Starlight Book Review – Old Testament – Book of Isaiah – Major Prophets

Painting Isaiah by Jean Louis Ernest Meissonier on a Dark Blue Background.
Painting Image Source: Art UK | © Starry Night Elf

Part of a series of Starlight Book Reviews (SBR) on Old Testament (OT) Books. Click here to see other OT SBR.

* The following post transparently exhibits my Christian faith.

5/5 Today, I kick off my Starlight Book Reviews (SBR) for the 2023 Sacred Texts Journey Stellar Reading Challenge (SRC). Last year, I posted SBR on most book groupings of the Bible. As I mentioned in my post on the Epistle of Jude, I left SBR for Prophecy — Major Prophets, Minor Prophets, and New Testament (NT) Prophecy for this year. Click here to see my Epistle of Jude SBR.

Click here to check out the Sacred Texts Journey SRC.

The Major Prophets is a grouping of books in the Christian Old Testament that does not occur in the Hebrew Bible. All of these books are traditionally regarded as authored by a prophet such as Jeremiah, Isaiah, Daniel, and Ezekiel. The term “major” has nothing to do with the achievement or importance of the prophets, rather with the length of the books. In comparison to the books of the Twelve Minor Prophets, whose books are short and grouped together into one single book in the Hebrew Bible, these books are much longer.

This SBR pertains to the first book of the Major Prophets — Isaiah.

“The Book of Isaiah (Hebrew: ספר ישעיהו [ˈsɛ.fɛr jə.ʃaʕ.ˈjaː.hu]) is the first of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible and the first of the Major Prophets in the Christian Old Testament. It is identified by a superscription as the words of the 8th-century BCE prophet Isaiah ben Amoz, but there is evidence that much of it was composed during the Babylonian captivity and later. Johann Christoph Döderlein suggested in 1775 that the book contained the works of two prophets separated by more than a century, and Bernhard Duhm originated the view, held as a consensus through most of the 20th century, that the book comprises three separate collections of oracles: Proto-Isaiah (chapters 1–39), containing the words of the 8th-century BCE prophet Isaiah; Deutero-Isaiah (chapters 40–55), the work of an anonymous 6th-century BCE author writing during the Exile; and Trito-Isaiah (chapters 56–66), composed after the return from Exile. Isaiah 1–33 promises judgment and restoration for Judah, Jerusalem and the nations, and chapters 34–66 presume that judgment has been pronounced and restoration follows soon. While few scholars today attribute the entire book, or even most of it, to one person, the book’s essential unity has become a focus in more recent research.”

Isaiah daunted me the first time I read it. With the aid of Beth Moore and others, I decided to read this first book among the Major Prophets. With my most recent read, I anticipated with relish both Isaiah 40:31 and the point when Isaiah described Jesus, the savior to come.

I selected the aforementioned passage from Isaiah:

But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength.
    They will soar high on wings like eagles.
They will run and not grow weary.
    They will walk and not faint.

Isaiah 40:31

Select Bibliography (Alphabetical Order by Author’s Surname)

• Cate, Robert L. (1990b). “Isaiah, book of”. In Mills, Watson E.; Bullard, Roger Aubrey (eds.). Mercer Dictionary of the Bible. Mercer University Press. ISBN 9780865543737.
• Clifford, Richard (1992). “Isaiah, Book of: Second Isaiah”. In Freedman, David Noel (ed.). The Anchor Bible Dictionary. Vol. 3. Doubleday. p. 473. ISBN 0385193610.
• Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation.
• Petersen, David L. (2002). The Prophetic Literature: An Introduction. Westminster John Knox Press. ISBN 9780664254537.
• Sweeney, Marvin A. (1998). “The Latter Prophets”. In McKenzie, Steven L.; Graham, Matt Patrick (eds.). The Hebrew Bible Today: An Introduction to Critical Issues. Westminster John Knox Press. ISBN 9780664256524.

Starlight Book Review – Old Testament Poetry

Images Described by Old Testament Books – Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, & Song of Solomon – and Image Labeled Old Testament Poetry. | © Starry Night Elf

Part of a series of Starlight Book Reviews (SBR) on Old Testament (OT) Books. Click here to see other OT SBR.

* The following post transparently exhibits my Christian faith.

5/5 In this Starlight Book Review (SBR), I cover my thoughts on the Old Testament (OT) Poetry/Poetic Books in the Sacred Texts Stellar Reading Challenge (SRC). Please check out my SBR of The Book of Proverbs alone by clicking here.

• Job
• Psalms
• Proverbs
• Ecclesiastes
• Song of Solomon

“The Book of Job (/dʒoʊb/; Biblical Hebrew: אִיּוֹב, romanized: ʾIyyōḇ), or simply Job is a book found in the Ketuvim (“Writings”) section of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh), and is the first of the Poetic Books in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. Scholars are generally agreed that it was written between the 7th and 4th centuries BCE. It addresses theodicy, why God permits evil in the world, through the experiences of the eponymous protagonist. Job is a wealthy and God-fearing man with a comfortable life and a large family; God, having asked Satan (הַשָּׂטָן, haśśāṭān, ‘lit. ’the accuser”) for his opinion of Job’s piety, decides to take away Job’s wealth, family and material comforts, following Satan’s accusation that if Job were rendered penniless and without his family, he would turn away from God.”

“The Book of Psalms (/sɑːmz/ SAHMZ or /sɔː(l)mz/ SAW(L)MZ; Hebrew: תְּהִלִּים, Tehillim, lit. “praises”), also known as the Psalms, or the Psalter, is the first book of the Ketuvim (“Writings”), the third section of the Tanakh, and a book of the Old Testament. The title is derived from the Greek translation, ψαλμοί (psalmoi), meaning “instrumental music” and, by extension, “the words accompanying the music”. The book is an anthology of individual Hebrew religious hymns, with 150 in the Jewish and Western Christian tradition and more in the Eastern Christian churches. Many are linked to the name of David, but modern scholarship rejects his authorship, instead attributing the composition of the psalms to various authors writing between the 9th and 5th centuries BC. In the Quran, the Arabic word “Zabur” is used for the Psalms of David in the Hebrew Bible.”

“The Book of Proverbs (Hebrew: מִשְלֵי, Mīšlē, “Proverbs (of Solomon)”) is a book in the third section (called Ketuvim) of the Hebrew Bible and a book of the Christian Old Testament. When translated into Greek and Latin, the title took on different forms: in the Greek Septuagint (LXX) it became Παροιμίαι (Paroimiai, “Proverbs”); in the Latin Vulgate the title was Proverbia, from which the English name is derived… Proverbs is not merely an anthology but a “collection of collections” relating to a pattern of life which lasted for more than a millennium. It is an example of the biblical wisdom literature, and raises questions of values, moral behaviour, the meaning of human life, and right conduct,[3] and its theological foundation is that “the fear of God (meaning submission to the will of God) is the beginning of wisdom”. Wisdom is praised for her role in creation; God acquired her before all else, and through her he gave order to chaos; and since humans have life and prosperity by conforming to the order of creation, seeking wisdom is the essence and goal of life.”

“Ecclesiastes (/ɪˌkliːziˈæstiːz/; Biblical Hebrew: קֹהֶלֶת, romanized: qōheleṯ, Ancient Greek: Ἐκκλησιαστής, romanized: Ekklēsiastēs) is one of the Ketuvim (“Writings”) of the Hebrew Bible and one of the “Wisdom” books of the Christian Old Testament. The title commonly used in English is a Latin transliteration of the Greek translation of the Hebrew word קֹהֶלֶת (Kohelet, Koheleth, Qoheleth or Qohelet). An unnamed author introduces “The words of Kohelet, son of David, king in Jerusalem” (1:1) and does not use his own voice again until the final verses (12:9–14), where he gives his own thoughts and summarises the statements of Kohelet; the main body of the text is ascribed to Kohelet himself.”

“The Song of Songs (Hebrew: שִׁיר הַשִּׁירִים Šīr hašŠīrīm; Greek: ᾎσμα ᾀσμάτων, translit. Âisma āismátōn, Koine Greek pronunciation: [ˈäˑ.z̠mä äˈz̠mä.to̞n]), also called the Canticle of Canticles or the Song of Solomon, is an erotic poem that is one of the megillot (scrolls) found in the last section of the Tanakh, known as the Ketuvim (or “Writings”). It is unique within the Hebrew Bible: it shows no interest in Law or Covenant or the God of Israel, nor does it teach or explore wisdom like Proverbs or Ecclesiastes (although it does have some affinities to wisdom literature, as the ascription to the 10th century BCE King of Israel Solomon indicates); instead, it celebrates sexual love, giving “the voices of two lovers, praising each other, yearning for each other, proffering invitations to enjoy”

OT Poetry seems nicely situated between the Histories and the Major Prophets to this reader. While parts of each book of Poetry saddens me with each read, the lyricism soothes the spirt like a balm. Job’s faith, David’s heart, and Solomon’s wisdom, lament, and love ultimately sparkle for me.

Of course, I recommend the OT Poetry to readers adherent to the Abrahamic Faiths. Some sections may be tough to read for a number of reasons but I discover something new each time I read these books.

Select Bibliography (Alphabetical Order by Author’s Surname)

• Bartholomew, Craig G. (2009). Ecclesiastes. Baker Academic. ISBN 978-0801026911.
• Crenshaw, James L. “Book of Proverbs”, The Anchor Bible Dictionary, 1992.
• Garrett, Duane (1993). Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs. B&H Publishing Group. ISBN 9780805401141.
• Habel, Norman C (1985). The Book of Job: A Commentary. Westminster John Knox Press. ISBN 978-0-6642-2218-5.
• Mazor, Lea (2011). “Book of Psalms”. In Berlin, Adele; Grossman, Maxine (eds.). The Oxford Dictionary of the Jewish Religion. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780199730049.