Abstract
Bartholomew and Thomas offer a new type of introduction, one that is primarily interested in the theology of the Twelve Minor Prophets. The book begins with a brief overview of how the Minor Prophets have been read over the centuries in the Church and the Academy, allowing Bartholomew and Thomas to situate their own theological approach within the evolving history of biblical interpretation. It is based on a ‘close reading of the biblical texts, their communication strategies, and the world they project and invite us to indwell’ (p. 25). The following chapter analyses the phenomenon of ancient Israelite prophecy against the background of Ancient Near Eastern culture and religious practice. Thus, a slight tension within the methodology is evident from the start. On one hand, the interest is in the final form of the prophetic text but, on the other, the prophetic books are often treated as the repository of the oral sermons of the historical prophets, not as literary works in their own right. The question of the genre of the prophetic book does not receive much attention.
The rest of the chapters summarise in turn the contents of each prophetic book, deal briefly with its historical context, and discuss some key interpretative issues. There are sections on the New Testament use and the theology of the respective Minor Prophet. Seven of the twelve prophets receive an additional chapter that explores a particular theme relevant to that book. The most interesting of those is on Jonah as a model for spiritual formation.
The last three chapters provide a helpful summary to the whole project. One deals with the theology of the Minor Prophets in their Old Testament context. Here we find themes like the God who speaks, covenant, Zion, creation, judgment, sin and so on. A chapter on the Minor Prophets and Jesus discusses the New Testament fulfilment of prophecy, taking the Gospel of Matthew as its base. It argues for a ‘dialectical hermeneutic’ in which the Minor Prophets illuminate Jesus and Jesus illuminates the meaning of the Minor Prophets. The final chapter is on the ‘Theology of the Minor Prophets for Today’. Here Bartholomew and Thomas engage with modern philosophy and culture and provide suggestions for the contemporary relevance of the prophetic message. There is a lot of interesting material here but its connection to the text of the Minor Prophets is tenuous. For example, Amos is invoked in relation to the challenges posed by consumerism, globalization, and the environmental crisis but one wonders how direct the link is between the prophetic text and the theological reflections developed, allegedly, on its basis.
Overall, this is a useful book for those who want to familiarise themselves with the contents and explore the theology of the Minor Prophets.