This commentary is the third of three publications that cover the so-called Minor Prophets, or The Book of the Twelve as they are called in the Hebrew Bible. Our brother John Riddle has done a great service in making these notes available, as they provide a very helpful introduction to a part of the Bible that can be difficult to ‘get in to’, and is often neglected as a result. For those who have heard brother John conducting a Bible reading, you will get a distinct flavour of his style in these notes. That is hardly surprising because they have their origin in the Friday Night Bible Class that he has led for many years. As I have commented upon previous notes from the pen of brother John, these are both comprehensive and comprehensible.
The overall title of the commentary is “A Call to Repentance”. This is befitting, for the period of these four prophets stretches from the final decades of the kingdom of Judah before the nation was carried away into Babylonian captivity (Zephaniah), through the return of the captives and the ministry of Haggai and Zechariah (around 100 years later), to the ministry of Malachi (about 100 years later again). The theme of repentance is writ large in these prophecies at the end of the Old Testament and that significance should not be lost on those who live at the end of the Day of Grace.
Each of the four prophecies is presented with an introduction which places the prophecy in its historical context, provides background to the particular prophet, and gives a summary of the material in the book. This helps to give a good sense of its overall structure. The commentary deals with the material in each prophecy using a section-by- section format. Each section is headed by a summary title, followed by sub-sections with particular emphasis on various phrases and words in the Scripture text. However, it does not have a purely technical approach. It is practical and devotional as well as being informative, precisely what I would expect from brother John.
It is important, of course, to remember that this volume is not designed to be read at one sitting, although it is quite possible to do that with each of the Minor Prophets covered, for they are short books. Rather, this is a study aid that provides the extra help that we all need after we have read the Scriptures and reflected upon them ourselves. I heartily commend these notes.
Review by Andrew Grieve.
Minor Prophets (Zephaniah - Malachi) by John Riddle is available here.
