What is a prophet? Typically we think of prophets as those special individuals who can predict the future (e.g., Nostradamus). Unfortunately, when we read the prophets of the Old Testament in that way, it can (and does) lead to misunderstanding. Biblical prophets were visionary but not fortune tellers. They were more like prosecutors laying out their cases before the king and the people in the hopes that both would change their ways. While those cases might include predictions of disaster, those predictions were more the working out of the king's and the people's current path. All in the hopes the people would choose to seek equity and justice, mercy, and walk humbly.
What is a prophet? Typically we think of prophets as those special individuals who can predict the future (e.g., Nostradamus). Unfortunately, when we read the prophets of the Old Testament in that way, it can (and does) lead to misunderstanding. Biblical prophets were visionary but not fortune tellers. They were more like prosecutors laying out their cases before the king and the people in the hopes that both would change their ways. While those cases might include predictions of disaster, those predictions were more the working out of the king's and the people's current path. All in the hopes the people would choose to seek equity and justice, mercy, and walk humbly.