Prophets

So, where are we? We’ve gone through approximately one thousand years of Old Testament, and things are looking a little bleak for the Kingdom of Israel. After the successful reigns of David and Solomon, the kingdom began to deteriorate—mainly due to two reasons: heavy taxation and religious differences (1 Kings 12:1-11; 26-33).  As a result, Israel split into two kingdoms, the northern kingdom of Israel—representing ten of the twelve tribes, and the southern kingdom of Judah, representing the tribes of Judah and Benjamin.

The northern kingdom (Israel) was ruled by 19 kings, all of whom are depicted as evil. Idol worship was the order of the day, and the kingdom was eventually conquered by Assyria in 731 BC (these ten tribes are also known as the “Lost Tribes”) The southern kingdom (Judah) was ruled by 20 kings, and lasted a little bit longer but eventually fell to the Babylonians in 586 BC, with the inhabitants captured and taken to Babylon as slaves.  When Babylon was in turn conquered by Persia in 538 BC, the Persian king allowed the Israelites to return to their homeland in Judah. (2 Chron. 36:22)

During this tumultuous time, many different prophets appeared.  A prophet was a person who was considered a messenger from God, and oftentimes the message was a scolding—detailing the dire consequences for falling away from God—but on other occasions the prophets forecast peace, and a hopeful message of better times. Here are some of the more well-known prophets:

Elijah:  Appeared in the northern kingdom during the wicked reign of King Ahab and his wife Jezebel. Famous for bringing down “fire from heaven,” he appointed Elisha as his successor and then was taken up to heaven in a whirlwind. (1 Kings 17, 18, 19.)

Jeremiah: appeared during the last few decades of the southern kingdom, and is known as the “weeping prophet” due to his sorrow over the fate of his people. He endured intense persecution including imprisonment, being thrown into a cistern, and being beaten by priests and officials. (Book of Jeremiah, Book of Lamentations) 

Daniel:  a southern kingdom nobleman who was captured by the Babylonians. Daniel’s faithfulness to God landed him in a lion’s den, but God sent an angel that “shut the lions’ mouths.” (Daniel 6:22).

Isaiah: Handel’s favorite prophet, the lyrics to The Messiah were taken straight from the Book of Isaiah. (And remember, the Dead Sea Scrolls contained much of the Book of Isaiah, carefully preserved throughout the ages.) Isaiah lived in the southern kingdom, and his prophecies combined powerful warnings of divine judgment along with promises of future peace.

Fun fact:  One of Isaiah’s prophecies of peace is engraved on a wall outside the United Nations building: “They shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; one nation shall not lift up sword against another, nor shall they train for war again.”  (Is. 2:4)