Who were the prophets of the Old Testament? What was their mission? What was their message? What kind of men were these prophets? There were women prophets in the Old Testament as well. The label prophetess is attributed to four women in the Old Testament: Miriam (Exodus 15:20), Deborah (Judges 4:4), Huldah (2 Kings 22:14; 2 Chronicles 34:22), Noadiah (Nehemiah 6:14). Understanding what kind of people the prophets were helps us better understand God’s Word and how to apply it to our own lives. The prophets of the Old Testament approached God’s Word not simply in a vacuum, but from the historical environment in which they were living. So what can we learn from the prophets?
James 5:17 Elijah was a human being, even as we are. Sometimes the characters of the Bible seem like super heroes that appear less real to us than ordinary people. But the prophets were human in every sense that we are today, they had jobs, families, and came from different backgrounds. They were Godly men of character. They were men of great humanity, who in their humanity preached God’s Word with great boldness. Their primary function was to stand for God and to preach the Word of God to a people drifting further away from God.
1 Kings 18:21 Elijah went before the people and said, “How long will you waver between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him. The prophets were uncompromising individuals. The prophets stood for the Word of God and the will of God in their lives against all adversaries and against all criticisms. The great shepherd prophet, Amos, went from the south of Judah to the north of Israel to preach against the idolatry of that wicked nation. Amaziah, the prophet of that area, came to Amos and told him to quit preaching there because he was the preacher of that area. (Amos 7:10-17).
Amos 7:10-13 Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent a message to Jeroboam king of Israel: “Amos is raising a conspiracy against you in the very heart of Israel. The land cannot bear all his words. 11 For this is what Amos is saying: “‘Jeroboam will die by the sword, and Israel will surely go into exile, away from their native land.’” 12 Then Amaziah said to Amos, “Get out, you seer! Go back to the land of Judah. Earn your bread there and do your prophesying there. 13 Don’t prophesy anymore at Bethel, because this is the king’s sanctuary and the temple of the kingdom.” Amaziah told Amos that he needed to preach smooth and pleasant things instead of the judgment he was declaring. But Amos refused to compromise the message that he was given from the Lord.
Amos 7:14-15 Amos answered Amaziah, “I was neither a prophet nor the son of a prophet, but I was a shepherd, and I also took care of sycamore-fig trees. 15 But the Lord took me from tending the flock and said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to my people Israel.’ Amos told Amaziah I’m not a degreed, highly educated person, but I have been called by God to proclaim His Word with boldness. The prophets were conscious of a divine call. The prophets did not go to school to be a prophet. God called them from wherever they were living and whatever they were doing. God called them to be His spokesman and for that reason they had great spiritual insight given to them by God. They had great spiritual commitment because of that call.
The prophets were outspoken critics of evil (Romans 12:9 “Hate what is evil”) and they spoke against specific evils within society. They were not evasive in the messages they preached.
They were not like many preachers today who really say very little. They were aware of what was going to happen in the nations of Israel and Judah because of the evil the people tolerated (you encourage what you tolerate). They rebuked the sin and did not sugarcoat the consequences. The prophet Nathan directly rebuked David for the sin of adultery and murder (2 Samuel 12). Ezekiel 16 contains a scathing rebuke of the exiles from Judah for their national sin. Romans 14:16 says do not let what you know is good be spoken of as evil. Too many people today sit idly by and allow what we know is good to be spoken of as evil. We need to learn from the examples of the prophets. We need to speak plainly and specifically to the sins of our day.
Homosexual behavior is glorified in the world but the Bible is unequivocal in its condemnation of homosexuality. God judged Sodom and Gomorrah due in large part to their sexual perversion (Genesis 19). Leviticus 18:22 says Do not have sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman; that is detestable. Leviticus 20:13 If a man has sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman, both of them have done what is detestable. Romans 1:26-27 describes homosexual behavior as “unnatural” and “shameful”. Another sin that is celebrated in our society is transgender behavior. Romans 9:20 states But who are you, a human being, to talk back to God? “Shall what is formed say to the one who formed it, ‘Why did you make me like this? For the last 50 years abortion has been framed in the gentler context of “choice”. The reality is that abortion is murder. Psalm 139:13, 16; Isaiah 44:24; Jeremiah 1:5; and Luke 1:15, 44 all speak to the fact that life begins at conception. So to abort a life at any point is nothing short of cold-blooded murder.
A particular sin that the prophets spoke harshly against has become much more relevant in our country recently and that is the sin of oppression (see Amos 5:11-12). When elected officials issue draconian lock-downs and prevent people from working and visiting their families that is oppression and that is sin.
How can one know to repent if they do not know about sin (see 1 Corinthians 6:9-11)? Sometimes we act as if we do not want to offend anyone with the message of God and how it should change a person’s life.But Hebrews 4:12 reminds us thatthe word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. By its very nature God’s Word is offensive to those who are in rebellion towards God but we can’t sugarcoat the truth. If one does not realize their need for a savior there is no salvation.
In Judah around that time was a prophet named Micah. He talked about all the wickedness of the false prophets and false priests of that day who prophesied for payment of wine and strong drink (Micah 3:1-12). He said, “But as for me, I am filled with power, with the Spirit of the Lord, and with justice and might, to declare to Jacob his transgression, to Israel his sin” (Micah 3:8). Micah declared he was not like the false teachers that were prominent in the land; he was full of the power of God and his job was to declare to Israel their sin. The prophets were not moral pacifists, they were not weak men. They were hard, rugged, no nonsense men, not only physically most of the time, but always in their character. These men lived out the words of Proverbs 28:1 the righteous are as bold as a lion.
When Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, was allied with Ahab, king of Israel, to fight against the Ammonites, he asked “Is there no longer a prophet of the Lord here whom we can inquire of?” (1 Kings 22:7). Ahab’s house had assembled over 400 prophets but they all spoke with the same voice, they only spoke the narrative that Ahab and Jezebel wanted the people to hear. Jehoshaphat realized that in that wicked house there could not possibly be 400 true prophets of God. Ahab gave the greatest compliment ever given to a prophet when he said in 1 Kings 22:8 “There is still one prophet through whom we can inquire of the Lord, but I hate him because he never prophesies anything good about me, but always bad. He is Micaiah son of Imlah.”
The prophets were men who were conscious of God’s authority and God’s backing in all emergencies. Proverbs 9:10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. The prophets understood who God was and who they were. They took a very bold stance for God, unlike what anyone else in Judah or Israel did.
Because of this, they were often in danger from the powerful people they spoke against, but they knew that they had the backing of God in every situation; God was behind them in what they were saying and in all that they were doing. In 2 Kings 6:8-18 we read of how the prophet Elisha was in danger from the king of Syria (Aram). The king sent a large force at night to the city of Dothan to capture Elisha. Early the next morning Elisha’s servant went out and saw an army with horses and chariots surrounding the city. The servant was terrified and asked Elisha what they should do.
2 Kings 6:16-18“Don’t be afraid,” the prophet answered. “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” 17 And Elisha prayed, “Open his eyes, Lord, so that he may see.” Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. 18 As the enemy came down toward him, Elisha prayed to the Lord, “Strike this army with blindness.” So he struck them with blindness, as Elisha had asked. Elisha wasn’t afraid because he had confidence in the almighty God. He truly believed in the words of Deuteronomy 31:6 Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.” God has promised to be with His people. He will sustain us and carry us into eternity.
The prophets were men of communion and prayer with God. Like many prophets, Jeremiah regularly asked God for guidance on behalf of others in the Israelite community (Jeremiah 37 and 42). One of the most remarkable prayers of intercession recorded in the Bible is found in Isaiah 64:1-2, where the prophet calls upon the Lord, saying Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down,that the mountains would tremble before you! 2 As when fire sets twigs ablazeand causes water to boil, come down to make your name known to your enemiesand cause the nations to quake before you!. This is a great example of how we ought to be praying for our nation right now.
The prophets were consecrated men in their lives and in their character. Daniel 6:4 They could find no corruption in him, because he was trustworthy and neither corrupt nor negligent. The message of the prophets was constantly being challenged by the evil, false teachers of their day. Search history and the words of the prophets; there is not one single breath of criticism of their personal lives. Each one of them lived a separated life. They were holy men dedicated to God. 1 Peter 2:12 Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.
Perhaps the number one characteristic of the prophet was that they passed the Word of God on to the people as they had received it – without addition or subtraction. 1 Corinthians 4:6 says “Do not go beyond what is written.” All we need to know is found in the Bible. We don’t need to add or subtract anything from it because as Proverbs 30:5 reminds us every word of God is flawless. Towards the end of Judah’s sovereignty under the reign of King Josiah, the Book of the Law was found (apparently it had been lost for a time). Josiah sent Hilkiah the priest along with some others to speak to the prophet Huldah. Her response is recorded in 2 Kings 22:15-16 She said to them, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Tell the man who sent you to me, 16 ‘This is what the Lord says: I am going to bring disaster on this place and its people, according to everything written in the book the king of Judah has read. She simply said, like all of the prophets; “This is what the Lord says”. The prophets’ job was to speak God’s Word not their opinion.
The prophets did not sugarcoat anything; they did not beat around the bush when proclaiming the Word of God. They did not say to sinful Israel on her way to destruction, “Pardon me, but if you please, you might want to think about doing a little better; or otherwise you might be accidentally lost for a few years, maybe.” That was not their message. Their message was bold and to the point “repent or perish” and that is the message we need to have today. We need to ask God to help us speak His Word with great boldness. Acts 4:29 enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. But boldness does not equal meanness. 1 Peter 3:15 reminds us to “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect”.
What can we learn from the prophets? The prophets serve as great examples of how to live in an ungodly decaying society. They were uncompromising in their message, relentless in their passion for what was right, and strong and courageous in the face of persecution. Their only mission was to turn the people back to God and point to the future hope of the Messiah. That is our mission today. The prophets lived life with an uncompromising relentless spirit. Are you living your life with an uncompromising relentless spirit? The prophets lived life with strength and courage, trusting in the Lord with all of their heart. Are you living your life with strength and courage, trusting God with all of your heart? The prophets lived life set apart from the ungodly in their world. Are you living a life that sets you apart from the ungodly in this world? The prophets looked ahead to the salvation that would come through the Messiah and they lived with confidence and assurance of the coming victory. 1 Corinthians 15:57 says He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. We have Jesus Christ, we’ve been given the victory the prophets looked forward to. Are you living like you’ve won? These are the things that will point others to God.