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Y8 Theology: Amos, Zechariah and Zephaniah

Key facts

  • Zechariah was a priest who was born while Judah was in exile in Babylon, and returned when exile was over. He preached in around 520BC and was mainly focussed on the building of the second temple.
  • Amos was a shepherd and sycamore fig farmer from the Southern kingdom of Judah who preached until around 765BC to the Northern kingdom of Israel, but had to flee because his message was unpopular. He was particularly focussed on the gap between rich and poor.
  • Zephaniah preached in around 640-609BC and  spoke against religious and moral corruption in Jerusalem in Judah, warning of the judgement to come (Jerusalem fell to Babylon in 586 BC

Image credits: The Prophet Amos by Gustav Dore, Zechariah (Sistine Chapel) by Michaelangelo and (17th Century icon)

Christian vs Jewish interpretation

Christian vs Jewish interpretation

  •  Jewish people and Christians agree that many of these prophecies are Messianic
  • Christians also identify some extra passages, such as Zechariah 11:12-13 (about the 30 pieces of silver) that Jewish people would not consider Messianic

Key quotes

Christian and Jewish Messianic quotes

I will restore David’s fallen shelter—  I will repair its broken walls and restore its ruins—   and will rebuild it as it used to be… (Amos 9:11)

Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. (Zechariah 9:9)
[For Christians this foretells Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday.]

…and he shall speak peace to the nations; his rule shall be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth. (Zechariah 9:10) 

11 As for you also, because of the blood of my covenant with you,
    I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit.
12 Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope;
    today I declare that I will restore to you double. (Zechariah 9:11-12)

15 The Lord has taken away the judgements against you;
    he has cleared away your enemies. The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst; you shall never again fear evil. (Zephaniah 3:15)

19 Behold, at that time I will deal with all your oppressors.
And I will save the lame and gather the outcast, and I will change their shame into praise and renown in all the earth. (Zephaniah 3:19)

20 At that time I will bring you in, at the time when I gather you together; for I will make you renowned and praised among all the peoples of the earth, when I restore your fortunes before your eyes,” says the Lord. (Zephaniah 3:20)

 

 

Christian Messianic quotes

Then I said to them, “If it seems good to you, give me my wages; but if not, keep them.” And they weighed out as my wages thirty pieces of silver. 13 Then the Lord said to me, “Throw it to the potter”—the lordly price at which I was priced by them. So I took the thirty pieces of silver and threw them into the house of the Lord, to the potter. (Zechariah 11:12-13)

Note: 30 pieces of silver was the OT price for a slave (Exodus 21:32). It was also the price the Jewish leaders paid Judas Iscariot to betray Jesus. In Matthew’s Gospel Judas returns the money to the leaders in the temple before killing himself, and they use it to buy the Potter’s Field as a burial ground for foreigners.

Further Resources: Amos

Bible Project

 

Video resources:

Further resources: Zechariah

Bible Project

 

Video resources:

Further Resources: Zepahaniah

Bible Project

 

Video resources:

Musical interlude

Classical music

Handel's Messiah:

  • “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is the righteous Saviour, and he shall speak peace unto the heathen.” (Zechariah 9, vv.9–10)
  • Dies Irae (from the Catholic Requiem - or funeral - Mass, this version is by Verdi and is the dramatic version often used in film music) The English translation is "Day of wrath and doom impending! David's word with Sibyl's blending, Heaven and earth in ashes ending!" and it is believed to be partially based on Zephaniah 1:15 "That day will be a day of wrath— a day of distress and anguish, a day of trouble and ruin, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and blackness". The whole of Zephaniah 1 is a vision of God's on the Day of the Lord (judgement day). [Gregorian chant version here]

Modern worship songs and hymns

References from resource pack

Resources provided

What's in a name? The meanings of biblical names

Amos: Burden bearer (Hebrew)

Zechariah: Yahweh (God) remembers (Hebrew)

Zephaniah: "The name Zephaniah means Stored By (For) Yah[weh] or Yah[weh] Stores Up, and reminds of the words of Jesus: "Do not treasure up for you treasures on the earth, where moth and rust cause to vanish, and where thieves dig through and steal. But treasure up for you treasures in Heaven, where neither moth nor rust cause to vanish, and where thieves do not dig through and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also". (Matthew 6:19-21)."

(source: Zephaniah | The amazing name Zephaniah: meaning and etymology)

Documentary clkip

Things you might want to include in your documentary clip:

  • As minor prophets, there aren’t many stories about these men’s lives, so focus on their messages – use lots of quotes
  • You could reenact the NT stories of the  triumphal entry into Jerusalem and the betrayal for 30 pieces of silver

End your documentary clip with the prophet or interview giving a summary to the camera – “I predicted that the Messiah would…”