David Allan Hubbard - Joel & Amos (TOTC)

The aim of this series of Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries, as it was in the companion volumes on the New Testament, is to provide the student of the Bible with a handy, up-to-date commentary on each book, with the primary emphasis on exegesis. Major critical questions are discussed in the introductions and additional notes, while undue technicalities have been avoided.

In this series individual authors are, of course, free to make their own distinct contributions and express their own point of view on all debated issues. Within the necessary limits of space they frequently draw attention to interpretations which they themselves do not hold but which represent the stated conclusions of sincere fellow Christians.

The messages of the so-called minor prophets Joel and Amos should be as relevant for the reader today as for their original hearers. Dr Hubbard helpfully brings this out as he guides us through the text by which their words come down to us. Joels call to repentance and salvation by faith through grace still registers, and his promise of the gift of Gods Holy Spirit reminds us that Gods presence and power are available today to every believer. Amos stresses that crimes against humanity will certainly bring the judgment of God and that we should be more concerned with present spiritual commitment than with past experience, influential though that may be.

In the Old Testament in particular no single English translation is adequate to reflect the original text. The version on which this commentary is based is the Revised Standard Version, but other translations are frequently referred to as well, and on occasion the author supplies his own. Where necessary, words are transliterated in order to help the reader who is unfamiliar with Hebrew to identify the precise word under discussion. It is assumed throughout that the reader will have ready access to one, or more, reliable renderings of the Bible in English.

Interest in the meaning and message of the Old Testament continues undiminished and it is hoped that this series will thus further the systematic study of the revelation of God and his will and ways as seen in these records. It is the prayer of the editor and publisher, as of the authors, that these books will help many to understand, and to respond to, the Word of God today.

D. J. Wiseman

Joel and Amos are books for our times. Nothing in the past 2,500 years has made their messages pass. Amos still calls moribund congregations to turn their liturgies into loving actions. He still beckons the wealthy and powerful of our lands to do right by the poor and disadvantaged. Joel still teaches peoples beleagured by plague, drought, or other disasters to seek relief through repentance. His words still provide magnificent perspective on the work of God the Holy Spirit.

No-one who writes a commentary starts from scratch. Origen himself would doubtlessly agree with that. By my side have been the works of Hans Walter Wolff, James Mays, Hammerschaimb, Arthur Weiser, S. Amsler, Robert Martin-Achard, W. Rudolph, Leslie Allen, Arvid Kapelrud, G. W. Ahlstrom and W. S. Prinsloo. When my debt to them is especially deep or my difference from them is especially wide I have cited their names. But even where they are not mentioned their help may well be present.

This commentary has sought to make its own contribution by treating the books as unified compositions artfully shaped by their authors and/or editors. The final form of the work is the only one of whose structure and content we can be sure. Interpretations based on theories of stages in the production of a work must ever remain tenuous. The approach to unity adopted here means also that context is as crucial as content to the message of any part of a book. I have tried, therefore, to help the reader keep track of what leads into a given passage as well as what flows out of it. In addition I have kept an eye on the literary forms that have been so skillfully combined in both of these books. They are clues to the nuances that the prophets wanted their hearers to grasp, as they addressed the emotions as well as the intellect of the people. The Revised Standard Version, whose readings are usually italicized in the text, served as the basis for my comments, while the other versions were consulted frequently.

Special thanks are due to Vera Wils, Elsie Evans and Shirley Coe, who saw to the production of the typescript while also carrying out their other duties in my office. Dr Dawn Waring and Dr John McKenna assisted immensely with the final editing. I am more than grateful to Professor Donald Wiseman, to the external readers and to the Reverend David Kingdon for their gracious patience, thoughtful suggestions and meticulous care in the preparation of the book.

The dedication is a small token of my gratitude to, and affection for, my brothers and sister whose Christian witness in word and life shaped the faith and calling of their youngest brother in more ways than he can express.

David Allan Hubbard

Note Where reference is made to comments on Hosea (for example, on pages 47 and 62), this relates to the Tyndale Old Testament Commentary on Hosea by David Allan Hubbard.