The Bible speaks many times about Prophets or messengers. Who are these Prophets?
Prophets are appointed by God Himself and usually called to give a message to a certain Nation and it's People or society...
In the Old Testament of the Bible which is God's word there are many examples of Prophets or Messengers that the Lord Himself raises up or "Calls" to a specific Ministry usually to a society and it's people.
Almost all Prophets in scripture were appointed by God because the Lord has a message that's extremely important to a nation and it's people, so God appoints these messengers to bring that particular message...
Prophets are an odd group of Biblical characters as evidenced by the highly peculiar Prophets in the old testament, and the new Testament both.
For example Hosea, who was called by God to take a wife that was actually a Prostitute and ended up being completely unfaithful to him. What a strange situation right?
Why in the world would God appoint a messenger who's wife was a Prostitute and completely unfaithful to him and have many different Lovers? Bizarre Right?
Well, if we read on in Hosea this happened because God was using him and his unfaithful prostitute wife as an exact mirror image or picture of Israel's complete Unfaithfulness to the Lord.
God used Hosea and his strange situation to demonstrate to Israel's people that that's exactly what God sees Israel and it's people doing...They are in complete rebellion and unfaithfulness to God and the only way He could even reach them is through Hosea's bizarre and extremely difficult relationship with his unfaithful wife...
Many times God appoints a prophet to a nation that has the terrible message that judgment is coming and they'd better get prepared or turn away from their wickedness before disaster happens, if it can be averted at all...
These Prophets have an extremely difficult Job of telling their own nation that God has had enough and the hand of judgment was soon coming.
Obviously that sort of really bad news is not well received by a society and it's people...but the real Prophet says and does what God has instructed him to say and do, not what a society and people WANT to hear, but what they NEED to hear.
Therefore, the real prophet does not care about what his culture or society thinks of him and his message particularly if it's bad news, he presses on not caring of how the consequences of a nasty judgmental message will be received by a society that has turned it's back to God in complete rebellion, Or what it will do to him personally which could be very uncomfortable...
Because of the Prophets sometimes harsh but true message the prophet can not only endure a lot of hardship in his own life, but even harsh ridicule, mockery or even persecution from his countrymen...
We see this from some Old Testament prophets like Jeremiah sometimes called "The Weeping Prophet" whom God told to put on a Yoke or a Wooden stock around his neck and head as a Testimony to Israel's people that the Yoke of being forced under the King of Babylon was coming. Tough Gig right?
Interestingly the False Prophet Hananiah broke this Stock or Yoke off Jeremiah's neck saying the Israelites would not be forced under the ruler of Babylon, which turned out to be completely false as History shows that yes, the Jews were put under Babylonian rule.This btw is how one discerns the real prophet from the False, the real prophets message can be extremely harsh and hard to hear, while the false prophets message may sound sweet, comforting and pleasant, except that the harsh judgment happens in reality while the false prophets "Peace" message does NOT happen. The real prophets message ALWAYS happens. This is not to say that a prophets message is not a peaceful one or always about the judgment and destruction of a nation, but sometimes it is.
Some Prophets in scripture predicted in exact detail the future or future events about people or a society. For instance, the prophet Micah who foretold the exact town of the birth of Jesus Christ in Bethlehem in Micah 5:2
"But You Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of Old, from ancient times"
And here in Psalms usually attributed to the warrior King David also a Prophet, about the crucifixion of Jesus Christ...Psalm 22:18
"They divide my garments among them, and cast lots for my Clothing"
These are small details about the birth and death Of Jesus right down to the clothing and place of birth told hundreds of years before...Amazing isn't it?
Other prophets have foretold events far into the distant future like for instance Daniel, prophesying of end time events which even Jesus alludes to here in Matthew 24:15
"So when you see standing in the Holy place the abomination of desolation, described by the prophet Daniel (Let the reader understand)
And in Daniel 12:11- "And from the time the daily sacrifice is abolished, and the abomination of desolation is set up, there will be 1,290 days"
We see here that the Prophet Daniel is talking about future events that even Christ confirms of what
is to come.
The New Testament also declares that the prophets job is not yet done as we see in Acts 2:17 as Peter preaches to the crowd...
"In the Last days God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people, your Sons and Daughters will prophesy, tour young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams..."
The prophets job is not to be taken lightly, and a very difficult job it is, but I'm Positive the real prophets of God are highly rewarded in Heaven with our Lord Jesus Christ.
I'm just the Sax Player...
