Digital Logos Edition
This volume includes commentary on the first six books of the Minor Prophets: Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, and Micah. Though varied in setting, style, audience, and theme, these books share at least one commonality: each is an important message from God. With interpretive skill and theological passion, Achtemeier helps the reader see the importance of these messages for today.
“And the true miracle in the book of Jonah is not that he is saved by being swallowed by a great fish but that the creator of the universe deals with creation in mercy and not with the stern justice that human creatures so richly deserve.” (Page 256)
“Disobedience rarely has consequences only for the sinner, however.” (Page 263)
“Prophets also had the function of proclaiming, on the basis of that word, just where and how and why God was at work, and it is this general function of prophecy that the book of Jonah fulfills. It tells where and how and why the God of Israel is at work. Indeed, the central character in the story is not Jonah but God. And through this story, God’s character and purpose are revealed.” (Pages 255–256)
“But the important point is that Amos begins that long line of classical prophecy primarily directed not against individuals but against the nation as a whole.” (Page 166)
“five distinct passages that alternate between messages of doom and of hope for the future” (Page 8)