Will Vaus

  Today in our journey along Route 66 we are stopping off to visit the prophet Jeremiah... Author   Traditionally, Jeremiah, a prophet and priest, member of the household of Hilkiah, is thought to be the author of this book. Jeremiah may have been a descendant of Abiathar, priest during the days of Solomon. The Lord commanded Jeremiah not to marry and raise children because the impending divine judgment on Judah would sweep away the next generation. Jeremiah’s closest friend was his faithful secretary, Baruch ben Neriah, who wrote down Jeremiah’s words as the prophet dictated them (36:4-32). It is possible that Baruch was also responsible for the final compilation of the book of Jeremiah itself. And so, a number of modern scholars view Baruch as the author of this book. Chapter 52 is a historical appendix added by a later hand. Modern scholars like Richard Elliott Friedman also believe that Baruch was the compiler of the Deuteronomistic History which covers the books from Deut...

In our journey through the 66 books of the Bible we come today to the book of the prophet Isaiah…   Author & Date   Isaiah, son of Amoz, sometimes referred to as Isaiah of Jerusalem, is traditionally thought to be the author of the entire book bearing his name. Isaiah means “Yahweh saves”. Isaiah was a contemporary of Amos, Hosea, and Micah. His ministry began around 740 BCE, the year King Uzziah died (6:1). According to an unsubstantiated Jewish tradition (see the apocryphal  Ascension of Isaiah ), the prophet was sawn in half during the reign of Manasseh. (See also Hebrews 11:37.) Isaiah was married and had at least two sons, Shear-Jashub (7:3) and Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz (8:3). He probably spent most of his life in Jerusalem, enjoying his greatest influence under King Hezekiah (37:1-2) Isaiah is also credited with writing a history of the reign of King Uzziah. (See 2 Chronicles 26:22.)   Many scholars today challenge the traditional claim that Isaiah of Jerusale...