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Prophets of the Bible

The men and women God sent to speak for Him — and the false prophets Scripture warns about — grouped by when they spoke and who they spoke to.

What is a prophet?

A messenger, not a fortune-teller

A prophet spoke for God — calling people back to Him, warning of judgment, and holding out His promises. Foretelling the future was part of the work, but most of it was forth-telling: saying what God had already said. 2 Peter 1:21

Held to a test

A true prophet’s word came to pass and never led away from the LORD. The same two tests are given to every generation that has to tell true from false. Deuteronomy 18:21-22

“Major” and “minor”

The words describe the length of the books, not the importance of the men. In the Hebrew Bible the twelve shorter books were copied onto a single scroll, called simply the Twelve.

Fulfilled in Christ

God spoke “at sundry times and in divers manners” by the prophets, and in these last days by His Son — the Prophet Moses said would come. Hebrews 1:1-2

When the writing prophets spoke

The sixteen prophets with books of their own, against the three events that shaped what they said. Dates are approximate.

Timeline of the writing prophets, 800 to 400 BC
Major Prophets The Twelve

Why they still matter We have “a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place.” The prophets were not only speaking to their own day — they were pointing to Christ, and they are still calling God’s people home. 2 Peter 1:19