The Books of Joel, Obadiah, Jonah, and Micah [Hardcover]

Allen, L.C. (1976). The Books of Joel, Obadiah, Jonah and Micah. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans.

This commentary is a valuable contribution to the respected New International Commentary Set on the Old Testament. Allen covers all his bases and hits a grand slam with his treatment of the prophet Joel.

He dives deep into the murky waters of dating the book of Joel. There are numerous well thought proposals for possible dates, all of which have strengths and weaknesses. At the end of the day Allen opts for an early post-exilic date, citing the works of both J.M. Myers and G.W. Ahlstrom.

With regards to the mysterious caricature of the locusts, Allen opts for a literal understanding of locust invasion and havoc. Alenn enumerates. "It is significant that the locusts behave in a literal manner: they ravage fields, trees, and fruit, but do not kill or plunder, or take prisoners of war....[T]o conceive of figurative locusts who are like the soldiers they are supposed to represent is a torturous and improbable interpretation" (1976:29).

As for the main theological themes that permeate the book of Joel, the `Day of Yahweh' stands at the forefront. Allen notes that judgment was in fact present upon the nation Israel in the plague of locusts, "...the very existence of the community was at stake and the annihilation of Israel was a real possibility. This seemed to be the end. If the locusts persisted, Israel would be no more. In eschatological terms the present plague was a harbinger, or the first phase, of the Day of Yahweh" (1976:36).

It was this very real threat of annihilation that prompted Joel's call for lament and repentance. Apparently, the nation responded with "torn hearts", because God relents from His judgment and instead issues an oracle of salvation and favor upon His people. At the same time, the Day of Yahweh remains well within God's future plan, as He will gather the nations for judgment; the only escape provided by calling on His name and being saved. Israel is promised safety in this culminating Day of Yahweh.

It is the rich promise, found in Joel 2:28-32, that finds ample application in the New Testament. Allen comments, "Joel 2:28-32 gripped the minds of the early church. Paul found the promise of 2:32 fulfilled in Christ and in the establishment of the new eschatological community..." (1976:38).

It is of particular interest to me the usage of Joel on Pentecost through Peter. The threat of the Day of Yahweh is ever present and safety is provided by repentance and baptism in the name of Jesus, who is now the manifestation of Yahweh. Connected with this work is the promise of the Holy Spirit, which serves as the identifying mark of God's Covenant people. Whereas God had previously promised Covenant blessings in prosperity in the land, it is now superseded by the pouring out of a new rain, His very Spirit. Allen comments, "His indwelling of his people would be revealed in a clearer way than by rain and crops, through the charismatic flow of a divine spirit of prophecy throughout the community" (1976:98). He also adds, "The theme of Yahweh's presence...is now taken up and amplified. Here is a spiritual counterpart to the rain, this outpouring of a higher gift" (1976:98).

In dealing with the term "all flesh", Allen sides with Joel's original intent to exclusively apply to Judah. Allen also believes that Peter applied the promise of Joel exclusively to Judah, "It was obviously in this sense that Peter understood it in his own exposition of the passage in Acts 2, especially in light of the amazement expressed at the "Gentile Pentecost" in Acts 10:45" (1976:98). While I do believe that Joel's prophecy applies directly to Judah, I also believe that it was Peter's intent to open up the covenant community to "all flesh", inclusive of gentiles, so long as they called upon the name of the Lord...Jesus. This outward extension of God's salvation is specifically why Jesus directed his followers to tarry in Jerusalem. It is obvious that Pentecost was the beginning of a worldwide expansion of God's Spirit. It is important to note that the work does begin in Jerusalem as I think that God was keeping His promise to pour forth the Spirit upon Israel...only to go outward in the raising up of an international Israel. This is much like the promised work of the Spirit in Ezekiel where the water trickles out from the temple, eventually becoming a torrent that brings life to everything it touches.

In Joel, slaves are also mentioned as recipients of God's favor and the outpoured Spirit, which would also point further still to the inclusive intent of Yahweh to bring His favor to all who would call upon His name. There are other texts and themes throughout God's message to Israel that His intention was to bless all of the nations, especially in the Abrahamic covenant. This intention becomes a reality on Pentecost, where God waters the earth with His Spirit, raising up a harvest of saved souls from every tribe, tongue, and nation.

Salvation is promised in calling on the name of the Lord and being brought to Mount Zion in Joel 2:32. This themes is also present in the NT, as we are told that we have arrived to Mount Zion (Heb. 12:22). Christ is our hiding place and our protection from future judgment. Allen comments, "He had poured out his Spirit and revealed in Christ the saving name. Thus was established the new community of his people: inside it lay salvation, but outside, the wrath of the Day of Judgment" (1974:104). Commenting on the apostle Paul's usage of Joel in Romans, Allen says: "...the concept of God's people received in Christ a wider meaning than that latent in the OT. `All flesh' for his is still Israel, but a greater Israel" (1974:105).

All in all, I am pleased with Allen's treatment of Joel's text, as well as his willingness to venture into the NT and relate its richness to Pentecost and the theology of the Apostle Paul. This commentary, though pricey, is recommended for the Pastor's library.

One can often get the entire Old Testament series of The New International Commentary on the Old Testament (NICOT) at a very good price at times through such carriers as CBD, though Amazon's price here is quite good as well. I took the plunge and bought the entire series, and was pleased to discover that this commentary - as the individual commentaries of any series always vary in quality - is quite helpful regarding Micah and Jonah. I have not yet seen how Allen treats Joel or Obadiah. Allen's treatment of Jonah is quite insightful, though some of his conclusions might not please all conservative Bible readers. Allen treats Jonah as a prophetic narrative, but mostly emphasizes it is a parable with tinges of allegory and compares it to Jesus' parables of the Prodigal Son (Jonah being the elder brother) and the Ungrateful Steward of Matthew 20. Allen believes Jonah is something of a corrective to the ethnocentric bigotry one sees in Ezra and Nehemiah and that it was probably written during the Persian period arguing there are Persian practices such as the repentance of the animals in Nineveh, and Aramaisms in the book that place it around the year 400 BC, though the historical Jonah lived circa 780 BC under Jeroboam II. Allen recognizes its value as a proto-missiological tract in the O.T. that seeks to shatter post-exilic Jews of ethnocentric bigotry and myopia. The theology of Jonah is summed up in verse 1:9 and 4:2 and climaxes in 4:11, and Allen notes the book is full of surprises such as the violent storm, the prophet turning tail and running, Jonah as a parody of Elijah, the submarine of a fish, the shocking conversion of Nineveh and the "magical" plant. Allen is not interested in the historicity of Jonah, observes the inordinate size of Nineveh relayed in the book and that Nineveh fell in 612 BC even as there was never a "king of Nineveh," but rather a King of Assyria. Allen does a fine job of helping a pastor get into the mind of an later Jewish author who is trying to shock his Jewish audience out of etnocentric bigotry. Allen's treatment of Micah is also useful and more than workmanlike given his insights. This would not be recommended for critical students of theology as much as pastors. Knowledge of Hebrew is not necessary.