Introduction to the Trei Asar
The gemarra (Bava Basra 14b) tells us that the reason the Trei Asar were put together was to preserve them; had they been written in separate sefarim (which were scrolls in those days), they might have been lost. Therefore, they were bound together in one large scroll called the Trei Asar (for there are 12 books therein). The Trei Asar are: Hoshea, Yoel, Amos, Ovadiah, Yonah, Michah, Nachum, Chabakuk, Tzefania, Chaggai, Zecharia, and Malachi.
The important thing to realise is that these are not Neviim who prophesised during the same period. Chaggai and Malachi were at the final period of the Neviim[1]; during the times of the second Beis Hamikdash (after the Purim story), and indeed Chaggai was a member of the Anshei Kenesses Hagdolah who fixed our davening.[2] Moreover, Hoshea’s prophecy preceded that of Yeshaya. Thus, the Trei Asar neviim span over 350 years; from the middle of the First Temple to the early years of the Second Temple.
We’ll end with that gemarra Megillah. The gemarra (Megillah 14a) tells us that there are 55 recorded Jewish prophets in our history; 48 men and 7 women. However, says the gemarra, there were over a million prophets across our history whose prophecies were not recorded. What was the criteria for which prophecies would go down in history as recorded? Says the gemarra that only those prophecies which had relevance for [all] future generations were recorded. One can see from here that our approach to learning the prophecies here is not to regard the messages as archaic, out of date, and irrelevant, but on the contrary, to realise that the reason for these prophecies having been written down is that they are relevant to us.
[2] Rabeinu Yonah Avos 1:1
