Blessing Onoriode Boloje

Micah’s Theory of the Justice of Judgement (Micah 3:1-12)

This article is an examination of Micah’s theory of justice within the overall context of his oracles of judgements. While there are competing perspectives in the justice of judgement in the book of Micah, particularly in relation to the extent of judgement, this article concerns itself with the interrelatedness and connection between sin and judgement. The judgements envisioned in Micah’s oracles are provoked by the violations of the traditional moral and social solidarities resulting from the Covenant, which formed the basis of society. As an egalitarian society, the social blueprint of Yahweh’s Torah for Israel advocated special concern for weak and vulnerable individuals as fundamental. The gift of Torah inaugurated Israel as a community meant to personify Yahweh’s justice. However, increasing injustice profoundly jeopardized this witness to God’s healing agenda. For failing to uphold justice the perpetrators are liable and the judgements constitute justice. This justice may not necessarily be corrective in quality but punitive. The article therefore examines briefly the background, structure, and approaches to the book of Micah, analyses a unit of judgement oracle (3:1–12), and concludes by synthesising Micah’s theory of justice within the overall context of his oracles of judgements.

MALACHI'S VISION OF THE TEMPLE: AN EMBLEM OF ESCHATOLOGICAL HOPE (MALACHI 3:1-5) AND AN ECONOMIC CENTRE OF THE COMMUNITY (MALACHI 3:10-12)

This article shows how temples were viewed in biblical Israel and how the prophets understood the temple in their different contexts. The temple is emphasised as the abode of Yahweh by the prophets before the exile. During the exile, it is seen as a symbol of the reestablishment of the people as community of faith, and in the post-exilic era, the temple is conceived as an emblem of the restoration and revival of the people and as a representation of an eschatological hope. These prophetic conceptions of the temple are used by the prophets in their respective contexts to challenge people to move towards their aim. In keeping with these prophetic traditions, the article highlights the fact that in the book of Malachi the temple is discerned as an emblem of eschatological hope, wherein Yahweh’s last judgment is determined and the triumph of his people is declared and granted (Malachi 3:1-5) and as an economic centre of the community (Malachi 3:10-12). The consistency of Malachi’s vision validates similar prophetic formulae and theological themes.

Prophetic criticism of temple rituals : a reflection on Malachi's idea about Yahweh and ethics for faith communities

This article presents some perspectives about Yahweh and ethics from Malachi’s criticism of the rituals of the temple. Malachi’s theological and ethical uniqueness is observed somehow most clearly in the preponderance of negative emphasis the prophetic book places on temple rituals and the way the language of the cult dominates its analysis of malpractices. Prophetic criticism of temple rituals, as this article demonstrates, lies at the heart of the controversy between the prophets and the priest; namely the role of cult and ethics in the religion of Ancient Israel. While scholars have yet to explain fully the phenomenon of criticism of the cult in prophetic writings, this article brings the prophets and the priests closer by proposing that the one way to explain the discrepancy is to advocate that these prophets could not see the importance of rituals for the improvement of ethical life. If the cult is understood to be the vertical dimension of the Law and ethics its horizontal dimension, one would notice that these dimensions go together, both are expressions of God’s will. When the vertical dimension (worship, offering, sacrifice) is experiencing some degree of dysfunction, the horizontal dimension (social justice, etc.) will be affected. Malachi’s emphasis on the temple obviously helps one to see that there was nothing wrong with the cult unless it was not used appropriately and effectively to enhance the ethical life of the people as an essential component of the larger framework of the covenant relationship that Yahweh had with them as his people. The article thus emphasizes some underlying theological reflection on the uniqueness of Malachi’s oracles about Yahweh and ethics for faith communities.