The Beginner’s Guide to the Prophets in the Bible
When the Bible mentions prophets, it’s usually referencing individuals who spoke on God’s behalf and the books of prophecy in the Old Testament. If we understand both of these uses of “prophet,” then we’ll be much better prepared to understand the Bible—both the cryptic prophetic passages and the Scriptures as a whole. When modern folks talk about “prophets” and “prophecy,” they’re often referring to someone foretelling future events. However, in the Bible, the prophets played a much larger role.
What is a prophet?
Prophets are humans who speak on God’s behalf. In the Bible, and especially in the Old Testament, a prophet has the role of holding people accountable to the God of Israel. Some of their messages are more dramatic than others: some prophets (like Ezekiel and Zechariah) see elaborate visions, while others simply call the people to remember their allegiance to Israel’s God and the Torah (like Haggai and Malachi).
Many people utter or write prophetic statements in the Bible, but not all of them are specifically referred to as prophets. Perhaps the best example is Saul, who would become the king of Israel. Saul falls under the influence of God’s spirit and begins prophesying—although we don’t know what he said (1 Samuel 10:9–12). So while Saul technically speaks prophesy, his role in the story of Israel isn’t a prophetic one, and so the Bible doesn’t treat him like a prophet.
It’s also important to note that the Bible mentions false prophets, individuals who claim to speak on God’s behalf, but don’t. And to further complicate things, while God has his own prophets, there are prophets who speak on behalf of other gods, too. The most famous example of this takes place in the showdown between Elijah and 450 prophets of the Canaanite god Baal (1 Kings 18:16–39), when Elijah demonstrates he’s the one who speaks on behalf of Israel’s true God.
Key Figures and Their Significance
The Bible names many prophets, but some of the most significant prophets to remember are included in the following data:
| Prophet Name | Biblical Significance |
|---|---|
| Abraham | Whom God himself calls a prophet (Genesis 20:7) |
| Moses | The greatest of the Old Testament prophets (Deuteronomy 34:10) |
| Samuel | Who anointed two kings of Israel on God’s behalf (1 Samuel 3:19–20) |
| David | A king whose Psalms were considered prophetic by the Jews (Acts 2:30) |
| Elijah and Elisha | Who worked miracles and anointed (and denounced) national leaders on God’s behalf (1 Kings 19:15–16) |
| Jeremiah | Who warned Jerusalem’s leaders that Nebuchadnezzar would take the city (Jeremiah 1:5) |
| John the Baptist | Who prepared the way for Jesus Christ (Matthew 11:9–14) |
| Jesus Christ | Who was called a prophet before he was resurrected (John 7:40) |
What is prophecy?
When you encounter prophecy in the Bible, it usually refers to a message claiming to be of divine nature or origin. They do this through the ministry of prophecy, which has a much broader meaning in the Bible than we’re used to. These messages come in many forms: dreams, poetry, sermons, and even dramatic physical stunts—like when the prophet Isaiah went nude for three years to signify how the Assyrians would strip and shame the Egyptians (Isaiah 20:3). Although it’s easy to think of prophecy as a message concerning the future, the prophets of the Bible speak of the past, present, and future.
Prophecies about the past
It’s common for a prophet to reference past events in Israel’s history, usually the stories in the Torah. These stories usually serve to remind Israel about their special pact with their God. If Israel remained loyal to God, they would enjoy his blessings and protection in the land he promised to Abraham in the book of Genesis. But if they betrayed him by serving other deities or oppressing vulnerable people, God would judge Israel, removing his protection and exiling them from their land.
The most common acts of God that the prophets bring up occurred during the exodus from Egypt to Canaan, specifically:
- God freeing Israel from slavery and giving them the Torah
- God judging the Egyptians with ten plagues
- God parting the Red Sea for Israel, and consuming Pharaoh’s armies with the same sea
- Israel claiming the territories of two kings (Sihon and Og) before they even entered Canaan
That’s why the prophets often bring up both the acts of kindness that God showed Israel—along with examples of times God judged other nations. These come up again and again in the prophetic books.