Prophets and Prophecy

A prophet is someone who speaks God's message. The message the prophet speaks is called a “prophecy.” And to speak as a prophet is to “prophesy.” In general culture, prophets are sometimes compared with fortunetellers or those who predict future events. The prophets of the Old Testament, however, were somewhat different. Their task was to observe what was happening around them and then deliver God's message for that situation. Their messages were given both to God's people and to those who did not trust in Israel's God. Sometimes the message was a reminder to the people or their leaders that they were not obeying God, and that they should change their ways. This kind of message sometimes included strong warnings about God's judgment. At other times, the prophets brought words of hope in tough times, or said that even though things were bad in the present, God would cause things to change for the better in the future.
 

Other Prophets

A few other examples of Old Testament prophets include Balaam of Pethor near the Euphrates River, who was hired by the king of Moab to put a curse on Israel (Num 22.2–24.25). The prophet Nathan gave King David the good news that his descendants would always rule the people of Israel (2 Sam 7.11-16), but Nathan also delivered God's angry message after David had arranged the death of a man named Uriah so that he could have Uriah's wife Bathsheba. Because of this evil action, Nathan told David that David and Bathsheba’s son would die (2 Sam 12.1-14). Another prophet named Micaiah warned King Ahab that he would die in battle against the Syrian army (1 Kgs 22.5-38). Elisha became Elijah’s assistant and eventually took his place (1 Kgs 19.19-21; 2 Kgs 2.1-18). He was the prophet who healed Naaman (2 Kgs 5.1-14). Another prophet, Huldah, gave advice to King Josiah (640-609 b.c.) when Josiah asked what he should do with The Book of God’s Law that had been found in the temple (2 Kgs 22.14-20).
 

The Writings of the Prophets

The kingdom of Israel split into two sections (northern and southern) around 931 b.c., after the death of King Solomon. Each of these kingdoms had its own temple and king, and prophets in both parts of Israel gave warnings and encouragement to the rulers and the people. The first books of the prophets probably date back to just after 800 b.c. The prophecies of Amos and Hosea were written for the rulers and the people of the northern kingdom (Israel). They warned the leaders and the people who had grown rich to care for the poor and stop worshiping idols. About the same time or a little later, the prophets Micah and Isaiah delivered their prophecies in the southern kingdom (Judah). Isaiah warned that a king would come from the east to take over the land and force the people to leave. He called the people to obey God in order to avoid the punishment that he predicted, but he also gave them the promise that God would help them triumph in the end. The suffering they would undergo was to be seen as punishment from God. Though Isaiah’s message began in the 700s b.c., some of his followers continued writing prophecy in his name even after the Babylonian exile in 586 b.c. Jeremiah, Zephaniah, Nahum, and Habakkuk were prophets in Judah during the time just before it was defeated by Babylon and many of its people were taken off as captives in 586 b.c. About the time Jeremiah was finishing his work as a prophet, Ezekiel began to bring God's message to the people. His prophecies were given to the people of Judah before they were taken away from their homes and forced to live in exile, and continued into the period of the exile in Babylon, where Ezekiel was also taken as captive. The last part of his prophecy includes a great vision of the future when God would rebuild the temple in Jerusalem and bring a new day for God's people (Ezek 40 - 46).

Haggai and Zechariah Deliver God’s Message

After the people of Judah were allowed to leave Babylon and return home, the prophets Haggai and Zechariah delivered God's message. Speaking around 520 b.c., Haggai told the people that God wanted them to rebuild the temple. About the same time Zechariah told the people the lord’s chosen king would again rule in Jerusalem and that all people on earth would someday worship Israel's God. Still later came the prophecies of Malachi, who told the priests to be faithful to the agreement the lord had made with Israel. The time of the prophet Obadiah is unclear, though he probably wrote some time after 587 b.c. when the country of Edom helped Babylon defeat Judah. It is not clear when the prophet Joel delivered his message of both judgment and hope, though it was most likely some time after the people returned from captivity in Babylon.

Jonah

Jonah is different from the other prophetic books, because it gives only one sentence of what Jonah preached (3.4). The rest of the book tells about how Jonah tried to run away when God told him to preach to the people of Nineveh, the capital of Assyria, who were enemies of Israel. The first half of daniel tells about Daniel and what happened to him as he lived in exile in Babylon. The second half of daniel tells of Daniel's vision of the future when God would help bring victory to his people. Daniel's vision belongs to a kind of writing known as “apocalyptic.” (See the article called "Different Kinds of Literature in the Bible", and the mini-article called "Apocalyptic Writing").

Prophecy and the New Testament

The New Testament focuses on the life and work of Jesus Christ. The New Testament writers used the Jewish Scriptures, especially the writings of the prophets, to show that Jesus was God's promised Messiah. For example, matthew often uses the phrase, “just as the prophet had said” which is followed by a quote from one of the Old Testament prophets (Matt 1.22; 2.5,6,17,18; 4.14-16). Each quote is meant to show that Jesus' life fulfills what was said by one of the prophets hundreds of years earlier. In his letters, the apostle Paul quoted the Old Testament prophets to show that Jesus was God's chosen one who had come to save all people, Jews and Gentiles alike (Rom 9.25,26,33; 15.11,12).

John the Baptist

The New Testament writers also used the words of the prophet Isaiah to show that John the Baptist was the one who had been sent to prepare the way for Jesus (Matt 3.1-3; Luke 3.3-6). And John preached like a prophet, telling the people to turn to God and get ready for the one (Jesus) who was coming to baptize them with the Holy Spirit (Mark 1.7,8; Luke 3.15-17).

Son of Man

Jesus quoted the Old Testament prophets to show that he was the Son of Man who would come from heaven with power and great glory (Matt 24.29,30 quotes Joel 2.10; Matt 26.64 quotes Dan 7.13,14). Jesus also said that he was the shepherd who would be rejected and struck down (Matt 26.31 quotes Zech 13.7). He applied the writing of the prophet Isaiah to himself, explaining why he had come to earth (Luke 4.16-21 quotes Isa 61.1). Paul said it was because God's purpose for people and all creation was fulfilled in Jesus (1 Cor 15.20–28), who overcame the powers of evil.

Prophecy and the Church

Some of the followers of Jesus received the special gift of prophecy from God's Spirit (Rom 12.6; 1 Cor 12.27-31). These New Testament prophets were to use this gift to speak God's messages of truth (1 Cor 14.29-32). God's followers are also warned in the New Testament to watch out for false prophets who would try to lead them away from the truth about God (1 Tim 6.2-10; 2 Pet 2.1-3).  revelation warns of a false prophet who would perform fake miracles and make false predictions in an effort to trick God's people (Rev 13.11-15), and the faithful are told to be careful to listen only to the message of God's true prophets (Rev 22.18,19).