Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi (Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries | TOTC)

by Andrew E. Hill

Publisher:

Inter-Varsity

, 2012

Overview

Despite the return of the Hebrews from the Babylonian exile, selfishness, apathy and despair crippled their community spirit. In response to this distress, God raised up three prophetic voices in Jerusalem. Haggai rallied the people to rebuild the Second Temple. Zechariah was given visions of the return of the glory of the Lord to Zion. Malachi preached repentance, covenant justice and restoration of proper temple worship. Andrew Hill’s excellent commentary on these oracles shows how they remain timely for the Christian church’s worship and mission in the world. This newly composed commentary from Hill replaces the edition written by the late Joyce Baldwin.

Contents

Top Highlights

“The crux of the vision of the lampstand and the two olive trees is that God will enable Zerubbabel (and Joshua) to rebuild his holy temple, an important message of encouragement to post-exilic Judah (v. 9). Theologically, the fifth vision reinforces three basic spiritual truths: first, with God everything is possible (cf. Matt. 19:26); second, God accomplishes his purposes in the world through human servants empowered by the Holy Spirit (v. 6; cf. Hag. 2:5; Zech. 7:12; John 16:5–15); and third, God delights in ‘small beginnings’ (v. 10; cf. Ezra 3:12; Hag. 2:3).” (Page 162)

“The thrust of Malachi’s preaching may be placed under the umbrella theme of ‘covenant’, specifically the covenant of Jacob (i.e. the patriarchs; cf. Mal. 1:2), the covenant of Levi (2:5), the covenant of marriage (2:14) and the covenant of Moses (4:4).¹⁴ The basic idea of a covenant is essentially that of a treaty or pact that establishes a relationship between parties, with attendant obligations and responsibilities. It is not surprising, then, that three of the book’s disputations deal with right relationships.” (Page 282)

“The first (1:1–15) is the call to the people of Jerusalem to reprioritize community life.” (Page 54)

“The verb listen means ‘to listen’ or ‘hear’ in the sense of ‘obey’” (Page 308)

“The story of Esau is one of selfishness and contempt for the tokens of YHWH’s covenant (cf. Gen. 25:34). The nation of Edom was renowned for its wisdom (Jer. 49:7; Obad. 8), but came to personify the pride of a self-centred existence (cf. Jer. 49:16). The Edomites were allies of the Babylonians in the sack of Jerusalem. As a result, they became a people group perpetually under the wrath of God, a Wicked Land, because of their violent crimes against their Israelite brothers in league with the Babylonians in the invasion of Judah in 587 bc (Obad. 10; 12; cf. 2 Kgs 25; Ps. 137:7–9).” (Pages 292–293)

Product Details

• Title: Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi: An Introduction and Commentary (Hill)
• Author: Andrew E. Hill
• Series: Tyndale Commentaries
• Volume: 28
• Publisher: Inter-Varsity
• Print Publication Date: 2012
• Logos Release Date: 2017
• Era: era:contemporary
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
• Subjects: Bible. O.T. Haggai › Commentaries; Bible. O.T. Zechariah › Commentaries; Bible. O.T. Malachi › Commentaries
• ISBNs: 9781844745845, 9780830842827, 9780830894949, 1844745848, 0830842829, 0830894942
• Resource ID: LLS:TOTC37HAGHILL
• Resource Type: Bible Commentary
• Metadata Last Updated: 2024-02-23T00:22:43Z

About Andrew E. Hill

Andrew E. Hill (PhD, University of Michigan) is professor of Old Testament studies at Wheaton College in Illinois. He is the author of Malachi in the Anchor Bible commentary series. His articles have appeared in such scholarly publications as Hebrew Annual Review, Journal of Biblical Literature, and Vetus Testamentum.