7th week

The book of Obadiah

1. First Impression

1.1 The book of Obadiah was probably written to the people of Israel after the fall of Jerusalem to Babylon between 605 and 586 BC. This assumption is made based on the verses from 11 through 14 which describe what the Edomites did against the Israelites in the time of foreign invasion and exile. They not just cheered the destruction of Jerusalem but also looted Judah afterward and even captured those who escaped from the Babylonian soldiers to hand them over to the enemy. Obviously God was greatly angered by the wicked and treacherous act of the Edomites because they were the close relatives to the Israelites above all else.

1.2 The original author of this book is Obadiah as verse 1 says that this vision of the judgment day for Edom was revealed to Obadiah.  This obscure prophet probably lived in the Southern Kingdom of Judah (Nelson’s pg247).

1.3 The main theme of this book is God’s irreversible judgment on Edom for its pride and self-reliance and his restoration of Israel.

1.4 This book was written, I think, to give hope to the people of Israel who were exiled to Babylon along with a sort of perspective on their situation. They were probably confused about the situation they ended up, thinking ‘how could we, God’s chosen people, be diminished to slaves even at the hands of the seemingly more evil pagan nation!’ This book does not mention Babylon but Edom but the people of Judah became to know through it that God was behind the scene and to their comfort this god would save them in someday. 

2. Theme Tracing

2.1 As the LORD’s name written in the verse 1 (“the Sovereign LORD”), God described in the book of Obadiah is predominantly a sovereign god. He is just who measures and weighs the sins of people on his scale and brings out judgment to them, which nobody can refute or avoid. However, at the same time, based on his anger toward the enemy state of Israel, his chosen people, we can peek into his heart, even favoritism, toward his people. Of course that does not mean Israel is free from God judgment. No! Think that God was using Babylon and Edom to punish the sins of Israel in the first place. Nevertheless, God spared a remnant from the people of Judah whereas none from the Edomites. Through the history of humanity, God has shown us his relentless, zealous pursuit of his redemption of his people with his mind-blowing, sovereign power.

2.2 The famous “but God” phrase is also found in this book. From verse 17 through 21, the prophet gives us this vision of a Jerusalem rebuilt, re-inhabited with the people who would return from exile, and that the land of Edom would be occupied by the people of Israel. This prophecy is about the return of Judah after 70 years in exile but, I think, also about God’s chosen people, the church. Because we, as church, are to experience our own exile in this world in one form or another and be delivered to Jerusalem in the mighty hand of God, where we will go up to Mount Zion and sing praises to our king, our LORD.

3.1 Out of all the verses in the book, the pride and arrogance of Edom described in verse 3 stands out to me. Because in spite of so many humbling moments I have had before God, that is exactly where I am ended up again and again. I think it is just a sinful human nature to constantly go back to this sin like a washed pig returns to the mud. I found, however, this helpless, frustrating situation helps me, in a paradoxical manner, humble myself before God. No matter how hard I try and how badly I want to be sin-free, at the end of the day, I just find myself “I can’t do it” spot. And this realization leads me time and again to Jesus who already took care of this very matter on the cross. It takes only faith for me to take it. What a wonderful truth it is!

3.2 The issue of pride and arrogance could serve us good like I mentioned above but most of the times it hinders people from accepting Jesus as their savior and lord. From my own experience, however, there is no way to convince a person of his/her pride issue because this pride itself blinds his/her eyes from the true state of their soul. It is only the Holy Spirit to take off the scale from the eyes and make us see what is truly in our mind. So how can I apply this to my point passion? On top of that, when the Scripture points out the issue of pride, it is intended to make us see our own pride not the pride of others. Maybe I need to think about it more. 

The book of Habakkuk

1. First Impression

1.1 The original reader of this book was the people of Israel who were facing the imminent threat of the Babylonian invasion (1:6; 1:12).  At the time, Judah was at the height of violence and injustice which is depicted by the prophet in verses 1:2-4.

1.2. Habakkuk, a prophet in the nation of Judah, wrote this book (1:1). The book does not give us other details about him but the musical reference at the conclusion of the book indicates that he may have been a priest connected with the temple worship in Jerusalem (Nelson’s pg 259).

1.3 The main theme found in this book is God’s judgment for the sins of Israel based on his sovereignty and righteousness, and the response of his people who believe in his goodness and faithfulness despite the circumstances beyond their understanding.

1.4 This book is obviously God’s answer to the questions put by Habakkuk. He explores to God all the violence and injustice rampant in the land of Judah and asks God to do something about it. To his surprise, God answers him that he will do something about it, but using the hand of Babylon which seems to be more evil than the people of Judah. God also reassures Habakkuk that he would destroy Babylon for the sins of their own. In the course of conversation with God, Habakkuk gets a bigger picture of God, realizing who God really is, who is in control of the human history with his infinite knowledge and wisdom.

2. Theme Tracing

2.1 One of the distinctive natures of God is found in 2:2-3, “Write my answer plainly on tablets...if it seems slow in coming, wait patiently, for it will surely take place. It will not be delayed.” God is omnipotent and omniscient so that whatever he thinks or says, that must come to pass. That is the reason why the righteous should and will live by faith which is commanded by God in the following verse 4.

2.2 The prophet describes God coming to our rescue with all might and power in 3:1-6. And he says in verse 6 that He is the Eternal One which is one of the names of Jesus, the messiah in the book of Isaiah. He comes not to destroy us but to rescue his chosen people, to save his anointed ones (2:13). Therefore, the prophet (and we) shouts for joy in the knowledge of salvation, our living God and savior

“Even though the fig trees have no blossoms, and there are no grapes on the vines; even though the olive crop fails, and the fields lie empty and barren; even though the flocks die in the fields, and the cattle barns are empty, yet I will rejoice in the LORD! I will be joyful in the God of my salvation! The Sovereign LORD is my strength! He makes me as surefooted as a deer, able to tread upon the heights.”    

The Book of Zephaniah

1. Zephaniah, the prophet, wrote this book during the reign of King Josiah of Judah (1:1) but before the city of Nineveh, the capital city of Assyria was destroyed (2:13). At the time, many leaders were corrupt and idolatry was rampant all across Judah (1:4-5). So the prophet wrote this to the people of Judah to warn them of imminent judgment for their sin and call them to repentance.

2. Theme Tracing

2.1 God hates pride and arrogance, which is found in 3:11-12 “I will remove all proud and arrogant people from among you. There will be no more haughtiness on my holy mountain. Those who are left will be the lowly and humble…” And I could also find the definition of being humble in his sight in the latter part of verse 12, “for it is they who trust in the name of the LORD.” In other words, God sees us being humble before him when we only trust in the name of the LORD, not our own work or merits.

2.2 After all the judgment calls, God promised a restoration of the remnant of Israel (3:13). He promised that he would purify the speech of all people so that everyone can worship the LORD together (3:9).

The Book of Jeremiah

1. “The book clearly states that Jeremiah is its author (1:1). He dictated all his prophecies to his secretary Baruch from the beginning of his ministry until the fourth year of Jehoiakim, and later sections were also composed. Only chapter 52, a supplement which is almost identical to 2 Kings 24:18-25:30, was evidently not written by Jeremiah. According to 36:1-3, the writing of portions of Jeremiah may be dated with some precision to the fourth year of Jehoiakim, when Jeremiah was commanded by God to write down the prophetic messages he had delivered to the people over the previous twenty years.” (Nelson’s pg 209)

2.1 God searches all hearts and examines secrete motives while the human heart is the most deceitful of all things and desperately wicked (17:9-10).

2.2 God’s redemptive plan for his people is found many times in the book of Jeremiah. Among them, in 23:3-6, saying “But I will gather together the remnant of my flock from the countries where I have driven them. I will bring them back to their own sheepfold, and they will be fruitful and increase in number. Then I will appoint responsible shepherds who will care for them, and they will never be afraid again. Not a single one will be lost or missing…When I will raise up a righteous descendant from King David’s line (Jesus!!!) He will be a King who rules with wisdom. He will do what is just and right throughout the land. And this will be his name: ‘The LORD IS Our Righteousness.’”

Lamentations

1. This book was probably written by Jeremiah though his name is not mentioned in the book. The vivid and passionate tone of the author gives a strong impression of one who had just experienced the horrors of the destruction of the Holy City and the temple (Nelson’s pg 215). Jeremiah pleaded with his people for years before the fall of Jerusalem as he knew it was coming if they did not repent.

2. The destruction of Jerusalem was God plan but he also planned the restoration of the city (2:17). And the LORD is good to those who depend on him to those who search for him. So it is good to wait quietly for salvation from the LORD (3:25-26).

The Book of Ezekiel

1. This book was written by Ezekiel to the people of Judah exiled to Babylon between 593 and 571 BC (1:1-2). In the minds of the Israelites, there were doubts and feeling of rejection along with shame in their being slaves to a pagan nation. They might have doubted God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob was still their God. Ezekiel wrote this book to enlighten them the cause of this disaster, their sin before God, but at the same time, he gave a hope of restoration by God through the remnant of the people of Judah.

2.1 Among the laments and sharp accusations against the people of Judah spoken by God, what stood out to me was 6:9, saying “then when they are exiled among the nations, they will remember me and they will recognize how hurt I am by their unfaithfulness hearts and lustful eyes that long for their idols.” He sounded like a husband hurt badly by his unfaithful, adulterous wife. He was deeply hurt and he wanted to make sure that his people knew it. However, at the same time, he revealed his state of heart seeing his people suffer in 18:23, “Do you think that I like to see wicked people die? Of course not! I want them to turn from their wicked ways and live.” And that’s exactly why he sent them into the exile n the first place. He wanted them to turn back to him and live.

2.2 There are so many references for his plan of restoring his people throughout the book such as 11:16-17, 16:60-63, 20:40-44, 29:21, 34:11-15, 23, and 36:23-30. And it reached the peak at the vision of the dry bones in 37:4-14 and the presentation of two pieces of wood in the following verses. God also promised to send a king, a shepherd of people of Israel and that he would dwell among them and be their God and they will be his people. Other than these, the book is full of all the symbols and metaphors depicting Jesus and the restoration of his Kingdom through him. Just amazing and overwhelming manifestation of God’s mercy and grace!

3. The book is ended like this, “And from that day the name of the city will be ‘The LORD Is There.’” It just strikes me again and again that this is my God’s only desire demonstrated throughout the history of mankind and his works in it. He wants to dwell among us and be our God and wants us to be his people. To his very purpose he worked, is working and will work till the end of the world. To be honest, his fierce desire and jealousy he has in order to accomplish this purpose is just beyond my comprehension. However, I am just grateful and glad for the fact that I am included in this plan. I am chosen by his grace. That is the one and only reason I praise his name forever and more. 

The book of Daniel

1. This book was written by Daniel (12:4) and he used the autobiographical first person from 7:2 onward (Nelson’s pg 229). It is assumed that Daniel wrote this book between 536 and 530 BC- soon after Cyrus of Persian conquered Babylon in 539 BC (Sourceveiw pg 1118). Daniel might have wanted to give a hope to the people of Judah who had been exiled for years by showing God’s plan for restoration of his people.

2.1 The most outstanding nature of God in this book is his sovereignty. Daniel said in 2:21-22, “he controls the course of world events; he removes kings and sets up other kings.” As repeated over and over in the previous books, God hates pride and arrogance. Actually, he made a vivid illustration to make this point with King Nebuchanezzar and Belshazzar. He made it clear that “he is able to humble the proud (4:37)” For me, this sounds like awesome thing ever happened to human beings. Because we, humans, are never able to realize our own pride by our own eyes. It is only by grace of God who reveals the true state of our mind and humbles us before him for us to repent.

 2.2 In the dream of Nebuchadnezzar, a rock, which was cut from a mountain, not by human hands stoke the feet of iron and clay, smashing them to bits, symbolizes Jesus who came to the world to destroy the earthly kingdom and build an everlasting kingdom (2:34-45). In another vision, Daniel saw some like a son of man coming with the clouds of heaven. He was given authority, honor and sovereignty over all the nations of the world. In this book, I could see God working at a global scale to save his people of every race, nation and language.

3. I learned a lesson from Daniel’s prayer in 9:18 where he said “we make this plea, not because we deserve help, but because of your mercy.” That is the only attitude or position we can ever have before God in prayer, I think. We have nothing but the grace of God to rely on when we come to his presence. Nevertheless, I find myself too often times trying to depend on something else based on which I attempt to present my request to God. How ridiculous it is! Even though in my mouth I claim the grace of God, my mind is always busy finding my merits, my being worthy to come to God. However, this prayer of Daniel humbles me once again to claim only God’s mercy to be in his presence.