I grew up in a religious group in which people claimed to have the gift of prophecy. They were not prophets, but their bold declarations penetrated quiet times in the services and ended with “thus saith the Lord.” A brief pause followed to allow congregants to take in what had been “revealed.” Their utterances were often vague or general, but any assertion that a person’s words come from God Himself is a weighty claim.
Through Moses, one of God’s most important prophets, God warned that “the prophet who presumes to speak a word in My name, which I have not commanded him to speak… that prophet shall die” (Deuteronomy 18:20). Moses then revealed how to know a true prophet of God: “When a prophet speaks in the name of the Lᴏʀᴅ, if the thing does not happen or come to pass, that is the thing which the Lᴏʀᴅ has not spoken” (v. 22). A true prophet’s words must hold 100% accuracy, or “the prophet has spoken it presumptuously” (v. 22).
Speaking God’s Truth
God’s high standard for the prophets through whom He reveals His Word appears repeatedly throughout the Bible. But of all the great prophets, there is one who stands out above them all: Jesus Christ, the perfect prophet.
Biblically, a prophet is someone moved by the Spirit of God to speak the truth that God has revealed to him. It may include teaching, rebuke, judgment, or predictions concerning the future.
Depending on the criteria used, commentators posit that Scripture specifically names between 48 and 88 prophets of God. These prophets and others are grouped in identifiable settings, such as the 70 elders of Israel (Numbers 11:24–25), the 100 rescued by Obadiah (1 Kings 18:4), and the prophets at Ramah (1 Samuel 19:20).
Some of the named ones are well known to us: Moses, “whom the Lᴏʀᴅ knew face to face” (Deuteronomy 34:10); Elijah and Elisha, who performed many great miracles; Isaiah, who prophesied the redemptive work of Messiah; Jeremiah, the “weeping prophet”; Ezekiel, who documented the promised return of the Jews to the land of Israel; Daniel, to whom God revealed a succession of kingdoms that were yet to come on the earth; and King David, “a man after [God’s] own heart” (1 Samuel 13:14), to name a few.
When the anointed One came, He would be more than just another prophet. He would be the Prophet, the Priest, and the King.
All these prophets contributed to the great story of God’s redemption of mankind through the promised Savior, Israel’s Messiah, Jesus. Collectively, their prophecies revealed that when the anointed One came, He would be more than just another prophet. He would be the Prophet, the Priest, and the King.
The Subject and Fulfillment of Prophecy
Following the Exodus from Egypt and with his own ministry coming to an end, Moses prophesied of Jesus, “The Lᴏʀᴅ your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your midst, from your brethren. Him you shall hear” (Deuteronomy 18:15). Then, God said, “I … will put My words in His mouth, and He shall speak to them all that I command Him. And it shall be that whoever will not hear My words, which He speaks in my name, I will require it of him” (vv. 18–19). For more than 1,400 years after, the Old Testament prophets spoke of His coming while the faithful of each generation anticipated His advent.
When Jesus was born, several prophecies converged in an irrefutable demonstration that He was the One they had been awaiting. He was born of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14), in the town of Bethlehem (Micah 5:2), at the specific time revealed to Daniel (Daniel 9:25). King Herod tried to kill the Child by putting to death all baby boys up to two years of age, causing great agony among mothers in Bethlehem near Ramah (Matthew 2:18; cf. Jeremiah 31:15). And when He was about to commence His ministry, John the Baptist prepared the way for Him as foretold (Isaiah 40:3; Malachi 3:1).
Jesus was the Prophet foretold by Moses and raised up by God.
From the time He was born, Jesus uniquely fulfilled many specific prophecies. And that was just the start! His teaching, compassion, wisdom, love, example, and life fulfilled so much more that had been prophesied and demonstrated the very heart of God towards mankind. No wonder Peter’s experience of Christ led him to write, “We have the prophetic word confirmed” (2 Peter 1:19); and to John it was revealed that “the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy” (Revelation 19:10). Jesus was both the subject and fulfillment of biblical prophecy.
Jesus was the Prophet foretold by Moses and raised up by God, and He repeatedly reminded His listeners that His message came directly from the Father, saying, “My doctrine is not Mine, but His who sent Me” (John 7:16; cf. 8:28; 17:8). To His disciples, He revealed many things including His impending death and resurrection (Matthew 16:21), Judas’ betrayal (26:21–25), Peter’s denial (v. 34), and even what the owner of a donkey He needed on Palm Sunday would say to them (21:2–3). In His public ministry, the crowds widely recognized Him as a prophet (16:14; 21:11; John 7:40); specifically, the Samaritan woman at the well (John 4:19) and the blind man healed near the pool of Siloam (9:17) recognized His role.
The Prophet Unlike Any Other
Jesus was indeed a prophet, but He differed from all who had come before Him in significant ways:
• He is the perfect Prophet. The article “Jesus the Prophet” sums up this point well: “Jesus replaces the prophets not because He is entirely different from the prophets; He replaces them because He is the Prophet par excellence, the fulfillment of all that the prophets anticipated.”
While many other prophets performed miracles in God’s name, Jesus’ authority was superior to them all.
• He challenged the traditions and interpretations of the religious leaders of the day, repeatedly using two contrasting declarations: “You have heard that it was said. … But I say to you” (Matthew 5). He uniquely cut through formal pronouncements to reveal their underlying truths.
• He spoke as One with authority: over people (Mark 1:17–20), as a teacher (vv. 21–22), over evil spirits (vv. 23–27), over sickness (vv. 40–42), and to forgive sins (2:3–12). While many other prophets performed miracles in God’s name, Jesus’ authority was superior to them all.
• Unlike other prophets, He does not point to another when declaring the way of salvation. It rests upon Him alone (John 14:6)
• His disciples recognized Jesus was the incarnate Word of God: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And the word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:1, 14). This could be said of no other prophet.
God’s revelation of Himself and His story of redemption involved many prophets and faithful servants over centuries. Some performed mighty miracles, some revealed amazing things still yet to come to pass, some suffered greatly and were despised and hunted by their enemies. But, Jesus, the perfect Prophet, is both the fulfillment of all that has been revealed and God’s last great Prophet.
The writer to the Hebrews phrased it well: “God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son” (Hebrews 1:1–2). We thank God for His indescribable gift: Jesus, our Savior, the perfect Prophet.
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The writer to the Hebrews phrased it well: “God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son” (Hebrews 1:1–2)
I know what you mean.
Before salvation when I was awarded valedictorian of my high school class, Spingarn High gave me a female victory statue. It was a light green woman, standing on a base, {not sure if it was gold or silver} with her arms stretched upward. The interesting thing is that she had two wings attached to her, one wing on each side. They pointed upward, too. As time went on, I misplaced the statute. But one more interesting thing is that one of the wings broke. The other wing remained intact. God revealed his will, even back then. Today, now it has been more than forty years, since I heard God speak through his Son, “Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.” This is what Christ said to me in 1982.