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Stallings Minor _ Reflective Essay # 2

Stallings Minor _ Reflective Essay # 2

by Gail Stallings Minor -
Number of replies: 3

For me, the most pronounced contrast between the prophets and the Prophetic literature and Wisdom literature lie in the imparting of divine truth and the weight assigned to that through the narratives.  Let's start with the prophets.  

Prophetic figures are informed in a tradition that held that an oracle or prophet was regarded to be of God, "inspired by the will of God", and a mediator between man and God. The irony of this is that they are usually at the service of the King, at least in the Assyrian tradition.  And because kings rarely allowed for the possibility of information counter to them, their prophetic slant was as Collins’ book suggests, “being at the self-interest of the king” and focused on “ the affairs of the king.”(page 197)  The messages often “ provide assurance of divine support in time or crisis”—as in crushing a rebellion or defeating an opponent. And while this was not always the case, especially in regards to some of those mentioned in the Bible, it does call into question some of the authenticity of their messages. One such Prophet mentioned in the Bible who stands as an example would be Isaiah.  He did indeed work in close relationship with the monarchy and the temple.  Others like Amos and Jeremiah did not follow the expected order and spoke out against wrong, suggesting perhaps they were indeed speaking the voice of the Divine.

Wisdom literature on the other hand in informed by a Gospel of unshakeble faith in God.  Moving the focus from being an agent worker, a vassel of the Divine to being a pillar of God, one who props up a belief in God and the fruits of standing on that foundation.  Collins rights says wisdom characters differ from the prophets in “emphasizing the priority of understanding over action.” Suggesting that action (as with the prophets) can be corrupted or spoiled by sin. For me, the best example of this is the story of Job. A great quote that captures Job’s stand in the midst of all of his struggles was also given by Collin.  He writes of wisdom literature saying, “One can arrive at knowledge of the Creator by studying the order of the universe. That study over a lifetime is what Job stood on and what feed his unshakeable commitment and belief in the goodness of God even when things were very bad.

 


In reply to Gail Stallings Minor

Re: Stallings Minor _ Reflective Essay # 2

by Ryan Tobin -

Gail - I agree with everything you have here, except for the last sentence. I'm not sure that Job's commitment to the idea that God is good can be found in the text. By the end of the story, Job accepts God's sovereignty over him -- he confesses that he is powerless to stop God (42:2) and that he should not have brought his complaint against God because God's mindset and actions are beyond his understanding (42:3). But he never says that God is good. 

In my view, Job is the good guy in this story. He is righteous, he never curses God even though he is afflicted, and he has the integrity to stand up for truth -- even to the extent of standing up to God. In the end, God wins the argument, but I wouldn't describe God's behavior here as "good". 

In the NOAB5, the annotation for Job 42:10-17 suggests that the reason God gives Job twice as much as he had lost might be an admission that Job's possessions were stolen by God (because Exodus 22:4 requires thieves to pay double restitution). I'm not sure if I would go so far as to say God is a thief in this story, but there is some sense that God repaid Job doubly because of a sense of guilt or wrongdoing. 

In reply to Gail Stallings Minor

Re: Stallings Minor _ Reflective Essay # 2

by Calvin Collins -

Gail,


Knowing that the connection to the monarch brings a question as to whether or not their prophetic words were influenced by the monarchy. I do agree that Job stood firm in his hope towards God, but it brings to me a curiosity if Job always had that commitment. The liminal moment in time between Job losing everything and gaining it back makes me wonder if he still thought that God is good. If God had shared that it was a test of Job, do you think that Job could still see the goodness of God even after regaining everything? 


Peace,


Calvin

In reply to Gail Stallings Minor

Re: Stallings Minor _ Reflective Essay # 2

by Julia O'Brien -

Gail, thanks for bringing up engaging questions.

In claiming that the biblical prophets are closely tied to kings, you've made a different claim than Collins and most scholars make. They usually contrast the Assyrian prophets who are supportive of kings and the biblical prophets who challenge kings. It is true that Isaiah is in the Temple, but do you read Isaiah as support of Ahaz? What about the other prophets we read? Do they support institutions like kingship? 

What do you think the character of Job learns by God's speeches about the universe? Is Job comforted by this knowledge or simply dumbstruck by God's power?