Jacqui: 0:12

Greetings listeners. Before we dive into Season 4, which covers the Bible's books of prophecy, I want to take a moment to revisit two important episodes that lay the foundation for understanding the prophets. Many people think of prophets as just tellers of the future, but their role was so much more complex. They were God's messengers, calling people back to faith, confronting kings and sometimes even acting out their messages in dramatic ways. In this first episode, we'll focus on what a prophet is and what their role was in God's plan. Then, in next week's episode, we'll look at the historical backdrop where the prophets fit into the Bible's storyline. Even if you've heard these episodes before, I encourage you to listen again. They'll give you a fresh perspective as we prepare to explore the books of prophecy together. Well welcome everyone. I'm your host, jackie Adewole, and this is the Bible Basics Podcast, where, weekly, we break down the basics of the Bible into understandable, bite-sized chunks. When the subject of biblical prophets comes up, many of us think first of the men who wrote the last section of the books of the Old Testament, and maybe a few others we've heard of, like Elijah or Elisha. However, the Bible identifies many more, some of them by name, some nameless, spread throughout the Old and New Testaments. The primary task of this teaching is to provide an overview of who those individuals were, what they did and how God used them for his overall plan.

Jacqui: 2:14

So what is a prophet? Well, simply put, a biblical prophet is a person who receives revelation from God and communicates his message to other persons, cities and nations. Another common Old Testament word for prophet is seer. This term emphasizes the way prophets receive their revelation, namely by seeing. These were men who saw the message God gave, whether that meant with the physical eye or seeing them in dreams or visions. In addition to prophet and seer, they were also referred to as men of God, servant of the Lord, preachers, god's messengers, watchmen and spokesmen. So we've covered what a prophet is. Let's explore their calling.

Jacqui: 3:08

How they became prophets? The office of prophet was not hereditary, like that of a priest or a king. Prophets were specifically called by God. They were chosen from many different walks of life and the call was not an invitation but a divine appointment. In some instances, the Bible describes the call in considerable detail and each account has distinctive features not found in the others. The call properly designated a prophet and gave them the authority for their work. For example, god told the prophet Jeremiah, before I formed you in the womb, I knew you Before you were born. I set you apart. I appointed you as a prophet to the nations. Except for God's call, prophets had no special qualifications. They appeared from all walks of life. They included sheepherders and farmers like Amos and Elisha, but also princes like Abraham and priests like Ezekiel. We'll get into even more detail about the prophets in future episodes.

Jacqui: 4:24

Now let's talk about the functions of a prophet. If we go straight to Google or Wikipedia, we may see the most common definition of a prophet is one who foretells future events, and the typical synonym is a predictor. While Old Testament prophets did speak about predictions of far distant events, it's important to note that most of any predictions of the future were not about our time, but rather about the immediate future of Israel and surrounding nations, not our future. What prophets did primarily was forth-telling, sometimes called preaching. They spoke to the people mostly Israel, but occasionally other nations about their current situation. They pointed out the sin of the people. They warned the people about the terrible and certain consequences of sin, the discipline and judgment of God. They encouraged the people to repent wholeheartedly, turn back to God, to worship him and him alone, and they also brought messages of consolation and pardon. Adding to the complexity of their role, they also had the responsibility for speaking of the future. These messages focused on Jesus, the coming Messiah, descriptions of the new covenant age, which is the period after Christ's crucifixion, and end time events. Prophets did not only speak of God's messages. Sometimes they became quite dramatic and acted out their messages. Isaiah went naked and barefoot for three years. Ezekiel lay on his left side for 390 days and right side for 40 more days to communicate God's message. You gotta know those prophets were some special people.

Jacqui: 6:21

In their ministry, prophets not only spoke to the people of Israel, but were often directly speaking to the rulers and kings of Israel. The reason for this is important to understand. It was typically the behavior of the leader that influenced the behavior of the people. It was through the king that the prophet could best influence the nations regarding the truth of God. Like the priests, the prophets also interceded on behalf of the people before God. However, the key function of the prophet was to be a person in whom's mouth God placed his words and who spoke those words to the people. It is important to note that the prophet did not act or speak independent of God. The prophets also did not take up the role on their own. God raised them up. The emphasis here is that the true prophet's message was God's, not their own. They communicated this by regularly prefacing or concluding or punctuating their speeches with Thus saith the Lord. To sum it up, the true prophets in the Old Testament were chosen by God to deliver important messages to the people of Israel and to enforce the covenant God had made with them. They pointed out sin, warned of consequences of disobedience, encouraged repentance and faithfulness and proclaimed messages of hope and restoration.

Jacqui: 7:51

As we continue to explore the prophets in the Bible, it's important to keep in mind that their messages have much to teach us about a wide range of issues for today. By studying the prophets, we can learn much about the nature and character of God, his plans for his people and how God's people that's, us should live. I don't know about you, but for me that episode provided a great foundation for understanding who the prophets were. But to fully grasp their messages we need to know when they spoke and the historical events surrounding them. That's exactly what we'll explore in next week's episode. In next week's episode We'll walk through the different periods of prophecy, from the early prophets like Moses and Deborah, to the writing prophets that we'll be discussing in season four. So stay tuned for part two, where we'll uncover the historical timeline of the prophets and their place in the Bible's big picture. Until then, keep reading, keep seeking and keep growing in your faith so that we spread God's word further. Please share, like, follow, comment and subscribe Subscribe. Thank you.