Guidelines and Resources for your exegetical paper on a prophetic text.
Students will research the historical context of the particular biblical prophet of their text, the prophet’s general teaching, and the specific message of the selected text in light of the history of the time and the prophet’s general message. For this assignment, students must demonstrate evidence of research with quotes from and references to sources which will be provided. The resulting paper should be about six pages [1,950 words].
Begin with your Study Bible textbook. Read any introductory material related to the prophet of your text, and all the footnotes regarding your passage.
Read the supplied background information on your prophet, and on your assigned passage.
Begin your paper with an introduction of your prophet and what can be historically known about the prophet and the prophet’s ministry. Introduce your assigned passage. What is its context within the prophetic book? Who is the passage addressed to? What was the setting or occasion? How does the passage relate to the times and circumstance in which the prophet lived and spoke.
How does the passage relate to the overall message of the prophet? How are the prophet’s words relevant to what is going on in the world today? How are the prophet’s words relevant to you and your life today? Be sure to conclude your paper with a summation of what you have learned and discovered.
REQUIRED READING TO PURCHASETextbook:The New Interpreter’s Study Bible (NISB) with The New Revised Standard Version with the Apocrypha, Abingdon Press, 2003, ISBN 978-0-687-27832-9 (available new and used from Amazon, and can be ordered from any bookstore.)In addition to assigned readings from the textbook, other material is posted on Canvas as reading assignments for individual classes, as indicated below.
