1.1 - Essential Nature of Prophet and Prophecy
January 16, 2005 | Comments: 3The Interpretation of Prophecy Part One Chapter 1
In this chapter Fairbairn sets forth what is the proper calling of a prophet, and the essential nature of prophecy. A prophet in Scripture is one who receives and communicates a message from God, which message is not necessarily predictive in nature. The first person so designated in Scripture is Abraham, from whom no foretelling words are recorded. Whatever is uttered by the prophet in fulfillment of this calling is prophecy. The leading themes in biblical prophecy are the matters of truth and righteousness, rather than predictions of the future.
In distinguishing the essentials and the non-essentials of the prophetic office, Fairbairn makes the following observations. It is essential that the prophet has direct communication from heaven, and that he be so constituted that he is able to receive them. He must be sensitive to the working of the Spirit of God, and must deliver his message as one who is himself personally and profoundly conscious of its import. However it is not essential that the prophet be agitated or frenzied in the delivery of his message — witness Jesus Christ as the prime example. It is essential that the prophecy spoken be that which concerns God, and which He purposes His people to hear, but it is not essential that the message contain announcements of future events. Finally, it is essential that the prophet faithfully deliver the message as he has received it, but not that his delivery should be forcible in tone or with violent agitation.
Having thus understood the nature of the biblical prophecy, for the purpose of this investigation we may accept the more restricted use of the term as referring to that which is predominated by predictive elements. Fairbairn shows that this is the more limited definition, as compared with the two great archetypical prophets, Moses and Christ.
Comments
I thought that Abel and Enoch were the first “prophets.” If I am correct, in what sense is Abel presented as a prophet? In what sense is Enoch presented? Nathan.
nathan on February 01, 2005 at 07:27 AM
Excellent summary by Fairborn and by you! I was taught that “the prophet is one who has the word of God upon his lips.” What text of Moses outlines the testing of a prophet? I suspect this is Fairborn’s prime text for defining a prophet. Nathan.
nathan on February 01, 2005 at 07:31 AM
In Luke 11, our Lord speaks of Abel as the first of all the prophets who from the beginning of the world have shed their blood for their righteous testimony. Hebrews 11 tells us that through Abel’s sacrifice he obtained the testimony that he was righteous, and that through this he still speaks, though he is dead. I think it must be with respect to this righteous testimony that Abel is a prophet.
Jude 14 states that “Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men also, saying, Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints.” This is an interesting hermeneutical problem, especially for the fundamentalist inerrantist, since this quote is taken from the Jewish apocryphal book of Enoch.
Moses outlined the criteria for the testing of prophets in Deuteronomy 13, which is essentially if he counsels rebellion against Yahweh then he is false, whether what he says comes to pass or not. Moses also said “would that all God’s people were prophets.” This was I think not a vain wish, but was itself prophetic in light of Joel and its fulfillment in Acts 2.
BTW, Our esteemed brother’s name is Fairbairn, which is the Scots way of saying “cute baby.” Though he was probably also fair born, as you say.
andrew on February 05, 2005 at 11:49 AM
