Authorship of Isaiah
11/02/14 17:40 Filed in: Theology
The book of Isaiah in the Scripture is a single book. It is known that beginning with the 12th century there are scholars who split the book in three (Proto/Deutero/Trito). The reasons for this is that the name of the prophet does not appear after chapter 39, the section 40-55 deals with the time of exile, and the section 56-66 deals with the post-exilic times.
Such a drastic approach towards a single book can be motivated by disbelief in the supernatural. If the prophetic phenomenon is not real, then we need to have three authors, one for every period of time mentioned in the book.
A good answer to this challenge is to make reference to the recurring themes throughout the book. The most important ones are the ways in which God is portrayed: ‘the Holy One of Israel,’ ‘high and lofty,’ and God as king. Also the message of judgment, the purpose of peace for Jerusalem, the new creation, and the changes to the natural order into the Messianic age to come, are found throughout the book. Therefore, I believe in Isaiah’s sole authorship of the book.
A good answer to this challenge is to make reference to the recurring themes throughout the book. The most important ones are the ways in which God is portrayed: ‘the Holy One of Israel,’ ‘high and lofty,’ and God as king. Also the message of judgment, the purpose of peace for Jerusalem, the new creation, and the changes to the natural order into the Messianic age to come, are found throughout the book. Therefore, I believe in Isaiah’s sole authorship of the book.
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