The MAJOR & MINOR Prophets - The 16 Writing Prophets Of The Hebrew Canon

on Malachi, I discovered his amazing insight. I do not know if it is true, but it sounds most reasonable. So, I quote without any more comment, and you may draw your own conclusion. Daniel was told that from the date of the decree to rebuild Jerusalem, to the cutting off of the Messiah, was WR EH ´VHYHQ ZHHNV DQG WKUHHVFRUH DQG WZR ZHHNV µ 7KH GDWH RI WKH GHFUHH PRVW GHILQLWHO\ ZDV % & « :K\ VKRXOG WKH VL[W\ - QLQH ZHHNV IURP WKHQ WR WKH FXWWLQJ RII RI WKH 0HVVLDK EH GLYLGHG LQWR ´VHYHQ ZHHNV DQG WKUHHVFRUH DQG WZR ZHHNVµ" Clearly, the Scripture has some important boundary-point in view DW WKH HQG RI WKH ILUVW ´VHYHQ ZHHNV µ RU IRUW\ -nine years; and it is hard to resist the conclusion that this boundary-point was the ceasing of prophecy with Malachi. 7KLV ZRXOG PDNH 0DODFKL·V PLQLVWU\ end at 397 B. C., a date which, in fact, well suits the circumstances. Thus Malachi bounds the forty-nine years, RU ´VHYHQ ZHHNVµ RI WKH SUHGLFWHG ´WURXEORXV WLPHVµ 'DQ L[ ,Q D VSHFLDO ZD\ *RG QRZ ZDLWV WR EH gracious [Baxter then quotes Malachi 3:10] (emphasis added). 6 A Unique Approach This prophet burned with the same inner fire of Jeremiah and others, but he had no mysterious presentations to make, no hard-to-understand visions to tell, no parables, just the straight-forward handling of major issues that made his listeners know how they stood with God. 0DODFKL·V VW\OH LV WR EULQJ D VLPSOH GLUHFW XQGHUVWDQGDEOH PHVVDJH WR SULHVWV DQG SHRSOH He uses a type of dialectic approach that exposes false beliefs and elicits truth, using the age-old question-and answer method. His approach has three prongs: 1) An assertion is made, 2) A question (objection) is UDLVHG LQWURGXFHG E\ ´\HW \RX VD\µ DQG $Q HODERUDWLRQ RI *RG·V RULJLQDO DVVHUWLRQ ZLWK DGGLWLRQDO facts and information). Seven examples are given in the chart.

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7KH 3HRSOH·V 4XHVWLRQV (What a doubter would ask ) ³,Q ZKDW ZD\ KDYH \RX ORYHG XV" (1:2).

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Edom was destroyed for doing what you have done, yet you are still here (1:3-5). You have offered defiled, unacceptable sacrifices (1:7-8).

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3. Judah has been faithless in profaning the Covenant (2:10-16). ³

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God does not delight in those who do evil (2:17).

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6 J. Sidlow Baxter, Explore the Book, ³0DODFKL ´ S

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