OLABISI ONABANJO UNIVERSITY, AGO-IWOYE

FACULTY OF ARTS

DEPARTMENT OF RELIGIOUS STUDIES

COURSE NOTE FOR CRS 326 – PROPHECY IN THE OLD TESTAMENT

LECTURER: DR. O. N. SHOGUNLE

PHONE NUMBER: 08067648881

EMAIL: [email protected]

SCHEDULE: (See Faculty Lecture Time-table)

CREDITS: 2

Course Description
The overall aim of CRS 326 is to make students understand why prophecy and prophetism are

important concepts in the evolution and development of the religion of the Israelites. It is also to

draw attention to the centrality of prophecy in Israelite religion and its relevance in contemporary

socio-religious space, as well as why biblical scholars regarded the religion of the Israelites as

prophetic in character.

Course Aims
The aim of this course is to help you discover the importance and contemporary relevance of the

ministry and message of the Prophets in ancient Israel. This will be achieved by:

i. Introducing you to the history and development of prophecy in ancient Israel.

ii. Exposing you to the classification of Prophets in the Old Testament.

 iii. Giving you the distinctive traits that distinguish ancient Israelite prophets from those of

other cultures in the ancient Near East.

iv. Helping you understand the socio-political background of the Biblical Prophets.

v. Leading you to a better appreciate and appropriation of the message of the Prophets.

vi. Giving you an overview of the processes involved in the composition of the Old Testament

prophetic books.

vii. Challenging you to further probe deeper into the life and messages of the Prophets in the

Old Testament.

Course Objectives
Stated below are the wider objectives of this course as a whole. By meeting these objectives, you

should have achieved the aims of the course as a whole. Therefore, on successful completion of

the course, you should be able to:

i. Discuss the meaning and goal of prophecy.

ii. Discuss extensively the origin and development of prophecy in ancient Israel.

iii. Account for the factors that led to the emergence of prophets.

iv. Discuss the roles and functions of prophets.

v. Appreciate the messages of the prophets.

vi. Compare and contrast activities of Israelite prophets with those of other cultures.

vii. Evaluate the socio-political contributions of prophets in Israel.

viii. Appreciate the contemporary relevance of the prophetic ministry.

ix. Demonstrate the ability to research a specific area of historical or prophetic interest relevant
to Old Testament Prophecy and present a coherent essay reflecting that research OR to
understand and interact with a sophisticated monograph on Prophecy in the Old Testament
scholarship OR to demonstrate a comprehensive knowledge of the key areas of emphasis
in this course and articulate a personal strategy for the contemporary appropriation of such
texts and/or passages.
Required Texts
Albright, W. F. (1957). From the Stone Age to Christianity. New York: Doubleday.
Blenkinsopp, J.A. (1995). Sage, Priest, Prophet: Religious and Intellectual Leadership in Ancient
Israel. Louisville, Westminster: John Knox Press.
Cassey, P.M. (1991). From Jewish Prophets to Gentile God. Cambridge: James Clark & Sons.
Clements, R.E. (2002). Old Testament Prophecy: From Oracles to Canon. Louisville,
Westminster: John Knox.
Cooke, G. (1994). Developing Your Prophetic Gifting. Tonbridge: Sovereign World.

Horsley, R. A. and Hanson, J. S. (1999). Bandits, Prophets & Messiahs. Harrisburg: Trinity Press

International.

Lindblom, J. (1986). Prophecy in Ancient Israel. Philadelphia: Fortress Press.

Course Structure and Highlights

Week 1 Introductory reflections on Prophecy in the Old Testament

Week 2 Introductory reflections and major theological streams within the Old Testament
(Continuation)

Week 3 Meaning, History and Development of Prophecy in the Old Testament

Week 4 Meaning, History and Development of Prophecy in the Old Testament (Continuation)
Week 5 Prophecy in the Ancient Near East

Week 6. Roles and Functions of Prophets in the Old Testament

Week 7 The Call and Function of a Prophet
Week 8 Prophecy and Ecstasy in the Old Testament
Week 9 Prophecy and Divination
Week 10 Pre-literary and Literary Prophets of the Old Testament
Week 11 Ezekiel: Historical Background and Message
Week 12 Ezekiel: Historical Background and Message in relation to Prophet Amos’ Message
Week 13 Revision.

Course Requirements and Grading

1. Class attendance and contribution. Though there is no actual percentage attached to this
requirement, unexcused (and excused) absences will adversely affect your grade.
2. The reading of the assigned books. Again, no percentage is attached, but failure to do the
assigned reading could lower your grade. You will be requested periodically to indicate
your completion of this assignment through reviews and critical discussions.
3. You should expect periodic Tests and Quizzes.
4. A research-oriented paper is expected to be submitted by each student, approximately 12
pages; typed, double spaced, on a passage or topic to be given and approved by me. For
this paper, you will be researching a variety of sources: commentaries, dictionaries,
encyclopedias, books, journals, etc. However, the papers should not be simply a parroting
of your sources, but a careful interaction with them. Be sure to document all assistance you
received from your sources using APA Referencing Style (7th edition).
5. All Continuous Assessment shall be thirty (30) percent, while Final Examination shall be
seventy (70) percent, totaling 100%.
 GUIDING COURSE NOTE

Introductory Reflections
The concept of prophecy is very central in the religious life of Israel. There are differing views as

to when prophecy started in Israel. According to Gen 20:7, Abraham is the first person to be

associated with the title “Prophet” in the entire Hebrew Bible. Because of this verse (Gen 20:7),

Abraham is considered the first prophet in Israel. It is important to note that “although Abraham

is identified as a prophet by the source usually called E, Abraham does not function as the other

prophets do. He does not address people in the name of God.” Others have argued that true

prophecy started with Moses at the onset of the Exodus. During the Exodus, Moses exhibited

qualities that were later seen in other prophets. He approached Pharaoh of Egypt without fear and

this can be well compared to the way Elijah confronted King Ahab (1 Kgs 21:17- 29). Moses

further gave guidelines that Israel was to follow to distinguish true from false prophets (Deut 13:1-

5; 18:22). Other than Moses, Aaron is also called by the title “prophet” (Exodus 7:1).

According to Exodus 15:20, Miriam the sister of Aaron is called “the prophetess”, “but she

performs actions that exhibit a character that is more cultic than prophetic (Exod 15:20; Num 12:1-

15).” After the Exodus then came the time of Judges and during this time, the concept of prophecy

still existed. According to Judg 4:4, Deborah was haybn “prophetess” who judged Israel “under

the palm tree of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the mountains of Ephraim.” After the time

of Deborah, prophecy became less common. There was drought for God’s word of prophecy.

According to 1 Sam 3:1, “the word of the Lord was rare in those days; there was no frequent

vision.”
The call of Samuel (1 Sam 3:1-21) marked a new beginning in the religious life of Israel. He

became a prophet who even influenced the politics of the nation. This is because through him, God

chose and rejected kings. During this time prophecy entered a new phase. God seemed to come

closer to His people than before. Samuel became the greatest figure to emerge in Israel since

Moses. Through him, God warned Eli of the calamity that was to befall him and his family (1 Sam

3:11-18), chose Saul to be a king (1 Sam 9:17), later rejected him (1 Sam 15:23) and chose David

to be king (1 Sam 16:12-13). God during this time still spoke through the prophets. For example

Nathan rebuked David when the latter killed Uriah and took his wife (2 Sam 12:1-15). During this

time of the monarchy, prophecy and kingship existed side by side. Prophecy acted as a sort of a

check to the monarchy. Long after Saul and David had left the scene, two prominent figures

emerged in Israel: Elijah and Elisha.

In fact according to von Rad (1965), “It was in the ninth century, with Elijah and Elisha, that

prophecy, first began to make its voice heard.” During this time, prophecy became more like a

profession. As a prophet, Elijah is “unapproachable, unpredictable, feared and even hated but

always someone to be reckoned with…..Such a figure cannot simply have been invented, and can

only be explained by saying that the stories reflect a historical figure of well-nigh superhuman

stature.” This superhuman stature is reflected in the many miracles that he performed, one of which

is the Mount Carmel victory against the prophets of Baal (1 Kgs 18:20- 40). After Elijah had

ascended to heaven, Elisha took over his role and he as well did many miracles. Characteristic of

prophecy during this time, is the phrase, “sons of the prophets” (1 Kgs 20:35; 2 Kgs 2:7). Another

characteristic of prophecy during this time is the concept of ecstasy when people prophesied with

special power and seemed to be out of their minds (cf. 1 Sam 10:6; 1 Kgs 11:29-30). The period

above of Samuel, Nathan, Elijah and Elisha is usually called “preclassical” period. “Since they did
not write down their prophecies in separate books, these prophets are often better remembered for

what they did than for what they said.”

During this time, “prophecy was always intimately associated with the monarchy beginning with

Saul, for whose downfall, according to the tradition, one of the principal reasons was loss of

prophetic support.”6In the 8th and 7th centuries B. C., we have what is usually called classical

period of Israelite prophecy. A chief characteristic of prophets during this time is that they put

their oracles in writing which later became part of Hebrew Scriptures. First, there was Amos who

was followed by Hosea in the northern kingdom and later Micah and Isaiah in the southern

kingdom and this was at a time when Israel was under attack from the Assyrians. Then later in the

7th century, there came Zephaniah, Jeremiah, Nahum and Habakkuk. During the Babylonian Exile,

we have Ezekiel and Obadiah. After the exile, there appeared Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi and Joel.

Origin of Israelite prophecy

The origin of prophecy in Israel remains a big academic debate. Gerhard von Rad comments thus

on the origin of prophecy: “The origins of prophecy are themselves a difficult problem: there is

not enough source material, and what there is, is not sufficiently homogeneous, to allow us to draw

up anything like a history of the movement, or even a rough sketch of its first beginnings.” It is

believed that the concept of prophecy in Canaan (Palestine) originated from the mantic activity in

Thrace and Asia Minor. Therefore when the Israelites arrived in Canaan, they found the concept

there. “Canaanite religion must, then, have been the medium by which the movement came to

Israel.” Two views have come up to try to explain the origin of prophecy. One says that Israelites

found the concept of prophecy among Canaanites “after the settlement on Canaanite soil and took

it over from them, adapting it in the process to her own conception of God.”
Another view is that prophecy just developed naturally in Israel without being copied from other

societies. Others say that the relationship between prophecy in Israel and the neighbouring cultures

(especially the Mari texts) can be explained “under the assumption that prophecy was mediated to

Israel by ancestors who had come from a similar cultural environment.” On the basis of some

biblical verses, some scholars maintain that prophecy in Israel originated from Yahweh. A good

example is Jer 7:25 which says that: “From the day that your fathers came out of the land of Egypt

to this day, I have persistently sent all my servants the prophets to them, day after day.” A related

verse is 2 Chr 36:15. Whatever the origin, what is clear is that prophecy was a very established

institution which played a big role in shaping the religious and political life of Israel.

The meaning of the word aybn “prophet”

The English word ‘prophet’ comes from the Greek word prwfethj. This is the word used in the

LXX to translate the Hebrew word aybn. According to Webster’s Dictionary, a prophet is a person

who speaks for God or a god, or as though under divine guidance. This refers to one who speaks

on behalf of a god or goddess. This person can either be a man or woman (called prophetess). A

prophet is a proclaimer. “This seems to be the primary meaning of the Hebrew word nabi, as

applied to the vast majority of biblical prophets.” A prophet is known as someone with ability to

foretell the future or who is able to know something without being told by anyone. “The prophets

were men of remarkable psychic powers.”

There are three Hebrew words all of which have sometimes been rendered “prophet” in English.

These are: aybn, har and hzx. The word aybn is in all cases translated as prophet, while har “which

is, in form, an active participle of the verb “to see”, is translated ‘seer’.” On the other hand, hzx

does not have an English exact equivalent “and is translated either “prophet” (e.g. Is 30:10) or

‘seer’ (e.g 1 Ch 29:29).” According to most scholars, har and aybn are the same. It is agreed that
a prophet in ancient times was called har as is explained in 1 Sam 9:9.18. The word aybn seems to

have come to Hebrew from the Akkadian word nabitu. Interestingly now, the word nabu (diviner?)

is found among the Mari documents. “This probable loanword in Hebrew suggests that prophecy

in Israel was not a phenomenon unrelated to ideas and practices outside Israel. Israelite prophecy

can rather be understood as a concept and an activity that Israel shared with other cultures and

peoples.” On the other hand however, some other scholars say that the word aybn means “one who

is called” (from the verb awb, “to come”).

The title “man of God” was also used in reference to “prophet”. “This title was first used of Moses

(Dt. 33:1) and continued in use till the end of the monarchy (e.g 1 Sa 2:27; 9:6; 1 Ki. 13:1, etc).”

The word ‘prophecy’ refers to “prediction of the future under the influence of divine guidance; act

or practice of a prophet.” It can also mean “something prophesied or predicted; specifically, the

utterance or utterances of a prophet.”

Prophecy in Ancient Near East

It has been proved beyond any doubt that prophecy existed in the nations neighbouring Israel. The

existence of prophecy or prophetic practices in these lands is attested in the Hebrew Bible by

Jeremiah (Jer 27:1-15) who referred to prophets and other religious specialists in the neighbouring

lands of Edom, Moab, Ammon and the Phoenician cities. It even seems that in most of these

nations, prophecy existed much before it even did in Israel. There has been evidence in the ancient

nations of Mesopotamia, Syria, Egypt, and Anatolia that proves the existence of prophecy in these

lands. The existence of prophecy in nations surrounding Israel has been used to answer the question

about the origin of Israelite prophecy.

Prophetic activity is reported to have taken place in Hamath, a city state in Northern Syria. An

inscription from there dating from the 8th century B. C. has been secured. This inscription “tells
how, during a siege of a dependent city, Zakir prayed to the local Baal and received assurance of

divine assistance through seers and other inspired individuals.” From Ammon, a text from around

700 B. C. was discovered in 1967 which makes a reference to Balaam son of Beor, “who saw a

vision during the nightand obtained a somewhat enigmatic revelation from a group of numinous

beings.”

Interestingly, the Hebrew Bible makes mention of one Balaam “who sees the vision of the

Almighty” (Num 24:4). The most famous prophetic texts to come from Ancient Near East outside

Israel are the Mari documents that were discovered at Tell Hariri, “just inside the Syrian border

with Iraq.” These letters date to the first half of the 18th century B. C. Most of these documents

are letters containing messages from the gods to king Zimrilim. Some of the messages were got

through dreams. “Others came in visions, others again in a state of trance, no doubt induced by

appropriate techniques by temple ecstatics.” The Mari letters describe different types of prophets;

some with titles and others without them. The most common title at Mari is muhhu/ muhhutu

(ecstatic) whose “behaviour may involve self-wounding.” This practice can well be compared to

the prophets of Baal that were competing with Elijah at Mount Carmel (1 Kgs 18:28).

Commenting on the nature of muhhu/ muhhutu, this is what one had to say: “Thus this type of

prophet, because of his peculiar behaviour, was perceived of as a madman, similar to the biblical

mešugga.’ ” At Mari, there were two main ways through which the gods sent their word to the

people: “The professional prophets enjoyed direct revelations while awake; the lay persons, on the

other hand, were usually dreamers of dreams. Divine revelations through dreams were a

widespread phenomenon throughout the ancient Near East, including Israel.” In the Old Testament

we also see dreams listed as one of the media through which Yahweh talked to His people (1 Sam

28:6). Before the famous Mari texts were discovered, there were the Neo-Assyrian prophetic texts
published in the second quarter of the 19th century. These texts contain terms like “raggimu/

raggintu, “proclaimer,” with some prophecies ascribed to a selutu, “votaress.”

From Middle Euphrates, texts dating to 1300 B. C. have been discovered. Two important Akkadian

words appear in these texts: anabbi atu and munabbi atu. These words are proof to the existence

of the phenomenon of prophecy in this area. It has also been proved that prophecy and prophetic

practices existed in ancient Egypt. “A twentieth dynasty copy also attests that Ipuwer, an Egyptian

sage, denounced the kings for permitting lawlessness and injustice in the society” This is found in

the document, “The Admonitions of Ipu-wer.” Another text, “The Prophecy of Neferti” is

“foretelling a future deliverance for a country in a time of trouble.” In Egypt still, there are reports

that Pamyle— foster parent of Osiris— heard a voice from the temple of Zeus (Amun) instructing

Pamyle to announce that Osiris had been born.

There is also the text called “King Cheops and the Magicians” where a king’s son tells his father

about an old man called Dedi. “The king visits Dedi, who demonstrates his powers and then

predicts the birth of three kings who will find a new dynasty and bring to an end Cheops’ royal

line. A brief appendix to the tale describes the gods fulfilling the sage’s prophecy.” There is also

a story where, “one of the Phoenician prince’s young attendants became ecstatic and delivered an

oracle authenticating Wen-Amun’s mission from the god Amun.” The above discussion shows that

the concept of prophecy was not unique to Israel. Her neighbours also had knowledge of this

phenomenon and there is proof that Israelite prophecy is much younger compared to that in her

neighbours. Although the question whether Israel adopted prophecy from her neighbours remains

a hot academic debate, what is clear is that there are similarities between prophecy in Israel and

that in the neighbouring nations.

True and False Prophets

There were two kinds of prophets in the Old Testament; the true and false ones. The true prophets

were speaking the message of Yahweh while the false ones were uttering messages from their own

minds. These two groups of prophets were always confronting each other. For example according

to 1Kgs 22: “Micaiah the son of Imlah and Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah confronted each other

before king Ahab, the one warning of defeat and other promising victory, and both appealing to

the authority of the Lord.” The confrontation reaches a climax with Zedekiah striking Micaiah on

the cheek (1 Kgs 22:24). In this text, Micaiah is a true prophet of Yahweh who prophesies defeat

and God’s judgment upon Ahab (1 Kgs 22:28) while Zedekiah promises victory for Ahab (1 Kgs

22:11). It was hard to tell a true prophet from a false one since both groups claimed to be speaking

for Yahweh. False prophets have been said to be ecstatic but we know that according to 1 Sam 9;

10, “group-ecstasy was the common mark of the nabi in the time of Samuel.”

This ecstasy is also seen among the prophets of Baal at the Mount Carmel contest (1 Kgs 18:20-

40). False prophets were always corrupted to prophesy what the kings wanted; to prophesy good

news. A good example is when Ahab says that he hates Micaiah because the latter does not

prophesy ‘good.’ This is what he says: “but I hate him, because he does not prophesy good

concerning me, but evil” (1 Kgs 22:8). Even the messenger who went to call Micaiah tried to

convince him to prophesy what pleased the king (1 Kgs 22:13) but Micaiah vowed saying, “As the

Lord lives, what the LORD says to me, that I will speak” (1 Kgs 22:14). Such was the

determination of a true prophet of Yahweh. Prophets of Yahweh “were straight-from the- shoulder

men, those stout and devout hearts who in their times stood up and stood out in solitary grandeur.

Chins up, faith up, they minced no words. If the dancing, drinking society women of Bethel were

like ‘fat cows,’ that is what they were called (Amos 4:1).” Whatever the true prophets prophesied,
came to pass. For example when Jeremiah says that Hananiah will die, indeed he dies that same

year as the former had prophesied (Jer 28-15-17).

Moses gave criteria that were to guide Israel in differentiating true from false prophets. Deut 13:1-

5 says that if someone rises up and prophesies and what he says comes to pass, but preaches other

gods, he should not be believed. Deut 18:22 gives fulfilment as a sign that the prophecy originated

from God. But “sometimes the word of the false is fulfilled also, as a test for God’s people.”

Although there were those criteria laid down by Moses, it was not easy to know who was true and

who was false. A good example is the conflicting messages given by Jeremiah and Hananiah (Jer

28). “Jeremiah knew firmly who was true and who was false, but how could he prove his case or

convince his audience with a message that was considerably less palatable than the comforting

words of his rival?”

According to Jer 23:10-14, false prophets are always characterized by immorality. Jeremiah further

says in 23: 30-32 that “false prophets are men of borrowed testimony, feigned authority, and self-

appointed ministry… whereas the true prophet has stood in the counsel of Yahweh, and heard His

voice, and has been sent by Him (verses 18, 21, 22, 28, 32) False prophets always prophesied

peace to their audience (Ezek 13:10, 16; Micah 3:5). According to Ezek 13:2, Yahweh condemns

false prophets who speak from their own mind and then say, “Says the Lord.”30 Prophet Micah

condemns false prophets in the strongest possible terms when he says to them in 3:6 that:

“Therefore it shall be night to you without vision, and darkness to you, without divination. The

sun shall go down upon the prophets, and the day shall be black over them.”

False prophets always tell lies, as Cooke (1994: 310) testifies: “False prophecy is deceptive, it

deliberately leads people away from the Lord. Often it is a word dreamt up from their own

imagination (Jer 23:16-18) and thoughts. People speak out of the deception of their own hearts (Jer
23:16).” One scholar argues that: “The false prophets were still active during the beginning of the

reconstruction of the Second Temple, and their major programme in this time was to hinder the

temple erection, Neh 6:10-14.” During the postexilic period, false prophecy did not flourish as

before because the wellbeing messages of the false prophets were proved a lie by the actuality of

Judah’s exile. True prophets of Yahweh continued to appear until the time of Malachi (around 450

BC). But it would be right to argue that prophecy did not end with Malachi as seen from the

Qumran documents and the work of John the Baptist (Luke 3:1-6).

The role of aybn “prophet” in Israel

A prophet aybn was influential in Israel. His role is well seen during the preclassical, well up to

the postexilic period. During the preclassical period, prophets like Samuel, Elijah, Elisha, and

Nathan played a great role in society. Samuel delivered a message of Yahweh’s judgment upon

priest Eli and his sons (1 Sam 3:1-21), judged Israel (1 Sam 7:15-17). As a man of God, he foresaw

the disadvantages of a human king and thus warned Israel against having one (1 Sam 8:1-22). He

anointed Saul king (1 Sam 9:15 – 10:1) and also David (1 Sam 16:1-13).

A prophet was to guide people to remain loyal to Yahweh. This is seen in the words of Samuel

when he says: “If you are returning to the LORD with all your heart, then put away the foreign

gods and the Ashtaroth from among you, and direct your heart to the Lord, and serve him only,

and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.” Even during the time of Elijah and

Elisha, the role of a prophet was to protect Israel against other gods. This reaches a climax at the

Mount Carmel contest between Elijah and the prophets of Baal (1 Kgs 18:20-40) where Elijah

emerged triumphant. This is what Horsley and Hanson (1999: 138) has written about the role of

prophets:
 Whereas the last shophet, Samuel, was still both messenger and political-military
leader, the prophet Nathan was simply the messenger of Yahweh, while the
anointed king David assumed the military and political leadership. When the
institution of the monarchy became firmly established, it appeared that the
prophet would surely be confined to the role of a spokesperson … the prophet
was simply a messenger pronouncing the word of Yahweh.

Prophets were supposed to warn people to come back to God in all that they were doing. They

were therefore carriers of God’s warnings. Iit was the function of the prophets to warn both Israel

and Judah to repent and to keep the law (torah), which had itself been given to the people by

prophets. Thus the prophets are presented as preachers of repentance whose message was a call to

return to the law.

During this time prophets gave advice to kings whenever they went astray from God’s covenant.

Prophets had a great influence on the monarchy. For example we find the prophets Nathan and

Gad guiding David in cultic matters (2 Sam. 7.1-7; 24.18-19) and Gad instructing the king as to

military enterprises (1 Sam. 22.5). Prophets were always consulted before going to orduring war.

For example king “Zedekiah called on Jeremiah on the eve of the fall of Jerusalem (Jer. 21.1-7;

37.3-10, 17; 38.14-23).” Another familiar example is the one in 1 Kgs 22:15 where Ahab consults

prophet Micaiah before going to war.

In the classical period also, the role of a prophet was to guide Israel to follow God’s laws and

commandments. Prophets in this time were also concerned with social injustices that were taking

place in Israelite society. A good example is this text in Amos 2:6: Thus says the LORD: ‘For

three transgressions of Israel, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment; because they sell the

righteous for silver, and the needy for a pair of shoes.’

The true prophets of God also had a role to make sure that the nation of Israel sticks to the true

worship of Yahweh. They thus preached against idolatry as seen in Isa 2:8-9 which says: Their

land is filled with idols; they bow down to the work of their hands, to what their fingers have made.

So man is humbled, and men are brought low- forgive them not! During this time, the prophet had

a role to play in the Temple worship in Israel.

Prophets conducted people’s prayers and interceded for them. For example Jeremiah, to emphasize

the intercessory aspect of the prophet had this to say in 27:18: “If they are prophets, and if the word

of the LORD is with them, then let them intercede with the LORD of hosts, that the vessels which

are left in the house of the LORD, in the house of the king of Judah, and in Jerusalem may not go

to Babylon.”

Even during the exilic period in Babylon, prophets condemned idolatry (Ezek 6:4, 5). During this

time of exile, prophet Ezekiel travelled to Jerusalem by vision and witnessed the great

abominations that were being committed in God’s house and was concerned (Ezek 8:1-18).

In the period after the Babylonian exile, true prophets of God had a role to play. When the exiles

returned, they found everything in a mess. They found that the temple (the heart of Jewish religion)

had been destroyed. At the urging of the prophets, the rebuilding of the temple was begun. Haggai

was one of the prophets during this time and is credited for having succeeded in his mission to

have the temple rebuilt. He contributed enormously to the stability of the Judean community in the

Persian period.

Development of Israelite Prophetism

The origins of Israelite prophecy have been much discussed without textual evidence because there

is none. Traditionally, the Israelite seer is considered to have originated in Israel's nomadic roots,
and the nabi` is considered to have originated in Canaan, though such judgments are virtually

impossible to substantiate. But the settlement of the Israelites in Canaan collaterally connects them

to Canaanite forms of prophecy. Hence the structure of the prophetic and priestly function in Israel

and Canaan become very much the same.

However, the early stage of the prophetic ministry is dominated by the seer (hozeh or ro‘eh) (1

Sam 9:1-9) whose principal function is to describe events, present or future, past, which are hidden

from the ordinary man. The seer is in essence the man people consulted in order to find lost articles.

A fee is usually required for the service of a seer. A perfect example of a seer was Samuel, who

was consulted by Saul while searching for his father‘s asses (I Sam 9:1-10).

With the rise of the monarch and the setting up of the great sanctuaries, the seers were no longer

mentioned. At this period, the nabi are mentioned for the first time in Israel about the end of the

eleventh and the beginning of the tenth century BC, a period that coincided with the rise of the

monarchy. So, the nabi and the monarch emerged after the religion of YHWH has long become

established in the agricultural areas of Palestine. The early nabis are ecstatic in character, operating

from the cultic high places making music, dancing and singing (I Sam. 10). Samuel too is

associated directly with these ecstatic bands. Yet, Samuel as the man of YHWH stands always

above the group. He is a man held in honour because ―all that he says comes true (I Sam 9:6).

So, in Samuel the two functions, the seer and the nabi, converge.

Of course, the nabis tended to be gregarious and usually appeared and acted in bands. This may be

partly because ecstasy is held to be infectious. In contrast to the seer, their social and moral

standing was low, as is shown not merely by the amazement of Saul‘s friend at his association

with such disreputable people (1 Sam 10:11f). With the passage of time however, the group

gradually came into prominence, because kings and nobles patronized them. Their status in the
society therefore improved considerably. This led many to join the guilds of the ecstatic, and

moreover, because many of them became consultants and found their ways into the palace. Thus,

this marked the beginning of the professionalisation of the prophetic ministry. Sycophancy and

formality would find its way in professionalism, thus bring the prophetic ministry into disrepute

among the people.

However, individuals who saw the excesses of the ecstatic prophets separated themselves from

these guilds of nabi. The first person of whom this independence is recorded is Micaiah son of

Imlah (I Kgs 22:5-28). Micaiah and his contemporary Elijah appeared in marked contrast to these

official prophets. They stood alone and spoke upon the impulse of their own experience with

YHWH. Micaiah, in opposition to both the deceivers of the king and the views of the majority of

the prophets, presented the word of YHWH as he understood it. His message did not support the

throne; it spelled out doom and disaster. Micaiah then stood outside the ranks of official

prophetism. For the first time, a prophet of woe stood opposed to other prophets, expressing both

an idea and an attitude that would characterize prophecy for the next centuries. Prophetic

independence of the throne was established and oracles of denunciation were often directed

towards the king.

After Micaiah, individual prophets had become a familiar figure. It was no longer on the crowds

of ecstatic prophets that the people relied for divine message. It was rather the single independent

speaker whose words they held to be due to the direct inspiration of YHWH. The classical or

literary prophets fall into this category. This fact is seen in Amos indignant repudiation of any

connection with the ecstatic nabis, when he declared, I am neither a prophet nor the son of a

prophet, but I was a herdsman and a grower of sycamore figs. The Lord took me from behind the

flock and the Lord said to me, go prophesy to my people Israel‖ (Amos 7:14-15). Isaiah is named
as ‘the prophet’ only three times in his book, all in chapters 36-39, a section that is actually copied

from 2 Kings 18-20. Jeremiah is called a prophet twenty-one times, but in his own speech the term

is used only of those sent in the past and of contemporaries who are also alleged to be liars. Twice,

Ezekiel is indirectly referred to as a prophet (Ezekiel 2:5, 33:33); otherwise ‘prophet’ is also used

of the past, or of contemporary liars. Nowhere is Hosea or Micah or Malachi called a prophet.

Zechariah is only the ‘Son of prophet.’ Only Habakkuk and Haggai are called prophets and in the

remaining books of the prophets the word is not even used.

Cessation of Prophetism in Israel

The office of prophet would seem to have come to pass away in Israel after Malachi. It does seem

not to have reappeared until 400 years later with John the Baptist. It may equally appear uncertain

how the New Testament gift of "prophecy" relates to the Old Testament. Yet New Testament

prophets (Acts 11:27-28; 13:1; 15:32; I Cor. 12:10,28-29; 14:29,32,37; Eph. 4:11) claim not to be

revealers of new revelation or Scripture, but the forth- and foretellers of God's will in the context

of the covenant.

Again, the cessation of prophecy would seem to have been suggested in Ps 74:9 (cf. Lam 2:9, 20)

and endorsed by 1 Macc 9:27 (cf. 4:46; 9:27; 14:41). Yet the same prophecy will be understood in

the context of an expectation of an eschatological prophet connected with the person of Moses on

the basis of Deut. 18:15-18 (cf. Acts 3:22 f.; 7:37; and Jn. 6:14; 7:40) and with the person of Elijah

on the basis of Mal. 3:1 (cf. Matt. 11:10; Mk. 1:2; Lk. 1:17, 76; 7:27) and Mal. 4:1-6 (MT 3:19-

24; cf. Matt. 17:11; Mk. 9:12; Lk. 1:17. It will be honoured and fulfilled in the realities of the NT

(Heb 1:1, cf. Matt 1:22; 2:15, 23; 13:35; 21:4, etc.). In other words, there is never in Israel a
prophetic age in the sense of a fixed historical period. Prophecy is always accompanied and

opposed by living and fruitful rational or anti-charismatic trends.

Furthermore, prophecy is always challenged from within by the question of its legitimacy. What

distinguishes prophecy in Israel is its tremendous ability to live on in ever new forms. When the

vivid prophetic manifestations of the post-exilic period finally had to give place to a nomistic

rationalism, there were easily discernible historical reasons for this. After the death of Herod,

prophecy was entangled in political developments as never before in Israel's history. After the

overthrow of the hierocracy in Jerusalem, which was also a serious defeat for all charismatics,

Pharisaic Rabbinism set to work creating a Palestinian patriarchate on a nomistic rational

foundation. Thus the Canon was fixed and all movements which did not correspond or bow to the

Pharisaic Rabbinism norm were eliminated. At the same time all literature, which went beyond the

pew dogmatic limits, was suppressed, and the schema triumphed whereby the wise men were the

legitimate successors of the prophets.

The rabbis naturally saw in apocalyptic the legitimate successor of prophecy. ―Up to this point

(i.e. up to Alexander the Great) the prophets preached through the Holy Spirit. From then on, bow

thine ear and hear the words of the wise (i.e. the apocalyptic writers) (Seder ‘Olam Rabbah 30).

So, in the rabbinic writings the ―voice from heaven‖ begins to gain importance alongside

apocalyptic. God still spoke but only through the echo of his voice (SB II 125 ff.).

Incidentally, Josephus (Ant. 13, 311 ff.) reports that the Essenes had a great number of prophets,

who were held in high repute. In other words, for all its consistency the nomistic trend was not

strong enough to destroy at once the charismatic element, which was especially dangerous in

Zelotism. Hence the second revolt broke out, as it would appear, under the spiritual leadership of

Akiba as prophet. The radical defeat and the Roman policy of extermination up to the edict of
toleration under Antoninus Pius in 138 A.D. ended all spirit-effected manifestations. With great

effort the Synagogue could be reconstructed, but now its official outlook was so strongly

dominated by nomistic rationalism.

The call of a Prophet

A prophet‘s ministry begin with the prophet‘s call experience (see Isa 6; Jer. 1:4-10; Ezek. 1:1-

3:15). It might be pursued continuously despite opposition or rejection on the part of his listeners

(e.g., Hos. 9:7b); Ezek. 12:21ff.); it might be broken off by external coercion (Amos 7:10ff.) or by

the prophet himself on account of failure (Isa. 8:16-18); or on account of his inward conversion to

a new message (Ezek. 3:22-27; 24:25-27; 33:21-22) it might be temporarily interrupted. The

prophet‘s words are usually spoken to those for whom the message is intended.

In other words, the prophets of Israel are called by YHWH to announce YHWH‘s word to YHWH‘

people. They speak for YHWH and the message carries the authority of YHWH as the ONE who

has called them and given them the message. So, it is YHWH, who decides and determines who

will be his spokesman. He calls, prepares and sanctifies the prophet for the mission to which the

prophet is called. This perhaps is responsible for the occurrence of the call narratives in the extent

works of the prophets (see for example Isaiah 6:1-10, Jeremiah 1:4-19, Ezekiel 1:1-15; Amos

7:14). Therefore the ―call‖ is an important element in the making of a prophet, for it is not the

prophet who decides to become one, but YHWH, who wills and calls the prophet to mission.

The power of the Word

The identification of the “call” as intrinsic to the prophetic ministry explains to greater extent the

belief in the effectuality of the WORD spoken by YHWH through His prophets. That is to say, the

WORD is the decisive feature in OT prophecy. The prophet has to pass on the "word of YHWH,"
which the prophet receives. Jeremiah at his call becomes certain that YHWH has set His words on

his lips, 1:9; cf. Ez. 3:1 H. Yet Jeremiah does not have YHWH's word at his disposal; he has to

wait until it is given him (cf. Jer. 28:11,12). When he does, however, he has to speak it ( Jer. 1:17;

cf. Am. 3:8). The judgment of YHWH will fall on those who hinder him (Jer. 5:13f.; cf. Am. 7:16

f.). The formal expression, "the word of the LORD came to" is often used to express the receiving

of the word of YHWH (cf. 2 Sam 7:4). But above all, the prophets use the formula "thus says the

LORD" to introduce their sayings as earlier found in the traditions relating to Moses (Ex. 4:22 etc.)

and in the case of Samuel (1 Sam 10:18; 15:2). It comes into general use from the time of Nathan

(2 Sam 7:5, 8; 12:7,11) and Gad (2 Sam 24:12). The formula is originally used to denote a

messenger (Gen. 32:5), so that it can be called a message-formula. The prophet regards himself as

a messenger of YHWH, whose word the messenger has to pass on.

The content of the word is mostly transmitted in the Ist person of the one who gives the commission

(Gn. 32:5 f.; 45:9 H.; 1 K. 20:3, 5 etc.). In the prophets, then, it is formulated as a saying of YHWH.

It conveys the idea that the saying of YHWH is usually about an imminent action of YHWH. This

action may mean salvation or destruction; hence the saying of YHWH is either promise or threat.

The content of the word of promise may be events in the immediate historical future (cf. 1 Kgs.

11:31; 20:13, 28; 2 Kgs 20:5 f.) or more distant events (cf. 2 Sam 7:8ff). In the writing prophets

the promises are above all eschatological expectations in the broadest sense. The prophets,

however, do not merely pass on the word which they have received from YHWH. They themselves

are responsible for the correct delivery of their message. They are appointed by YHWH to be

"examiners," Jer.6:27. Some of the techniques applied in the symbolic actions.

The Mission of the Prophet

The will to action in prophetic movement is prompted by a double purpose: (1) to hold the people

steadfast to YHWH, their sole Guardian and Law Giver; and (2) to create a spiritually self-

sufficient, unified people whose life and institutions should be based on justice and austere

simplicity. In a sense the two are but one principle, inspired by the tradition of Moses. With this

tradition as an accepted guide, the prophets believed that Israel would be a peculiar people and

that it would reject all incompatible phases of Palestinian or Semitic civilization.

The prophet's primary mission is to communicate the truth about YHWH, to warn and admonish

in order that judgment may be averted (cf. Jer 35:15). The prophecy was not for the future but for

the present. The prophets have three basic mission rooted in the past (preservation of the tradition),

present (sustenance of the covenant) and future (call for change for better). The mission may be

classified under three aspects and is thus briefly explained.

Sustenance of the covenant

The prophet is called to invite the people to accountability to the covenant that they had made with

God. The primary mission of the prophet in Israel is to be "covenant mediator," to call the people

to live out the Torah, the covenantal provisions to which they had agreed at Sinai and had renewed

under subsequent leaders (Josh 24, 1 Samuel 7, Neh 9, etc.). As God has covenanted with them to

be their God, they have covenanted to be his people (Ex. 6:7, Deut. 5:6, Jer. 7:23, etc.). In some

way, all prophetic activity between Samuel and Malachi addressed that overarching concern as its

primary focus. The prophets read historical events in light of the covenant, and interpret those

events in terms of the people's accountability to the covenant.

In other words, the Sinaitic covenant remains foundational to Israelite religion (Ex. 19-24). It

contains the regulations and the blessings that the people would derive from keeping such rules as

well as the curses that would follow the contrary. Through pronouncements, preaching and

teaching, the prophets constantly remind the people of their statutory duty-abiding by the letters

of the covenants, thus helping in the sustenance of the covenant.

Call for social change

Prophecy is one of the ways through which YHWH speaks to His people, providing guidance in

their current setting and hope in His control of their lives and world events. The message is most

often corporate. It is meant to rebuke, encourage, engender faith and repentance, and inform God's

people about YHWH Himself and His plan for His people.

Through prophecy, the people are spurred to a change of the status quo for better. They challenge

the social injustice and other vices in the society which often lead to social and moral revolution.

Simply put: the prophetic call for change is a call for revolution. Often, the prophet takes a

historical or theological crisis of the day and projected this into an eschatological setting. This end-

time view of history is unique in Israel and its sense of divine election and covenant promises.

Preservation of Tradition

The prophet is also a custodian of the tradition of the religion of YHWH. He is always there to

remind the people of the austere covenantal religion that Israel had brought into the Land of

Promise from the desert, which could be severely threaten by Israel‘s insensitivity to the ethical

demands of her religion. This speaks of the mission of prophets like Amos, Hosea, Isaiah and

Micah. With their prophecy of judgment, they challenged the state of the society as a whole. They

subjected its cultic and political institutions along with their political and theological options to a
biting criticism, and could not hesitate to announce the downfall of the whole Israelite state in the

name of YHWH. Prophets like Amos, Hosea, Isaiah and Micah felt driven by YHWH to put in

question the whole basic national and religious consensus in their society. The prophets called the

attention of the people to the need to return to the teachings and instructions as embedded in the

Torah. By doing this, the tradition is preserved. Their message developed a great long-term effect

which contributed quite substantially to a far-reaching reformulation of YHWH religion in the late

monarchy and during the exile.

Prophecy and Ecstasy

The Greeks who coined the word ecstasy (ekstasis), understood it quite literally to be a state of

trance in which the soul was no longer in its place, but had departed from the body; or a state in

which the soul, escaping from the body, had entered into a relationship with invisible beings or

become united with a deity.

The ecstatic state was thus regarded as a way of ascending to a higher form of living, or at least a

way which rendered possible the receiving of supernormal endowments. From a psychological

point of view, ecstasy is described as a withdrawal of consciousness from circumference to centre.

It is a state in which the absorption of the mind in one idea is so profound that everything else is

blotted out, a state in which consciousness of self disappears. One could attain such a condition

through gradual preparation or the use of narcotics, alcohol, music and dancing. It could also come

by contemplation and complete spiritual concentration as well as by prayer.

Ecstasy is classified as being of two kinds:

i. The wild or fervid type, described as a state of frenzy arising from the over-stimulation and

emotional tension, in which case one is said to be possessed by the spirit. It is often accompanied

by abnormal manifestations - gasping, groaning, babbling, and uttering of strange and meaningless

sounds, and the performance of frivolous antics.

ii. The second, more sober or contemplative type, is described as a rapture of the soul in a state of

complete calmness, enabling a person to rise beyond the confines of consciousness.

Israelite prophets and the problem of ecstasy

Judging from the type of picture presented by some of the biblical prophets, both earlier and later,

some critics seem to portray the Israelite prophets as crude and abnormal personalities, little

different from similar ecstatic figures in Oriental heathenism. The prophets are portrayed as

dervish-like fanatics. Their ecstatic excitement is described as infectious. They are depicted as

'slavering' and 'dribbling' in the sense of prophesying, or even qualified as 'mad fellow.'

Incidentally, the phenomena are not the monopoly of any race, people, or nation, or even any

historical period.

That notwithstanding, the challenge of the biblical scholarship is the relationship between the

ecstatic experiences and the content of the prophetic message. At this point, one cannot but

appreciate the distinction made by Lindblom (1973) between 'orgiastic' and 'lethargic' ecstasy. The

'orgiastic' ecstasy is of an unrestrained type of emotion characterized by frenzied movements (cf.

1 Sam 10:5ff; 1 Kgs 18.46). ‗Lethargic,' on the other hand, refers to a state of abnormal drowsiness.

It is passive in nature. It can be detected in the story in 2 Kings 8.77ff concerning the behaviour of

Elisha. Other terms associated with ecstasy are absorption and concentration, spirit possessed.

Then the prophetic ecstasy is understood as a state of concentration rather than absorption. The
advantage of making the distinction is that concentration does not destroy consciousness and

freedom, hence the OT prophets in the prophetic missions were always free and conscious

(Eissfeldt, 1967).

'Spirit-possession', also called 'divine seizure' or simply 'prophetic frenzy', or even 'sacred

madness', is an essential feature of the ecstatic experience. The 'possessing spirit' is identified as

YHWH's, and it is the 'hand of YHWH' which seizes or grasps the prophet. The 'divine seizure' of

the prophet may be overwhelming enough to cause anguish (cf. Jer. 20:7ff)

The unmistakable effect of possession by the Spirit or the grasping hand of YHWH includes a full-

scale ecstatic hysteria such that the possessed may be 'turned into another man' (1 Sam. 10.5-6). In

such a case the frivolous antics of the possessed may become grotesque. The possessed may

perform abnormal or superhuman acts, or lose physical sensation (cf. 1 Sam. 10:7; 11:7ff ; 1 Kings

18:26-9). This spirit may be transmitted or conveyed from one prophet to another (cf. Num

11.23ff).

The spirit is not only shared by transmission, it can also be inherited from a master (2 Kings 2:9,

15) The spirit could also suddenly take a prophet from where he was and transplant him to another

place (1 Kings 18.12; 2 Kings 2.16).

Prophecy and Divination

Divination has been defined as the act or practice of seeking to know the future or hidden things

by magical means, instinctive prevision; prediction, conjecture. In this sense, one may consider
prophecy as divination and/or a divinatory activity. Though there are various forms of divination,

Cicero brings them under two major divisions:

a) Inductive or Instrumental Divination (Inductive divination)

Inductive divination, also described as mediated or instrumental divination, is the claim to interpret

some given omens; hence known as omen divination.

Some of the forms of inductive divination include:

i. Astrology – Star guessing – study of the stars. Horoscope, even those that study weather is part

of astrology.

ii. Palmistry – the study of palms. Even today palmstry is developed in Europe

iii. Chiromancy – is more the gesticulation of the hand. All these go with magic. Some of this

charm is a science of hypnotism

iv. Necromancy – e.g. of Saul trying to invoke the spirit of Samuel. Necro is dead – So it is rituals

done for the dead; that is invoking the dead to know some information

v. Extispicy – the study of the liver and inner parts of animal, a developed science in ancient

Babylonians. From what they see in that animal, they can predict a person‘s life or future.

The means of inducement during the contact with the supernatural being include the i) interior

withdrawal, ii) fasting, iii) ecstasy, iv) intoxication, v) music, vii) dance, viii) incubation and many

others.

i. Interior Withdrawal – going into oneself, withdrawing, one may be there present but goes into

oneself, i.e. a spiritual retreat. Its aim is to help one to know better how to adjust in the future for

better.

ii. Fasting – it can also be a way to recharge that spiritual battery – to be in line with the spiritual

being
iii. Ecstasy – this helps one to be high and move in union with super natural being.

iv. Intoxication – makes one to become high.

v. Music – can charge one‘s spiritual energy, or intoxicate a person to be high, at the level of super

natural being

a. Dance – Music can intoxicate and intoxicate and recharges.

vi. Incubation – helps one to have contact with the divine e.g. of Samuel who sleeps in the temple

is a sign of incubation. As a process of incubation, one may sleep in curfew, church, cemetery.

The acquisition of information is based on the expertise on medium and may take any of the

following processes: the inner voice, premonition, clairvoyance or the sixth sense.

i. Inner Voice – revealing information pure about somebody or a situation

ii. Premonition – assumes more or less a negative connotation that signals some sense of fear, or

feelings a happening of past, present or future.

iii. Clairvoyance – a pre-understanding of a situation or event that is about to effect. That is, one

sees beyond others, that is, one who has a natural sight to see and understand events before its

occurence.

iv. Sixth Sense – is more of a super human intelligence that transcends mere human limit. One

detects and senses or foresees an event or situation, which is about to happen in a near distant

future before it occurs.

b. Intuitive Divination

Another aspect of divination is the intuitive divination. It manifests itself in different forms, such

as fortune telling (soothsaying), oracle, clairvoyance, dreams, visions, auditions, etc.

i. Fortune telling – It is the art of invading the future, revealing to one, what is yet to take place,

especially as it affects the individual inquirer.

ii. Oracle - Oracle can signify both a place and a saying. Thus in ancient Greece and Rome, a shrine

would be dedicated to a particular god where people would normally go to consult a priest or

priestess in times of trouble or uncertainty. A good example of this would be the most famous

Delphic Oracle of Apollo. People went there to seek for a piece of advice, often in the form of a

puzzle or an enigmatic statement, handed down by an ancient Greek or Roman deity. The oracle

is believed to come from a deity in response to a request, plea or petition.

iii. Clairvoyance – It is the supposed ability to perceive things that are usually beyond the range

of human senses.

Israel’s mode of inquiry of the Lord

The discussion so far may be suggesting divination (and also ecstasy) could form part of prophecy.

In this wise, the Israelite prophets may be seen to share many characteristic with their counterparts

in the surrounding cultures and societies in the ANE. In the eyes of many the presence of such

elements could in the prophetic tradition lowers the traditional standard of the Israelite prophets.

It is equally damaging if the assertion is true that the prophets performed divinatory practices

similar to those found among the heathens.

According to Lindblom (1973), 'the prophets were traditionally oracle-givers; and this function

was never abandoned during the whole history of prophecy.‘ Although the sacred Scriptures

condemn all acts of divination (Deut. 18.9ff), it seems that such phenomena existed among the Old

Testament prophets and priests, and are described in the New Testament as well (cf. Acts 1.26). It

has equally been argued that prophecy as presented in the Hebrew Bible is among the common

techniques of divination similar to those described in the Mesopotamia text. But Orlinsky (1975)

would insist that it was divination, and not prophecy, that finds its parallel in the Mari and other
social structures and documents in the Fertile Crescent of old. According to him, it is the Israelite

seer and his role that correspond to the Mari ecstatic.

Referring to the names ro'eh, hozeh, and especially nabi', as applied to the prophets, Albright points

out that the first two mean 'seer', that is, a diviner who sees what is invisible to the ordinary eye by

some kind of clairvoyance or organized divination. 'In practice', he suggests, 'it would seem that

the early seers were mostly diviners who had learned indirectly from the elaborate techniques of

Mesopotamian and other pagan origin, but who were uneducated quacks from the standpoint of a

graduate, a qosem'.

Similarities are seen between the Israelite seers and the pre-Islamic Arab kahins. Expressly called

'seers', these are said to have acted as interpreters of dreams and finders of camels and other lost

objects, and were regularly consulted about various enterprises, particularly before the beginning

of raids and wars; they also were believed to be able to detect criminals. The Arabian kahin was

said to be seer, prophet, priest, and even judge in the same person.

Whatever similarities might exist between the activities of other diviners and those of the Israelite

seers, it seems that in Israelite tradition there was also divination that was not opposed to the

YHWH religion. The angel of the Lord even sent Elijah to put the question to the messenger of

the sick Ahaziah, king of Samaria. 'Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to

inquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron' (2 Kings 1ff). In the narrative concerning Saul and the

witch of Endor, the rejected king resorted to mediums because the Lord had refused to answer him

either by dreams or by Urim or by prophets (1 Sam. 28.3).

The legitimate type of divination is popularly known as the 'inquiry of the Lord', and is a

recognized activity of the prophet, for 'formerly in Israel when a man went to inquire of God he
said, "come let us go to the seer; for he who is now called a prophet was formerly called a seer (1

Sam. 9.9.).

In various circumstances, and especially during misfortunes in life, the 'man of God' was consulted,

and he regularly received a modest fee for his service: In sickness (l Kings I4.lff; 2 Kings 1.2ff;

8.7ff), and over general difficulties or domestic misfortunes; e.g. loss of animals, etc. (l Sam. 9.3ff,

2 Kings 22.13). Before embarking on battle, a consultation with YHWH became a clear cut

responsibility of the prophet (1 Sam. 14.37ff; 23.2ff; 30.8; 2 Sam. 2.1; 1 Kings 22.5ff; Jer. 37.6ff).

Prophecy and Dreams

The discussion on prophecy and dream goes back to the age-long philosophical problem of dream

and reality. Is dream identical with reality? How does one differentiate dream and reality? Is one‘s

dream not an extension of one‘s own waking activities? On this, the English philosopher, Bertrand

Russell (1872-1970), states a difference: "Certain uniformities are observed in waking life, while

dreams seem quite erratic." It is in certain respect, the ideas that are slumbering in the soul, which

uninvited put in their appearance without being controlled by consciousness and reason.

But whatever understanding attached to it, many cultures still give dream the status of reality. In

some instances, it is accorded a superior status to the banal activities of wakefulness (Webb and

Cartwright, 1999). The belief is that it predicts the future. Deities often communicate with humans

through the means of dream. The Old Testament tradition itself is generous with accounts of

prophetic dreams (cf. Gen. 20:3-7; 28:12-15; 31:10-13; 31:24; 37:5-9; 37:19; 40:5-23; 24, 41:25-

32; 42:9; Dan. 4:2-25; 5:12; 7:1 8:1-19; 10:1-21; Joel 2:28). Often it is through dream that YHWH,
the God of Israel, communicates with his people, and sometimes reveals the future to them. The

interpretations of such dreams are frequently the occupation of prophets, the priests and the elders.

In the contemporary setting, dream interpretation is winning an unprecedented patronage. Those

who engage in the trade enjoy profitable sales everywhere among people who follow them in

affairs of the heart, in gambling, and in matters of health and work. It is also evident that the so-

called prophetic dreams, be it in the Ancient Near Eastern cultures or in the present age, are

frequently combined with other phenomena associated with prophecy with the efforts to heal the

sick.

So, dream in many respects is cited as an analogous phenomenon of prophecy. Yet prophecy

differs from dream in many aspects. A genuine prophetical utterance is received when the prophet

is clearly conscious. Secondly, prophetic utterance brings with it a much greater degree of certainty

and a greater guaranty of its higher origin than is done even by a dream that seems to be

prophetical. In Jer 23:25 ff., it is declared that these two are entirely dissimilar, and the relation

between the two is compared to straw and wheat.

Prophecy and Prediction

Many confuse prophecy with prediction, and many Christians and movements would believe

ardently that the bible foretells the course of future events. Unfortunately also, the holiness and/or

claim to the authentic call of modern prophets are tested on the same litmus. Thereupon this section

examines the relationship between prophecy and prediction. In spite of their close relationship,

this section will also insist on the difference between both.

The word is derived from the Latin praedicere, a compound of prae (pre) and dicere (to say). It

means to declare or indicate beforehand, in advance. As foretelling, it implies the art of telling of
the coming of a future event by any procedure or any source of information. When it is related to

prophecy, it connotes inspired or mystic knowledge of the future especially as the fulfilling of

divine threats or promises. Still another word closely related to prediction and prophecy

Prognostication is another word, but less in use than the other two. It may signify a learned or

skilled interpretation, and could be used as a synonym for prediction or prophecy (Miriam

Collegiate Dictionary).

However, the emphasis here is that the two concepts (prediction and prophecy) are of different

understanding and functions. Aptly put: in the theological sense neither prediction nor prophecy

makes the other. Though prophecy may contain predictive element, it does not necessarily

predicate the future in the sense of foretelling. When prophets speak of future events even in the

category of "prediction," it is done solely for its own sake and absolute. Again,

Prediction in the prophets is in most cases either of doom or of deliverance which will befall a

people. It is an immediate consequence of their moral and spiritual condition at the moment of the

prophecy. It is not generally for the far distant future, but for the immediately impending future

that calls for moral change or a response as people of God in their own present. The margins of

the present time are extended to include a near future which is vitally and morally related to that

present. That means that such predictions should be differentiated from fatalistic future telling.

What is to happen is a necessary consequence of a moral situation and at the same time has direct

affinity with the will of YHWH in the immediate present circumstances.

The moral conditioning and immediate reference explains therefore how a prophetic prediction,

far from being inevitably fulfilled with literal exactness, can be modified or withdrawn altogether

(cf. Is 38:1-6; Amos 7:1-6). God retains the full freedom of an active will and cannot be tied down

by any pre announcement of events or chart or dates, even by his authentic prophet. The reasoning
above then explains why some prophetic predictions could remain unfulfilled or fulfilled but not

literally.

The prophets of Israel, therefore, were not mere prognosticators; they were spokesmen of a living

word from God. Their frequent references to the future, and especially to the immediate future,

result from their sense of the spiritual importance and moral urgency of the present. They are forth-

tellers rather than foretellers.

The prophets spoke at critical moments of the people‘s life. Because of this, the prophet is again

to be distinguished from priest, on the one hand, and from the sage, the wisdom teacher on the

other. The priest normally ministered in terms of the eternal and changeless to that in man‘s life

which was constant or recurrent. The wise man distilled in his teaching the essence of common

and long experience. The message of the prophets is differently related to the temporal setting of

time.

So, the fulfilment or success of prediction could sometimes, but not always, be a sign to the prophet

that he stood in God's counsel and a sign to the people that he was a genuine prophet. Life built

more on love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness and temperance

(cf. Gal. 5: 22f.) is more prophetic than the power to predict future events. And the life and the

content of a prophet's message is a surer test than the prophet‘s power to predict future events; if

that message is in consonance with that of the great prophets who had been before him, then it is

of God, and he or she is a prophet. It is on that ground that Jeremiah took his stand when,

contradicting another prophet, Hananiah, he prophesied for Judah further suffering and disaster

(28:5-9).
Prophecy and Apocalypse
The advent of post-Exilic Judaism, with its undue emphasis on law and cult, finally suppressed

prophecy. What is left of prophetic heritage is channelled through the teaching of the words of

scripture. What remains of prophetic activity is expressed in various literary works that claimed

esoteric knowledge of the divine purpose. Some of these works are classified as apocalypse. The

apocalyptic writers therefore see themselves as taking over and carrying on the prophetic tradition.

But they transcend the prophetic boundary in their use of old mythological motifs.

The book of Daniel is considered to be an example of the Jewish apocalyptic work. The events

described usually occurred long ago, but the recounting of these events is for the purpose of hinting

and even predicting the events of the future. It is ―tracts of bad time‖, which provide for the people

suffering adversity and persecution, the consolation of great hope in the God who works behind

scenes of history. It is based on the religious thought of a dualistic, cosmic and eschatological

belief in two opposing cosmic powers, God and Satan (or his equivalent); and in two distinct ages

– the present, temporal and irretrievably evil age under Satan, who now oppresses the righteous

but whose power God will soon act to overthrow; and the future, perfect and eternal age under

God‘s own rule, when the righteous will be blessed forever. To convey the idea, more visionary

symbolism and predictive elements are deployed more than one could find in the prophetic

literature.

However, Prophecy and Apocalypse differ from each other both in matter and form. Both contain

predictive elements. But there is a far greater emphasis upon predictive speculation about the future

in apocalypse than on the prophetic analysis and insight into history. In other words, predictive

speculation is more prominent and relates to longer periods in apocalypse, and involves a wider

grasp of the state of the world at large.

Oppression and domination of the great empires creates a thriving environment for apocalypse

literature. Consequently, the central theme in apocalyptic literature is of God's sovereignty and

ultimate rule over the entire universe. The message is one of both warning of the doom to come at

the end of history, and hope in the new age beyond history but under the rule of God, when the

righteous will be vindicated.

In both prophecy and apocalypse there is reference to the coming of the Messiah. The messianic

hope in the latter is more defined and with a wider reference. Thus, in the prophets and psalmists

the Messiah had mainly to do with Israel with any imperial outlook. In the apocalypses, on the

other hand, the imperial outlook is prominent (cf. Dan. 7:13; also Rev 11:15).

While the prophet was primarily a preacher of righteousness, and used prediction either as a

guarantee, by its fulfillment, of his divine mission, or as an exhibition of the natural result of

rebellion against God's righteous laws, to the apocalyptist prediction was the thing of most

importance, and in the more typical apocalypse there is no moral exhortation whatever.

Literary form

There is also a thick forest of difference between apocalypse and prophecy in their literary form.

i. The apocalyptic authors wrote pseudonymously, using the names of ancient worthies (such as

Adam, Enoch, Abraham, Daniel, and Ezra).

ii. While the prophets wrote in a style of so elevated prose that hovered on the border of poetry,

the apocalyptists always used pure prose, without the elaborate parallelism or cadenced diction of

Hebrew poetry.

iii. Both make use of vision, but in prophecy, in the more restricted sense of the word, these visions

are as a rule implied, rather than being described.

iv. Apocalyptic language is lavish in its use of fantastic imagery, frequently using riddles and

numerical speculations.

v. In apocalyptic literature angelology came into full blossom, with accounts of fallen angels

(fallen stars) caught up in the forces opposed to God, frequently pictured in the old mythological

motif of the struggle between darkness and light. Wild beasts symbolized peoples and nations, and

there were esoteric calculations and speculations about the different eras through which history

was passing as the world approached the eschaton (the consummation of history).

vi. Again, apocalyptic literature makes more of the use of visionary symbolism, and there one

encounters extraordinary images like the beasts of fantastic forms, horns and bowls and trumpets,

sings in the heavens, a woman arrayed with the sun and crowned with stars, a man riding on the

clods, the Ancient of Days, seated upon a throne surrounded by the heavenly multitude, etc.

vii. But more important than the images, the apocalyptic literature has been called ―tracts for bad

times‖. On this basis that it is believed to have originated in attempt to provide, for people suffering

adversity and persecution, the consolation of a great hope in the God who works behind the scenes

of history. It is therefore in apocalyptic literature that you have more of the predictive element than

in the prophetic literature.

Summarizing the difference W. Baumgartner, writes in favour of apocalyptic: ―its pseudonymity,

eschatological impatience and exact calculations about the last things, the range and fantasy of its

visions, concern for world history and a cosmic horizon, numerical symbolism and esoteric

language, doctrines of angels and hope of the afterlife‖ makes apocalyptic different from prophecy.
Pre-literary Prophets of the Old Testament

The Pre-literary (sometimes non-literary) prophets, recognised as former prophets in the Hebrew

Masoretic Text (MT), are found in the historical books of the Septuagint (LXX). They are

sometimes identified as early or acting prophets, distinct from the writing (literary) prophets

associated with the 15 prophetic books of the bible – Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel and the 12

Minor Prophets. In some studies the book of Daniel is also included. Still it has been observed by

some scholars that there are many more other prophets in Israel far greater than those identified in

book-form. The group are sometimes referred to as the sons of the prophets, and a whole village

could have been inhabited by a band of prophets. Elijah speaks of many prophets of Yahweh that

were executed during the reign of Ahab, thus referring to many prophetic figures in the society.

Furthermore, the non-literary prophets could be classified along different lines depending on the

interest of scholarship. Such division may include nomadic, wondering and transitional, royal

(court) and temple (cult) prophets, individual and group prophets, major and minor prophets. The

prophetic guild or group prophet can further be classified into ecstatic, monastic and cultic

prophets. But the major division in this unit will follow the broad line of individual and group

prophets.

A roll call of individual non acting prophets is mentioned in the bible and in other rabbinic sources.

Some of these prophets act only on some occasions as prophets without being prophets themselves

- Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, David, Solomon, Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun (cf.

1 Chron 25:1). Eldad, Medad, and the seventy elders (Num 11:24-29), and Saul (1 Sam 10:6-10;

19:18-24) are prompted by the Spirit to behave as prophets on single occasions (Num 11:25; cf. 1

Sam 10:6; 19:23). Six prophets are mentioned but anonymous (Judg 6:7-10; 1 Kgs 13 and 20; 2
Kgs 9:1-10). The Rabbinic tradition identifies 48 prophets and 7 prophetesses. The prophetesses

are as follows: Sarah, Miriam, Deborah, Hannah, Abigail, Huldah and Esther.

There are also a number of individual prophets whose writings are mentioned by the Chronicler as

part of his literary sources. He mentions in this regard the books of Samuel the seer, Nathan the

prophet, Gad the seer (1 Chron 29:29-30); the prophecy of Ahijah of Shiloh; the visions of Iddo

(2 Chron 9:29); the histories of Shemaiah the prophet and Iddo the seer (12:15), who is also called

the prophet (13:22); the history of Jehu, son of Hanani, which is included in the annals of the kings

of Israel (20:34); the vision of the prophet Isaiah (Isa 32:32); and generally the discourses of the

seers (33:18-20).

Minor Acting Prophets

A number of (minor) prophets worth mentioning are the prophet Ahijah from Shiloh (1 Kgs 11:29-

39; 14; cf. 2 Chr 9:29), Iddo the seer (2 Chr 9:29) and prophet (13:22; cf. 12:15); the seer Hanani

(16:7-10), and his son, the prophet Jehu (1 Kgs 16:1-7); the prophet Azariah son of Oded, upon

whom the Spirit of God came (2 Chron 15:1-8) his words to King Asa were indicated as prophecy

(v. 8); Shemaiah the man of God (1 Kgs 12:22; 2 Chron 11:2); Jahaziel son of Zechariah, upon

whom the Spirit of the Lord came (2 Chron 20:14-17), he being a Levite, a member of the singers

guild of Asaph; Eliezer son of Dodavahu, who denounced Jehoshaphat with a ―prophecy‖ (20:37);

Zechariah son of Jehoiada the priest, who proclaimed God's judgment on King Joash and paid with

his life (24:17-22; cf. Luke 11:51); Oded, ―a prophet of the LORD,‖ who told the victorious

northern Israelite army to release the Judaean captives in the Syro-Ephraimite war, which they did

(2 Chron 28:9-15); and Uriah son of Shemaiah, the last known martyr-prophet (Jer 26:20-23; also

the Lachish letters).

Five prophetesses are mentioned: Miriam (Exod 15:20), Deborah (Judg 4:3-5), Huldah (2 Kgs

22:14-20; cf. 2 Chron 34:22-28), Noadiah (Neh 6:14), and the anonymous wife of Isaiah (Isa 8:3).

Noadiah was one of Nehemiah's adversaries who tried to intimidate him, and thus belongs to the

category of false prophets. The same applies to the women of Israel ―who prophesied out of their

own imagination‖ (Ezek 13:17-21). Prophetic activities among women were part of the religious

and cultural heritage of the ANE, including the Hellenistic world.

Major Acting Prophets

Six individual prophets played different major roles in Israel's history and religion. They were

Samuel, Gad, Nathan, Ahijah, Shemaiah, Micaiah son of Imlah, Elijah, and Elisha.

a) SAMUEL, GAD AND NATHAN

Samuel incorporated in his function the offices of judge, in both the military (1 Sam 11:12) and

judicial (1 Sam 7:15-17) sense, of priest (7:9-10, cf 13:8-15), and of prophet (3:19- 4:1; 9:6-10,

etc.). Samuel played a very in indispensible role in the establishment and down fall of the

monarchy. His outstanding courage and total obedience to the voice of YHWH singled him out as

one of the biblical personalities.

Nathan and Gad are the two active prophets in the court during the reign of David. They occupied

prominent positions and enjoyed some elevanted status. Gad, the prophet, was ―David's seer‖ (2

Sam 24:11). He was David's entourage from the days of David's flight before Saul (1 Sam 22:5),

until the end of his reign, when he had to confront his king with God's judgment because of his

census (2 Sam 24:1-25; cf. 1 Chron 21:1- 22:1). He, along with Nathan, was instrumental in

reorganizing the temple music (cf. 2 Chron 29:25). The events of King David's reign from first to

last were recorded in the books of Gad the seer (1 Chron 29:29).
Nathan, the prophet and adviser of David, played a significant role on at least three occasions:

when he had to reprimand the king because of his crimes with Uriah and his wife (2 Sam 11:1-

12:23); when David asked his advice on his intention to build a temple for the Lord (2 Sam 7; cf.

1 Chron 17:1-27), and when he was instrumental in instituting Solomon as David's successor (1

Kgs 1:8, 22-27). Besides his assistance in the reorganisation of the temple music (2 Chron 29:25),

and his writings on the events of King David's Solomon‘s reigns (1 Chron 29:29; 2 Chron 9:29),

were part of the Chronicler's literary sources. According to the rabbis, Nathan was David's cousin.

Incidentally, contrary to the account of 2 Samuel (16:23), Ahitophel, who counsels Absalom, was

not counted among the prophets in the tradition of the Chronicler (cf. McKane, 1965).

b) AHIJAH,, SHEMAIAH AND JEHU

At the time of the division of the kingdom, the dramatic action of Ahijah the prophet would have

been partially responsible for Jeroboam's revolt (I Kings 11:29-39). Much later, the prophet, now

blind and disenchanted with Jeroboam's lack of enthusiasm for Yahwism, opposed the king,

pronouncing imminent death for Jeroboam's ailing son and predicting the forthcoming doom of

Jeroboam's house.

During this same period Rehoboam refrained from attacking Israel on the advice of the prophet

Shemaiah (I Kings 12:21-24). An embellishment of Shemaiah's role is given in II Chron. 12:5 ff.

and reference is made to a book which the prophet was supposed to have written (12:15). Later,

Baasha of Israel was condemned and the end of his line predicted by the prophet Jehu in terms

very much like those used by Ahijah to Jeroboam's wife (I Kings 16:1 ff.).

It becomes clear that the courts of the Hebrew kings employed prophets to secure guidance and

advice from Yahweh. It is also plain that prophets such as Ahijah (and perhaps Jehu), not intimately
connected with the court, were consulted at moments of critical importance. There can be little

doubt that, from Samuel's time through the beginning years of the divided kingdom, Yahweh's

prophets were instrumental in keeping ethical and religious responsibilities before the king,

proclaiming both the will of Yahweh and the judgment of Yahweh when violations occurred.

c) MICAIAH, THE SON OF IMLAH

Micaiah son of Imlah (1 Kgs 22 to 2 Chron 18), played an important role in God's confrontation

with Ahab and the Baal cult. He prophesised the doom that would befall Israel and the house of

Omri. Consequently, he was physical abuse by Zedekiah and imprisoned with little piece of bread

and water as food. What happened to him when his prophecy was fulfilled was not told.

The Ecstatic Prophetic Group

There is some intimate relationship between the group of prophets mentioned in 1 Sam 10:5ff and

19:18ff. They are described as band or company of prophets (10:5) of venerable community

(19:20). The general behaviour of the group is their exuberance and enthusiasm. According to 1

Sam 10 their prophetic activities are accompanied by musical instruments, which are especially fit

for enhancing rhythmical movements (cf. 18:10; Exod 15:20; 2 Kgs 3:15). The group is noted with

the ―prophetic rapture/frenzy‖ that could sometimes lead to ―shouting and dancing‖. These

prophets are strong, effective, powerful inspired by the Spirit of the Lord (1 Sam 10:6, 10; 19:20,

23). The ecstasy, with which the group is identified, is often infectious (1 Sam. 10:5 ff.; cf. 19:18

ff.; including the prophet of Baal - 1 Ki. 18:19-40). The ecstatic who could temporarily become

another human (1 Sam. 10:6) constituted a certain attraction for the Israelites (1 Sam. 10:5).
The ecstatic move freely about the country, putting themselves by the use of musical instruments

into a state of trance, and in such a condition babbling out their messages (cf. the phenomena in

the NT period in 1 Cor. 14). The content of their ―prophecies‖ (10:5) must be conceived of in

relationship with Saul's anointment as king (ch. 9-10): It consists of short prophetic utterances,

with accompanying gestures and music, which received special emphasis because it was in the

neighbourhood of a Philistine camp (10:4). Saul's participation in the prophetic activities caused

bewilderment among the onlookers (10:11-12), but was in itself an indication that the kingship in

Israel was intimately related to the prophetic legitimation.

According to 1 Sam. 19:20, Samuel was the head of these ecstatic group of prophets. The prophets

acted in consort with Samuel, consequently could not be associated with heathen cult or

prototypes. Sometimes their prophetic activities are not welcoming, especially among the orthodox

Jews. In one occasions they would be described as ―mad fools‖ (Hos. 9:7). Joshua would appear

critical of them (Num. 11:10-30), perhaps interpreting it as a strange, repellent, un-Israelite

prophetic phenomenon being introduced into the worship of YHWH. But Moses reply to Joshua

(Num. 11:29) may then be understood as the legitimation of this new religious phenomenon which

could have caused the orthodox a good deal of perplexity. So, the story as earlier observed by von

Rad (1965) could be taken as evidence of an acceptance of the ecstatic movement into the

institutions of Jahwism, or at least as an etiology of the prophetic movement which gave it

legitimation.
The Monastic Prophetic Group

Another early group of prophets is located within the monastic communities. The group is

consistently depicted as sons of the prophets, in the sense of a ‘Prophetengenossenschaft,’ a

community of prophets (1 Kgs 20:35; 2 Kgs 2:3, 5, 7, 15; 4:1, 38; 5:22; 6:1; 9:1; Amos 7:14).

Several groups of them were found in Gilgal, Bethel, and Jericho. They were married, had children,

and lived in their own quarters. With exception of 1 Kgs 20:35-43, the groups formed themselves

around a prominent figure (e.g. Elisha, 2 Ki. 2:3 ff.; 4:38; 6:1), whom they addressed as master or

father, at whose feet they sat and learned, and with whom they lived in communal dwellings.

According to 2 Kgs 4 and 6 they were very poor people. The group was predominantly of rural

composition. Elijah was a Gileadite, probably of a shepherd family (I Kings 17: 11). Elisha was a

farmer (I Kings 19: 19), the husband of the poor widow who appealed to Elisha to save her children

from bondage was a member of the prophetic guild (II Kings 4:1.). Evidently Quite a poor man!

The prophetic groups, in the Elisha tales, were certainly rural and poor. Equally, the Rechabites,

desert dwellers, bitter opponents of city civilization, fanatical adherents of the desert tradition,

joined the prophets after Jehu's triumph. All these individual facts tend to prove that the prophets

of this period were rural folk.

The Cultic Prophetic Group

Some of the figures associated with the cult prophets are Moses (Ex. 2:1) and Elijah (I Kings

18:32ff); Jeremiah (1:1) and Ezekiel (1:3). There is also a mention of Levite, a cultic official, who

was inspired by the spirit of God to bring a prophetic message at a time of national crises (2 Chr

20:14). Also, possibly the group of Leviticus singers after the exile were survivors of groups of

cultic prophets attached to the sanctuaries. Not only that prophets were associated with temple
singers (2 Chr 29:25), they together with Priests were associated together in a way that suggests

professional association (e.g. 2 Kgs 23:2).

Other cultic prophets mentioned were Shimei (1 Kgs. 1:8), Zedekiah (1 Kgs. 22:24), and perhaps

also Nathan (2 Sam. 12:1 ff.; 1 Kgs. 1:11 ff.) who worked in close association with the court and

yet enjoyed an astonishing degree of independence. No books had come down to us from these

prophets, unless one includes Nahum and Habakkuk who at least had some affinity with them.

There were, however, unmistakable traits of the cultic prophet in Zechariah and still more in

Haggai.

The cultic prophets were among the protagonists of an ethical religion, which is an expression of

the Israel‘s faith. The cult is also from the beginning the tangible expression of the same Israel‘s

faith, which the prophets themselves furthered and remained in close rapport with. No wonder then

that some of the early prophets were familiar with the rituals and meaning of the cults and that

they sometimes spoke in languages borrow from the cult. Some of them were employees of the

national sanctuary. Consequently, their activities could not be purely an anticultic or anti-

institutional as many have wrongly thought. Their relationship is indeed one of mutual

indebtedness. Even prophets and priests were not so consistently and inimically opposed as has

sometimes been assumed. The two figures occupy important position in Israel‘s religion.

The cultic prophet had his place along with the priest in the cult. His task was to give oracles in

answer to communal laments, and especially to the king. For this reason he had great influence in

the royal court (1 Kgs. 1:8), where he spoke as a man of God (1 Kgs. 22:24 ff.) with remarkable

severity (2 Sam. 12:1 ff.). The cultic prophets were feared, because their powerful word could

bring success or disaster (1 Sam. 16:4; 1 Kgs. 17:18). Their words of salvation would be
formulated after the manner of proverbs. One discovers in Isa. 33:1-24 some traces of prophetic

liturgy that gives some insight into the language of these prophets.

It is important at this junction to note that the condemnation of the cult by prophets like Isaiah and

Amos, is not to be interpreted to mean that they were against the cult but the lack of moral concern

and holy living on the part of those who bring sacrifices and join in the rituals (Amos 5:21ff).

Isaiah too brings strong condemnation of sacrifices, the Sabbath and even prayer (Isa. 1), with the

intention of showing that it is all-useless in the context of a blatantly sinful life (Isa. 1:15).

Ezekiel: Historical background and Message

Little is known about prophet Ezekiel beyond what is written in the book named after him. The

name Ezekiel means “God strengthens” or “God makes strong.” This name appears only twice in

the entire Book of Ezekiel; 1:3; 24:24. This same name is found elsewhere once in the Hebrew

Bible in 1 Chronicles 24:16. Prophet Ezekiel “was the son of a Zadokite priest, Buzi, and in all

probability was himself being trained for the priesthood or possibly had already taken the robes of

office.” According to Ezek 1:3, he was himself a priest. Ezekiel is said to have grown up around

the Temple precincts in Jerusalem. Without doubt, he knew much about the religion of Israel and

her God Yahweh; after all, he was a son of a priest.

In 597 B. C., Nebuchadnezzar captured Jerusalem and King Jehoiachin was taken prisoner. (2 Kgs

24:14). “Ezekiel was among this first group of deportees.” Ezekiel in exile was living by the River

Chebar at a place called Tel-Abib which literally means “hill of the storm god”. He was a

contemporary of Jeremiah and thus must have been influenced by the latter’s zealous preaching.

This is what one scholar has said about this influence on Ezekiel: “It is quite likely that as a young
man he had heard the thunder of Jeremiah in the streets of Jerusalem and had been moved by it.”

Ezekiel delivered his stinging message in ecstasy or near ecstasy and used symbolic actions which

we find nowhere among his contemporaries. Ezekiel drew a diagramme of Jerusalem on a clay

brick, he ate rationed food (ch.4:1-15). Shaving his hair and beard, he burned some of the hair in

the fire, hacked at some with a sword, scattered some to the winds, and tied only a few wisps in

the skirt of his robe (ch.5:1-4), symbolizing the fate of his people. On one occasion (ch.12:3-7),

making a hole in the wall of his house, he issued forth from it by night and, carrying his baggage

on his back, acted the part of one going into exile. Because of such actions, one is tempted to

somehow conclude that Ezekiel was a true psychotic, capable of great religious insight but

exhibiting a series of diagnostic characteristics: catatonia, narcissistic-masochistic conflict,

schizophrenic withdrawal, delusions of grandeur and of persecution. In short, he suffered from a

paranoid condition common in many great spiritual leaders.” But most commentators and

psychiatrists have rejected this assertion that Ezekiel had a mental problem.

Ezekiel was a married man but his wife died in exile (Ezek 24:15-18). Ezekiel is said to have been

called to prophesy at about age thirty (that is, after five years in exile) and this is around 593 when

“during a thunderstorm, Ezekiel saw his wondrous vision of God and received the call to be a

prophet to Israel”62 (Ezek 1:2). He reports thus in his vision: “As I looked, behold, a stormy wind

came out of the north, and a great cloud, with brightness round about it, and fire flashing forth

continually, and in the midst of the fire, as it were gleaming bronze.” After this, Ezekiel is given

the task to take God’s message to His people. In his own report, the One who was speaking to him

said: “Son of man, I send you to the people of Israel, to a nation of rebels, who have rebelled

against me; they and their fathers have transgressed against me to this very day.”
Ezekiel is addressed by the title “son of man” by God. This phrase “emphasizes human frailty and

insignificance as compared with the transcendence of God.” After his call, it is not clear to whom

his prophetic ministry was to be addressed. “Some scholars maintain that the prophet returned to

Jerusalem after his call and actually lived in that doomed city during the time of his prophesying

to the inhabitants of it.” But von Rad opposes this view when he says that: “To divest his message

of its exilic dress and assume that he worked exclusively in Jerusalem before 587 entails a radical

criticism which makes deep inroads into the very nature of the prophecy itself.” A big number

scholars maintain that Ezekiel was in Babylon the whole time of his prophesying and never went

back to Jerusalem except when he visited the city in a vision (Ezek 8:1-4). “Legend says that he is

buried in a tomb at al- Kifl, near the modern town of Hilla in Iraq, not far from the site of ancient

Babylon.”

Although there is disagreement among scholars concerning his area of ministry, what they agree

on is that “his prophecies were largely directed to the inhabitants of Jerusalem until the fall of that

city in 587.”69 According to the book of Ezekiel, “there was but one Israel, to whom he spoke

whether present or far away, and it was a matter of no importance that some of the chosen people

were living in Palestine and some in Babylonia. In fact, the exiles were no less a rebellious house

than were those who still lived at home, for both groups had refused to obey God.”70 It is estimated

that Ezekiel was active as a prophet between 594 and 571 B. C.

After being called to prophesy, Ezekiel became an influential man among the Jews. “We find him,

on occasion, sitting in his house “and the elders of Judah sitting before me” 8:1; cf. 14:1; 20:1…

and seems to have been viewed with respect by the exilic community.”

It is agreed that the youth of Ezekiel “fell in the period of the reformer king Josiah (639-609), and

was greatly influenced by the great political and cultic reformation undertaken by that king in the
year 621.” King Josiah was killed by Pharaoh Necho II at Megiddo in battle in 609 B. C. (2 Kgs

23:29) and was succeeded by his son Jehoahaz who was later put in prison at Riblah by Pharoah

Necho II and replaced him with Eliakim, another son of Josiah in the same year (609 B. C.) but

his name was changed to Jehoiakim (2 Kgs 23:34) as a mark of vassalage to king Necho II of

Egypt. Because his stay in power depended on the Egyptians, Jehoiakim imposed heavy taxes on

his subjects which he paid to Pharaoh Necho II. He even used forced labour. He also committed

the sin of murder (Jer 26:23, 2 Kgs 24:4). There was religious decay in the nation. All the religious

reforms instituted by Josiah were completely forgotten and idolatry and Egyptian gods were

introduced (Ezek 8:5-17). “He was unjust and malignant, neither holy towards God, nor forbearing

towards man.”

Jehoiakim was succeeded by his son Jehoiachin in whose reign Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon

attacked and captured Jerusalem in 597 B. C., took into captivity the king and the entire royal

house and “all the princes, and all the mighty men of valor, ten thousand captives, and all the

craftsmen and the smiths; none remained, except the poorest people of the land.”74 In Judah,

Zedekiah, Jehoiachin’s uncle was put on the throne as ruler of Judah by Nebuchadnezzar. But

“Jehoiachin was considered the last legitimate ruler from the Davidic line.”75 Among those carried

into exile was a young priest named Ezekiel, son of Buzi who later became an influential figure in

the exile. It is accepted by many scholars that Ezekiel was highly influenced by the religious

reforms of Josiah. As a son of a priest and a priest himself, he hated the idolatry that Israel fell into

during the reign of Jehoiakim and even his son Jehoiachin did not do any better. He was thus

waiting for an opportunity when Yahweh would come out and deal a blow the evil practices that

were going on among His people.

This opportunity came upon Ezekiel himself when God chose him to declare His word “to the

people of Israel, to a nation of rebels, who have rebelled against me.” Those who were taken into

exile and those who remained in Jerusalem thought that the exile was going to take a short time

and very soon it would end. “There were false prophets who wrongly encouraged this belief. Since

the Lord had chosen Jerusalem as His dwelling and had Himself defended the city in the past,

people believed Jerusalem was inviolable. Ezekiel had to warn the exiles that a worse fate was yet

in store for Jerusalem.” Ezekiel’s condemnation of these false prophets is in Ezek 13:1-23 and this

text will be fully analyzed and exegeted in the next pages.

Having given biographical information about Ezekiel the prophet and the historical background

leading to his ministry, what follows is a brief discussion of the Book of Ezekiel and its authorship.

The Book of Ezekiel comes after Lamentations and before Daniel in the English Bible just like in

the LXX in the section of the prophets. In the Hebrew Bible, it comes after Jeremiah and before

Hosea. It is written in both prose and poetry. For example chapters 7, first half of 17, 19, last part

of 27 and first part of 31 are written in poetry. The Book of Ezekiel is the third large collection of

Israel’s prophecies, alongside the other ‘major’ (in size) prophetic books of Isaiah and Jeremiah.

But the Babylonian Talmud (Baba Batra 14 b) “records that the original order was Jeremiah,

Ezekiel, Isaiah. Isaiah had been put last so that the message of the major prophets would end with

a book full of hope.” This is what is written about this issue in the said Talmud: “Since the book

of Kings ends with doom and the book of Jeremiah is all doom, and the book of Ezekiel begins

with doom but ends with consolation, while Isaiah is all consolation, you see that we place doom

next to doom and consolation next to consolation.”

Although there may be some hard issues to explain in the book, it is agreed that the work is a

product of one hand or many hands of one tradition. The book of Ezekiel more than any other
book in the canon of the Latter prophets yields evidence of intentional arrangement and a single

editorial mind.” According to Greenberg (1983: 3), The tannaitic bipartition of the book into

dooms and consolations has served to explain an otherwise enigmatic statement in Josephus

(Antiq. 10.5.1) that Ezekiel ‘left behind him in writing two books.’ Since, in fact, the first half of

the book (chs 1-24) consists largely of prophecies of doom, while the last half (chs 25-48) largely

of consolations, it has been suggested that this underlies Josephus’ remark.

According to some other scholars, the book of Ezekiel is a composite work. One scholar argues

“that the book is a pseudepigraphon based on 2 Kgs 21:2-16, written in 230 B. C. with a Palestinian

setting… the entire work is non-historical, as is its chief character, Ezekiel himself.”83Some other

scholars have taken a middle view, suggesting that “Ezekiel the book is the product directly or

indirectly of Ezekiel the man.” Some scholars even doubt Ezekielian authorship of chapters 38,

39; and 40-48.

About the text of Ezekiel, Taylor (1976: 44) says that: “The Hebrew text of Ezekiel has suffered

more than most books of the Old Testament in the process of transmission, and the RSV footnotes

bear witness to the many occasions on which the translators had to resort to the Versions or to

conjecture in order to make sense of a particularly obscure sentence.” Instead of using the Hebrew

text independently, Taylor (1976: 46) suggests that “The LXX remains, of course, an invaluable

aid to all who would attempt to find out the best Hebrew text.” About the LXX text of Ezekiel,

this is what Taylor further observes:

It seems likely that the translation was done by two or even three hands,
though with an over-all editor who produced a unifying effect upon the whole
book…. They paraphrased instead of translating; they omitted what they
considered repetitious phrases or inserted explanatory comments on no
authority but their own; and there are instances where they altered the
translation to make it accord with their own view point.
Although scholars agree that the LXX version of Ezekiel is more original than the Masoretic Text,

Emanuel Tov says that: “The Greek translation of Ezekiel is relatively literal, so that it is

reasonable to assume that its minuses … reflect a shorter Hebrew Parent text.” The point being

made here is that the LXX is also not free from limitations. The book of Ezekiel is estimated to

have been written within a scope of 22 years, which is from 593- 571.

The book of Ezekiel was first divided into two sections by early Jewish interpreters. The first

section is chapters 1-24 which contains oracles of doom and destruction. “Chapter 24 does dwell

at length on the destruction of Jerusalem and thus gives the impression of a definitive end to the

period of judgment; whether this event signals a turning point in the book is another question.”89

The second part is chapters 25-48 which contains a message of hope and consolation. However

according to some other scholars, Ezekiel can be divided into three sections. The first section is

chapters 1-24 which contains prophecies against Israel; chapters 25- 32 contain prophecies against

foreign nations. The last section is chapters 33-48 which contain a message about the salvation of

Israel. On the arrangement of the different sections of the book, it is apt to note that ‘while there

may be individual units within each of these sections that more naturally belong to one of the other

sections, the pattern has been organized for a definite purpose: to show that the prophet preached

warning and judgment to the Judeans up until the final catastrophe of 586 B. C. E. when the city

fell completely to the Babylonians; and that he preached hope and promise of restoration after that

date.’

The book of Ezekiel is full of visions. On some instance, it is hard to draw a line between a vision

and actual reality. For example, “When he is said to go to Jerusalem (e.g., 8:3) does he actually

visit there, or is he experiencing a spiritual transport?” There are special words and phrases used
in the book of Ezekiel and the following are some of the examples (in English) as presented by J.

B. Taylor. “The hand of the LORD was upon me…1.3; the word of the LORD came to me, 3.23

rebellious house, 2.5; scatter to (all) the winds, 5.10; detestable things, 5.11; abominations, 5.11;

my eye will not spare, 5.11; I, the LORD, have spoken, 5.13; spend… fury, 5.13; vent… fury,

5.13; set your face toward, 6.2; mountains of Israel, 6.3; Behold, I … am against, 5.8; shall know

that I am the LORD, 6.7; idols, 6.4; nations … countries, 5.5; scattered through the countries, 6.8;

I will stretch out my hand against, 6.14; I will … pour out my wrath, 7.8; prince, 7.27; stumbling

block of … iniquity, 7.19; what is this proverb that you have, 12.22; Because … therefore, 13.8;

prophesy and say to those who, 13.2.” Having discussed about the book of Ezekiel and its

authorship, what follows is a summary of the message of the prophet Ezekiel.

The Message of Prophet Ezekiel

Like any other prophet, Ezekiel had a special message which he emphasized in his prophetic

oracles as shown below: God’s judgment of sin Ezekiel attacks and condemns Israel and Judah

because of their sins. During Ezekiel’s time, idolatry was being practiced in the nation (Ezek 6:4;

8:10) and Ezekiel sets out to condemn this evil practice. In Ezek 23:1-4, Ezekiel compares idolatry

to prostitution. “Child sacrifice is expressly condemned (16:20; 20:31) and this practice is

repulsive to the prophet not only because it is inhumane but also because it is a distortion of true

worship of God.” He condemns the sin of murder, disrespect for parents, dishonour for the

Sabbaths, adultery, (Ezek 22:6-12) and many others. Because of such sins “Yahweh’s Glory”

withdrew from the city (11:22-23). Because of their sins, Ezekiel predicts Babylonians’ attack

against Israel which he describes thus:

 the Babylonians and all the Chaldeans … shall come against you from the
north with chariots and wagons and a host of peoples; they shall set
themselves against you on every side with buckler, shield, and helmet, and
I will commit the judgment to them and they shall judge you according to
their judgments (22:23-24; cf. 5:11-12; 8:18; 20:38).

Individual Responsibility

Although the exile had come about as a result of cumulative generational sin among the Israelites,

Ezekiel emphasizes individual responsibility for sin. The prophet informs the reader that Yahweh

will no longer apply the proverb in 18:2 which says that: The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and

the children’s teeth are set on edge. Instead, “The soul that sins shall die” (Ezek 18:4). But if a

person abstains from all sin, “He shall surely live” (Ezek 18:9). He further repeats this position in

33:20 when he says: “O house of Israel, I will judge each of you according to his ways.” Here,

“the prophet makes it plain that there is no such condition or possession as inherited righteousness.

It is God’s will that every individual should now fulfil in himself the covenant requirements and

avoid the destruction of judgment.”

God as Giver and Protector of life

Ezek 37:1-14 records one of the great visions of Ezekiel. This vision is about “the dry bones”

which he found in a valley. They were very dry and by all human standards, they could not live

again. But Ezekiel prophesies to them in 37:5-6 that: “Behold, I will cause breath to enter you, and

you shall live. And I will lay sinews upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and

you shall live.” This vision brings to mind how God created man out of the dust of the ground and

breathed in his nostrils and he became a living being (Gen 2:7). The message that Ezekiel is putting
across is that God is the originator and protector of all human life. This vision of Ezekiel means

that God is all powerful and can do the impossible when man has already resigned. Another

passage is Ezek 47:1-12 which talks about the healing waters coming from under the temple.

Ezekiel, in his description of the great waters says in 47:9 that: “And wherever the river goes every

living creature which swarms will live, and there will be very many fish; for this water goes there,

that the waters of the sea may become fresh; so everything will live where the river goes.” As the

river sustains the life of the fish and the plants, so does God sustain the lives of men.

The Forgiveness and Grace of God

Although Ezekiel condemns sin and pronounces doom and judgment upon Israel in the first part

of his book (chapters 1-24), he changes tone later. Like most of the other prophets, the theme of

“the forgiveness and grace of God” is very pronounced in Ezekiel. This is mainly found in the

second part (Chapters 25-48). At first, God was angry with the Jews for their sin(s), but later,

Ezekiel promises forgiveness and restoration. This brings to mind Ps 103:8, 9, which says that:

The Lord is merciful and gracious,

Slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love.
He will not always chide,
Nor will he keep his anger forever.

In Ezek 36: 8, 9, the prophet says: But you, O mountains of Israel, shall shoot forth your branches,

and yield your fruit to my people Israel; for they will soon come home. For, behold, I am for you,

and I will turn to you, and you shall be tilled and sown. He proceeds to give the vision of the dry

bones which also shows God’s life-giving act as already said above. Ezekiel sees the glory of the

Lord returning so that ‘the name of the city from that day shall be ‘The Lord is there.’ He foresees
a new temple and city constructed in place of the old ones which were destroyed by the

Babylonians.

The Messianic Hope

Although the theme of the Messiah is not as pronounced in Ezekiel as in Isaiah, a close look will

reveal that this prophet had it mind. For example in the oracle against irresponsible shepherds in

chapter 34, some scholars have identified “My servant David” (v 23) with Jesus Christ the

Messiah. The prophet writes that: “And I will set up over them one shepherd, my servant David,

and he shall feed them: he shall feed them and be their shepherd.” Again in chapter 37, Ezekiel

brings out the same theme. He says that: “My servant David shall be king over them; and they

shall all have one shepherd. They shall follow my ordinances and be careful to observe my statutes.

A king from the line of David (Jesus Christ) must have been in mind since David the son of Jesse

had already died. Many commentators agree that the prophecy is Messianic, spiritually fulfilled in

the one true Church.

References
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