Fallen Into Knowledge

In which Habakkuk asks the age old question: Why does God allow evil to happen. Habakkuk gets an answer that he seems satisfied with, but which is unlikely to satisfy his readers.

Here is a thought - and this one is only half baked, so reader beware:

“The mighty will be toppled off their perch by God” This is clearly a theme in the Old Testament: The proud will be humbled, the rich rendered poor, and so on. Hannah’s Prayer comes to mind, or the book of Nahum.
And yet, Deuteronomy pretty clearly outlines Prosperity for the obedient Israel living in the Land. The question is: what is difference between Israel’s forcasted prosperity and the riches ofthe wicked.

Here is my thesis: While the Lord’s blessing certianly accounts for the prosperity of Israel, Israel’s prosperity is also due to its peculuar dependency on the Land.
Israel’s future in the Land in Deuteronomy is described in primarily agrarian terms, the riches gained by Israel were not to be at anyone’s expense. In fact, there were safeguards built into the law to protect against this (for example, the Sabbath laws).

We live in a world where wealth is not seen as a moral issue: yet reading the Old Testament, I cannot but see a multitude of inditements against the Rich. There are examples of rich men of God - Abraham, for instance - but they are the minority.

Visions of the Kingdom:

In the last days the mountain of the LORD’s house will be established as the highest of the mountains and raised above the hills. People will stream to it. Then many nations will come and say, ‘Let’s go to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways so that we may live by them.’ The teachings will go out from Zion. The word of the LORD will go out from Jerusalem. Then he will judge disputes between many people and settle arguments between many nations far and wide. They will hammer their swords into plowblades and their spears into pruning shears. Nations will never fight against each other, and they will never train for war again. They will sit under their grapevines and their fig trees, and no one will make them afraid. The LORD of Armies has spoken.

And:

You, Bethlehem Ephrathah, are too small to be included among Judah’s cities. Yet, from you Israel’s future ruler will come for me. His origins go back to the distant past, to days long ago. That is why the LORD will abandon Israel until the time a mother has a child. Then the rest of the LORD’s people will return to the people of Israel. The child will become the shepherd of his flock. [He will lead them] with the strength of the LORD, with the majestic name of the LORD his God. They will live in safety because his greatness will reach the ends of the earth. This man will be their peace.

The “days to come” seem to be characterised, chiefly, by Peace. We might even say, that Israel is to look forward to a time of peace.
Or even, The people of God are to be a people of Peace.

I really don’t know where to start with Jonah. Some readers of this blog spent an entire semester with me in Jonah, A blog post is too small. Perhaps a good quotation:

A prophet ought to be obedient to God’s will, Jonah is not; a prophet ought to intercede with God in times of trouble, Jonah does not; a prophet ought to plead with his audience to repent, Jonah does not; a prophet ought not to wish that his prophesy of destruction would come true, Jonah does; a prophet ought not be overly concerned about his personal comfort, Jonah is; a prophet ought not be portrayed in uncompromising or ridiculous situations, but Jonah is. Jonah is largely portrayed in terms of not doing what he is supposed to, and doing what he is not supposed to.

{David Marcus, From Balaam to Jonah: Anti prophetic Satire in the Hebrew Bible}

Two thoughts after having read Obadiah:
1. Obadiah is directed at Edom, and the grievance that God had with Edom is that Edom gloated over the misfortune of his brother (Israel). (Matthew 5 comes to mind…)
2. Within the corpus of the Twelve, and also the Canon, the above grievance becomes a moral inditement on all those who take pleasure in the misfortune of others.