The Unity of the Twelve
Overview
Scholars have long noted the consistent canonical ordering of the Minor Prophets, yet have not located their unity. In this instructive book Paul House presents a close reading that demonstrates the Twelve’s cohering principles. Both literary criticism and the Minor Prophets are succinctly introduced here. Biblical theology is also furthered through the study’s focus on unity.
With the Logos Bible Software edition, you have unprecedented access to the most important scholarly material on the history and culture of the ancient Near East in general and Israel in particular. The powerful search tools in your digital library help you locate the specific material relevant to your study. All references to the Old Testament are directly linked to the Hebrew texts in your library, along with your preferred English translations. What’s more, double-clicking any word in any language automatically opens up your preferred lexicons and searches for a match—giving you access to definitions, etymology, and usage examples. These advanced tools make the Logos edition of these important works on Israel’s history an important addition to the libraries of scholars, pastors, and students of the Old Testament.
- Includes numerous, concise citations of Old Testament scholars, historians
- All references to the Old Testament are linked to original language texts and English translations in your library
Top Highlights
“‘Patterns in the Prophetic Canon’ Ronald Clements claims that canonical prophecy offers a unified message of coming judgment and eventual salvation.” (Page 17)
“A close analysis of the Twelve reveals some definite patterns in the positioning of the minor prophets. It appears that the books are ordered as they are so that the main points of the prophetic message will be highlighted. In fact, the Twelve are structured in a way that demonstrates the sin of Israel and the nations, the punishment of the sin, and the restoration of both from that sin. These three emphases represent the heart of the content of the prophetic genre. The Twelve’s external structure therefore reflects its literary type.” (Page 68)
“In the Twelve, the conscious effort to divulge sin, punishment, and restoration proceeds in the following sequence. The first six of the prophecies examine the covenant and cosmic nature of sin. This examination is nearly encyclopaedic in its thoroughness. Following this section, the next three books capture the essence of covenantal and cosmic punishment. Hope is not absent, but it is definitely muted. Finally, the last three prophecies relate the possibility of restoration. Restoration is portrayed as past, present, and future, much as God’s covenant relationship and judgment of any breach of that relationship is past, present, and future oriented. Other books mention restoration, of course, but without making that idea its main issue.” (Page 72)
“According to Aristotle, an individual genre is defined as a type of literature whose combination of medium, content, and narration differs significantly from other types of literature.” (Page 41)
- Title: The Unity of the Twelve
- Author: Paul R. House
- Publisher: Sheffield Academic Press
- Publication Date: 2009
- Pages: 262
Paul R. House (1958–) is Professor of Divinity Old Testament at Beeson Divinity School where he teaches Old Testament theology and Hebrew. He earned his PhD from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.
In 2004, House became Professor of Divinity at the Beeson Divinity School of Samford University. House continues to teach at Samford and also serves as the Associate Dean of Samford’s Divinity School.Paul previously taught at Taylor University, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Trinity Episcopal School for Ministry, and Wheaton College.
House has written several articles and books including Old Testament Survey found in the Hebrew History Collection, Unity of the Twelve in the History of Israel Collection, Old Testament Theology, and the volume on 1 and 2 Kings in The New American Commentary.
Reviews
2 ratings
Erich Javier Astudillo Acevedo
11/5/2021
Disclaimer: The following review arises out of a “Devotional”-ish reading of the book I read the book as a sort of introduction ahead of staring the twelve. The reading is motivated out of Blenkinsopp’s comments in Opening the Sealed Book: Interpretations of the Book of Isaiah in Late Antiquity, where the issue of intertextuality and reading Isaiah under the guidance of Daniel to crack the seal that hides the meaning of the text is raised. This book about the twelve really helps in that regard, illuminating enigmatic statements sealed in Daniel [Dan 12:9-10 for example] and also helping with some of Isaiah (although not directly, only if you have been reading Isaiah recently and you remember parts while you read) . With this in mind, the book is excellent, it will give you a very good perspective of prophecy as a whole and tools to examine the text closely as well as broadly within the twelve context. This I can state with confidence, since I am in Hosea following the Berit Olam comment on the twelve and while faced with questions raised by the punishment of the house of Jehu that was commissioned by Elijah/Elisha I can clearly see the questions of Habakkuk 1:12-17 claiming to be raised and answer [intertextual relation not mentioned by Berit Olam]. Without this reading such a clarity would not be possible. So, If you are interested in seeing Gods glory in salvation though judgement this is your book to start, and if you pretend to read any of the twelve I strongly recommend that you consider going though this book first. Your high criticism reading will be ruined, but the literary and canonical one will be greatly enhanced in exchange.
Larry Liddiard
12/25/2015
