Editing Twelve Minor Prophets (section)

==Composition==
[[File:Aleppo-HighRes2-Neviim8-TwleveMinorProphets.pdf|right|thumb|200px|A high resolution scan of the [[Aleppo Codex]] containing parts of the Book of the Twelve Minor Prophets (the eighth book in [[Nevi'im]]), from 10th century.]]

===Individual books===
Scholars usually assume that there exists an original core of prophetic tradition behind each book which can be attributed to the figure after whom it is named.{{Sfn |Floyd|2000|p= 9}} In general, each book includes three types of material:
* Autobiographical material in the first person, some of which may go back to the prophet in question;
* Biographical materials about the prophet in the third person – which incidentally demonstrate that the collection and editing of the books was completed by persons other than the prophets themselves;
* Oracles or speeches by the prophets, usually in poetic form, and drawing on a wide variety of genres, including covenant lawsuit, oracles against the nations, judgment oracles, messenger speeches, songs, hymns, narrative, lament, law, proverb, symbolic gesture, prayer, wisdom saying, and vision.{{Sfn|Coogan| 2009}}
The noteworthy exception is the [[Book of Jonah]], an anonymous work which contains a [[narrative]] about [[Jonah|the prophet Jonah]].

===As a collection===
It is not known when these short works were collected and transferred to a single scroll, but the first extra-biblical evidence for the Twelve as a collection is c. 190 BCE in the writings of [[Ben Sira|Yeshua ben Sirach]],{{sfn|Ben Zvi|2004|pp=1139–42}} and evidence from the [[Dead Sea Scrolls]] suggests that the modern order of the [[Tanakh]], which would potentially include the twelve, had been established by 150 BCE.{{Sfn |Redditt|2003|p=1}} It is believed that initially the first six were collected, and later the second six were added; the two groups seem to complement each other, with ''Hosea'' through ''Micah'' raising the question of iniquity, and ''Nahum'' through ''Malachi'' proposing resolutions.{{Sfn|Coggins|Han|2011|p= 4}}

Many, though not all, modern scholars agree that the editing process which produced the Book of the Twelve reached its final form in [[Jerusalem during the Achaemenid period]] (538–332 BCE), although there is disagreement over whether this was early or late.{{Sfn |Redditt|2003|pp=1–3, 9}}

The comparison of different ancient manuscripts indicates that the order of the individual books was originally fluid. The arrangement found in current Bibles is roughly chronological. First come those prophets dated to the early Assyrian period: Hosea, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, and Micah; Joel is undated, but it was possibly placed before Amos because parts of a verse near the end of Joel (3.16 [''4.16 in Hebrew'']) and one near the beginning of Amos (1.2) are identical. Also we can find in both Amos (4.9 and 7.1–3) and Joel a description of a plague of locusts. These are followed by prophets that are set in the later Assyrian period: Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah. Last come those set in the Persian period: Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi, although some scholars date "Second Zechariah" to the Hellenistic Era.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://mb-soft.com/believe/txs/zecharia.htm|title = Book of Zechariah}}</ref> However it is important to note that chronology was not the only consideration, as "It seems that an emphatic focus on Jerusalem and Judah was [also] a main concern.{{sfn|Ben Zvi|2004|pp=1139–42}} For example, Obadiah is generally understood as reflecting the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BCE,{{Sfn |Ben Zvi|2004|pp = 1193–94}} and would therefore fit later in a purely chronological sequence.

===Sequence of books===
[[File:CodexGigas 107 MinorProphets.jpg|right|thumb|200px|The first part of the book of Twelve Minor Prophets (the first book is the Book of Hosea) in the [[Codex Gigas]], the largest extant medieval manuscript in the world, from 13th century. Now at the National Library of Sweden in Stockholm.]]
In the [[Hebrew Bible]], these works are counted as one [[anthology]]. The works appear in the same order in Jewish, [[Protestant Bible|Protestant]] and [[Catholic Bible]]s, but in [[Eastern Orthodox]] Christian Bibles they are ordered according to the [[Septuagint]]. The books are in rough chronological order, according to explicit statements within the books themselves.

The twelve books are:
{|class="wikitable sortable" style="textalign:center;"
! Order !! Orthodox <br>order!! Book !! Traditional date
|-
|align=center| 1 ||align=center| 1 || [[Book of Hosea|Hosea]] (Osee) || 8th century BCE (before the fall of the [[Northern Kingdom]])
|-
|align=center| 2 ||align=center| 4 || [[Book of Joel|Joel]] || uncertain
|-
|align=center| 3 ||align=center| 2 || [[Book of Amos|Amos]] || 8th century BCE (before the fall of the Northern Kingdom)
|-
|align=center| 4 ||align=center| 5 || [[Book of Obadiah|Obadiah]] (Abdias) || uncertain (9th century or 6th century BCE)
|-
|align=center| 5 ||align=center| 6 || [[Book of Jonah|Jonah]] (Jonas) || uncertain (8th century BCE or post-exilic period)
|-
|align=center| 6 ||align=center| 3 || [[Book of Micah|Micah]] (Micheas) || 8th century BCE (before the fall of the Northern Kingdom)
|-
|align=center| 7 ||align=center| 7 || [[Book of Nahum|Nahum]] (Naum) || 7th century BCE (before the fall of the [[Southern Kingdom]])
|-
|align=center| 8 ||align=center| 8 || [[Book of Habakkuk|Habakkuk]] (Habacuc) || 7th century BCE (before the fall of the Southern Kingdom)
|-
|align=center| 9 ||align=center| 9 || [[Book of Zephaniah|Zephaniah]] (Sophanias) || 7th century BCE (before the fall of the Southern Kingdom)
|-
|align=center| 10 ||align=center| 10 || [[Book of Haggai|Haggai]] (Aggeus) || 6th century BCE (after return from exile)
|-
|align=center| 11 ||align=center| 11 || [[Book of Zechariah|Zechariah]] (Zacharias) || 6th century BCE (after return from exile)
|-
|align=center| 12 ||align=center| 12 || [[Book of Malachi|Malachi]] (Malachias) || 5th century BCE (after return from exile)
|}

===Academic debates===

In the 21st century, “claims for [[Persian period]] influence or origins have ballooned.”<ref> Bautsch, Richard J., and Mark Lackowski. 2019.“Introduction.” In On Dating Biblical Texts to
the Persian Period, edited by Richard J. Bautch and Mark Lackowski, 1–9. Tübingen,
Germany: Mohr Siebeck</ref>

The recent Oxford Handbook of the Minor Prophets Jason Radine summarizes the ongoing “Persian Turn” in Minor Prophets scholarship.<ref>{{cite book |last=Radine |first=Jason |title=The Oxford Handbook of the Minor Prophets |editor=Julia M. O'Brien |pages=17–28 |publisher=Oxford University Press |date=February 10, 2021 |doi=10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190673208.013.17 |url=https://academic.oup.com/edited-volume/38566/chapter-abstract/334371238?redirectedFrom=fulltext |access-date=January 5, 2025}}</ref> It refers to a scholarly trend towards dating much of the biblical composition and editing of the Minor Prophets to the Persian period (539–323 BCE). This trend is rooted in earlier scholarly theories, such as the Graf-Wellhausen Hypothesis, which suggested that elements of the Pentateuch, particularly the “Priestly” writings, originated during the Persian era. Additionally, [[Spinoza]]’s 17th-century argument that [[Ezra]] authored large portions of the Hebrew Bible influenced this perspective.

This trend has gained momentum as a growing number of scholars now posit that many prophetic books, once assumed to date from earlier periods, were likely finalized or significantly edited during the [[Persian period]]. Researchers like Reinhard Kratz distinguish between the original oracles of ancient Near Eastern prophets and the later literary works attributed to them, which reflect the scribal efforts of later editors.<ref>Kratz, Reinhard G. 2015. The Prophets of Israel. p. 27-35. Translated by Anselm Hagedorn and Nathan MacDonald. Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns.</ref>

This theory has been opposed by other scholars, however. For instance, Heath Dewrell argues that many literary features of the Book of Hosea are also attested in [[Neo-Assyrian Empire|Neo-Assyrian]] prophecies. Since these prophetic texts were written close to the time of Hosea and were not substantially edited centuries after their authors' time, Dewrell finds no reason to think that the biblical book underwent any major editing either.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Dewrell |first=Heath |url= |title=A Sage in New Haven: Essays on the Prophets, the Writings, and the Ancient World in Honor of Robert R. Wilson |date=2023 |publisher=Nielsen Bookdata |isbn=978-3-96327-216-5 |editor-last=Gruseke |editor-first=Alison Acker |pages=137–147 |language= |chapter=How Prophecy Gets Written: Hosea, Redactors and Neo-Assyrian Prophecy |editor-last2=Sharp |editor-first2=Carolyn J. |chapter-url=https://www.academia.edu/124718923}}</ref>

While dating texts from the Persian period is appropriate for books like Haggai and Zechariah, which explicitly mention that era, scholars caution against oversimplifying the dating process. Radine argues that categorizing too much biblical material as Persian-era production risks obscuring the complex, long-term development of biblical literature. In particular, the diversity of themes, literary styles, and theological perspectives in the Minor Prophets suggests that their formation spanned a much longer period than the Persian era alone.<ref name=":0" />

The scholar [[Ehud Ben Zvi]] suggests that much of the biblical material from the Persian period was produced within the relatively small and interconnected community of Jerusalem, where scribes were likely aware of each other’s works.<ref> Ben Zvi, Ehud. 2009. “The Concept of Prophetic Books and Its Historical Setting.” In The Production of Prophecy: Constructing Prophecy and Prophets in Yehud, edited by Diana V. Edelman and Ehud Ben Zvi, 73–95. London: Equinox.</ref> This view emphasizes the importance of understanding how these texts were shaped within their historical and cultural contexts. However, Radine argues that this approach risks overlooking earlier material that predated the Persian period but was later edited or integrated into these texts.<ref name=":0">{{cite book |last=Radine |first=Jason |title=The Oxford Handbook of the Minor Prophets |editor=Julia M. O'Brien |page=26 |publisher=Oxford University Press |date=February 10, 2021 |doi=10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190673208.013.17 |url=https://academic.oup.com/edited-volume/38566/chapter-abstract/334371238?redirectedFrom=fulltext |access-date=January 5, 2025}}</ref>