Everything about Prophet totally explained
In
religion, a
prophet (or
prophetess) is a person who has encountered the
supernatural or the
divine and serves as an intermediary with humanity.
Claims of prophets have existed in many cultures through history, including
Judaism,
Zoroaster in
Persia, the
Sybilline and
Delphic Oracles practices in
Ancient Greece,
Christianity,
Islam, the
Völuspá in
Old Norse, and many others. Traditionally, prophets are regarded as having a role in society that promotes change due to their messages and actions. The label 'prophet' can be extremely
subjective; without exception, a person considered a '
true' prophet by some people is simultaneously considered a
false prophet by some others.
In the late 20th century the appellation of a 'prophet' has been used to refer to individuals particularly successful at analysis in the field of economics, such as in the derogatory 'prophet of greed'.
Alternatively, social commentators who suggest escalating crisis in environment and society due to a lack or failure of due care are often referred to as 'prophets of doom.'
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Judaism
In
Judaism, a prophet is seen as a person who is selected by, and speaks as a formal representative of
God, and the intention of the message is always to effect a social change to conform to God's desired standards initially specified in the
Torah dictated to
Moses.
In
Hebrew, the word traditionally translated as
prophet is נְבִיא (
navi), which means "spokesperson". This forms the second of the three letters of TaNaKh, derived from Torah, Nevi'im, Ketuvim. The meaning of
navi is perhaps described in
Deuteronomy 18:18, where
God said, "I will put my words in his mouth and he'll speak to them all that I command him." Thus, the
navi was thought to be the "mouth" of God. The root nun-bet-alef ("navi") is based on the two-letter root nun-bet which denotes hollowness or openness; to receive transcendental wisdom, one must make oneself “open”. Cf.
Rashbam's comment to
Genesis 20:7.
Fully a third of the TaNaKh is devoted to books about prophetic experience including a separate book of ‘minor’ prophets known as The Twelve Prophets (Trei-Assar) .
According to I
Samuel 9:9, the old name for navi is ro'eh, ראה, which literally means "
Seer". That could document an ancient shift, from viewing prophets as seers for hire to viewing them as moral teachers. Allen (1971) comments that in the First Temple Era, there were essentially seer-priests, who formed a guild, divined, performed rituals and sacrifices, and were scribes, and then there were canonical prophets, who did none of these (and were against divination) and had instead a message to deliver. The seer-priests were usually attached to a local shrine or temple, such as Shiloh, and initiated others as priests in that priesthood: it was a mystical craft-guild with apprentices and recruitment. Canonical prophets were not organised this way. The similar term "ben-navi" ("son of the prophet") means "member of a seer-priest guild".
Some examples of prophets in the
Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) include
Abraham,
Sarah,
Moses,
Miriam,
Isaiah,
Samuel,
Ezekiel,
Malachi, and
Job. In Jewish tradition,
Daniel isn't counted in the list of prophets.
A Jewish tradition suggests that there were 600,000 male and 600,000 female prophets. Judaism recognizes the existence of 48 male prophets who bequeathed permanent messages to mankind.
(External Link) According to the
Talmud there were also seven women who are counted as prophets whose message bears relevance for all generations:
Sarah,
Miriam,
Devorah,
Hannah (mother of the
prophet Samuel),
Abigail (a wife of
King David),
Huldah (from the time of
Jeremiah), and
Esther.
Malachi's full name was Ezra Ha'Sofer (the scribe), and he was the last prophet of Israel if one accepts the opinion that Nechemyah died in Babylon before 9th Tevet 3448 (313 BCE).
See also
Divine Pathos
In his book
The Prophets,
Abraham Joshua Heschel describes the unique aspect of the Jewish prophets as compared to other similar figures. Whereas other nations have soothsayers and diviners who attempt to discover the will of their gods, according to Heschel the Hebrew prophets are characterized by their experience of what he calls theotropism — God turning towards humanity. Heschel argues for the view of Hebrew prophets as receivers of the "Divine
Pathos," of the wrath and sorrow of God over his nation that has forsaken him.
He writes:
Prophecy is the voice that God has lent to the silent agony, a voice to the plundered poor, to the profane riches of the world. It is a form of living, a crossing point of God and man. God is raging in the prophet's words. (The Prophets Ch. 1)
Christianity
Christians share the Jewish belief that a prophet is a person who speaks for God, in the name of God, and who carries God's message to others. Some Christian
denominations teach that a person who receives a personal message not intended for the body of believers (where such an event is credited at all) shouldn't be termed a prophet. The reception of a message is termed
revelation; the delivery of the message is termed
prophecy. For Christians the authenticity of a prophet is judged as
Jesus said that one should judge a prophet, by his fruits (
Gospel of Matthew 7) and by checking whether his predictions come true.
Deuteronomy 18:21-22 contains several warnings about false prophets and is very specific about the test of whether a prophet is true or false. A false prophet is considered to be someone who is purposely trying to deceive, or is delusional, or is under the influence of Satan (for detail, see main article
False prophet).
Christians recognize that anyone they consider prophetic is still human and fallible, and may make wrong decisions, have incorrect personal beliefs or opinions, and sin from time to time; the human characteristics of a prophet are
independent of the message God has given him and don't negate the validity of his prophecies.
Nevertheless, some Christians believe the minimum requirements of a true prophet can be summarized as follows: (1) Clear (not vague) prophecies (2) 100% accuracy in prophesying (for example one false prophecy is all it takes to disqualify them as a prophet), and (3) Must not contradict the Bible.
Many Christians believe these standards create a conundrum for other Christians who actively support high profile ministers who have large followings who claim to have received prophecies that have later turned out to be mistaken (see
Unfulfilled historical predictions by Christians). Other Christians claim that these standards would disqualify several Biblical prophets, whose prophecies, though clearly stated, appear to be unfulfilled (Jonah 3:4, 2 Samuel 7:5-17, Judges 13:5). Some sects of Christianity would also use these guidelines to disqualify the heads of other sects as prophets of God.
Some Christians, including many who believe in
dispensationalism, believe prophecy ended with the coming of
Jesus, who delivered the "fullness of the law." Within this group, many Protestants believe that prophecy ended with the last of the Hebrew prophets of the
Torah of the Hebrew Bible, leaving a gap of about 400 years between then and the life of Jesus. The majority, including the
Eastern Orthodox, allow an exception for
John the Baptist as a prophet contemporary with Jesus.
New Testament passages that explicitly discuss prophets existing after the death and resurrection of Christ include Revelation 11:10, & 23:34, John 13:20 & 15:20, and Acts 11:25-30, 13:1 & 15:32. Christians believe that the Holy Spirit leads people to faith in Jesus and gives them the ability to lead a
Christian life and to give gifts (for example abilities) to Christians. These may include the
charismatic gifts such as
prophecy,
tongues, healing, and knowledge. Christians holding a view known as
cessationism believe these gifts were given only in New Testament times and ceased after the last apostle died. Historical records, however, contradict this theory. Christians almost universally agree that "
spiritual gifts" such as the gifts of ministry, teaching, giving, leadership, and mercy (see, for example ) are still in effect today.
Islam
The
Qur'an identifies a number of men as
Prophets of Islam (
Arabic: nabee نبي ; pl. anbiyaa
أنبياء ).
Muslims believe such individuals were assigned a special mission by God (
Arabic:
Allah) to guide humanity. Besides
Muhammad, this includes
Tanakh prophets such as
Moses and
David, and
Jesus from the Christian religion.
According to the
Islamic creed, the essence of all the prophets’ messages is what Islam calls for: worshipping God alone and rejecting false deities. The message of Islam resembles the messages of all previous prophets of God. The Qur'an states: "Abraham wasn't a Jew nor a Christian, but he was (an) upright (man), a Muslim (submission to God's will), and he wasn't one of the polytheists" . There were at least 4 Sharia which were revealed to
Noah,
Abraham,
Moses and
Jesus. Each of the prophets is believed to have been assigned a special mission by God (
Arabic:
Allah) to guide the whole or a group of the mankind, depending on the mission assigned to each.
God is believed to have instructed each of these prophets to warn his community against evil and urge his people to obey God. Although only 25 prophets are mentioned by name in the Qur'an, a
Hadith (no. 21257 in
Musnad Ibn Hanbal) mentions that there were
124,000 of them in total throughout history, and the
Qur'an says that God has sent a prophet to every group of people throughout time, and that Muhammad is the last of the Prophets. In general, Muslims regard the stories of the Qur'an as
historical. The message of all the prophets is believed to be the same. Many of these prophets are also found in the texts of
Judaism (The Torah, the Prophets, and the Writings; collectively known as the Old Testament to Christians) and
Christianity.
While Islam shares the Jewish tradition that the first prophet is
Adam, it differs in that the last prophet is
Muhammad, who in Islam is called
Seal of the Prophets. Jesus is the result of a
virgin birth in Islam as in Christianity, and is regarded as a prophet like the others. Traditionally, five prophets are regarded as especially important in Islam with distinctive title were given to each of them for example:
Noah,
Abraham,
Moses,
Jesus, and
Muhammad. Also, only a tiny minority of prophets are believed to have been sent
holy books (such as the
Tawrat,
Zabur,
Injil and the
Qur'an), and those prophets are considered
"messengers" or
rasul. However, other main Prophets are considered a Messenger or a Rasul even if they didn't receive a Book from God. An example can be the Messenger-Prophet Aaron "Haroon", the Messenger-Prophet Ishamel "Isma'eel" or the Messenger-Prophet Joseph "Yousuf".
Muhammad is regarded in
Islamic belief as having undertaken a prophetic mission addressed to all of humanity rather than a specific populace. Prophets were required to call all people to God; The-Lord of the Worlds. However, the laws they brought may have been limited to a certain community at some Era.
Although it offers many incidents from the lives of many prophets, the Qur'an focuses with special narrative and rhetorical emphasis on the careers of the first four of these five major prophets. Of all the figures before Muhammad, Moses is referred to most frequently in the
Qur'an. As for the fifth, the Qur'an is frequently addressed directly to Muhammad, and it often discusses situations encountered by him. Direct use of his name in the text, however, is rare. Rarer still is the mention of Muhammad's contemporaries. Besides the four Holy Books sent by God to the four messengers, Muslims believe that God also had granted Scrolls
Suhuf (contains basic Divine Laws to guide the people) to
Abraham and
Moses.
Muslims believe that evidence for the prophethood of Muhammad is as good as the evidence for previous prophets. A common argument is to ask why the Jew or Christian believe in Moses or Jesus, and to use the same answer to prove Muhammad's prophethood. They also maintain that all accusations levied on their prophet can be used against persons such as Abraham, Israel, Moses and Jesus. Thus they hold that the Jews or Christians are not consistent. If they believe in Moses or Jesus for their miracles, the same should apply to Muhammad. If Muhammad is accused of fighting, is it not the same said about Abraham, Moses and David? They also argue that
prophecies about Muhammad are still in the Old and New Testaments.
Bahá'í
The
Bahá'í Faith refers to what are commonly called prophets as
Manifestations of God who are directly linked with the concept of
Progressive revelation. Bahá'ís believe that God expresses this will at all times and in many ways, including through a series of divine messengers referred to as
Manifestations of God or sometimes
divine educators. In expressing God's intent, these Manifestations are seen to establish religion in the world. Thus they're seen as an intermediary between God and humanity.
The Manifestations of God are not seen as an incarnation of God, but they're also not seen as an ordinary mortals. Instead, the Bahá'í concept of the Manifestation of God emphasizes simultaneously the humanity of that intermediary and the divinity in the way they show forth the will, knowledge and attributes of God; thus they've both human and divine stations. They also claim that they're God's one and only true channel to mankind on earth, and used by God for this purpose.
They have made many
eschatological forecasts, some of which have led people (including followers) to incorrect assumptions. One example is their original belief of the end of the world in 1914. Their Biblical studies showed that the enthronement of Jesus would be in the year 1914 (Daniel 4:10-16; Revelation [Apocalipsis] 12:6,14; Ezequiel 4:6), however they incorrectly assumed that the world would also be destroyed. As a result the editors of the Watchtower have acknowledged that Jehovah's Witnesses "have made mistakes in their understanding of what would occur at the end of certain time periods."
Seventh-day Adventist
The
Seventh-day Adventist Church believes
Ellen White, a cofounder of the church, possessed the gift of prophecy.
Tenrikyo
Tenrikyo's prophet,
Nakayama Miki or
Oyasama (External Link), is believed by Tenrikyoans to have been a kind of microphone of God, as God spoke through Oyasama, directly, to whomever was in the vicinity. She had three aspects: the Shrine of Tsukihi (the body of the woman was occupied by the mind of God), The Parent of the Divine Model (Oyasama taught the people by instructions and examples), and The Truth of the Everliving Oyasama (she continues to watch humanity develop, even after shedding her body).
Other religions
Cargo Cults of Melanesia have several prophets
Lou de Palingboer, founder and figurehead of a new religious movement in the Netherlands.
David Koresh, leader of the Branch Davidians religious sect
Rashad Khalifa, founded the religious group United Submitters International (USI)
Bobby Henderson, founder and prophet of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster
Hong Xiuquan, established the heterodox Christian sect "Heavenly Kingdom of Great Peace" (; ).
Other individuals
Other people throughout history have been described as prophets in the sense of foretelling the future (as opposed to forthtelling the message of the Deity). Examples of such prophets include:
Deganawidah
Jeane Dixon
Hal Lindsey
St Malachy - see Prophecy of the Popes
William Miller
Nathan of Gaza
Nostradamus
Mother Shipton
John Titor
Baba Vanga
Science-fiction and fantasy
The seers and Druids of Shannara
The "Veheer" in the Watership Down canon, most notably Fiver and Hyzenthlay. Technically seers as they've visions rather that clear prophetic messages.
The Istari, wizards of Middle-earth
The prophets of Kirthanin
The Bajoran Prophets from
The Prophecies of the Dragon in Robert Jordan's "The Wheel of Time" book series
Centaurs in the Chronicles of Narnia
Paul Atreides (Muad'Dib) of Dune
Valentine Michael Smith of Stranger in a Strange Land
Sybill Trelawney of Harry Potter
Ichabod Greyface of the Principia Discordia
High Prophets of Halo
Yoda from Star Wars
Prophets of the Dark Side from Star Wars
Jay and Silent Bob from Dogma
Laura Roslin of Battlestar Galactica
Medivh from the Warcraft Universe
The Prophet Skeram from the Warcraft Universe
The title character of the television series Eli Stone
Further Information
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