Tag: righteousness

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#93 The Twelve Minor Prophets (4)

David Solomon examines the prophets who lived during the period after Israel’s return to Zion, following the Babylonian exile, namely:

  • Hagai
  • Zechariah
  • Malachi.
David Solomon podcast on the prophets Hagai,Zechariah, and Malachi.
Zechariah as depicted by James Tissot. Public domain.

With their unique post-exilic messages, these three prophets addressed the concerns of a population grappling with rebuilding Jerusalem after generations away. Some of the ideas expressed in their powerful prophetic books include:

  • the need to rebuild the leadership of Israel
  • the importance of building a new temple in Jerusalem
  • a call to do teshuva
  • rebuilding oneself through dialogue with God
  • the failure of previous generations
  • creating righteous leadership
  • ecstatic visions
  • the implications of changing geopolitical realities
  • false prophecy
  • the end of the prophetic epoch.

David closely examines key passages of these biblical texts, explaining their meaning and  the implications of their messages.

As always, he places the prophets, their lives, and their words in historical context. He also emphasises the lasting importance of their ideas for the Jewish people as a nation and for us all as individuals.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:28:10 — 85.0MB)

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#91 The Twelve Minor Prophets (2)

This second instalment of David Solomon’s series on the Trei Asar, the twelve “minor” prophets, explores the lives and books of:

  • Ovadiah (Obadiah),
  • Yonah (Jonah), and
  • Michah.
David Solomon's podcast lecture on Ovadiah (Obadiah),Yonah (Jonah), and Michah.
Jonah Preaching to the Ninevites (1866) by Gustave Doré. Public domain.

David examines the historical contexts of all three prophets and how they are reflected in the texts. He also discusses the key themes in these three prophetic books, including:

  • national and individual teshuvah
  • the destruction of the Kingdom of Israel
  • false prophets and prophecy
  • Edom and its spiritual and geo-historical connections
  • destinations of exile
  • messianic visions
  • the importance of ethical and just behaviour.

In exploring these themes, David also delves into the words of these prophets. He examines, line-by-line, some of the key passages of the books and reveals the remarkable power and substance of these fundamental sacred works.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:29:47 — 84.1MB)

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#71 A Prophetic Revolution In One Hour

In the first millennia BCE, the prophets of Israel launched an unprecedented spiritual revolution, the impact of which has resonated throughout the ages and across the world. In this fascinating lecture, David presents an overview of the twelve ‘minor’ prophets of Israel. Although their messages contained profound insight, analysis, and inspiration, these prophets are known in English as ‘minor’ because their books are short compared to those of the ‘major’ prophets: Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel. With lightning speed and characteristic clarity, David takes us through the story of these prophets and reminds us of the remarkable relevance of their words for us today.

In this podcast episode, David examines the life and ideas of the following prophets:
  • Hosea
  • Joel (Yoel)
  • Amos
  • Obadiah (Ovadiah)
  • Jonah (Yonah)
  • Micah
  • Nachum
  • Habakkuk
  • Zephaniah
  • Haggai
  • Zechariah
  • Malachi
He places these prophets in their historical context, looking at the following periods and events:
  • life in the northern Kingdom of Israel and the Kingdom of Judea (Judah)
  • the destruction of the northern kingdom by the Assyrians
  • the assault on Jerusalem by the Assyrians
  • the defeat of the Assyrians by the Persians
  • the Babylonian exile
  • the return to Zion and the rebuilding of Jerusalem under the proclamation of Cyrus
  • the beginning of the Second Temple Period.
David delivered this talk in 2015 at the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung.
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#55 The Prophets: The Twelve ‘Minor’ Prophets

A Podcast on the Prophets of Israel in Tanach (Hebrew Bible)

The Trei Asar, known in English as the twelve ‘minor’ prophets, have been fundamental to the transmission of ideas and moral perspectives through the past two and a half millennia. In this podcast episode, the final instalment of this four-part series on the prophets of Israel for Elul, David explores the fascinating lives, historical context, and profound messages of these spiritual giants. In dynamic succinctness, David marches through the short but canonical texts of Hosea, Yoel, and Amos; Ovadiah, Yonah, and Micah; Nachum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah; Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi. David explains the importance of each book and their contributions to Jewish and world spirituality.

Find ‘Collected Talks of David Solomon’ on the Jewish podcast rating list at Feedspot.

Sophonie s’adressant au peuple. Valenciennes – BM – ms. 0007 (f. 183). 16th century. Public Domain.

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#54 The Prophets: Ezekiel

A Podcast on the Prophets of Israel in Tanach (Hebrew Bible)

The Book of Ezekiel has been enormously influential on Jewish spirituality for two-and-a-half millennia, including as the foundational inspiration for subsequent Jewish mystical ideas and texts. In this podcast episode, David examines the life and work of the Prophet Ezekiel (Yechezkel), believed to be among the first wave of exiles taken into Babylon. It is in the Book of Ezekiel, largely set during the Babylonian exile after the destruction of the First Temple, that we find an array of profound concepts about ethical existence and societal responsibility that remain startlingly relevant until today – in particular, we can extract much from Ezekiel’s insights into teshuva and Jewish spiritual practice in times of change and uncertainty. David also explores other remarkable elements of the book, including the extraordinary descriptions of G-d’s chariot and the valley of the dry bones, as well as providing insights into the social, political, and spiritual turbulence of the time.

Scan of a Gustave Doré engraving “The Vision of The Valley of The Dry Bones” – 1866. Public Domain.

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