Literary genre
Prophecy
The prophets are God’s covenant prosecutors and comforters — confronting idolatry and injustice, announcing judgment, and promising restoration. Much of it is poetry, and most of it spoke first to its own day before pointing ahead.
How to read it
Ask what it meant to the original hearers before asking about the distant future. Distinguish forth-telling (calling people back to God) from fore-telling. Watch for the recurring pattern: sin → judgment → a promised hope that the New Testament ties to Christ.
Books in this genre
Old Testament
A sweeping vision of judgment and salvation, with the clearest Old Testament portraits of the coming Messiah.
The "weeping prophet" warns of Jerusalem's fall yet promises a new covenant written on the heart.
Five poems of grief over the destruction of Jerusalem — raw sorrow held together by hope in God's mercy.
Dramatic visions of God's glory, judgment, and the promise to give his people a new heart and Spirit.
Faithfulness under a pagan empire, plus visions of God's kingdom that outlasts every earthly power.
God's relentless love pictured in a prophet's marriage to an unfaithful wife.
A locust plague becomes a call to repent before the great "day of the LORD" — and a promise of the Spirit.
A shepherd-prophet thunders against injustice: let justice roll down like waters.
A short oracle against Edom for gloating over Jerusalem's fall — pride goes before destruction.
A reluctant prophet, a great fish, and a God whose mercy reaches even Israel's enemies.
Judgment and hope from a country prophet — and the promise of a ruler born in Bethlehem.
The fall of Nineveh — God is patient, but he will not leave the guilty unpunished.
A prophet argues with God about evil and learns to live by faith.
The day of the LORD as judgment and joy — God will gather a humble remnant and rejoice over them.
A call to rebuild the temple and put God first — and a promise of greater glory to come.
Visions of restoration and clear glimpses of the coming Messiah — the humble king and the pierced one.
God's final Old Testament word: a rebuke of half-hearted worship and a promise of the coming messenger.