Synopsis of Each of the Twelve Prophets

Hosea

Hosea was active as a prophet during the mid to late eighth century BC, close to the times of both Isaiah and Micah. His prophecy is essentially directed at the Northern Kingdom of Israel, but he also puts the southern Kingdom of Judah on warning. He is called upon to marry Gomer, a woman of loose morals who would consistently return to her promiscuous ways. The story is, in effect, a metaphor of how God suffers because of His people’s infidelity. What is revealed in the book is the heart and holiness of God and it confirms to us that even though we may be unfaithful to Him, He is always prepared to forgive us if we are repentant.

Joel

Joel is an enigmatic figure who appears to understand other prophecies and the history of his nation - notice in the compass of three chapters he practically quotes from every other prophetic book. Catastrophe had just struck the people of Judah. A locust infestation had decimated the possessions of the people, and Joel’s message warned that there were more invasions still to come. Joel pleads with the people that they would rend their hearts and not their garments and show true repentance, 2. 13. The book gives vivid details of the Day of the Lord, as well as anticipating the gift of the Holy Spirit being given to believers.

Amos

Amos was a Judean shepherd who is called upon by God to take a message of judgement to the Northern Kingdom of Israel, which was enjoying a renaissance under the corrupt rule of Jeroboam II. Amos pronounces the devastation that would be directed at Israel’s enemies for their crimes against humanity. Once Amos has captured his audience, he then turns his attention to Israel, who was not only guilty of social injustice, but their hearts were far away from God even though they were punctilious in their observances of religious feasts. Israel would be judged for their crimes against God, who roars like a lion from Zion; cp. 3. 4; Isa. 31. 4. Ultimately, however, through repentance, God would plant Israel in their own land, never to be uprooted again, Amos 9. 15. The prophecy warns us against the danger of simply going through the motions of ritual religious observances, and of being socially unjust in our dealings with others.

Obadiah

A difficult book to date precisely, but the message of Obadiah is quite simply that those who mistreat God’s people will be punished. How topical, then, is this message today, and whilst historically the message of judgement is principally pronounced against Edom (the descendants of Esau), the thrust of the book is that no nation will be able to escape the judgement of God in the Day of the Lord unless there is repentance on their part. The Edomites boasted in their impregnable rocky highland fortress, but this would prove to be self-deception. Pride always goes before destruction!

Jonah

An unusual prophet who seemingly had a personal grudge against the people of Nineveh, the capital of Assyria. Although he is called upon by God to take a message of repentance to Nineveh, he refuses to do so, and takes a journey by sea in the opposite direction. During the sea voyage he is cast overboard and is swallowed up by a giant sea creature. After being spued out by the sea creature he eventually gets back on the right track again and pronounces God’s message to the people of Nineveh. The book reveals to us the patience and long suffering of God as well as His care for those that we might lightly esteem. Even if we might question God’s purposes in this world, ultimately, He reigns supreme, and, despite us, He will show mercy to those who oppose Him if they turn from their ways and repent.

Micah

Micah prophesied during the times of Isaiah, Hosea, and Amos in the late eighth century BC. His message was delivered to Israel and Judah through anguished tears. ‘Because of this I will weep and wail; I will go about barefoot and naked. I will howl like a jackal and moan like an owl’, Mic. 1. 8 NIV. Micah is a vehement critic of the social constructs of his day and the leaders of Judah and Israel. He denounces the leaders and the so-called prophets of his time whom he saw as oppressing God’s people. Micah is a book that warns of judgement but offers the hope of redemption through a coming Saviour. God reminds His people that the principles governing His kingdom are not driven by economic pressure but the motivations of the heart.

Nahum

Nahum comes many years after the prophet Jonah to pronounce judgement against Nineveh again, even while Assyria flaunted its power and wealth. Nahum plays the part of a watchman on the walls of Nineveh urging the people to prepare for an imminent attack, but then he describes the demise of the city. Nahum carries the weight of this message to the unrepentant Assyrians: ‘“I am against you,” declares the Lord Almighty. “I will burn up your chariots in smoke, and the sword will devour your young lions. I will leave you no prey on the earth. The voices of your messengers will no longer be heard”’, Nahum 2. 13 NIV. Even though God is slow to anger, He will act when it is necessary to do so.

Habakkuk

Initially, Habakkuk does not announce judgement but spends time reflecting and lamenting over the horrors he sees at work in Israel, and the terrors God is allowing Babylon to carry out. Habakkuk cries out to God because of these terrors and the God of Job answers, again. The book gives us a vivid insight into the heart of a man who both loved and questioned God - compare Job’s experience. Habakkuk had faith in God, but the honesty of his inquiry connects with the doubting heart struggling to hold to faith in the face of pain. ‘O Lord, how long shall I cry [for help], and thou wilt not hear! even cry out unto thee of violence, and thou wilt not save!’ Hab. 1. 2. The book is important because it reveals the struggles that believers often go through when doubts arise in their walk of faith.

Zephaniah

Zephaniah prophesied during the reforming reign of King Josiah. He constantly warned the people of the consequences their persistent idol worship would bring upon them. He uses devastating imagery to show the sort of judgement that would be inflicted by God for their apostasy, but ultimately the judgement was designed to bring purity and unity. We see in Zephaniah chapter 3 verse 9 the overarching intention of God towards His wayward people, ‘Then I will restore to the peoples a pure language, that they all may call on the name of the Lord, to serve Him with one accord’ NKJV. The book is an important reminder to us, then, that God’s correction of His people is always with a view to our ultimate good.

Haggai

Haggai is the first of the post-exilic prophets and was present during the rebuilding of the temple after Babylon was conquered and Cyrus allowed the Jews to return to the Promised Land. Haggai’s message is simply about getting our priorities right as believers. It was a joyful experience to return to Jerusalem, but the work of restoration would be extremely difficult. Many of the people who returned to Jerusalem from exile still remembered the halcyon days of the past and the Solomonic temple building and were easily discouraged by the extent of the new building project. Haggai encourages the people to be strong in faith because God was with them - the same God who had brought them out of exile. Haggai was partnered with a younger prophet - Zechariah - who dreamed dreams and had visions of the future, thus giving the people hope of a coming deliverer.

Zechariah

Zechariah was a young man who worked in tandem with Haggai in the post-exilic period. Unlike Haggai, who encouraged the people, Zechariah experienced dreams and visions that recounted the consequences Israel had experienced for their apostasy. He also awakened hope in the returning exiles for the coming of a king who would reign in Jerusalem that would be the centre of world power. Both the first and second comings of Christ are prefigured in this prophecy, which is a major example of apocalyptic genre. Martin Luther described this book as the quintessence of Old Testament prophecy.

Malachi

Malachi is the last of the twelve minor prophets, although not necessarily the last prophet chronologically. For a period of over 400 years, the prophetic word remains silent until the appearance of John the Baptist. Malachi came along at a time of spiritual indifference when the people of God were struggling to believe that God loved them. They were more concerned about their circumstances and refused to account for their own sinful deeds. God, through Malachi, points out where the people had fallen short of their covenant with Him. If they hoped to see changes, they needed to take responsibility for their own actions and serve God faithfully according to the promise their fathers had made to God on Mount Sinai all those years before. It provides hope of a coming Messiah who would arise as the Sun of righteousness and usher in the dawn of a new day. The book encourages us to look beyond our own personal difficulties and ensure our relationship with God is based on honesty and integrity.