prophets'.  We have, therefore, twelve Prophets which we can place in

chronological order, thus:

Jonah, Amos, Hosea, Isaiah and Micah.  These prophets ministered while

the kings of Judah and of Israel reigned concurrently.  To this group, the

undated prophet Nahum probably belongs.

Jeremiah, Zephaniah, Daniel and Ezekiel prophesied between the carrying

away captive of Israel, the destruction of Jerusalem, and the end of the

kings of Judah.

To this group, the undated prophets Habakkuk, Joel and Obadiah probably

belong.  Daniel and Ezekiel continued after the destruction of Jerusalem and

are the prophets of the 'Servitude'.

Finally Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi bring prophecy to a close and

ministered during and after the restoration brought about under Ezra and

We propose giving an examination of some of these prophets* -- but the

very nature of the subject makes any attempt at detail impossible.  We shall

seek the main trend of each prophet and build up, as we do so, sixteen links

in the chain of prophecy, which bind together the historic founding of the

kingdom of Israel under David, the vicissitudes of apostasy, failure and

partial restoration that follow, and the birth and ministry of John the

Baptist who in turn foreshadowed the coming of Elijah with which Old

Testament prophecy ends (Mal. 3:1; 4:5,6).

*

See articles under the name of each prophet, e.g. Hosea.

When Paul was dealing with the apparent failure of God's purpose to

Israel, he referred in the first place to the word spoken to Elijah

concerning the seven thousand who had been 'reserved' (kataleipo, a word

which gives us kataleimma, 'remnant', in Rom. 9:27, and leimma, 'remnant', in

Rom. 11:5) unto Himself, a reservation which was repeated in the apostle's

own day:

'Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant according to

the election of grace' (Rom. 11:5),

and this persisting remnant assures us that at long last 'all Israel' shall

be saved (Rom. 11:26).  We must, however, read the inspired comment on what

constitutes 'all Israel' in Romans 9:6 -8.

The apostle refers to the testimony of Isaiah (Rom. 9:27) when he

'Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea,

a remnant shall be saved ... and as Esaias said before, Except the Lord

of Sabaoth had left us a seed, we had been as Sodoma, and been made

like unto Gomorrha' (Rom. 9:27 -29).

It is important to notice that where Isaiah himself says 'a very small

remnant' (Isa. 1:9 Authorized Version), Paul says 'a seed'.  This follows the