The Major Prophets
God inspired the major prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel to record His messages, and despite efforts to destroy their writings, He preserved their words as an enduring part of Scripture affirmed by Jesus Christ and the New Testament writers.
Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel are known as the major prophets because of the long lengths of the books bearing their names—which they themselves wrote (along with assistance from personal scribes at times).
But the story for us to consider does not stop there. Each man actually told of his own fascinating life and contribution to the Bible.
Yet in the final analysis it is Jesus Christ Himself who joins the two sections of the Bible, the Old and New Testaments, together. So it is primarily to Christ that we must first look for guidance in evaluating the books of the major prophets, as with all Scripture.
Do we find Jesus directly ascribing any portions of the Bible to the prophet Isaiah?
“Well did Isaiah prophesy about you . . .” (Matthew 15:7).
In verses 8-9 Christ quotes from Isaiah 29:13 in the Hebrew Bible.
Did all four Gospel writers attribute portions of the Hebrew Scriptures to Isaiah?
“For this [John the Baptist] is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah . . .” (Matthew 3:3; compare Mark 7:6; Luke 3:4; John 12:39-41).
Clearly, the prophet Isaiah had given the prophecy referred to. Like the apostle Paul in composing some of his letters, Isaiah could have dictated portions of his book to an assistant. Remember that the official system of recorders and scribes (established by King David) was still in operation in Judah during Isaiah’s lifetime. His prophetic ministry continued during the reigns of several Judean kings (Isaiah 1:1).
Did the apostle Paul also quote from Isaiah?
“. . . They departed after Paul had said one word: ‘The Holy Spirit spoke rightly through Isaiah the prophet to our fathers . . .’” (Acts 28:25; compare Romans 9:27).
What was unusual about Jeremiah’s calling?
“Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying: ‘Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations’” (Jeremiah 1:4-5).
The expression “the word of the Lord came to me” is repeated often in the book of Jeremiah in slightly varied forms. The message of the prophet is directly from God; Jeremiah is merely His human instrument.
Did Jeremiah write down prophecies himself?
“So Jeremiah wrote in a book all the evil that would come upon Babylon, all these words that are written against Babylon” (Jeremiah 51:60).
But did Jeremiah do all the writing of his prophecies himself?
“. . . This word came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying: ‘Take a scroll of a book and write on it all the words that I have spoken to you against Israel, against Judah, and against all the nations, from the day I spoke to you, from the days of Josiah even to this day’” (Jeremiah 36:1-2).
“Then Jeremiah called Baruch the son of Neriah; and Baruch wrote on a scroll of a book, at the instruction of Jeremiah, all the words of the Lord which He had spoken to him” (verse 4).
Jeremiah had his own personal scribe, who was also a capable reader before audiences (verse 10). Baruch read the words of Jeremiah to people in “the house of the Lord,” the temple in Jerusalem.
When God’s message through Jeremiah (but written down by Baruch the scribe) reached King Jehoiakim, what did the king immediately do?
“And it happened, when Jehudi had read three or four columns, that the king cut it with the scribe’s knife and cast it into the fire . . . until all the scroll was consumed in the fire . . .” (verse 23).
Many attempts have been made throughout history to destroy parts or all of God’s Word. This particular instance is recorded in the Bible itself. Sometimes biblical writers and translators have been imprisoned or killed. Men literally gave their lives to bring you this Book. In this scriptural example, however, the attempt to “seize Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet” failed because “the Lord hid them” (verse 26).
What was God’s reaction to King Jehoiakim’s destruction of Jeremiah’s scroll in the fire?
“Now after the king had burned the scroll with the words which Baruch had written at the instruction of Jeremiah, the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah saying: ‘Take yet another scroll, and write on it all the former words that were in the first scroll which Jehoiakim the king of Judah has burned’” (verses 27-28).
“Then Jeremiah took another scroll and gave it to Baruch the scribe . . . , who wrote on it at the instruction of Jeremiah all the words of the book which Jehoiakim king of Judah had burned in the fire. And besides, there were added to them many similar words” (verse 32).
Not even kings have any authority or permission to alter or destroy God’s Word. He has preserved the Bible throughout the ages in spite of determined attempts to extinguish all traces of it. Faithful men and women have risked their lives to preserve, spread and publish the Scriptures. (For more about this, see “King Jehoiakim: A Lesson From Biblical History” at the bottom of this page.)
What were Ezekiel’s prophetic credentials?
“The word of the Lord came expressly to Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the River Chebar; and the hand of the Lord was upon him there” (Ezekiel 1:3).
Ezekiel is mentioned only twice in the Bible—both times in the book bearing his name. In addition to obvious allusions in Revelation 21 to the temple chapters of Ezekiel (40–48), the book of Ezekiel is quoted several times in the New Testament. Also, Jesus’ portrait of Himself as the Good Shepherd is an apparent allusion to passages from Ezekiel (compare 34:5, 8, 12, 23; 37:24). Moreover, God addresses Ezekiel as “the son of man” 90 times, and Jesus Christ refers to Himself as “the Son of Man” about 80 times in the Gospel accounts.
Ezekiel’s prophecies were born in the heat of captivity. Says The Oxford Dictionary of the Jewish Religion: “He [Ezekiel] was deported along with King Jehoiachin of Judah . . . in 597 BCE [or B.C.] to Babylon by the invading forces of Nebuchadnezzar (2 Kings 24:8-16; Ezekiel 1.1-3). The exiles were settled at Tel-abib on the river Chebar . . . Ezekiel’s call to prophesy came in July 593, and all of his preaching took place among the deported Jerusalemites . . .” (1997, pp. 246-247).
King Jehoiakim: A Lesson From Biblical History
History shows that through the centuries various people have tried to destroy the Word of God. Early in the sixth century B.C., one who literally “destroyed” the Word of God and paid dearly for his arrogance was Jehoiakim, king of Judah.
Jehoiakim’s 11-year reign was disastrous. Although he had opportunity to follow his father Josiah’s righteous example (Jeremiah 22:15-16), he turned to evil. Jeremiah described him as a presumptuous ruler who abused his own people (verses 13-14) and persecuted and murdered God’s servants (Jeremiah 26:20-23).
God instructed Jeremiah to prophesy that, unless they repented, King Jehoiakim and Jerusalem would fall (Jeremiah 36). Jeremiah had God’s words recorded by his scribe, Baruch, and instructed him to read them to the people of Judah. God hoped they would repent and avoid their prophesied downfall (verses 4-7).
When the princes heard Jeremiah’s prophetic words, they quickly conveyed them to Jehoiakim (verse 19). Then the king heard the princes’ account of Jeremiah’s prophecies and sent an officer to bring the scroll to him (verse 21).
Jehoiakim commanded the officer to read aloud from the scroll. After the man read several columns, the king would cut away that part of the scroll, then contemptuously toss it into the fire burning in the hearth before him. The king continued “until all the scroll was consumed in the fire that was on the hearth” (verse 23).
Jehoiakim apparently thought he was accountable to no one. But God would have the last word.
He instructed Jeremiah to prepare another scroll like the first (verses 27-32). God reserved strong words for Jehoiakim: “He shall have no one to sit on the throne of David, and his dead body shall be cast out to the heat of the day and the frost of the night. I will punish him, his family, and his servants for their iniquity; and I will bring on them, on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and on the men of Judah all the doom that I have pronounced against them; but they did not heed” (verses 30-31).
Sadly, Jehoiakim persisted in his defiance and suffered the consequences. Defeated by the Babylonians and dragged away in chains, he apparently died on his way to or in captivity in Babylon.
The lesson of King Jehoiakim applies to all leaders and all peoples: He who would attempt to destroy God’s Word puts himself in great danger. Man cannot arrogantly challenge God with impunity. God’s Word is the foundation of all knowledge, and, unlike mortal man, it will endure forever (1 Peter 1:24-25).
