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The Message of the Prophets: A Survey of the Prophetic and Apocalyptic Books of the Old Testament
Christians sometimes approach the Old Testament with a mixture of awe and bewilderment, knowing that it contains pearls of wisdom, but unsure how to dive for them ... especially when it comes to the Prophets.In The Message of the Prophets, author J. Daniel Hays offers a scholarly, yet readable and student-friendly survey of the Old Testament prophetic literature that presents the message of each prophet in its historical and its biblical context and then tracks that message through the New Testament to challenge readers with what it means for them today. Hays focuses on synthesizing the message of the prophets, which enables students to grasp the major contours of the prophetic books clearly and concisely. Hundreds of colorful pictures help to illustrate the historical and cultural background of the prophets. After identifying what the message meant for ancient Israel, Hays helps the readers to move toward theological application today, helping readers to gain a better understanding of God and the relationship between God and his people. The Message of the Prophets is essential for professors, students, and others seeking to understand the role that the OT prophets play in the Christian faith.
384 pages, Hardcover
First published September 14, 2010
63 people are currently reading
162 people want to read
About the author
J. Daniel Hays
42 books19 followersJ. Daniel Hays (ThM, Dallas Theological Seminary; PhD, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary) is dean of the Pruet School of Christian Studies and professor of Old Testament at Ouachita Baptist University. He is the author of From Every People and Nation, and he has coauthored Grasping God's Word; Preaching God's Word; Journey into God’s Word; The Story of Israel: A Biblical Theology; Iraq: Babylon of the End Times?; Apocalypse; and The Dictionary of Biblical Prophecy. He teaches adult Sunday school at his local church in Arkadelphia, Arkansas, and preaches frequently throughout the nation.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
August 30, 2020
An excellent introduction to the four major and twelve minor literary prophets of the Bible. I have some quibbles with a few of his interpretations, but I learned a lot.
June 23, 2012
Introduction
This is a book written for the purpose of equipping Christians to be able to better understand God’s Word, specifically in the area of the prophetic and apocalyptic books. In this review I want to express not only the main message of the book, but I want to make known how God has used this book in my own life in helping me to be a better student of the prophetic books of His Word. And not only do I want to write on how God has used this book in my own life, but I want to inform other believers on how this book could benefit them as well. I will summarize the main message Hays sets out to communicate in the book, and I will also do some critical interaction with how he goes about in achieving his goal. So, my prayer in writing this is that you would not just seek to be critic of the book discussed, but that your desire for God’s Word would increase and that you would seek through God’s grace to be the student of His Word that He calls you to be!
Brief Summary
Hays sets out on the journey of giving a survey view of the prophetic and apocalyptic literature in Scripture. One of the important points to understand about the book is that Hays is not primarily concerned with giving in-depth historical details. Though he does give brief historical overview, he recommends those who want a more detailed description of the historical context to seek out other books written specifically for that purpose. Hays goal is communicated well through the title, The Message of the Prophets: A Survey of the Prophetic and Apocalyptic Books of the Old Testament. Throughout the book he seeks to help Christians understand the message of the prophets of Yahweh. And I believe the fact that he uses God’s personal, covenant-keeping name (YHWH is the direct Hebrew, and with the vowels we have Yahweh), is important to draw attention to. The covenants of God are crucial to the message of the prophets, and this is why Hays primarily uses the name “Yahweh” for the Lord.
The beginning of the book is an introduction to prophetic books. Hays overviews the historical background that we encounter during the time of the prophets, and he also discusses the important topic of interpreting the messages of the prophets. He deals with topics such as symbolism, Hebrew grammar, styles of literature, genres, eschatology, and critical views of the prophetic books. For anyone planning on using this book as a reference book, I would recommend reading these first five chapters before anything else, because they give a great foundation for any Christian seeking to understand God’s message through the prophets.
Also, Hay’s summary of the standard pre-exilic prophetic message is excellent and I will quote it here...
Hay’s Outline for the Standard Pre-exilic Prophets
1. You (Israel/Judah) have broken the covenant; you had better repent!
2. No repentance? Then judgment! Judgment will also come on the nations.
3. Yet there is hope beyond the judgment for a glorious future restoration both for Israel/Judah and for the nations.
The non-standard pre-exilic prophets are called thus because they don’t follow this outline directly, rather, they usually deal primarily with foreign nations. And the post-exilic prophets deal often with the question of how the people of Yahweh should live after the exile. Promises of future restoration are frequent in these books, and Hays communicates this well.
Hays’ survey follows the order of the Septuagint (LXX) except for with the last three books (the last 3 chapters go in this order: Zechariah, Haggai, and Malachi), which is the order for the books we have in our English translations of the Bible. Though not a chronological order, the LXX order helps in classifying the prophets. We have the Major Prophets first: Isaiah, Jeremiah (Lamentations is included), Ezekiel, and Daniel. Then we have the Minor Prophets, which can also be referred to as The Book of the Twelve: Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi.
Critical Interaction
Hays communicates sound biblical truth in this book in an understandable way. Honestly, I would say that he writes in a scholarly yet accessible way, and I would highly recommend this book to laypeople as well as pastors and theologians. Hays believes in the inspiration, authority, and inerrancy of the Word of God, and we should thank God for His grace in using him and other men who believe that the Bible is truly God’s Word to teach us. He believes in the historicity of the prophetic books, and that they were truly written by the prophets themselves (unless otherwise indicated in the book. Jeremiah, for example, asks his words to be written down by Baruch).
One of the interesting things in the book is that Hays does not come right out and say what he believes about a few of the theological differences among Bible believing scholars. Primarily the different views among evangelicals are Dispensationalism, Progressive Dispensationalism, Covenant, and New Covenant. Also, in reference to eschatological issues, there are the views of Dispensational Pre-millennialism, Progressive Dispensational Pre-millennialism, Historic Pre-millennialism, Post-millennialism, and Amillennialism. The differences and importance of knowing where you stand on these issues are key, but that would take pages beyond what I am allotted to discuss (and it misses the focus of this paper). But, Hays makes it clear that though he does not express his view, all of us as Christians must determine whether we believe the future promises are fulfilled through the church or physical Israel.
As I have stated before, Hays goal is to increase his readers’ knowledge of the message of the prophets and to help them be the students of God’s Word that He calls them to be. Hays does an excellent job at not leaving this information in our brains as mere head knowledge, rather, he takes time to show how the message of the prophets remains applicable today. He says, “while this book seeks to engage the very best of Old Testament scholarship, especially that of the evangelical tradition, it also seeks to move beyond mere academic study to help the reader ask the bottom-line theological question, ‘What impact should this have on me?’ Thus, throughout the book we will pause from time to time to grapple with theology for today and contemporary application.”2 This is one of the reasons I recommend this book so highly not only to pastors and theologians, but to laypeople as well. We must not only be hearers of the word, but doers also!
I believe that Hays’ communicates his points in the book and accomplishes his goal through his gift of writing. It is also up to the student however to give this book the proper attention, and it is here that I bring up the main “weakness” of the book. For someone who wants an in-depth exegesis of the prophetic books, this is not the book you’re looking for. But, this is not so much a weakness as much as it is a misunderstanding of the author’s goal. Hays’ even recommends that those who want more historical background should look into books that are written specifically for that purpose. And for those who want a detailed exegesis and verse-by-verse study, he recommends excellent commentaries on the books of the prophets. The book is a survey, and when you read it with this in mind, it accomplishes Hays’ goal in a marvelous way.
I have talked some throughout this review about how I believe it is useful not only for pastors and theologians, but laypeople as well. One area I believe this book is particularly beneficial in is that it not only accurately surveys the prophetic books, but shows how the message of the prophets applies today. The importance of social justice is a theme throughout the prophets and something we need to remember today when millionaires can live right down the street from people dying of hunger. Religious ritualism and syncretism are just as rampant in America today as they were in the time of the prophets. I realize we are not using wooden and golden idols much anymore, but we do a fine job worshiping our sports teams and celebrities (and often we do a better job worshiping ourselves than either of these!). God’s hatred for the sin of idolatry and syncretism must be heard today! And the grace and mercy and lovingkindness of Yahweh that we see proclaimed through the message of the prophets is relevant to all people at all times. May we rejoice in the authority, clarity, inerrancy, and sufficiency of God’s Word! Hays’ book communicates clearly and excellently why we need the messages of the prophets today.
This book could be used in a classroom setting easily. For schools, the references Hays’ gives for other books for further study and assignment ideas are great tools. This book could be used by a pastor or layman in seeking to know the message of the prophets better. I would highly recommend using it if you plan on preaching through the prophets, teaching on the prophets, or even just reading through them in your personal Bible study time.
This is a book written for the purpose of equipping Christians to be able to better understand God’s Word, specifically in the area of the prophetic and apocalyptic books. In this review I want to express not only the main message of the book, but I want to make known how God has used this book in my own life in helping me to be a better student of the prophetic books of His Word. And not only do I want to write on how God has used this book in my own life, but I want to inform other believers on how this book could benefit them as well. I will summarize the main message Hays sets out to communicate in the book, and I will also do some critical interaction with how he goes about in achieving his goal. So, my prayer in writing this is that you would not just seek to be critic of the book discussed, but that your desire for God’s Word would increase and that you would seek through God’s grace to be the student of His Word that He calls you to be!
Brief Summary
Hays sets out on the journey of giving a survey view of the prophetic and apocalyptic literature in Scripture. One of the important points to understand about the book is that Hays is not primarily concerned with giving in-depth historical details. Though he does give brief historical overview, he recommends those who want a more detailed description of the historical context to seek out other books written specifically for that purpose. Hays goal is communicated well through the title, The Message of the Prophets: A Survey of the Prophetic and Apocalyptic Books of the Old Testament. Throughout the book he seeks to help Christians understand the message of the prophets of Yahweh. And I believe the fact that he uses God’s personal, covenant-keeping name (YHWH is the direct Hebrew, and with the vowels we have Yahweh), is important to draw attention to. The covenants of God are crucial to the message of the prophets, and this is why Hays primarily uses the name “Yahweh” for the Lord.
The beginning of the book is an introduction to prophetic books. Hays overviews the historical background that we encounter during the time of the prophets, and he also discusses the important topic of interpreting the messages of the prophets. He deals with topics such as symbolism, Hebrew grammar, styles of literature, genres, eschatology, and critical views of the prophetic books. For anyone planning on using this book as a reference book, I would recommend reading these first five chapters before anything else, because they give a great foundation for any Christian seeking to understand God’s message through the prophets.
Also, Hay’s summary of the standard pre-exilic prophetic message is excellent and I will quote it here...
Hay’s Outline for the Standard Pre-exilic Prophets
1. You (Israel/Judah) have broken the covenant; you had better repent!
2. No repentance? Then judgment! Judgment will also come on the nations.
3. Yet there is hope beyond the judgment for a glorious future restoration both for Israel/Judah and for the nations.
The non-standard pre-exilic prophets are called thus because they don’t follow this outline directly, rather, they usually deal primarily with foreign nations. And the post-exilic prophets deal often with the question of how the people of Yahweh should live after the exile. Promises of future restoration are frequent in these books, and Hays communicates this well.
Hays’ survey follows the order of the Septuagint (LXX) except for with the last three books (the last 3 chapters go in this order: Zechariah, Haggai, and Malachi), which is the order for the books we have in our English translations of the Bible. Though not a chronological order, the LXX order helps in classifying the prophets. We have the Major Prophets first: Isaiah, Jeremiah (Lamentations is included), Ezekiel, and Daniel. Then we have the Minor Prophets, which can also be referred to as The Book of the Twelve: Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi.
Critical Interaction
Hays communicates sound biblical truth in this book in an understandable way. Honestly, I would say that he writes in a scholarly yet accessible way, and I would highly recommend this book to laypeople as well as pastors and theologians. Hays believes in the inspiration, authority, and inerrancy of the Word of God, and we should thank God for His grace in using him and other men who believe that the Bible is truly God’s Word to teach us. He believes in the historicity of the prophetic books, and that they were truly written by the prophets themselves (unless otherwise indicated in the book. Jeremiah, for example, asks his words to be written down by Baruch).
One of the interesting things in the book is that Hays does not come right out and say what he believes about a few of the theological differences among Bible believing scholars. Primarily the different views among evangelicals are Dispensationalism, Progressive Dispensationalism, Covenant, and New Covenant. Also, in reference to eschatological issues, there are the views of Dispensational Pre-millennialism, Progressive Dispensational Pre-millennialism, Historic Pre-millennialism, Post-millennialism, and Amillennialism. The differences and importance of knowing where you stand on these issues are key, but that would take pages beyond what I am allotted to discuss (and it misses the focus of this paper). But, Hays makes it clear that though he does not express his view, all of us as Christians must determine whether we believe the future promises are fulfilled through the church or physical Israel.
As I have stated before, Hays goal is to increase his readers’ knowledge of the message of the prophets and to help them be the students of God’s Word that He calls them to be. Hays does an excellent job at not leaving this information in our brains as mere head knowledge, rather, he takes time to show how the message of the prophets remains applicable today. He says, “while this book seeks to engage the very best of Old Testament scholarship, especially that of the evangelical tradition, it also seeks to move beyond mere academic study to help the reader ask the bottom-line theological question, ‘What impact should this have on me?’ Thus, throughout the book we will pause from time to time to grapple with theology for today and contemporary application.”2 This is one of the reasons I recommend this book so highly not only to pastors and theologians, but to laypeople as well. We must not only be hearers of the word, but doers also!
I believe that Hays’ communicates his points in the book and accomplishes his goal through his gift of writing. It is also up to the student however to give this book the proper attention, and it is here that I bring up the main “weakness” of the book. For someone who wants an in-depth exegesis of the prophetic books, this is not the book you’re looking for. But, this is not so much a weakness as much as it is a misunderstanding of the author’s goal. Hays’ even recommends that those who want more historical background should look into books that are written specifically for that purpose. And for those who want a detailed exegesis and verse-by-verse study, he recommends excellent commentaries on the books of the prophets. The book is a survey, and when you read it with this in mind, it accomplishes Hays’ goal in a marvelous way.
I have talked some throughout this review about how I believe it is useful not only for pastors and theologians, but laypeople as well. One area I believe this book is particularly beneficial in is that it not only accurately surveys the prophetic books, but shows how the message of the prophets applies today. The importance of social justice is a theme throughout the prophets and something we need to remember today when millionaires can live right down the street from people dying of hunger. Religious ritualism and syncretism are just as rampant in America today as they were in the time of the prophets. I realize we are not using wooden and golden idols much anymore, but we do a fine job worshiping our sports teams and celebrities (and often we do a better job worshiping ourselves than either of these!). God’s hatred for the sin of idolatry and syncretism must be heard today! And the grace and mercy and lovingkindness of Yahweh that we see proclaimed through the message of the prophets is relevant to all people at all times. May we rejoice in the authority, clarity, inerrancy, and sufficiency of God’s Word! Hays’ book communicates clearly and excellently why we need the messages of the prophets today.
This book could be used in a classroom setting easily. For schools, the references Hays’ gives for other books for further study and assignment ideas are great tools. This book could be used by a pastor or layman in seeking to know the message of the prophets better. I would highly recommend using it if you plan on preaching through the prophets, teaching on the prophets, or even just reading through them in your personal Bible study time.
May 7, 2023
A great text to intro and organize one to the prophetic books. Not simply facts, but the theology behind them. Entertaining and enlightening. Really helpfully interspersed with pictures and side comments that enhance and enrich the teaching.
November 4, 2024
This book gives a really good overview of the topics and themes of the prophetic books of the Old Testament. Covering each of the books in the order they appear in the protestant Bible, each chapter (or multiple chapters for the major prophets) gives a good summary of what each book covers and some of the things you may not know just from reading an English translation. The author gives us some Hebrew translations to show the wordplay being used in some passages, informs us of the connections between the different prophets (who lived at the same time as whom, who covers topics and themes in a similar way to whom, etc.), and makes note of many historical people and events that help us better understand the circumstances in which the prophecies occurred.
December 30, 2022
I read this book for my BIBL 313 Study of the Prophets class. Drs. Hays and Longman put together a real piece of work right here. I learned quite a bit from reading this book for class. They piece together individual books (or several books for the smaller ones) into chapters. Books like Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel take two or three chapters to unplug some of the information contained in them. I can see why this book was required reading for my class; it takes the books and gives you little tidbits of information about their setting and context. Many Christians have hijacked the Bible for their own personal good luck charm. However, they forget that many of the promises contained within the prophets are not meant for us today, but for the Jews of those times.
April 15, 2019
This book does an excellent job of setting the context and explaining the history relevant to the minor prophets. However, it does a poor job of connecting such things to elements of systematic theology or the overarching biblical narrative. Granted, this may be intentional, I nonetheless did not particularly care for that approach.
June 3, 2023
I have 20 pages of notes for this book... I'd better get a good grade on this assignment!
December 20, 2023
Good as super basic conservative evangelical survey.
December 31, 2020
I meandered around in this book most of the year, then I took it seriously and finished on the last day of 2020. I read it to help me get a handle on the biblical prophets prior to spending all next year in devotional study of Isaiah-Daniel.
The book did exactly what I needed. It gave me handles to better understand what I’m reading. If you know nothing of the historical background or setting of the prophetic books, you’ll be lost at best, or at worst you’ll be tempted to read them piecemeal, trying to fit their promises, threats, and forecasts into our contemporary situation. Don’t do that 😁. Read this book if you want a guide to understand some of the most compelling and God-revealing books of the Old Testament.
The book did exactly what I needed. It gave me handles to better understand what I’m reading. If you know nothing of the historical background or setting of the prophetic books, you’ll be lost at best, or at worst you’ll be tempted to read them piecemeal, trying to fit their promises, threats, and forecasts into our contemporary situation. Don’t do that 😁. Read this book if you want a guide to understand some of the most compelling and God-revealing books of the Old Testament.
August 4, 2017
An eye opener, very helpful in my studies of prophetic literature for seminary. I would have to say one of the most level headed and clear descriptions on this topic.
October 6, 2025
Great book. I'm not a fan of either of the authors but as a purely technical survey, it's pretty solid. That being said, they're definitely losing a star for their eschatology treatment -- it wasn't good. Most of it was just the author defending his own side. He also refused to even explain or recognize postmillenialism as a valid eschatological position. They're also losing a star for capitalizing the "B" in "black" and trying to give the idea that we're struggling with the same social justice issues the prophets were in their day. Can't wait until we can start getting Christian teachers who possess that rarest of qualities: a spine.
February 18, 2019
I listened to the audio lectures on my commute to and from work. I couldn’t wait to get back in car!
I discovered this author in the book Living God’s Word. I love Old Testament studios and J Daniel Hays helps make the prophets come alive and we see the Israelites in light of world history and culture. Everything in the Old Testament makes sense when view it light of the Israelites obedience (well more like disobedience to Deuteronomy).
I have the book ready for order (along with the videos lectures). It makes a great survey reference for Bible Study. I will also download to LOGOS 😀
I discovered this author in the book Living God’s Word. I love Old Testament studios and J Daniel Hays helps make the prophets come alive and we see the Israelites in light of world history and culture. Everything in the Old Testament makes sense when view it light of the Israelites obedience (well more like disobedience to Deuteronomy).
I have the book ready for order (along with the videos lectures). It makes a great survey reference for Bible Study. I will also download to LOGOS 😀
October 16, 2025
Outstanding and Digestible Overview
Dr. Hays is by far one of the best teachers of all things difficult and tough to comprehend in the bible. He has the uncanny ability of synthesizing the supernatural/theological story of the bible with the practical history of Israel and God’s plan to unite all the families of the earth through Jesus. This is an excellent read and resource!! I bought the hard copy and audio book version!
Dr. Hays is by far one of the best teachers of all things difficult and tough to comprehend in the bible. He has the uncanny ability of synthesizing the supernatural/theological story of the bible with the practical history of Israel and God’s plan to unite all the families of the earth through Jesus. This is an excellent read and resource!! I bought the hard copy and audio book version!
October 20, 2018
Excellent overview of all of the prophetical books in the Old Testament with many photos and illustrations, focusing on seeing the overall picture rather than getting lost in details. Nevertheless also includes lots of extra helpful material on individual issues.
March 7, 2019
An awesome overview of the prophets and their history, message, and techniques. You will learn about several different aspects of the prophetic genre that is found in Scripture in very digestable chunks, allowing you to get a full grasp of concepts while not spending hours reading on the topic.
October 24, 2019
Very introductory and does not capture the beauty, complexity and hardship of the Prophets. The book reads like the Prophets are a narrative, and it explains that facet. It can do a lot better in helping people receive a framework to read the book.
November 24, 2021
Each chapter is a good intro/explanation of each prophet and cultural matters surrounding them.
I recommend for personal study, especially if you're doing a read through the Bible and are confused by the prophets section.
I recommend for personal study, especially if you're doing a read through the Bible and are confused by the prophets section.
July 18, 2022
Great book for introducing the prophetic books for the purpose of reading them in context. I also appreciated the author connecting verses and themes within other OT passages and with the fulfillment in the New Testament!
April 14, 2023
An ok overview of the prophets. They heavily pushed that the prophet concerns were for social justice, which may be true, but the term has different connotations now that the prophets didn’t have in mind
May 16, 2023
Read as a text book for an undergrad course alongside another textbook. I preferred this one of the two resources as I found it to fit the “sweet spot” between being easily readable while providing a more thorough summary of the work and purpose of the prophets.
August 15, 2017
Clear, devout, evangelical, and insightful.
July 24, 2018
Good conservative introduction and reference works. Lots of helpful illustrations.
September 3, 2018
The first 100 pages is great. Later pages become tedious - tons of facts. Excellent reference book.
February 20, 2019
Good summary and introduction to the prophets. Very readable at a 10,000 foot view, which means there are not many comments on more "scholarly" or theological debates.
June 15, 2019
Excellent overview of the prophets, their situations, historical-cultural context, and their messages. Very helpful in my class "Studies in the Prophets" at Moody Bible Institute.
September 13, 2019
I read this book about the Biblical Prophets as part of 3rd year Biblical Study. It was valuable with my reading of the Prophets in Old Testament.
April 21, 2020
Exceptional writer.
April 29, 2020
This book is almost 2/5!
May 18, 2023
Excellent and accessible resource for anyone who wants to study or teach the OT prophets.
May 13, 2024
Great book to understand what the prophets were all about
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews