AOS 2 Flashcards
What is a covenant in ancient times?
- agreements between kings, tribes or families
- are initiated to show an agreement that has been made
- sealed through a formal ceremony and/or reminder marker such as boundary stones
- this is the equivalent of the moden day contract.
What is a covenant in the Jewish Tradition
- sacred scripture often refers to covenantal relationships between God and his chosen people (Jewish people)
- are established by patriarchs in the stories of the Torah
- reinforced by the messages of the prophets through the following generations
Note: everything that prophets do is based on covenants and the abuse of it by the people
Typical features of covenants
- a description of God’s promise/s to His people
- a description of their obligations to Hum, as God’s chosen people
- a ritual- to seal the bond, through a meal, ceremony, an oath, a sacrifice- often involves the shedding of blood.
- a physical marker- to remind the people about the covenant, not only them but also future generations
The story of Noah
1. God’s promise to the people
2. The people’s obligations to God
3. Ritual elements
4. Physical markers
- He establishes the covenant with Noah’s descendants and all living things. He won’t destroy the earth.
- Be fruitful and multiply. Rule over everything. Don’t eat anything with blood
- If you break the covenant, which is to preserve life, you will use yours
- Clouds and bow (rainbow) in the sky
Examples of Covanents with God: look over them if you have time
God’s covenant with Abraham and the blood covenant
What is the purpose of biblical prophecy?
Its about dealing with current issues in the present, rather than predicting the future.
For example:
Jonah predicts the world will end in 40 days, but that doesn’t occur, The message wasn’t telling the future, it was warning people about the present. This is because it isn’t a foretelling of what’s to come but a threat. 40 is a symbolic number of bad things, saying you need to change so this doesn’t happen.
Amos, another prophet, makes very few predictions about the future. His message is simply that God’s people need to shape up!
What is a prophet?
- in the old testament a prophet was one who spoke or brought a message in God’s name.
- they were the conscience of a nation, and because of this usually weren’t very popular. They weren’t, however, universally despised
- they were messengers of God to remind the nation of Israel to remember and keep their covenant with God
Who were the prophets?
- the prophets were from all walks of life and classes.
- they could be priests and also common people
- they could be wealthy or poor
- the only thing they had to have in common was a calling form God and a willingness to pursue this calling
How were prophets appointed?
- they are not appointed or elected
- they are individuals who felt called by God to perform a specific task in the community
- the concept of a person responding to a direct call from God, often against their will, is central to the Israelite’s understanding of prophets (e.g. Jonah)
Two kinds of prophets- not finished
- speaking prophets
they spoke on the behalf of God, there were no biblical books named after them (e.g. Elisha) - writing prophets
they spoke on behalf of God, and there were books named after them (e.g. Amos)
Major and minor prophets, don’t very in importance only in the size of the work left in their book
typical features of prophetic books
compilations of materials:
- saying and actions of prophets
- recorded by the disciples
- which was later written down, edited and sometimes revised and supplemented by later writers
Who was the prophet Amos?
He was a prophet who spoke out during the reign of King Jeroboam II that dates the events of the book of Amos in the middle of the 8th century BC.
He was from the small town of Tekoa, a small village south of Jerusalem in Judae
He was a shepherd and farmed sheep, but it was obvious he was educated, because he was eloquent and his arguments were well structured.
What was the background of his time?
The north was prosperous and has peace under this new king. The rich thought they were rich because of divine right and vice versa.
- Religious perversion. The king created temples that worship golden cows because he feared that his authority would be eroded by pilgramiges to the other temples.
- Economic Exploitation. It was economically stable but morally bankrupt, the rich were unfairly treating the poor. e.g. debt slavery, corruption in the courts, and wrongful acquisition of property.
Amos’ message
Amos’ message to the people of the north was one of social justice. He talked about how God and His covenant demands morality, decency and justice, and how that is more important that ritualised religious practices that mean nothing. He particularly focused on the lives of the wealthy and the corrupt.
The reaction to Amos’ message
Amos was from the southern kingdom of Judae, so his criticism was not popular in the north, where he was sharing his message. He was accused by the priests of undermining the king’s authority and has forced to return to Judae. A few years after he was sent home the northern kingdom was destroyed and it was interpreted as punishment for the North due to their failures in upholding the covenant.
