NTS 507 WEALTH AND
POVERTY IN THE BIBLE
Class V: Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
© Dr. Esa Autero
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
1.1 Introduction
What are the most important things you
have learned about wealth/poverty from the
prophets?
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Exilic prophets continue addressing
the same topics – Israel did not heed the message
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Post-exilic prophets need to address the same topics
 Israel did not learn
https://youtu.be/JlH-ClyEkBc
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
2.1 Exilic and Postexilic prophets and prophecy
 Jeremiah, Ezekiel – just prior
and during the Exile
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Isaiah (40-66) & Malachi
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Isaiah addresses returnees from the Exile
Malachi rebukes disillusioned post-exilic
community
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
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Jeremiah – the weeping prophet
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Demise of Assyria (†Ashurbanibal 627BC) & rise of Babylon
th
 Jeremiah’s call c. 627BC – 13 yr. of Josiah’s reign (1:1-8)
Priest and of some means (1:1-2; 32:6-8)
Prophesied during Josiah (640-609BC), Jehoiakim (609-598BC), Jehoiachin*
 Josiah’s sudden death in Megiddo c. 609BC (2 Kgs 22:1-23:30)
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Religious reforms and relief from oppression “died” w/ Josiah
Josiah’s sons try to negotiate imperial powers
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Jehoahaz deposed by Pharaoh Neco
Jehoakim – vassal of Egypt and opposed Jeremiah (1:3; 24:1; 27:1, 20; 37:1)
Nebuchadnezzar overthrew Egypt (605BC)
Judah vassal of Babylon
 Jehoakim sought help from Egypt – Judah crushed by Babylon (598BC)
 Jehoachin carried to Babylon and Zedekiah to the throne – he rebelled
against Babylon (2Kgs 24:20b) 586/7BC
 Major deportations to Babylon 598BC and 587/6BC
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Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
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Oppression of the vulnerable (2:33-35; 5:25-31*; 7:3-11; 9:3-6; 21:12; 22:3, 11-19)
“How well you prepare your way, To seek love! Therefore even the wicked
women You have taught your ways. 34 “Also on your skirts is found
The lifeblood of the innocent poor (Hb. dam niphshot ebyonim); You did not
find them breaking in. But in spite of all these things, 35 Yet you said, ‘I am
innocent; Surely His anger is turned away from me.’ Behold, I will enter into
judgment with you Because you say, ‘I have not sinned.’ (2:33-35)
 Recounting of YHWH’s deliverance and Israel’s sin (2:1-8, 9-29**)
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Harlotry imagery & sexual perversion
Life of the innocent poor is crushed – exploited/killed for personal gain
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Possible religious justification – self-defense & robbery of home (Ex 22:2-3)
Connection b/w idolatry and exploitation (2:33-34; 2:1-2)
 Is denial of guilt – “I have not sinned” – genuine or pretense?
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Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
‘Your iniquities have turned these (rain & harvest [vv. 23-24]) away, And
your sins have withheld good from you. 26 ‘For wicked men are found among
My people, They watch like fowlers lying in wait; They set a trap, They
catch men. 27 ‘Like a cage full of birds, So their houses are full of deceit;
Therefore they have become great and rich. 28 ‘They are fat, they are sleek,
They also excel in deeds of wickedness; They do not plead the cause, The
cause of the orphan, that they may prosper; And they do not defend the rights
of the poor (Hb. ebyonim). 29 ‘Shall I not punish these people?’ declares
the LORD, ‘On a nation such as this Shall I not avenge Myself?’ (5:25-29)
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Spiritual senselessness of the people (2:20-24)
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Simile of the fowler and the net* as a metaphor of cunning wickedness
Wealth accumulated by cunning  great and rich at the expense of poor/weak
 Fowler simile indicates the planned action of people to steal from the poor
 Exploitation of the poor through courts & justice (cf. Deut 16:18-20)
 Judgment will ensue
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Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, 2 “Stand in the gate of
the LORD’S house and proclaim there this word and say, ‘Hear the word of the LORD,
all you of Judah, who enter by these gates to worship the LORD!’” 3 Thus says
the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, “Amend your ways and your deeds, and I will
let you dwell in this place. 4 Do not trust in deceptive words, saying, ‘This is the
temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD.’ 5 For if you
truly amend your ways and your deeds, if you truly practice justice between a man
and his neighbor, 6 if you do not oppress the alien, the orphan, or the widow, and do
not shed innocent blood in this place, nor walk after other gods to your own
ruin, 7 then I will let you dwell in this place, in the land that I gave to your fathers
forever and ever. 8 “Behold, you are trusting in deceptive words to no avail. 9 Will
you steal, murder, and commit adultery and swear falsely, and offer sacrifices to Baal
and walk after other gods that you have not known, 10 then come and stand before Me
in this house, which is called by My name, and say, ‘We are delivered!’—that you
may do all these abominations? 11 Has this house, which is called by My name,
become a den of robbers in your sight? Behold, I, even I, have seen it,” declares
the LORD. (7:1-11)*
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Oracle at the Temple – “Temple sermon”: “Hear…all…who enter…to worship”**
“Amend your ways…I let you live in this place…Don’t say…This is the Temple of
the LORD, Temple of the LORD, the Temple of the LORD”
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
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Abiding in the land & Temple depend on Torah obedience
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Justice toward the vulnerable (orphan, widow, alien)
True allegiance to covenant God
Why repetition “This is the Temple of the LORD” x3?
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Temple had become…
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Jeremiah exposed “false theology” & “structural hypocrisy” in the Temple
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Impossible to worship YHWH & practice injustice
Breach of 10 commandments: “you steal, murder, and commit adultery” v. 9
“…swear falsely…[you] stand before me and say ‘we are safe’”
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Temple turned into “den of robbers” – place of robbery, injustice & festivities
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a religious “amulet” of deception – “inviolability of the Temple” (cf Isa 37:33-35*)
Means of socio-economic manipulation & injustice
Jeremiah’s words like socio-religious and political “treason” (26:1-18)
Inevitable judgment – like Shiloh (1 Sam 1-4): “I have seen it”
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
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Responsibility of the king – Justice & oppression (22:1-4, 13-19*)
…say…[to]…king of Judah…Thus says the LORD, “Do justice and
righteousness, and deliver the one who has been robbed from the power
of his oppressor. Also do not mistreat or do violence to the stranger, the
orphan, or the widow; and do not shed innocent blood in this place. 4 For
if you men will indeed perform this thing, then kings will enter the gates
of this house, sitting in David’s place on his throne, riding in chariots and
on horses, even the king himself and his servants and his people. 5 But if
you will not obey these words, I swear by Myself,” declares the LORD,
“that this house will become a desolation.”’” (22:3-4)
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Responsibility of the king to practice justice & care for the vulnerable
National prosperity/calamity depends on justice as embodied by the king
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
“Woe to him [king Jehoiakim] who builds his house without righteousness And
his upper rooms without justice, Who uses his neighbor’s services without pay
And does not give him his wages, 14 Who says, ‘I will build myself a roomy
house With spacious upper rooms, And cut out its windows,
Paneling it with cedar and painting it bright red.’ 15 “Do you become a king
because you are competing in cedar? Did not your father (=Josiah) eat and drink
And do justice and righteousness? Then it was well with him. 16 “He pled the
cause of the afflicted (Hb. ani) and needy (Hb. ebyon); Then it was well. Is not
that what it means to know Me?” Declares the LORD. 17 “But your eyes and your
heart Are intent only upon your own dishonest gain, And on shedding innocent
blood And on practicing oppression and extortion.”… “He [king Jehoiakim] will
be buried with a donkey’s burial, Dragged off and thrown out beyond the gates of
Jerusalem. (22:13-17, 19)
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What is the specific charge against Jehoiakim?
Exploitation of workers to build lavish royal buildings
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Intentional wealth accumulation, injustice, and exploitation
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
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Jehoiakim’s wickedness compared to Josiah’s righteousness
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Exploitation of the poor and the vulnerable vs. justice and care for the poor
“Do you become a king by competing in cedars?” – marks of a ruler…
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Cedar & vermillion the most expensive and luxurious interior material*
Opulent luxury palace for the king – “I will build for myself”
“builds, makes, says, cuts” – economic exploitation
 Profit at the expense of workers – forced labor
Josiah practiced justice and righteousness – “then it was well with him”
 Ironically Josiah died young despite his godliness (2 Kgs 23:28-29)**
“Is not that what it means to know Me?” HOW to know YHWH?
Practice of justice, righteousness & care of the vulnerable = knowing God
 Rhetorical and literary center of the oracle
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Jehoiakim – “donkey’s burial…dragged”
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Jehoiakim lived long despite his sin (2 Kgs 24:6) though had shameful burial
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
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Land redemption (32:1-25, 43-44) & Sabbath Year (34:8-17)
The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD in the tenth year of Zedekiah king of
Judah, which was the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar.2 Now at that time the army
of the king of Babylon was besieging Jerusalem, and Jeremiah the prophet was shut
up in the court of the guard, which was in the house of the king of Judah, 3 because
Zedekiah king of Judah had shut him up, saying, “Why do you prophesy, saying,
‘Thus says the LORD, “Behold, I am about to give this city into the hand of the king
of Babylon, and he will take it;…6 And Jeremiah said, “The word of the LORD came
to me, saying, 7 ‘Behold, Hanamel the son of Shallum your uncle is coming to you,
saying, “Buy for yourself my field which is at Anathoth, for you have the right of
redemption to buy it.”… 9 “I bought the field which was at Anathoth from Hanamel
my uncle’s son, and I weighed out the silver for him, seventeen shekels of
silver. …24 Behold, the siege ramps have reached the city to take it; and the city
is given into the hand of the Chaldeans who fight against it, because of the sword, the
famine and the pestilence; and what You have spoken has come to pass; and behold,
You see it. 25 You have said to me, O Lord GOD, “Buy for yourself the field with
money and call in witnesses”—although the city is given into the hand of the
Chaldeans.’” … (Jer 32:1-44)
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Jeremiah buys a field by faith – “Fields shall be bought…deeds signed” (v. 43-44)
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Release of slaves withdrawn by king Zedekiah (34:8-17) – YHWH releases doom
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
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Everyone is guilty (5:1-6; 6:13-14; 8:10-11)
O LORD, do not Your eyes look for truth? You have smitten them,
But they did not weaken; You have consumed them, But they refused to
take correction. They have made their faces harder than rock; They have
refused to repent. 4 Then I said, “They are only the poor, they are foolish;
For they do not know the way of the LORD Or the ordinance of their God.
5 “I will go to the great And will speak to them, For they know the way of
the LORD And the ordinance of their God.” But they too, with one accord,
have broken the yoke And burst the bonds.
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“Everyone is greedy for unjust gain…prophet, priest…all” (6:13-14; 8:10-11)
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Priest, prophet & king receives the most poignant critique
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All alike are guilty – even the poor and vulnerable (5:4)
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
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Wealth, poverty, and sin (3:3; 11:1-5; 12:4; 18:21; 20:13*; 33:14-16; 34:15-18**)
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Judah will experience judgment due to sin – covenant violation
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Withholding of rain (3:3)
Covenant curses (11:1-5; cf. Deut 28)
Injustice prevails (12:1) & natural world
dies/mourns (12:4)
Famine, disease, and death (18:21; 34:17-18)
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All this culminates into Exile from the land
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Land represented God’s blessing, prosperity & national pride
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
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Poor and the Exile (39:10; 40:7; 52:15-16; 49:11*)
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Some poorest (Hb. dallim) “are left” in Judah – landless given land by
Nebuchadnezzar (39:10; 52:15 cf. 40:7)
 Ironically some landless are given the land of the wealthy
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Some poorest taken to Babylonian
captivity (52:16)
 Fate of the poor and the rich was sealed
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
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Ezekiel – the visionary prophet
 Ezekiel – “God strengthens ”
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son of Buzi, a Zadokite priest (1:3)
Taken to Babylonian exile 597BC (2Kgs 24:10-17)
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Settled near the Kebar river (canal)
Called to be a prophet 593BC – before the Exile
Last oracle 571BC (29:17)
Socio-economic injustice important but not a major theme
 Number of smaller sections
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
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Injustice and oppression (16:48-49; 22:6-16; 34:1-3, 15-16; 45:8-11)
As I live,” declares the Lord GOD, “Sodom, your sister and her daughters
have not done as you and your daughters have done. 49 Behold, this was the
guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had arrogance, abundant
food and careless ease, but she did not help the poor and needy. 50 Thus they
were haughty and committed abominations before Me. Therefore I removed
them when I saw it. (16:48-50)
 Context: Jerusalem “a girl” who was rescued & enriched but turned away
 Preparation for the fall of Jerusalem – Jerusalem likened to Sodom & Samaria
 Sodom or Samaria (Israel) were not as bad as Jerusalem
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Specification of Sodom’s sins – note the absence of sexual immorality
Excess living, arrogance & pride
 Ignoring the poor and the needy
 Urban luxury coupled with sumptuous consumption & lack of concern for poor
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Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
6 “Behold,
the rulers of Israel, each according to his power, have been in you for
the purpose of shedding blood. 7 They have treated father and mother lightly
within you. The alien (Hb. ger) they have oppressed in your midst; the fatherless
and the widow they have wronged in you. … 12 In you they have taken bribes to
shed blood; you have taken interest and profits, and you have injured your
neighbors for gain by oppression, and you have forgotten Me,” declares the
Lord GOD. 13 “Behold, then, I smite My hand at your dishonest (Hb. betsa*) gain
which you have acquired and at the bloodshed which is among you. (22:6-8, 1213)
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Sins of Israel’s leaders
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Violence & oppression of the vulnerable
Injustice & bribes in legal cases leading to capital punishment or in murder
cases in general
Economic exploitation in form interest, profiteering & injuring neighbors
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
8 This
shall be his land for a possession in Israel; so My princes shall no
longer oppress My people, but they shall give the rest of the land to the house of
Israel according to their tribes.” 9 ‘Thus says the Lord GOD, “Enough, you
princes of Israel; put away violence and destruction, and practice justice and
righteousness. Stop your expropriations (Hb. gerusha*) from My people,”
declares the Lord GOD. 10 “You shall have just balances, a just ephah and a
just bath. 11 The ephah and the bath shall be the same quantity, so that the bath
will contain a tenth of a homer and the ephah a tenth of a homer; their standard
shall be according to the homer. 12 The shekel shall be twenty gerahs; twenty
shekels, twenty-five shekels, and fifteen shekels shall be your maneh. (Ezek
45:8-12)
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Future vision: no more oppression
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Equal land distribution among the tribes – as opposed to royal land-grabbing**
Rebuke to the leaders of Israel: Practice justice and righteousness by…
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No land-grabbing; just and standard balances for business transactions***
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
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True righteousness before YHWH (18:1-32; 33:14-17)
Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 2 “What do you mean by using this proverb concerning the
land of Israel, saying, ‘The fathers eat the sour grapes, But the children’s teeth are set on edge’? 3 As I live,”
declares the Lord GOD, “you are surely not going to use this proverb in Israel anymore. 4 Behold, all souls
are Mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is Mine. The soul who sins will die. 5 “But if a
man is righteous and practices justice and righteousness, 6 and does not eat at the mountain shrines or lift up
his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, or defile his neighbor’s wife or approach a woman during her
menstrual period— 7 if a man does not oppress anyone, but restores to the debtor his pledge, does not
commit robbery, but gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked with clothing, 8 if he does not
lend money on interest or take increase, if he keeps his hand from iniquity and executes true justice between
man and man, 9 if he walks in My statutes and My ordinances so as to deal faithfully—he is
righteous and will surely live,” declares the Lord GOD. 10 “Then he may have a violent son who sheds blood
and who does any of these things to a brother 11 (though he himself did not do any of these things), that is,
he even eats at the mountain shrines, and defiles his neighbor’s wife,12 oppresses the poor and
needy, commits robbery, does not restore a pledge, but lifts up his eyes to the idols and commits
abomination, 13 he lends money on interest and takes increase; will he live? He will not live! He has
committed all these abominations, he will surely be put to death; his blood will be on his own head. 14 “Now
behold, he has a son who has observed all his father’s sins which he committed, and observing does not do
likewise. 15 He does not eat at the mountain shrines or lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, or
defile his neighbor’s wife, 16 or oppress anyone, or retain a pledge, or commit robbery, but he gives his bread
to the hungry and covers the naked with clothing, 17 he keeps his hand from the poor, does not take interest
or increase, but executes My ordinances, and walks in My statutes; he will not die for his father’s iniquity,
he will surely live. 18 As for his father, because he practiced extortion, robbed his brother and did what was
not good among his people, behold, he will die for his iniquity. (18:1-18)
 Disputation oracle against Exiles b/c of irresponsibility & pessimism:* who is righteous?
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
‘The fathers eat the sour grapes, But the children’s teeth are set on edge’? 3 As I
live,” declares the Lord GOD, “you are surely not going to use this proverb in
Israel anymore. (cf. Jer 31:29-30)
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Blaming God for punishing Judah for the sins of the parents
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Denial of guilt and fatalistic attitude
Focus on individual’s (not ancestor’s) deeds as basis for righteousness*
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Choice of (eschatological) life or death (in the land)** – based on Deut 24:16
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Individual guilt vs. collective guilt (Ezek 18:1-32; 16; 23:3-31; Ex 34:7; 20:5; Deut 5:9; 24:16)
“practice of righteousness and justice”
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No idolatry, sexual immorality, ritual impurity (18:6)
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
if a man does not oppress (Hb. yna) anyone, but restores to the debtor his
pledge, does not commit robbery (Hb. gezela lo jigzol*), but gives his bread to the
hungry and covers the naked with clothing, 8 if he does not lend money on interest or
take increase, if he keeps his hand from iniquity and executes true justice between
man and man, 9 if he walks in My statutes and My ordinances so as to deal
faithfully—he is righteous and will surely live,” declares the Lord GOD. (18:7-9)
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Oppression – returning pledge after payment of debts (cf. Ex 22:25; Deut 24:10-15)
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“Robbery” – seizure of the property from the poor by the wealthy**
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Sharing resources w/ the poor and needy
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Interest free loans as way to help the needy not to get rich (v. 8)
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Practice of true justice
 This person is righteous – one is faithful to the covenant & experiences “life”
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“Son” practices evil, receives “death” (v. 10-13) & “grandson” good, lives (14-17)
 Call to repentance and “life”
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
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Isaiah 40-66 – is there life after the Exile?
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Isa 1-39 – Assyrian threat and looks forward to Babylonian Exile
Isa 40-66 – Addresses the Exiles (40-55) & returnees in Jerusalem (56-66)
Judah has returned from Exile and settled in the land.
Promises of God (Isa 40:1) have been fulfilled – but only partially
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Israel in the land and the Temple has already been rebuilt
Gentiles still rule – no full independence
Economic hardship and political struggles – internal & external
Pre-exilic sins flourish:
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Idolatry & syncretism
economic oppression; exploitation; violence
national pride; false worship
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
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Poor as a metaphor for Exiles (Isa 41:17)
“The afflicted (Hb. haniyyim) and needy
(haebyonim) are seeking water, but there
is none, And their tongue is parched with
thirst; I, the LORD, will answer them Myself,
As the God of Israel I will not forsake
them. (Isa 41:17)
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Spiritual poverty & need of Israel – many were no doubt materially crushed also
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Oppression done to Israel as a nation suffered injustice (51:13-16; 54:11)
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
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Servant of the LORD establishes justice (42:1-4; cf. 49:1-6; 50:4-11; 52:13-53:12)
“Behold, My Servant, whom I uphold; My chosen one in whom My soul delights.
I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the nations.
2 “He will not cry out or raise His voice, Nor make His voice heard in the street.
3 “A bruised reed He will not break And a dimly burning wick He will not
extinguish; He will faithfully bring forth justice. 4 “He will not be disheartened or
crushed Until He has established justice in the earth; And the coastlands will wait
expectantly for His law.” (42:1-4)
 Servant will be killed due to “perversion of justice” (53:8)
 He will make many “righteous” (53:11)
 Jerusalem will be established in justice – no more oppression (54:14)
 Future glory of Jerusalem – wealth of the nations (60:5; 61:6)
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
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Oppression in post-Exilic community (56:9-11; 58:1-14; 59:1-4; , 8-9, 11-15; 61:1-2)
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Rebuke to leaders and shepherds – greed and drunkenness (56:9-11)
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
“Cry loudly, do not hold back; Raise your voice like a trumpet, And declare to My people their transgression And to
the house of Jacob their sins. 2 “Yet they seek Me day by day and delight to know My ways, As a nation that has
done righteousness And has not forsaken the ordinance of their God. They ask Me for just decisions, They delight in
the nearness of God. 3 ‘Why have we fasted and You do not see? Why have we humbled ourselves and You do
not notice?’ Behold, on the day of your fast you find your desire, And drive hard (Hb. tingosu*) all your workers.
4 “Behold, you fast for contention and strife and to strike with a wicked fist. You do not fast like you do today
to make your voice heard on high. 5 “Is it a fast like this which I choose, a day for a man to humble himself? Is it for
bowing one’s head like a reed And for spreading out sackcloth and ashes as a bed? Will you call this a fast, even
an acceptable day to the LORD? 6 “Is this not the fast which I choose, To loosen the bonds of wickedness, To undo the
bands of the yoke, And to let the oppressed go free And break every yoke? 7 “Is it not to divide your bread with the
hungry And bring the homeless poor into the house; When you see the naked, to cover him; And not to hide yourself
from your own flesh? 8 “Then your light will break out like the dawn, And your recovery will speedily spring forth;
And your righteousness will go before you; The glory of the LORD will be your rear guard. 9 “Then you will call, and
the LORD will answer; You will cry, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’ If you remove the yoke from your midst,
The pointing of the finger and speaking wickedness, 10 And if you give yourself to the hungry And satisfy the desire
of the afflicted, Then your light will rise in darkness And your gloom will become like midday. 11 “And the LORD will
continually guide you, And satisfy your desire in scorched places, And give strength to your bones; And you will be
like a watered garden, And like a spring of water whose waters do not fail. 12 “Those from among you will rebuild the
ancient ruins; You will raise up the age-old foundations; And you will be called the repairer of the breach, The
restorer of the streets in which to dwell. Keeping the Sabbath 13 “If because of the sabbath, you turn your foot From
doing our own pleasure on My holy day, And call the sabbath a delight, the holy day of the LORD honorable, And
honor it, desisting from your own ways, From seeking your own pleasure And speaking your own word, 14 Then you
will take delight in the LORD, And I will make you ride on the heights of the earth; And I will feed you with the
heritage of Jacob your father, For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.” (Isa 58:1-14)
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
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Israel’s transgression and complaint & God’s response
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Corrupt and self-serving worship
“Seek” “delight in nearness of God” “fasting, humbling” “righteous nation”
Fasting four times a year as a nation (2 Kgs 25:3-21; Jer 52:12-13; 2 Kgs 25:23-25)*
 routinized occasions of mourning & rituals (58:5; cf. Joel 2:13; Jer 14:12; Zech 7-8)
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Sins of Judah:
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Oppressing workers and doing one’s own desires (58:3)
Violence, strife (58:4) & accusations (58:9)
Slavery of fellow Israelites (58:6, 9; cf. Neh 5:4-5)
Turning away needy – even own relatives (58:7)
Worship without justice and acts of mercy useless
Consequences – prophet’s cry against the sins of Judah
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Prayers not heard (58:5)
Fasting and worship is abomination
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
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True worship – alleviation of poverty & freedom from oppression
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Releasing the oppressed and victims of injustice (58:6)
Sharing food, housing, and clothing with the needy (58:7)
Caring for one’s relatives and kin (58:7)
“pouring oneself on behalf of the poor” (58:10)
Keeping Sabbath – doing God’s will (58:13)
Consequences
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Light breaks forth; recovery; righteousness front & glory rear guard (58:8)
 Exodus allusions – God’s delight, presence & restoration of blessings
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Prayers will be heard & God is present w/ His people (58:9)
Fulfillment of God’s promises & restoration of Jerusalem (58:10-12)
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Comfort, strength, guidance, heath, joy – restoration of covenant blessings (cf. Deut
27)
 https://youtu.be/ce7GGpZE5UY
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
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Ministry of release
The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, Because the LORD has anointed
me To bring good news to the afflicted (Hb. anawim);
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty (Hb. deror) to captives And freedom to prisoners;
2 To proclaim the favorable year of the LORD And the day of vengeance
of our God; To comfort all who mourn, (61:1-2)
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Ministry of the Servant to the broken and afflicted
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Ministry in the power of the Spirit – good news to the poor/afflicted
Freeing the captives and restoring the broken hearted
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Jubilee year terminology (cf. Lev 25) as a metaphor for freedom*
Restoration of God’s promises to Israel and Jerusalem (61:1-5)
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
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Malachi – “robbing God”
 Post-exilic prophet – c. 450BC
 Malachi’s disputation speeches
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Mixed marriages (Mal 2:11-15;
Neh 13:23-27)
Failure to tithe (Mal 3:8-10;
Neh 13:15-22)
Breaking of the Sabbath (Mal 2:8-9;
4:4; Neh 13:15-22)
Corruption of priesthood (Mal 1:6-2:9; Neh 13:7-9)
Socio-economic injustice (Mal 3:5; 1:16; 2:16; Neh 5:1-13)
 God accused of injustice
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
have wearied the LORD with your words. Yet you say, “How have we
wearied Him?” In that you say, “Everyone who does evil is good in the sight of the LORD,
and He delights in them,” or, “Where is the God of justice (Hb. hamishpat)?” … 5 “Then I
will draw near to you for judgment (Hb. lamishpat); and I will be a swift witness against
the sorcerers and against the adulterers and against those who swear falsely, and against
those who oppress the wage earner in his wages, the widow and the orphan, and those
who turn aside the alien and do not fear Me,” says the LORD of hosts. 6 “For I,
the LORD, do not change; therefore you, O sons of Jacob, are not consumed. 7 “From
the days of your fathers you have turned aside from My statutes and have not
kept them. Return to Me, and I will return to you,” says the LORD of hosts. “But you say,
‘How shall we return?’ You Have Robbed God 8 “Will a man rob God? Yet you are
robbing Me! But you say, ‘How have we robbed You?’ In tithes and offerings. 9 You
are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing Me, the whole nation of you! 10 Bring the
whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and test Me now
in this,” says the LORD of hosts, “if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and
pour out for you a blessing until it overflows. 11 Then I will rebuke the devourer for you,
so that it will not destroy the fruits of the ground; nor will your vine in the field cast its
grapes,” says the LORD of hosts. 12 “All the nations will call you blessed, for you shall be
a delightful land,” says the LORD of hosts. (2:17, 3:5-12)
17 You
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God’s justice questioned – God will come forth w/ judgment/justice
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Lord will come & purify His people – “draw near for judgment”
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
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Sins of Israel
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Adultery, lying, sorcery
False oaths, oppression of workers; neglect & injustice to the vulnerable
Return and repentance – Israel’s callous heat “How shall we return/repent*?”
 Stopping robbing God
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Whole nation under curse for “robbing God” (3:9)
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“Test me” by…
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Bring tithes (Hb. maaser) faithfully (Num 18:21-32; Lev 27:30-33;Deut 14:22-29)
Sacrifices (Hb. teruma) – offerings for specific services, 1st fruit of herd &
flock** (earlier stolen & sick animals; 1:6-14; Num 5:9-10; 18:8-20; Ezek 44:28-31)
Consequence
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Curse for “robbing God”
Blessing for bringing “full tithe”
 “opening widow of heaven”; fields will produce abundant crops
 Which part of this passage is applicable today?***
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
2.2 Application and connections to present-day realities
1) What are the most important themes regarding wealth and poverty in
the prophets?
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Which ones are the most pressing for our day?
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How should the message be conveyed to God’s people today?
2) What are the most common standards that the prophets use for
evaluating people’s and nation’s faithfulness to covenant?
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Should the same standards used today? Why, why not?
3) What reasons do the prophets give for people’s wealth and poverty?
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To what extent are the same reasons still true today?
Wealth and Poverty in Prophets II
4) What does the message of the prophets reveal us about God’s
character?
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How has this impacted your
live?
5) What are some difficulties when
apply God’s Word from the OT to
our current situation?*
6) Has God spoken to you about
something that you should do
concretely as a result of studying
the prophets? If so, what?