Description
Book SynopsisTchavdar S. Hadjiev is a Lecturer in Old Testament at Belfast Bible College and the Institute of Theology, Queen's University Belfast, UK.
Trade ReviewThis guide has the potential to be a very useful resource for teachers and students, and anyone interested in studying the books of Joel, Obadiah, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah. ... readers will benefit from the additional resources provided at the end of each chapter for further study of various aspects of these books. * Vetus Testamentum *
These prophetic books do not come top of the list for Old Testament study. Fortunately, in Hadjiev we have a master teacher who lucidly opens up their value for his readers. In addition to providing an amazing digest of all the latest research, he also gives guidelines to pick one’s way through the various opinions. As a bonus he also offers sensitive comments on approaches to their modern interpretation. * H. G. M. Williamson, Regius Professor of Hebrew Emeritus, University of Oxford, UK *
In this concise and extremely helpful volume, Hadjiev proves to be an exemplary guide: clearly and carefully helping the reader navigate through a host of complex issues, while offering an invaluable introduction to the vast literature on these prophetic books. For scholars and students alike, this volume should be first off the shelf when exploring these minor prophets. * Brad Anderson, Dublin City University, Ireland *
Hadjiev is a knowledgeable, judicious and lucid guide to this group of prophetic books and to the sometimes thorny terrain of their scholarly study. This introduction manages to be extremely thorough while being easy to navigate: anyone looking for an orientation to these four books will find here a clarity and analytical precision which make it easy to get down to work. A very valuable resource. * Jennie Grillo, University of Notre Dame, USA *
Table of ContentsAbbreviations Introduction: 1 Joel, Obadiah, Habakkuk, Zephaniah and the book of the Twelve 6 Part One Joel 2 Reading Joel as a composite literary work: The structure and unity of the book 3 The contexts of Joel: Historical, literary and canonical 4 The setting and genre of Joel 5 Locusts, armies and the Day of the Lord in the book of Joel
Part Two Obadiah 6 The composition and unity of the book of Obadiah 7 The historical background of Obadiah 8 The genre, setting and purpose of Obadiah 9 Edom and the image of the other
Part Three Habakkuk 10 Interpretation problems in the book of Habakkuk 11 The righteous and the wicked: The contexts and meaning of Habakkuk 1–2 12 The prayer of Habakkuk (chapter 3) 13 Theodicy, empire and violence: Reflections on the theology of Habakkuk
Part Four Zephaniah 14 The genre and structures of the book of Zephaniah 15 Zephaniah the prophet 16 Zephaniah’s oracles against the nations and the composition of 1.1–3.8 17 Zephaniah’s message of hope (3.9-20) and the canonical shape of the book
Bibliography Index
