Big Ideas · 20 · Jonah
When the conquered blamed themselves
Ancient gods could be angry or abandon their people, but usually it was conquerors who said so. The biblical prophets, from among the conquered, declared that their own God had ended the relationship.
From system-immanent to system-transcendent.
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Other prophets worked within the monarchic system. Amos, Hosea, Isaiah, and Jeremiah declared its end. From that rupture came something new: a relationship founded at a particular moment, with written terms, the covenant at Sinai.
Bible reference: Amos 8:2
Source: Why the Bible Began, pp. 322–324
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