Oracles of God: Perceptions of Ancient Prophecy in Israel after the Exile

Examining perceptions of ancient Hebrew prophecy current in Judaism and Christianity from the time of the Exile to the end of the New Testament period, this book throws fresh light on the development of the Prophetic section of the Old Testament canon in both the Hebrew and Greek traditions. Drawing on documents including the Old Testament itself, the Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha, the New Testament, the writings of Philo and Josephus, and the works of the early Church Fathers, Barton arrives at a series of controversial conclusions about the composition of the canon in the post-exilic period, the relation of "apocalyptic" to prophecy, and even the applicability of the term "prophet" to the classical prophets themselves.