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Abstract
The role that the prophets play in the divine design is marked by the decay of the historical order under God that Israel was experiencing as the protagonist of the leap in being and, therefore, as the chosen people. That order, now threatened, was destined to be the order of all nations. The unfaithfulness of Israel to the covenant leads it toward disaster and disappearance. But then, how will the new order reach the rest of the peoples? It is then that what Voegelin calls the “Exodus of Israel from itself” begins, an apt expression that captures the movement that goes from Israel, the chosen people, to the prophet and from the prophet to the servant of Yahweh who, as the last representative of Israel, will take salvation to all nations. Isaiah and Jeremiah are the two great prophets in whom the first step of this transition takes place. In the very experience of these prophets, the order and the faithfulness of Israel to the covenant are preserved. At the same time, new symbolizations flow from their lips which are destined to define the outlines of the future historical form of the present under God. The transition from the prophet Jeremiah to Deutero-Isaiah, the first incarnation of the suffering servant of Yahweh, marks the final stage of this exodus. The servant is the representative of Israel to take salvation to the nations, although his work will remain incomplete in his lifetime. Second Isaiah introduces a new typos into the history of order, a typos that other successors of the prophet will incarnate until the work is carried to its fulfillment. The task of the servant inaugurates the third stage of world history: the creation of salvation. In it, Yahweh will show himself as the God of all nations.
The innovation consisted of bringing its interdisciplinary nature into greater relief, an aim which is further pursued by the essays collected in the present volume. Its four thematic sections focus respectively on civilization forms, on the order of human history, on specific aspects of Old Testament exegesis, and finally on the meaning of the term “revelation” in the context of the biblical events narrated.
Eric Voegelin-Studies: Supplements offers an ideal forum to further elaborate on specific aspects of the contributions in the Yearbook. This creates scope for smaller or larger monographs as well as publications by several authors. The Supplements are conceived as an international and interdisciplinary project. They are intended to expand scholarly exchange and international collaboration on Voegelin’s work.