hebrew Bible. In the Septuagint, she stands between the book of the prophet Jeremiah and the Lamentations of Jeremiah, in the Vulgate - after the Lamentations of Jeremiah. According to the introduction (Bar 1: 1–14), it was written by the prophet Baruch after being taken into Babylonian captivity and sent to Jerusalem to be read at liturgical meetings. It contains a prayer of confession of sins and hope (1: 15–3: 8), a poem of Wisdom (3: 9–4: 4), in which Wisdom is identified with the law, a prophecy (4: 5–5: 9), in which the personified Jerusalem appeals to the exiles, and the prophet instills courage in him, recalling messianic aspirations.

The introduction is written directly in Greek; prayer (1: 15–3: 8), which is further developed in Daniel (Dan 9: 4–19), undoubtedly goes back to the Hebrew original; the same is obviously true for both other texts. The most likely time of the book's creation is the middle of the 1st century. B.C.

In the Greek Bible (and, accordingly, in the Russian synodal translation - Ed.) The Epistle of Jeremiah is highlighted, while the Vulgate appends it to the book of the prophet Baruch as ch. 6 with a separate heading. This is an apologetic essay against idolatry; this text elaborates in a simple manner on topics already covered by Jeremiah (Jer 10: 1-16) and Isaiah (Isa 44: 9-20). Obviously, this refers to the late Babylonian rituals. The epistle is probably written in Hebrew and refers to the Hellenistic period; a more accurate dating is not possible, but it seems that the Second Book of Maccabees (2 Mac 2: 1-3) appeals to it.

A small fragment of a Greek text was found at Qumran; its approximate date according to paleography data is approx. 100 BC

The collection, compiled under the name of Baruch, is significant to us because thanks to it we can look at the communities of the diaspora; in addition, he shows how in these communities, through the connection with Jerusalem, through prayer and the observance of the law, a religious life in the spirit of the doctrine of retribution and messianic aspirations was maintained. Like the book of Lamentations of Jeremiah, the book of the prophet Baruch testifies to the memory that Jeremiah left behind, since both of these small works are associated with the names of the great prophet and his disciple. Baruch was also remembered for a long time; in the II century. According to R. Kh. on his behalf, two apocalypses were written, one in Greek, the other in Syriac (with Greek fragments).

The book of the prophet Ezekiel

Unlike the book of the prophet Jeremiah, this book gives the impression of an orderly whole. After the introduction (Eze 1–3), in which the prophet receives the word from God, the book is clearly divided into four parts: 1. gl. 4-24: almost exclusively reproaches and threats against the Israelites during the siege of Jerusalem; 2. gl. 25–32: prophecy to other nations, in which the prophet applies the concept of God's judgment to the infidels' accomplices and instigators; 3. gl. 33–39: the promise of salvation during and after the siege, in which the prophet comforts the people with hope for a better future; 4. gl. 40–48: Draft political and religious code for the future community that will once be reborn in Palestine.

However, this clarity of articulation cannot hide the serious flaws of the composition. There are numerous repetitions, eg 3: 17-21 and 33: 7-9; 18: 25-29 and 33: 17-20, etc. References to the silence that God struck Ezekiel (Ezekiel 3:26; 24:27; 33:22) are interspersed with long speeches. The vision of the chariot of the Lord is interrupted by the vision of a book scroll. In addition, the description of the sins of Jerusalem adjoins ch. 8 and explicitly breaks the description of the Lord's chariot leaving Jerusalem, which after 10:22 continues at 11:22. The dates given in Eze 26-33 are not chronologically ordered. It would be difficult to attribute such shortcomings to the author, who writes his work as if in one breath. They are much more likely to be traced back to students who processed documents or memories, linked them together, and supplemented them. In this, the book of the prophet Ezekiel, to a certain extent, shares the fate of other prophetic books. However, the authenticity of teaching and style indicates that the students have kept intact the way of thinking and, in general, even the words of their teacher. Their editorial work is especially tangible in the latter part of the book, the basis of which, however, goes back to Ezekiel himself.

As can be judged from the present corpus of the book, the entire activity of the prophet Ezekiel among the Babylonian exiles took place between 593 and 571. BC These dates are indicated at the beginning and end of the text (Eze 1: 2 and 29:17). Under these circumstances, it is surprising that the speeches of the first part seem to be directed to the people of Jerusalem and that at times it seems that the prophet was physically present in the city (first of all - Eze 11:13). In this regard, a hypothesis was recently put forward about the dual activity of the prophet: until the destruction of Jerusalem in 587 BC, he remained in Palestine, where he preached, and only then came to the exiles. The vision of the scroll (Eze 2: 1–3: 9) then signifies the calling of the prophet to Palestine; the vision of the throne of the Lord (Eze 1: 4-28 and 3: 10-15) signifies coming to the exiles. Shifting this vision to the beginning would change the whole perspective of the book. This hypothesis is capable of solving some difficulties, but puts forward new ones. It involves significant changes to the text; compels us to admit, accordingly, that the prophet Ezekiel himself in the “Palestinian” period of his activity usually lived outside the city, since he was “brought into it” (Ezek 8: 3); and if we accept that the prophets Ezekiel and Jeremiah preached in Jerusalem together, it is surprising that neither of them has any hint of the activity of the other. On the other hand, the difficulties of traditional theses do not seem insurmountable: the reproaches addressed to the people of Jerusalem are instructive for the exiles. As soon as the prophet Ezekiel was in the holy city, the text unambiguously states that he was brought to Jerusalem in a kind of “vision of God” (Eze 8: 3) and in the same way in the same “vision of God” he was brought back (Eze 11: 24). Therefore, it is hardly worth further adhering to the hypothesis of the dual activity of the prophet.

Whatever decision we make, the book presents us with an equally great image. Ezekiel is a priest (1: 3). The main thing for him is the temple, whether it is the existing temple, desecrated by unclean rituals (Eze 8), so that the glory of Yahweh left him (Eze 10), or the future temple, the structure of which he describes in detail (Eze 40-42) and sees how God returns there. He sets forth the rules for the ministers of the temple, the details of worship and the religious calendar for the future (Eze 44–46). He honors the law, and in his description of the falling away of Israel, the reproach of desecrating the Sabbath is repeated with constant refrain. He has an aversion to anything the law considers unclean (Eze 4:14; 44: 7), and he carefully distinguishes the sacred from the profane (45: 1–6; 48: 9 ff). As a priest, he classifies cases of a legal and moral nature, and this brings a touch of casuistry to his teaching (Eze 18). In the way of thinking and vocabulary, his text is related to the laws of salvation from Lev 18-26, which he studied and thought, but he goes further and prepares the final version of the code of laws of the Pentateuch. His work is within the "priestly" direction, just as Jeremiah's creations belonged to the "second-law" direction.

But this priest is also a prophet of symbolic actions, which he performed more than any other of the prophets. It depicts the siege of Jerusalem (Eze 4: 1–5: 4), the gathering and resettlement (12: 1–7), the king of Babylon at the crossroads (21: 19–23), the unification of Judah and Israel (Eze 37:15 f). He is a “sign” for Israel (Eze 24:24) up to personal trials sent to him by God, as was the case with the prophets Hosea, Isaiah and Jeremiah; however, his complex symbolic acts are contrasted with the more modest acts of his predecessors.

Ezekiel is primarily a seer. Although his book contains only four visions in the proper sense of the word, they occupy a significant place: Eze 1–3; 8-11; 37; 40–48. Here, a fantastic world opens up: the four animal chariots of Yahweh, the abomination of idolatry in a temple with teeming animals and idols, a field with dry bones coming to life, an image of a future temple, similar to an architectural project, from which a fantastic river pours out onto a utopian landscape. A similar power of the image is contained in the allegories widely used by the prophet: the sisters of Ohol and Oholib (Eze 23), the fall of Tire (Eze 27), the crocodile pharaoh (Eze 29,30), a giant tree (Eze 31), the descent into hell ( Eze 32).

In contrast to such a power of imagination, the style of Ezekiel, as if what he saw with its power bound his tongue, is monotone and colorless, cold and lethargic, clearly meager when compared with the style of the great classics, with the powerful clarity of the prophet Isaiah and with the living fervor of the prophet Jeremiah. Perhaps this is the price one has to pay for imagination. The art of Ezekiel is in the large-scale of his unprecedented images, creating an atmosphere of awe at the Divine mysteries.

If Ezekiel is in many ways adjacent to his predecessors, it is still clear that he is blazing a new path. This is also true of his teaching. The Prophet breaks with the past of his people. Although from time to time the promises to the forefathers are mentioned and the Sinai Covenant is recalled, but if God hitherto saved His people, originally fallen (Eze 16: 3), then He did it not in order to fulfill the promises, but for the sake of His Name (Eze 20 ). In the place of the Old Testament, He will raise the Eternal Testament (16:60; 37:26 et seq.) - not as a reward for the “turning” of the people to Him, but out of pure mercy, as we would say - by the abundant grace; only this will be followed by repentance (16: 62–63). Ezekiel's messianic aspirations (though weakly expressed) are not the expectation of the Messianic King in glory; although the prophet announces the coming David, he will only be a “shepherd” of his people (Eze 34:23; 37:24), a “prince” but no longer a king - there is no place for a king in Ezekiel's theocratic vision of the future (Ezek 45 : 7 cl).

He breaks with the communal tradition in matters of retribution for sin and expresses the principle of individual retribution (Eze 18 cf. 33), an outstripped theological decision that, too often refuted by facts, gradually leads to ideas of otherworldly retribution. A priest deeply connected to the temple, he nevertheless breaks - as Jeremiah already did - with the idea that God is tied to His sanctuary. It brings together the spirit of prophecy and the spirit of the priesthood that so often come into conflict: the established rituals gain significance due to the attitude that inspires them. In general, Ezekiel's teaching revolves around the theme of inner renewal: you need to create for yourself a new heart and a new spirit (Eze 18:31) or, rather, God Himself will give a different heart (“a new heart,” “one heart,” “a heart of flesh”) and will put in people “a new spirit” (Eze 11:19; 36:26). Here, as in the prophet's proclamation of Divine mercy, which makes repentance possible, we find ourselves on the threshold of the theology of grace and God's mercy, which was developed by the app. John and Paul.

This all-round spirituality of the religious sphere is a significant merit of the prophet Ezekiel. When he is called the father of Judaism, they often mean his zeal in separating the profane, while observing the purity prescribed by the law, his ritual scrupulousness. But this is completely unfair. Ezekiel - like Jeremiah, only in a different way - stands at the origins of an extremely powerful spiritual movement that penetrated Judaism and which then merged into the New Testament. Jesus is the Good Shepherd, preached by the prophet Ezekiel, who founded the worship of God in the spirit that He Himself prescribed.

And one more feature of the prophet Ezekiel: from him the apocalyptic begins. His magnificent visions precede what Daniel saw, so it is not surprising that his influence can often be found in the Apocalypse of the Apostle John the Theologian.

The book of the prophet daniel

According to its content, the book of Daniel falls into two parts. Gl. 1–6 are narratives: Daniel and three of his companions in the service of Nebuchadnezzar (Dan 1); the dream of Nebuchadnezzar (composite image, Dan 2); worship of a golden image and three companions of Daniel in a furnace blazing with fire (Dan 3); the madness of Nebuchadnezzar (Dan 4); the feast of Belshazzar (Dan 5); Daniel in the lion's den (Dan 6). In all these stories, Daniel or his companions brilliantly emerge from the trials on which their lives, or at least their reputation, depend, and the pagans glorify God who saves His faithful. Events unfold in Babylon during the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, his “son” Belshazzar and his successor “Darius the Medes”. Gl. 7–12 are visions that the prophet Daniel was honored with: four beasts (Dan 7); the ram and the goat (Dan 8); seventy weeks (Dan 9); the great vision of the time of wrath and the end times (Dan 10-12). The visions are dated to the reign of Belshazzar, Darius the Mede and the Persian king Cyrus and were given to the prophet in Babylonia.

Such a structure sometimes gave rise to the conclusion about the existence of two texts dating back to different times, which were combined by the publisher. However, other indications argue against this assumption. Although the narratives are from the third person, while the prophet himself speaks of the visions in the first person, the first vision (Dan 7) is framed by the introduction and conclusion in the third person. The beginning of the book is written in Hebrew, but in Dan 2: 4b it suddenly turns into Aramaic (until Dan 7:28), which is also present in the part of the visions; the last chapters are in Hebrew again. Many explanations have been offered for this language change. None of them are convincing. In addition, the contrast between linguistic (Hebrew - Aramaic) and meaningful (narrative - vision) does not correspond to the stylistic opposition (1 - 3 persons). On the other hand, Ch. 7 is supplemented by ch. 8, but at the same time it is parallel to Ch. 2; it is written in the same Aramaic as gl. 2–4, but stylistically close to gl. 8-12, although they are written in Hebrew. Consequently, Ch. 7 forms the link between the two parts of the book and maintains its unity. In addition, Belshazzar and Darius the Mede appear in both parts of the book, and thus put the historian in an equally difficult position. Finally, literary devices and ways of thinking are preserved from the beginning to the end of the book; this identity is the strongest argument in favor of its original unity.

Chapter 11 unambiguously testifies to the time when the book was compiled. Here, with so many details, it is told about the wars between the Seleucids and the Lagids and about part of the reign of Antiochus Epiphanes that it would be meaningless within the framework of a single author's plan. This narration is incomparable with any of the other Old Testament prophecies, since, contrary to the style of the prophecies, it sets out the events that have already taken place. However, beginning with (Dan 11:40) the time of the end is announced in a form reminiscent of other prophets. Therefore, it is possible that the book was created during the persecution of Antiochus Epiphanes and before his death, and moreover, even before the victory of the Maccabean rebellion, that is, between 167 and 164. B.C.

The relatively late dating of the book explains its place in the Hebrew Bible. It was adopted after the confirmation of the canon of the prophetic books and was placed between the books of Esther and Ezra in the mixed group of “Scriptures” that form the last part of the Hebrew canon. The Greek and Latin translations of the Bible put it in the circle of prophetic books and add to it some Deutero-canonical fragments: the psalm of Azariah and the song of praise of three young men (Dan 3: 24-90), the story of Susanna, which manifests the mind and discernment of young Daniel (Dan 13) , the stories of the idol Vil and the sacred dragon, is a satire on idolatry (Dan 14). The Septuagint deviates significantly from Theodotion's translation, which is very close to the Masoretic text.

The book is intended to strengthen the faith and aspirations of the Jews, persecuted by Antiochus Epiphanes. Daniel and his companions were subjected to the same temptations (to transgress the prescriptions of the law, ch. 1, to worship idols, ch. 3 and 6) - and came out of them victorious. Henceforth, the persecutors were forced to acknowledge the authority of the true God. The current persecutor is painted in blacker colors, but when the wrath of God burst out in full force (Dan 8:19; 11:36), the time of the end begins when the persecutor will be defeated (Dan 8:25; 11:45). This will mean the end of evil and sin and the coming of the kingdom of the saints; will be ruled by the “Son of Man”, “whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom” (Dan 7:27).

This expectation of the end, this hope for the Kingdom is felt throughout the book (Dan 2:44; 3:33; 4:32; 7:14). God will establish the Kingdom after a certain period of time, which He Himself determined and which at the same time covers the entire length of human history. The epochs of human history become stages of the eternal plan of God. Past, present, future - everything turns out to be prophecy to the extent that it appears in the Light of God, who “changes times and years” (Dan 2:21). With the help of this double vision, which is simultaneously connected with time and transcends it, the author reveals the prophetic meaning of the story. The mystery of God (Dan 2:18 ff; 4: 6) was revealed through the mediation of mysterious entities, who are the messengers and messengers of the Most High. The book of Daniel, like the book of Ezekiel and above all the book of Tobit, clearly belongs to the realm of angelology. Revelation refers to God's hidden purpose for His people and for the Gentiles. He speaks to the Gentiles as he speaks to His people. An important text about the resurrection heralds the awakening from the dead to eternal life or eternal shame (Dan 12: 2). The long-awaited Kingdom will contain all nations (Dan 7:14), it will be infinite, it will be the Kingdom of saints (Dan 7:18), the Kingdom of God (Dan 3:33 (100); 4:31), the Kingdom of the Son of God, to whom all authority (Dan 7: 13-14).

This mysterious Son of Man, who in Dan 7:18 and 7: 21–27 is identified with the community of saints, is at the same time their Leader, the Head of the eschatological kingdom, but not the Messiah from the house of David. This particular interpretation was common in the Jewish community; Jesus accepted it, applying to Himself the name of the Son of Man to emphasize the transcendental, spiritual character of His messiahship (Matt 8:20).

The book of Daniel no longer belongs to the prophetic movement itself. It does not contain the sermon of the prophet sent by God to his contemporaries, but it was composed and written directly by one author, who (as in the case of the book of the prophet Jonah) is hiding under a pseudonym. The didactic stories of the first part are akin to the group of Wisdom scriptures, the ancient example of which is the story of Joseph from the book of Genesis, and the new one is the book of Tobit, written shortly before the book of Daniel. The visions of the second part are called to reveal the Divine secret, which the angels proclaim for the future times in a deliberately obscured syllable. With this "sealed" book (Dan 12: 4) begins the literary genre of the apocalypse in the full sense of the word, which was prepared by Ezekiel and widespread in late Jewish literature. In the New Testament, the Revelation of the Apostle John the Theologian corresponds to it, but there the seals are removed from the closed book (Rev 5-6), the Word is no longer mysterious, for “the time is near” (Rev 22:10) and the coming of the Lord is expected (Rev 22:20; 1 Corinthians 16:22).

Book of the Twelve Prophets

The last book of the Jewish canonical prophets is simply called The Twelve. It brings together 12 small books attributed to different prophets. The Greek translation of the Bible names her Dodekaprofeton... The Church regards it as a collection of the books of the twelve "minor prophets"; this only means their brevity, but not their significance in comparison with the books of the “great prophets”. This congregation already existed during the time of the book of Jesus, son of Sirach (Sir 49:10). The Hebrew Bible, and after it the Vulgate, arrange these small books in the chronological order that the Jewish tradition has preserved. In the Greek Bible, the arrangement is somewhat different: here they also stand in front of the books of the great prophets.

In the Jerusalem Bible, the translations of the prophets are arranged in the sequence of the Vulgate (and the Hebrew Bible), but the introductions below are ordered according to a principle that most likely corresponds to historical sequence.

The book of the prophet Amos

Amos was a shepherd in Tekoe, on the border of the Judean Desert (Amos 1: 1). He did not belong to the prophetic class; Yahweh took him from his flock and sent him to prophesy in Israel (Amos 7: 14-15). After a short time in the apostate sanctuary at Bethel (Am. 7:10 w.) And probably also in Samaria (cf. Am. 3: 9; 4: 1; 6: 1), he was expelled from Israel and returned to his former occupation.

He prophesied in the time of Jeroboam II (783–743 BC) - from a human point of view, in a brilliant era when the Northern Kingdom expanded and became rich, but the luxury of the noble mocked the poverty of the poor, and the splendor of the worship hid the lack of true faith. With the simple, majestic directness and imagery of a nomad, Amos on behalf of God condemns the depraved customs of the townspeople, social injustice, false rituals that do not involve the heart in worship (Amos 5: 21-22). Yahweh, the Most High Lord of the world, who punishes the nations (Amos 1–2), threatens Israel with harsh judgment, because God's chosenness obliges him to the highest righteousness (Amos 3: 2). The Day of the Lord (this expression first appears here) will be darkness, not light (Amos 5:18 et seq.). The punishment will be terrifying (Amos 6: 8 et seq.) And, in realizing it, God will call a certain people (6:14), namely the Assyrians, whom the prophet, although he does not name, but mainly has in mind. However, in the book of the prophet Amos the dawn of hope dawns - the prospect of salvation for the house of Jacob (Amos 9: 8), for the “remnant” of Joseph (Amos 5:15; this expression is used here for the first time in prophetic texts). The profound revelation of God as the Almighty Lord of the universe, the Pillar of Righteousness, is uttered with unshakable certainty, without the impression that the prophet is saying something new. The novelty lies in the force with which he brings to mind the demands of pure faith in Yahweh.

The book was handed over to us in some disarray; in particular, the prosaic story (Amos 7: 10-17) between the two visions would be better placed after them. One may question the identification of some of the brief passages as belonging to Amos himself. Doxologies (Amos 4:13; 5: 8-9: 9: 5-6) could be added for the service readings. Brief predictions against Tire, Edom (Am 1: 9–12) and Judea (Am 2: 4–5) seem to date back to the post-captivity era. Further, passages such as (Am 9: 8b – 10) and above all (Am 9: 11–15) are contested. There is no compelling reason to doubt the authenticity of the first of these passages, but it is very likely that the second is included in the text at a later date. But this should not be justified by the promises of salvation included in it, which were originally the theme of the prophetic message (here, Am 5:15 and at the same time in the prophet Hosea); rather, what is said about “the tabernacle of David's fallen,” about retribution to Edom, about the return and rebirth of Israel, has a prerequisite for the era of captivity and (with some additional modifications) can be attributed to the second-legal edition of the book.

The book of the prophet Hosea

The prophet Hosea, a native of the Northern Kingdom, is a contemporary of the prophet Amos, since he began to prophesy under Jeroboam II, but his activity continued under the successors of this king; perhaps he still saw the destruction of Samaria in 721. These are the dark times of Israel: the Assyrian conquest (734–732), internal turmoil (four kings were killed in 15 years), religious and moral decline.

About the prophet Hosea himself in this hard times we only know what is written about the events of his personal life in gl. 1-3. However, these events turned out to be decisive for his prophetic activity. The meaning of these first chapters is controversial. The most probable is the following interpretation: Hosea married the one he loved, but his wife left him; however, he continued to love her and accepted her again after testing her. In this way, the painful experience of the prophet became the image of Yahweh's relationship to His people. Chapter two contains semantic instructions and is the key to the book as a whole: Israel is married to Yahweh, but he behaved like an unfaithful wife, like a harlot, and aroused the anger and jealousy of his Divine Spouse and Sovereign, who nevertheless continues to love her and , although it will punish, but in order to return to Himself and re-bestow the bliss of first love.

The sensitive and violent soul of the prophet Hosea, with unprecedented courage and overwhelming passion, first expressed the relationship between Yahweh and Israel by resorting to the image of marriage. The main theme of his proclamation is the love of God, not recognized by his people. Except for a brief, unclouded period in the wilderness, Israel only responded to Yahweh's call with treason. First of all, Hosea addresses the ruling strata. The kings elected against the will of Yahweh, with their secular policies, relegated the chosen people to the level of other nations. Ignorant and greedy priests led the people to destruction. Like the prophet Amos, Hosea condemns injustice and violence, but more than the first, he emphasizes religious apostasy: in Bethel, Yahweh became an object of idolatry, through unbridled cult rites on the heights He was equated with Baal and Astarte. However, Yahweh is a jealous God who desires to have undivided possession of the heart of His faithful: “For I want mercy, and not sacrifice, and knowledge of God more than burnt offerings” (Hos 6: 6). Therefore, retribution is inevitable, but God punishes only in order to save. The devastated and humiliated Israel will once again remember the time when she was faithful, and Yahweh will accept His people, who have turned to repentance, and may rejoice again in peace and prosperity.

After attempting to isolate all the promises of salvation and all the parables about Judea as unauthentic, Bible scholarship today reverted to more restrained judgments. To present the prophet Hosea only as a prophet of disasters would mean distorting his entire proclamation, and it is quite natural that his gaze turned to the neighboring kingdom - Judah. Perhaps it is appropriate to assume that the corpus of the utterances of the prophet Hosea, created in Israel, after the fall of the Northern Kingdom ended up in Judea and was revised here once or twice. We find traces of this “Jewish” edition in the inscription (Hos 1: 1) and in a number of verses, for example, Hos 1: 7; 5: 5; 6: 11; 12: 3. The last verse of the book (Hos 14:10) - reflections of the teacher of the Wisdom of the captive or post-captivity era about the essence of the book. The difficulty of interpretation has increased for us because of the deplorable state of the Hebrew text, which of all the Old Testament texts has survived the worst.

The Book of Hosea deeply influenced the Old Testament; we find its echoes in the calls of the later prophets to find a religion of the heart, inspired by Divine love. So it is not surprising that the New Testament often quotes the prophet Hosea and is thus influenced by him. The image of marriage to express the relationship between Yahweh and His people was adopted by the prophets Jeremiah, Ezekiel and (Second) Isaiah. In the New Testament and in the time of the first Christians, this image was transferred to the relationship between Jesus Christ and His Church. Christian mystics also extended it to believing souls.

Book of the prophet Micah

The prophet Micah (who should not be confused with Micah, the son of Imlai, who lived under Ahab; see 1 Kgs 22: 8–28) was a Jew from Morasphith west of Hebron. He lived under the kings Joatham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, that is, before and after the capture of Samaria in 721 and, probably, until the invasion of Sennacherib in 701. Consequently, he was in part a contemporary of Hosea and Isaiah. By his peasant origin, he is close to the prophet Amos; like the other, he disgusts big cities, speaks material and sometimes rude language, loves stunning images and puns.

The book is divided into four parts, in which threats alternate with promises: Mic 1: 2–3: 12 - Israel before judgment; 4: 5–5: 14 - the promises to Zion; 6: 1–7: 7 - Israel is brought to trial again; 7: 8–20 - hopes. The promises to Zion are in stark contrast to the threats before and after; this symmetrical construction goes back to the later edition of the book. It is difficult to determine the amount of revisions that the book underwent in those circles where the memory of the prophet was kept. It is unanimously believed that Micah 7: 8–12 should be attributed to the time of the return from captivity. Likewise, this period would best fit the words in Micah 2: 12-13, which appear to be a foreign body between threats, and the proclamations in 4: 6-7 and 5: 6-7. Further, Micah 4: 1-5 is quoted almost verbatim in (Isa 2: 2-5), and neither in either context does it look original. But the possibility that these are subsequent additions does not yet allow us to draw the conclusion that all promises of the future should be excluded from the true mission of the prophet Micah. Speech corpus in chap. 4–5 arose during or after captivity, but it also contains original fragments; and especially it should be noted that there is no decisive reason for denying the prophet Micah in his authorship of the messianic promise (Mic 5: 1-5), which coincides with that which at the same time awakened hope in Isaiah (Isa 9: 1 sl, 11: 1 sl).

From the information about the life of the prophet, we only know how he was called by God. He has a strong awareness of his own prophetic vocation, and therefore - unlike false prophets - heralds adversity with full conviction (Micah 2: 6-11; 3: 5-8). He bears the word of God, and with him, first of all, judgment. Yahweh enters into judgment with His people (Mic 1: 2; 6: 1 cl), and as guilt he names religious offenses, but above all - moral. The Prophet castigates the selfish rich, greedy priests and prophets, tyrants-princes, hard-hearted believers, deceiving merchants, corrupt judges, disintegrating families. All of them do the opposite of what the Lord requires: “to act justly, to love works of mercy and to walk humbly before your God” (Micah 6: 8), - a wonderful formulation that summarizes the religious call of the prophets and reminds first of all Hosea. The appointed punishment - Yahweh will come in the collapse of the world (Mic. 1: 3-4) to judge and punish His people; the death of Samaria is announced (Mic 1: 6-7), the destruction of the cities of Shafir (the lowlands between the mountains of Judea and the coast), where the prophet Micah lives (Mic 1: 8–15), and even the destruction of Jerusalem, which will turn into a heap of ruins (Mic 3 :12).

Nevertheless, the prophet does not lose hope (Micah 7: 7). It is expressed in glll. 4–5, developing the messianic teaching of the “remnant” created by the prophet Amos (Micah 4: 7; 5: 2) and announcing the birth of a peaceful King in Ephrath, who will feed the flock of the Lord (5: 1–5).

The influence of the prophet Micah was long lasting; Jeremiah's contemporaries knew and quoted the word against Jerusalem (Jer. 26:18). First of all, the New Testament adopted the text about the coming of the Messiah from Ephrath-Bethlehem (Matt 2: 6; John 7:42).

The book of the prophet Zephaniah

Judging by the inscription of this small book, Zephaniah acted as a prophet under King Josiah (640–609 BC). His denunciations of foreign fashions (Seph 1: 8) and the cult of false gods (Seph 1: 4-5), accusations of the first persons at court (1: 8) and silence about the king indicate that he preached before the religious reform and during the minority of Josiah (between 640 and 630), that is, it began its activity shortly before Jeremiah. Judea, from which Sennacherib cut off part of the territory, was under the rule of Assyria, and the period of the godless rule of Manasseh and Amun resulted in religious decline. But now the weakening of Assyria awakened hope for a new national upsurge, which was necessary to accompany religious reform.

The book is divided into four short sections: the day of the Lord (Seph 1: 2–2: 3); against the Gentiles (Sof 2: 4-15); against Jerusalem (3: 1-8); promises (3: 9–20). There have been attempts, without sufficient reason, to single out some of the sayings against the Gentiles and all the promises of the latter part as unauthentic. Like all prophetic books, the book of Zephaniah has undergone revisions and includes additions, albeit a few. Under the influence of Deuteronomy are especially the proclamations of the conversion of the Gentiles (Seph 2:11 and 3: 9-10), which fall out of the textual sequence; the originality of the small psalms is highly controversial (Seph 3: 14-15 and 3: 16-18a), and the last verses of the book (Seph 3: 18b-20) unanimously refer to the time of the captivity.

In short, the mission of the prophet Zephaniah is to proclaim the day of the Lord (cf. the book of the prophet Amos), a catastrophe that will break out for the Gentiles as well as for Judah. Judah is condemned because of the religious and moral fall that occurs due to pride and exaltation (Seph 3: 1,11). The prophet Zephaniah has a deep understanding of sin, which allows him to remember Jeremiah; sin is a personal attack on the Living God. Judgment to the Gentiles is a warning (Seph 3: 7), which should turn the people to obedience and humility (Seph 2: 3); salvation is promised only to the humble and small “remnant” (Seph 3: 12-13). The prophet Zephaniah's ideas about the Messiah lie on the same plane, which, being undoubtedly limited, nevertheless demonstrates the inner spiritual core of the promise. The book of the prophet Zephaniah did not make much of an impact; The New Testament addresses her only once (Matt 13:41). The description of the day of the Lord (Seph 1: 14-18) is told in the book of the prophet Joel.

The book of the prophet Naum

The book of the prophet Nahum begins with a psalm about Yahweh's wrath against “those who have thought evil” and with brief prophecies that contrast the punishment of Asshur and the salvation of Judah (Nahum 1: 2–2: 3). However, the main theme, as indicated in the inscription, is the death of Nineveh; this doom is proclaimed and described with such irresistible power that it makes it possible to attribute the prophet Nahum to the great poets of Israel (Nahum 2: 4–3: 19). There is no reason to initially reject his authorship of the psalm and prophecy: they well anticipate this picture that can awaken horror. There was a concept, which, however, did not have sufficient basis, according to which this introduction, or even the entire book, was rooted in a cult, or at least was used in temple worship.

The prophecy dates back to the time shortly before the capture of Nineveh in 612 BC. It contains all the passion of Israel's aspirations against the hereditary enemy - the people of Assur, hears the echo of the hopes awakened by its defeat. But amid all this militant nationalism, which absolutely does not resemble the Gospel or the universalism of the second part of the book of Isaiah, the ideal of righteousness and faith finds expression: the death of Nineveh is the judgment of God, which punishes “those who have thought evil against the Lord” (Nahum 1: 11, cf. 2: 1), the oppressors of Israel (Nahum 1: 12-13) and all nations (3: 1-7).

The book of the prophet Nahum was intended to strengthen the human hopes of Israel in 612 BC, but the joy was fleeting; after the death of Nineveh, the destruction of Jerusalem took place. Here the meaning of the prophecy itself deepens and expands; Isa 52: 7 takes the image from Nahum 2: 1 to describe the beginning of salvation. Among the Qumran finds were fragments of a commentary on the book of the prophet Naum, in which the prophet's utterances were arbitrarily directed at the enemies of the Essenes community.

The book of the prophet Habakkuk

The short book of the prophet Habakkuk was compiled very carefully. It begins with a dialogue between the prophet and his God; God answers two of the prophet's complaints with two speeches (Hab. 1: 2–2: 4). His second speech is rife with curses against the wicked oppressor (Hab. 2: 5–20). The prophet then sings in a psalm the ultimate victory of God (Hab. 3). The authenticity of this last chapter has been questioned, but without it the book would have seemed like a stump. The words about singing at the beginning and at the end, which distinguish this psalm, indicate only that it was used in worship. It is doubtful whether the book as a whole was used in worship; her style is largely due to her imitation of liturgical texts. Such imitation is not enough to rank Habakkuk as a temple prophet among the servants of the temple. The commentary on the prophet Habakkuk, found in Qumran, does not go beyond the second chapter, but this does not yet testify against the originality of chapter three.

The circumstances of the prophetic vision and the question of who this oppressor are are controversial. It was assumed that these were the Assyrians or Babylonians, or even the king of Judah, Joachim. The latter hypothesis is clearly untenable; both of the remaining, perhaps, have a reliable justification. If we assume that the Assyrians are meant by the oppressors, then it turns out that God is raising the Chaldeans against them (Hab. 1: 5-11) - and then the prophecy dates back to the time before the fall of Nineveh in 612 BC. But one can also assume that the oppressors are always the Chaldeans mentioned in (Hab. 1: 6). They were God's instrument for punishing His people, but they, in turn, will suffer punishment for unrighteous violence, for Yahweh rebelled in order to save His people, and the prophet awaits this Divine intervention with fear, which towards the end develops into joy. If this interpretation is correct, then the book should be dated to the period between the battle of Carchemis (Karkemish) in 605, as a result of which the entire Middle East fell under the rule of Nebuchadnezzar, and the first siege of Jerusalem in 597. Thus, the prophet Habakkuk should have lived only a little later than the prophet Naum and would have been, like him, a contemporary of the prophet Jeremiah.

Habakkuk brings a new sound to the teaching of the prophets: he dares to demand from God an account of His management of the world. Let's say that Judah sinned, but why does God, who is Holy (Hab. 1:12), whose eyes are too pure to look at atrocities (Hab. 1:13), choose the Chaldean barbarians to carry out His retribution? Why does He punish the wicked with the hands of an even more wicked one? Why does He make it appear that He Himself contributes to the triumph of violence? This is the problem of evil, which is revealed here at the level of nations, and the bitterness of the prophet Habakkuk is shared with him by many of our contemporaries. The Lord answers both them and the prophet: in various ways the almighty God prepares the final victory of the righteous, and “the righteous shall live by his faith” (Hab. 2: 4). This utterance is the pearl of the entire book, and the apostle Paul includes it in his teaching on faith (Rom. 1:17; Gal. 3:11; Heb. 10:38).

The book of the prophet Haggai

The last, post-imprisoned era of Old Testament prophecy begins with the prophet Haggai. The change is striking. Before captivity, the main word of the prophets was punishment... In captivity they talked about consolation... Now we are talking about rebuilding... Prophet Haggai found a decisive moment in the formation of Jewry: the birth of a new community in Palestine. His brief exhortations are accurately dated August and September 520 BC The first Jews to return from Babylon to rebuild the temple soon lost their courage. But the prophets Haggai and Zechariah caused them a surge of new strength and forced the ruler Zerubbabel and the high priest Jesus to resume work in the temple, which happened in September 520 (Hag 1:15, cf. 1 Ezra 5: 1).

Here is the full content of the four small speeches that make up the book: since the temple is still in ruins, Yahweh struck the fruits of the earth; however, the restoration of the temple will entail a new period of prosperity; this new temple, despite its modest appearance, will eclipse the glory of the old; But to Zerubbab, the chosen one of God, the kingdom is promised.

The construction of the temple is portrayed as a condition for the appearance of Yahweh and the foundation of His kingdom; the era of eschatological salvation is coming. Thus, around the sanctuary and the descendant of David, a messianic expectation crystallizes, which in the future will be more clearly expressed by the prophet Zechariah.

The book of the prophet Zechariah

Zechariah has two distinct parts: Zech 1-8 and Zech 9-14. The introduction, dated October – November 520 BC, two months after the first prophecy of Haggai, is followed by eight visions of the prophet beginning in February 519 (Zech 1: 7–6: 8); then - a symbolic wedding to the kingdom of Zerubbabel (while the scribes introduced the name of Jesus, the son of Yosedek, the high priest from those times when the priesthood had full authority), see Zech 6: 9-14. The seventh chapter examines the past of the people, the eighth reveals the perspective of messianic salvation; both are written in connection with the problem of fasting in November 518 B.C.

This collection of texts, with accurate dating and ideological uniformity, is undoubtedly primary, but it shows traces of processing undertaken by the prophet himself or his disciples. For example, predictions about the nations were added to the end of the already finished text (Zech 8: 20-23).

For the prophet Zechariah, as well as for the prophet Haggai, the overriding desire is to rebuild the temple; even more than the one mentioned above, he longs for the revival of the people and the purity and purity necessary for this. This revival is intended to usher in a messianic age in which the priesthood represented by the high priest Jesus (Zech 3: 1-7) will be glorified, and the kingdom will be represented by the BRANCH (Zech 3: 8), the messianic concept applied to Zerubbabel in Zech 6:12. Both anointed ones (Zech. 4:14) rule in perfect harmony (Zech. 6:13). Thus, the prophet Zechariah revives the ancient idea of ​​royal messianism, linking it, however, with the priestly tendencies of Ezekiel, whose influence is felt in many ways: in the dominant role of visions, in apocalyptic aspiration, in attention to purity. These features, as well as the importance attached to the angels here, prepare the reader to understand the book of Daniel.

The second part, gl. 9-14, which also begins with a new title (Zech. 9: 1), is of a completely different kind. Fragments of it - without specifying the date and author. This is not about Zechariah and not about Jesus, not about Zerubbabel and not about the building of the temple. The style is later than the original; early books are often used, most notably Deut, Ezek, and Job. The historical horizon has also been changed: the Assyrians and Egyptians here symbolize all conquerors in general.

These chapters were most likely compiled in the last decades of the 4th century. BC, after the conquests of Alexander the Great. The persistent efforts recently made to prove the unity of the two parts of the book cannot dispute their difference. Two passages can be distinguished, each of which begins with a title: Zech 9-11 and Zech 12-14. The first part is almost entirely written in poetry, the second is almost all prosaic, therefore they speak of the Deuteronomy and Tritozaharias. But in reality, both of these texts, in turn, are not homogeneous. Probably, the first part uses ancient poetic fragments of the pre-doped era and refers to historical facts, a more accurate identification of which is difficult (it is very likely that Zech 9: 1-8 is correlated with the campaigns of Alexander the Great). The second part (Zech 12-14) in apocalyptic terms describes the trials and glorification of Jerusalem in the end times, but this kind of eschatology is also present in the first part. Certain themes, such as the motive of the “shepherd” of the nations (Zech. 10: 2-3; 11: 4-14; 13: 7-9), are repeated in both parts.

The second part of the book of the prophet Zechariah is important primarily due to the messianic teaching, which here, however, is not uniform: the revival of the house of David (repeatedly in chapter 12), the expectation of a merciful and meek Messiah (Zech. 9: 9-10), the mysterious proclamation of the Pierced One (Zech. 12 : 10), militant (Zech 10: 3–11: 3) and at the same time formalized as a cult of the glory of God, proclaimed in the style of the prophet Ezekiel (Zech 14). These traits are combined in the Person of Jesus; The New Testament often quotes these chapters of the prophet Zechariah, or at least covertly points to them, as in Matthew 21: 4-5; 27: 9 (in connection with the quotation from the prophet Jeremiah); 26:31 (= Mk 14:27); John 19:37.

The book of the prophet Malachi

The book so named was apparently anonymous, since the name Malachi means "My messenger" and appears to be borrowed from (Mal. 3: 1). The book consists of six parts, built according to a single scheme: Yahweh or His prophet pronounces a word that is discussed by the people or priests and is interpreted in speeches in which threats and promises of salvation coexist. There are two main themes: cult misdeeds of priests, as well as of believers (Mal 1: 6–2: 9 and 3: 6–12), condemnation of mixed marriages and divorces (Mal 2: 10–16). The prophet proclaims the day of the Lord; on this day, the priesthood will be cleansed, the wicked will be destroyed and the victory of the righteous will be established (3: 1–5; 3: 13–4: 3). Fragment (Mal 4: 4–6) - insert, (Mal 2: 11b – 13a), apparently, too.

According to the content of the book, one can establish the time of its writing: the period from the resumption of services after the restoration of the temple in 515 BC to the prohibition of marriage by Nehemiah to the Gentiles in 445 BC; probably closer to the latest date. The impulse given by the prophets Haggai and Zechariah has weakened; the community has lost its composure. In a spirit reminiscent of the books of Deuteronomy and Ezekiel, the prophet argues that God, who calls His people to the religion of the heart and to purity, is not mocked. The Prophet is awaiting the arrival of the Angel of the Covenant; this parish will be prepared by the mysterious Messenger (Mal 3: 1), - Mt 11:10; and also Luke 7:27 and Mark 1: 2 see here John the Baptist, the Forerunner. The Messianic age will bring with it the restoration of morality (Mal 3: 5) and order in worship (Mal 3: 4); its culmination is the perfect sacrifice to be offered to God by all nations (Mal. 1:11).

The book of the prophet Obadiah

This shortest of all “books of prophecy” (verse 21) poses numerous problems for exegetes; interpreters evaluate its unity and genre in different ways and date it from the 9th century. BC and before the Hellenistic era. The situation is complicated by the fact that almost half of the book (Obd. 1: 2–9) is literally repeated in Jer 49: 7–22, but the originality of this passage in Jeremiah is disputed; it seems that both texts in their present state are mutually independent. The prophecy of Obadiah unfolds in two planes: the punishment of Edom and the triumph of Israel on the Lord's day. The text is close to the curses of Edom, which, beginning in 587 BC, can be found in Ps 136: 7; Lamentations 4: 21-22; Eze 25:12 35: 1; Mal 1: 2 and in the already mentioned Jer 49: 7; the Edomites then used the destruction of Jerusalem for their invasion of southern Judea. The memory of this is still alive, it seems that the prophecy was composed before returning from captivity. The passage about the day of the Lord should not be dated to a later time and attributed to another author; only the last verse can be a post-captive addition.

The prophecy of Obadiah is a passionate cry for vengeance, the desire for which is inherent in the nationalist spirit as opposed to universalism; this spirit is manifested, for example, in the second part of the book of the prophet Isaiah. The text also glorifies the terrible justice of Yahweh and His power, and it should not be separated from the totality of the phenomena of the prophetic movement, although within the framework of this movement it represents only his transitional moment and a transitory phenomenon.

The book of the prophet Joel

The book falls into two parts. In the first, a burial and supplicatory service follows the plague of locusts that devastated Judea; Yahweh promises the end of calamities and the return of prosperity (1: 2–2: 27). The second part describes the judgment of the nations, as well as the final victory of Yahweh and Israel (Ch. 3). The unity of both parts is supported by references to the day of the Lord, which introduces the theme of the third chapter, but appears already in 1:15 and 2: 1–2,10–11. The plague of locusts is a sign of the great judgment of the Lord. It may be that the third chapter was added by some book-inspired author. In any case, both parts refer to approximately the same time, since they imply the same circumstances relating to the life of the post-captive community: there is no king, the cult is emphasized, the books of the early prophets are used, especially Ezekiel and Obadiah, which is quoted in (Joel 3 :5). The book could have been written approx. 400 BC

Its correlation with the cult is obvious. Gl. 1-2 are in the nature of a penitential worship service, culminating in the promise of divine forgiveness. Therefore, the prophet Joel is viewed as a cult prophet who is serving in the temple. However, these features can also be explained as literary imitation of liturgical forms. The book does not convey the proclamation in the temple, it is built as a literary work, originally intended for reading. Here we are at the end of the movement of the prophets.

The outpouring of the spirit of prophecy on the people of God in the eschatological age (Joel 3: 1-5) corresponds to the wishes of Moses (Num 11:29). For the New Testament, this proclamation is fulfilled in the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples of Jesus, and the apostle Peter quotes the prophet Joel (Acts 2: 16-21); thus Joel is the prophet of Pentecost. But he is also a prophet of repentance: his prescriptions for fasting and prayer, taken from temple practice or built on its model, are organically woven into the Christian worship of Great Lent.

Jonah

This little book is different from all other prophetic books. This is a unique narrative, the story of a rebellious prophet who first tries to evade his mission and then complains to God about the unexpected success of his sermon. The main character to whom these adventures, not devoid of a share of comic, are attributed, is the prophet of the era of Jerobabel II, mentioned in 2 Kings 14:24. But the book is not issued for his work, and it could not belong to him. The “Great City” of Nineveh, destroyed in 612 BC, is no more than a distant memory; the way of thinking and the form of expression are borrowed from the prophets Jeremiah and Ezekiel, the language is later. Apparently, the time of the creation of the book is the post-captivity era (5th century BC). Psalm (2: 3-10), sustained in a different literary form and not associated with specific situation Jonah, nor with the morality of the book, was probably just inserted into it.

This late dating itself should be weighty evidence against the historical interpretation, which is also excluded by other arguments: God has the power to change hearts, but the sudden appeal of the king of Nineveh and all his people to the God of Israel should have left some trace in the Assyrian documents and in Bible. God commands the laws of nature, but here is a heap of miracles, which are at the same time jokes, the fun of God with His prophet: a sudden storm, the election of Jonah by lot, a giant fish, a castor-bean bush that grows overnight and dries up within an hour. All of this is told with undisguised irony, which is completely alien to all the historical narratives of Scripture.

The book wants both to please and to teach, it is a skillfully composed teaching narrative and in the understanding of salvation represents the highest point of the Old Testament. The book breaks with a dry statement of wisdom and says that the most compelling threats express the mercy of God, only waiting for signs of repentance in order to grant forgiveness. Jonah's threats are not fulfilled: God wants to be converted, and from this point of view the prophet's mission achieves absolute success, cf. Jer 18: 7-8.

Jonah's book breaks with particularism, in which the post-captive community tried to withdraw, and preaches a frank and broad universalism. In this story, everything in the world evokes sympathy: pagan sailors during a storm, the king, the inhabitants and even the animals of Nineveh - all except for one and only Israelite who appears here - the prophet Jonah. God is merciful to everyone, He is lenient even with His rebellious prophet. Israel is set an example of true obedience, and its worst enemies.

This is pretty close to the gospel, and in Matthew 12:41 and Luke 11: 29–32 Jesus gives an example of the conversion of the Ninevites; Mt. 12:40 sees in the image of the belly of the whale, which swallowed Jonah, a pre-image of Jesus' being in the tomb. This application of the story of the prophet Jonah cannot be considered proof of its historicity: Jesus uses this instructive Old Testament story in the same way that Christian preachers use the New Testament parables; this stems solely from the task of providing instructive images that the listeners trust, and not making judgments about the historical reliability of the events mentioned.