The Later Prophets and Social Justice

Last updated on: October 18, 2007 at 1:30 pm by voxnovablog

The Later Prophets and Social Justice 2007-10-18T13:30:37-05:00 voxnovablog

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(When we start looking at Catholic Social Teaching, we always have to go back to its main source: Sacred Scriptures and the Later Prophets have a message that is never out-of-date. Below is a short essay I had to write for my Old Testament class)

The Deuteronomistic History is comprised in the books of Joshua, Judges, 1 and 2 Samuel, and 1 and 2 Kings, which recount events that span approximately 600 years—from the conquest of Canaan (around 1200 BCE) through the destruction of Jerusalem in 587 BCE. Most scholars agree that there are two versions of the Deuteronomistic History. The first edition was written in Hebrew by an author of the priestly tradition during the reign of King Josiah (640-609 BCE) whose reforms led the people to renew the covenant with Yahweh. The later version was edited by perhaps a group of scribes after the destruction of Jerusalem in 587 BCE, because Josiah could no longer be portrayed as the fulfillment of the covenant between Yahweh and the people of Israel. Thus, during the Babylonian exile, the Israelites understood the catastrophic consequences of failing to obey the Lord’s commandments as Moses had warned them earlier (Deut 28). The Deuteronomistic History can be viewed more as a theologized history rather than a narration of mere historical facts. The author(s) of these books is not concerned with conveying to the reader factual information regarding the social, religious, cultural, and political context of ancient Israel, but rather with emphasizing the necessity for Israel to keep the Law of Moses in order for it to rise “above all the nations of the earth.” (Deut 28:1).

In order to understand the thematic shift from the Deuteronomistic History to the Later Prophets, let us investigate further into the roles that prophets played in ancient Israel. Hebrew Prophets were not mere seers, fortune-tellers, or prognosticators, but rather served as the mouthpieces of Yahweh—the vehicles that carried His word to Israel. Prophets appeared mainly during critical times for the Jews, such as the Assyrian invasion, the Babylonian crisis, and the post-exilic period. One of the theological themes of the prophetic writings deals with reminding the Jews to worship Yahweh alone, which is in continuation with the writings contained in the Pentateuch and the Deuteronomistic History. However, there is an unprecedented emergence of the theme of social justice in the Prophets that is mainly due to the violation of certain statutes in the Mosaic Torah on the part of the Jews that dealt with loving one’s neighbor (Lev. 19:18) and fair treatment of the poor (Lev 23:35-37, Deut 15:1-2, 16:19). As a result, as one reads through the Prophetic books, it becomes evident that the Prophets question the validity of following only the Torah’s statutes that are concerned with rituals and sacrifices while violating the Mosaic principles dealing with the fair and ethical treatment of one another.

The book of the Prophet Amos was written in Hebrew during exilic times, but the prophecies contained in the book date back to the Assyrian period (approximately 760 BCE). The author of the book is uncertain for the oracles may have been compiled by the prophet himself or a later disciple. Amos proclaimed Yahweh’s message of the disastrous fate of the northern kingdom of Israel. Amos criticized heavily the leaders of Israel for exploiting the poor as means to increase their wealth (Amos 8:4) and predicts Israel’s fall and eventual exile as a punishment for social and economic injustices (Amos 6:7, 8:11-12). Hence, Amos predicted the fall of Israel to Assyria in 721 BCE.

The book of the prophet Jeremiah was written in Hebrew and his preaching dates back to 626-587 BCE. The author of the book is uncertain for the oracles may have been compiled by the prophet himself or a later disciple. There is consensus among scholars that his prophecies were edited later, but the final date is unknown, perhaps during exilic or post-exilic times. Out of all the prophets, Jeremiah is the prophet who is concerned the most with social justice. Jeremiah considers that Josiah’s deuteronomistic reforms have failed, because of the reigning social and economic injustices in Judah (Jer 5:26-29). Jeremiah saw how the leaders of Judah followed the Mosaic laws relating to Temple worship, but seemed to ignore those principles that sought to protect the most vulnerable in society. Thus, Jeremiah, as well as other prophets, insisted in the need for Judah to understand the moral implications of the worship of Yahweh. Jeremiah is considered a defeatist, because he proclaims that those who submit to Babylon will be spared from destruction (Jer 27:8, 32:1-5). He sees Babylon as the chastisement chosen by Yahweh against Judah for their idolatry and social injustice (22:1-9, 37:16-21, 38:14-28).

The book of the prophet Isaiah was written in Hebrew and its authorship is debated among scholars mainly because of the diverse themes and the wide range of historical events that this book alludes to that span two hundred years. Most scholars agree on dividing the book of Isaiah in three parts. The first part of the book (Ch. 1-39) is attributed to Isaiah of Jerusalem and the events alluded to span from 735-701 BCE in the middle of the Assyrian crisis. Chapters 40-55 are usually called Deutero-Isaiah—also called Second Isaiah—which may have been written by a later disciple of Isaiah. The writings take place a short time prior to the Babylonian invasion and during the exile as well (587-539 BCE). The oracles belonging to a later period (Ch. 56-66) are called Trito-Isaiah—also called Third Isaiah—and the events mentioned take place in the midst of post-exilic events (post 539 BCE). The authorship of the Third Isaiah, just as for Second Isaiah, is difficult to determine; however, some scholars believe that the author may have also been the final editor of the middle part of the book after the Babylonian exile.

Criticisms of economic greed and exploitation of the poor are present in first Isaiah (Is 1:13-17, 10:1-4) just as in Amos and Jeremiah. At the same time, he predicts that a ruler from the line of David will establish peace and justice (Is 11:1). In contrast to the themes of criticism and reproach, the Deutero-Isaiah, or Second Isaiah, focuses instead on the redemptive and liberating power of Yahweh (Is 40-43) since his preaching took place during the times of the Babylonian exile. After returning from exile, many questions as to how the Jews were to live had to be answered in order to rebuild the people of Israel. These answers are provided by Third Isaiah who proclaims that for Israel to be renewed, it had to obey God’s commandments and treat each other justly (Is 57-58).

The role of the prophets before, during, and after the exile was important, because they announced to the Jews the causes for their future calamities in order for them to understand their transgressions against Yahweh and repent accordingly. At the same time, they provided the much needed hope for restoration during exilic times and their preaching served as guides as to how to live in harmony with the Covenant after their return from Babylon. The Jews understood the Babylonian exile as a punishment for not keeping the Covenant (Lev 26:31-33), but they also remembered God’s promise that even while they lived in the land of their enemies, He would keep the covenant He had made with their ancestors (Lev 26:44). However, the prophets had expanded on what the Covenant meant for Yahweh and for the people of Israel. In addition to adhering to the laws that were concerned with rituals and worship, the prophets called the Jews to conform their beliefs to their actions. The prophets also emphasized the equality of all the Jewish people in the eyes of Yahweh and that in order to conform to His commandments, Israel had to distribute goods equally among the people. Thus, because of the prophet’s clamor for justice in the name of Yahweh, those Jews returning from exile understood the meaning of the inseparability between belief and action as they were commanded by the law to pursue justice (Deut 16:18).

Catholic Social Teaching

Katerina Ivanovna

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