People want to know the future. Soothsayers, Tarot cards, horoscopes, and market forecasting are perennial favorites in our world. What happens next and what should I do about it? Of course, the desire to know the is hardly unique to our world. Seers, oracles, and omens were part and parcel of the ancient world. And of the forty-six Old Testament books, seventeen (40%) are prophetic. Are the prophetic books of the Bible no different from, say, the Oracle at Delphi or reading the future in the entrails of animals? If not, what is the difference? What do the Old Testament prophets teach? What was their role in ancient Israel? What is the role of these books today?
REMINDER: For those who would like to catch up on past lectures, they can be found HERE.