Prophets — IBKI

Four of these prophets, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Daniel have multiple studies due to the length of their writings. Generally, no attempt has been made to identify the exact time, if known, when they wrote. The writings of David and Solomon are included later but without the format used elsewhere in this study guide.

1 Isaiah 2 Jeremiah 3 Lamentations 4 Ezekiel 5 Daniel 6 Hosea 7 Joel 8 Amos 9 Obadiah 10 Jonah 11 Micah 12 Nahum 13 Habakkak 14 Zephaniah 15 Haggai 16 Zechariah 17 Malachi

Meaningless Worship

Setting: Isaiah prophesied during the reign of four kings of Judah foretelling things to happen to Judah and many other nations around them. He also prophesied many things about the righteous ruler to come, Jesus.

Text: Isaiah 1-5

Key Point. Stop offering meaningless worship to the Lord and get out of His sight or else repent and obey while helping those who cannot help themselves. Does meaningless worship exist today? If so, do we participate?

Word Study:

1:13 Convocations – the closing day of the feasts, on which there was a holy convocation: so, the great days (from Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown Commentary, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1997 by Biblesoft) 2:2 In the last days – Time following the end of Law of Moses beginning with the coming of Christ.

Holy is the Lord Almighty

Text: Isaiah 6 – 12

Key Point. The Lord Almighty is the one to regard as Holy, to be feared and dreaded and will be a sanctuary. In the future He will honor Galilee of the Gentiles being seen as a great light.

Word Study:

6:2 Seraph – A category of angels standing before the court of God, meaning fiery one (plural is Seraphim).

Prophecies Against Nations

Text: Isaiah 13 – 17

Key Point. Prophecies against Babylon, Assyria, Moab and Damascus

Word Study:

14:12 Morning Star – Refer to 2 Peter 1:19, Revelation 2:28 and Revelation 22:16

More Prophecies Against Nations

Text: Isaiah 18 – 23

Key Point. Prophecies against Egypt, Babylon, Tyre and Jerusalem

God Glorified

Text: Isaiah 24 – 27

Key Point. God is glorified by His deliverance of Israel.

Woe to God’s Chosen People

Text: Isaiah 28 – 31

Key Point. Suddenly God will come and bring disaster upon obstinate people who call Him their God but do not obey His commands, just as true then as now.

Word Study:

28:1 Ephraim – This is a reference to the Ten Tribes (Northern Kingdom, Kingdom of Israel)

A King of Righteousness to Come

Text: Isaiah 32 – 35

Hezekiah

Text: Isaiah 36 – 39

Key Point. Repent, turn things over to God and pray allowing God time and ways to provide the answer.

God’s Grace and Mercy

Text: Isaiah 40 – 43

Key Point. God’s faithfulness, grace and mercy is always present even when His people are unfaithful.

I Am the Lord - There Is No Other

Text: Isaiah 44– 50

Key Point. I am the Lord, apart from me there is no other. Woe to him who quarrels with his Maker. Repent, turn to Me and be saved. I teach you what is best for you and direct you in the way you should go. Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved." Acts 4:12

Our Living Sacrifice

Text: Isaiah 51 – 59

Key Point. Seek the Lord while He can be found. Maintain justice and do what is right for salvation is close at hand and My righteousness will soon be revealed.

The Good News

Text: Isaiah 60 – 66

Key Point. God reveals Himself to those who are not seeking Him. He will create new heavens and a new earth but his throne is presently in Heaven with the Earth His footstool.

Judgment Against Israel

Setting: Jeremiah began his prophesying during the reign of Josiah at a young age and prophesied for around 40 years or several years following the taking of Judah into captivity to Babylon.

Text: Jeremiah 1 – 5:19

Key Point. God pronounced judgment on Judah because of their wickedness while pleading with them to repent and return allowing Him to be merciful. But they would not!

Judgment Against Judah

Setting: Jeremiah began his prophesying during the reign of Josiah at a young age and prophesied for around 40 years or several years following the taking of Judah into captivity to Babylon

Text: Jeremiah 5:20 – 11

Key Point. Judah has closed their ears and followed the stubborn inclinations of their evil hearts allowing truth and justice to perish.

Repent to Avoid Judgment

Setting: Jeremiah began his prophesying during the reign of Josiah at a young age and prophesied for around 40 years or several years following the taking of Judah into captivity to Babylon.

Text: Jeremiah 11 – 15

Key Point. It will not do any good to pray for them for God will not listen because of their wickedness. God will destroy them for their continual backsliding. However, if they would only repent, He would restore them so they could serve Him. Repentance, the change from disobedience to righteousness.

Clay in the Hands of Our Almighty God

Setting: Jeremiah began his prophesying during the reign of Josiah at a young age and prophesied for around 40 years or several years following the taking of Judah into captivity to Babylon

Text: Jeremiah 16 – 20

Key Point. “I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds deserve.” You are like clay in My hands, if you do not obey Me and I cannot use you like I intended, then I can reconsider the good I had intended.

Administer Justice

Setting: Jeremiah prophesies against Jehoiakim and Zedekiah, the last king of Judah before the exile into Babylon.

Text: Jeremiah 21 – 24

Key Point. Do what is just and right. Rescue the oppressed. Do not shed innocent blood. Do no violence to the alien, fatherless or widows. In the New Covenant the oppressed are those living in sin. They can be rescued by the Gospel Christ.

Seventy Years of Captivity

Setting: In his twenty third year of prophesying Jeremiah prophesies against Jehoiakim and Zedekiah, the last king of Judah before the exile into Babylon.

Text: Jeremiah 25 – 29

Key Point. Because of your continual and unrepentant sins and the sins of your fathers you will not go unpunished.

Jeremiah Threatened

Setting: Because of his speaking the words of God to the people, priest, kings and nobles threatened him but now after his prophesies have proven true, he writes to those in exile.

Text: Jeremiah 30 – 34

Key Point. Glory will be restored to God’s chosen people for the time will come when I will put my laws in their minds and write it in their hearts and I will forgive their wickedness.

Jeremiah Threatened Again

Setting: During the reign of Jehoiakim and Zedekiah kings of Judah.

Text: Jeremiah 35 – 38

Key Point. The kings and people of Judah must turn from their wicked ways and reform their actions else God will allow the Babylonians to capture Judah and burn Jerusalem.

The Fall of Jerusalem

Setting: Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon laid siege to Jerusalem. Many, if not most, of those who remained inside died while those who fled and surrendered survived and were taken to cities in Babylon.

Text: Jeremiah 39 – 45

Key Point. They chose the desire of man which is slavery to sin over obedience to God. God destroyed their earthly dwelling in this life and will destroy their spiritual dwelling in the life to come, if they do not change their ways and return to God’s ways. Years later Jerusalem was under siege. This time the temple and all is records was destroyed for they refused to acknowledge God in their presence after signs and miracles and His resurrection from Death by Their hand using the Roman government.

God’s Prophesy Against Other Peoples and Nations

Setting: God’s message was against Egypt, Philistines, Moab, Ammon, Edom, Damascus, Kedar and Hazor

Text: Jeremiah 46 – 49

Key Point. “I will discipline you but only with justice, I will not let you go entirely unpunished.”

Prophesy Against Babylon

Setting: Jeremiah delivers God’s message against Babylon

Text: Jeremiah 50 – 52

Key Point. Because of wickedness Jerusalem fell to Babylon. But Babylon was arrogant and was to fall never to rise again.

Lamenting Over Fall of Judah

Setting: It is speculated that Jeremiah is doing the lamenting either during or after the fall of Jerusalem to the Babylonians.

Text: Lamentations

Key Point. The Lord does what He planned and as He prophesied by overthrowing you without pity. But the Lord is good to those who hope in and seek Him as He will not cast off forever but will show compassion

Warning to Israel

Setting: On the banks of the Kebar River [or canal] in addition to other places and among the exiles from Judah.

Text: Ezekiel 1 – 7

Key Point. God will judge a person, even a nation, by their conduct and repay according to their detestable practices.

Word Study:

1:1 Kebar – An opinion is that the Kebar or "Chebar" was the royal canal of Nebuchadnezzar which connected the Tigris with the Euphrates.

Unacceptable Worship Text: Ezekiel 8 – 16

Key Point. “... Repent! Turn from your idols [evil ways] and renounce all your detestable practices! … if a country sins against me by being unfaithful and I stretch out my hand against it to cut off its food supply and send famine upon it and kill its men and their animals.”

Word Study:

8:17 branch to their nose - “a proverbial expression denoting perhaps their scoffing at God and having him in derision; they snuffed at his service, as men do when they put a branch to their nose. Or it was some custom used by idolaters in honour of the idols they served. We read of garlands used in their idolatrous worships (Acts 14:13), out of which every zealot took a branch which they smelled” (Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible:New Modern Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1991 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.)

Fate of the Sinful Text: Ezekiel 17 – 24:14

Key Point.

The soul who sins is the one who will die.
If a wicked man turns away from all the sins he has committed and keeps all my decrees and does what is just and right, he will surely live; he will not die.
If a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits sin and does the same detestable things the wicked man does, will he live? None of the righteous things he has done will be remembered.

Prophecies Against Countries

Text: Ezekiel 24:15 – 28

Key Point. God called to task the countries near Israel who by their idols led Israel astray and who took revenge against them.

Prophecy Against Egypt

Text: Ezekiel 29 – 32

Key Point. Because of its pride, arrogance and idols Egypt will also be brought low by Nebuchadnezzar.

Watchman

Text: Ezekiel 33 – 36

Key Point. God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked but desires them to turn from wickedness and live righteously. However, if the righteous do evil his previous righteousness will not be remembered just like an evil person’s sin will not be remembered if he repents.

The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:9

Gog and Magog

Text: Ezekiel 37 – 40 Temple

Text: Ezekiel 41 – 44

Division of Land

Text: Ezekiel 45 – 48

Key Point.

Daniel Taken to Babylon

Setting: Zephaniah warned that God would destroy. Now from far away Babylon Nebuchadnezzar conquers and takes most to Babylon as slaves including Daniel.

Text: Daniel 1 – 4

Key Point: Daniel chose to remain faithful to God and not defile himself. God chose to interpret Nebuchadnezzar’s dream through Daniel. Nebuchadnezzar praised God because of Daniel but soon forgot by building a golden idol to worship.

Visions of New Kingdom to Last Forever

Setting: Daniel, having been in a place of authority under Nebuchadnezzar, was apparently forgotten by his son Belshazzar. He had many visions during this period.

Text: Daniel 5 – 7

Key Point: Visions of things to come where the Son of Man received authority over all people, languages and nations for his kingdom will last forever and ever.

Dreams and Visions

Setting: Still during the reign of Belshazzar, Daniel has additional dream and visions of things to come.

Text: Daniel 8 – 9

Key Point: Destruction of Jerusalem foretold.

Word Study:

8:16 Ulai – proper name, of a river Ulai of Elam

Wars upon Wars

Setting: During the rule of Cyrus king of Persia.

Text: Daniel 10-12

Key Point: During a time in the future the lands of Israel will be invaded continuously back and forth from the north and south with much carnage.

Faithfulness of God – Unfaithfulness of Man

Setting: During the reign of Uzzizh (Azariah), Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah in Judah. Two of whom did what was right and two did evil.

Text: Hosea

Key Point: The chosen people of God, the tribe of Judah, were unfaithful to their covenant with God but God would remain faithful even when He allowed unrighteous nations to take them away from the Promised Land until they repented.

Joel

Setting: There is a difference of opinion when Joel prophesied

Text: Joel

Key Point: Judah had left God worshipping their neighbor’s idols instead. His advice was to “Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God for he is gracious and compassionate.”

Amos

Setting: Amos lived in Judah but was sent to Israel to during Jerobaom’s rule.

Text: Amos

Key Point: Judah, Israel and the nations around them have done evil, perverted and denied justice to the poor and needy, for which they will be punished.

Obadiah

Setting: Edom, the country of Esau’s descendants, was south and east of Jerusalem and the Salt or Dead Sea. The Edomites refused to allow the Children of Israel to pass through their country on the way to the Promised Land.

Text: Obadiah

Key Point: Your pride of heart has deceived you. You should not have looked down on your brother. Therefore “as you have done, it will be done to you; your deeds will return upon your own head.”

Jonah

Setting: Nineveh was probably built by Nimrod and situated north and east of Jerusalem and north of Babylon (possibly Bagdad area but could be south).

Text: Jonah

Key Point: God has compassion on all who turn from evil. Man must not allow prejudice to prevent him from loving people and wanting them to come to God for forgiveness and blessings.

Micah

Setting: During the reign of Ahaz and Hezekah. It was said of Hezekah that he trusted the Lord and did that which was right in His sight.

Text: Micah

Key Point: A warning of the destruction of Jerusalem and Samaria and a declaration as to what God desires “To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”

Nahum

Setting: Unknown

Text: Nahum

Key Point: Warning of the destruction of Nineveh as the Lord will not leave the guilty unpunished

Habakkuk

Setting: Appears to be sometime before Babylon under Nebuchadnezzar invades Judah and take them captive.

Text: Habakkuk

Key Point: Violence and injustice is prevalent throughout Judah. How long will God continue to allow these things before He allows something to get their attention to return to Him?

Zephaniah

Setting: Zephaniah warned of destruction during the reign of Josiah who became king over Judah at the age of eight and ruled thirty-one years. He did right in the sight of God.

Text: Zephaniah

Key Point: God warns Egypt, Assyria, Judah, Moab and Ammon that they will be destroyed as he did with Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon.

Haggai

Setting: During the time Zerubbabel was governor of Judah during the reign in Babylon of Darius

Text: Haggai

Key Point: God’s work has not been completed. Therefore, give careful thought to your ways for God does not bless those who focus primarily on the material things of life.

Repent! So, I can Return

Setting: Zechariah was in exile in Babylon and began prophesying during the rule of Darius.

Text: Zechariah

Key Point: Return to me, repent, and I will return to you. Administer justice, show mercy, be compassionate and do not oppress. Prophecies about a Son of David, Jesus, who will in righteousness bring salvation to all who put their trust in Him and obey His commands.

Malachi

Setting: Malachi was the last prophet of Israel before Christ came. He prophesied some time after temple was completed.

Text: Malachi

Key Point: Judah was offering defiled food, practicing false worship. They had changed but not God as He never changes but is always wanting his people to return to Him so He can return to them.

Text and illustrations reproduced from the study “Prophets”. The original PDF is the reference copy.