Scripture: One Book at a Time
The whole of Sacred Scripture is a single narrative that promises and points to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of the World. It is an epic story, the greatest ever told, and told "one book at a time." Each book makes it contribution to the narrative as God reveals God's self to us and his desire that all be saved.
Lesson 38: Two Prophets
In Between Times
This lesson marks the first prophetic books that are associated with the Post-Exilic period of Judah’s history. We had previously covered the Book of Ezra and Nehemiah which are historical in nature. What might be confusing is that both of these books capture a first wave of returned exiles in Jerusalem – but that happened some 100 years before their time (~440 BC). If you’d like to read about the Post-Exilic Period in Judah, the link will explain how Ezra, Nehemiah, Haggai and Malachi all fit togeher.
Haggai is sent by God to compel the people of Judah to resume the construction of the Temple. His initial message is well received, yet he still has work to do. God continues to speak through Haggai to encourage the Israelites even though their building was not as large or magnificent as Solomon’s temple, and he also warns them to not stain or make unclean their building with unfaithful hearts and hands.
Whereas most of the prophets lived and prophesied in days of change and political upheaval, Malachi, wase living in an uneventful waiting period, when God seemed to have forgotten his people enduring poverty and foreign domination in the little province of Judah.
For those interested in more details about the prophetic books, consider reading this Introduction to Haggai and Malachi.
For those who would like to explore details of this book, please consider videos from Fr. Mike Schmitz’s “Bible in a Year” program. You can find the entire playlist here.