Hosea to Micah

by Paula Gooder

Published 18 February 2005
The six prophetic books that run from Hosea to Micah make a distinctly odd collection, from the well-known and serious prophetic writings of Hosea and Amos to Jonah, a light-hearted story of prophetic disaster. Then there is Obadiah, a book that most people would struggle to find, and know hardly anything about. So what connects them all? Although the texts come from different times, different places and different prophets, they tell the same story. It is the story of the roller-coaster ride of God's relationship with his people, a story that looks back to God's action in the past and forward to what he will do in the future, in order to make sense of what is happening in the present. Throughout it all is the pulsing theme of God's great and abiding love for his people, and also his concern for other nations and how they relate to his plan for history. Each PBC volume divides the Bible text into sections that are covered in a series of two page reflections, with concluding prayer or point for reflection. An introductory section covers issues of authorship, background and so on, including a list of books for further study.