1. Prophecy is an important topic in the New Testament. It has to do with God and divine self-revelation and the Lord’s attempt to communicate through the prophets with humanity, especially with His children.GOP 55.2

2. The prophets mentioned and described in the New Testament are Old Testament prophets, New Testament prophets, and Jesus as prophet par excellence. In Him the office of the prophet reaches its climax.GOP 55.3

3. In the Pauline writing prophets are linked to the topic ecclesiology. The ministry of prophets is one of the spiritual gifts. “Prophecy, in fact, is the only constant in Paul’s ‘lists’ of charismata (1 Corinthians 12:8-11, 28-30; 13:1-2; Romans 12:6-8).” ^{28Boring, 498.} Prophecy belongs to the leadership gifts. The church is “built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the cornerstone” (Eph. 2:20, NKJV). Therefore, prophets have a foundational ministry.GOP 55.4

4. Prophets can be male or female. “Their presence and activity were widespread (cf. Acts 20:23 with 21:10, 11). . . . They worked within the framework of the Church.” ^{29A. Lamorte and G. F. Hawthorne, “Prophecy, Prophet,” in Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, ed. Walter A. Elwell (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1984), 887.}GOP 55.5

5. The messages of genuine prophets come both in oral form (see Agabus) and in written form (see John and the Apocalypse). The written form of prophecy can be either canonical or noncanonical. See Paul’s Second Letter to the Thessalonians as an example of canonical prophecy and Paul’s letter to the Laodiceans—Colossians 4:16—as an example of noncanonical prophecy. 30 Obviously, noncanonical prophecy coming from a genuine prophet is as authoritative as an oral prophetic message.GOP 55.6

6. The term “prophecy” points to and is linked to the book of Revelation, the New Testament, and to Scripture as a whole. “The Spirit of prophecy” ^{30Although it is discussed whether Paul wrote the letter or someone else did, it is widely support by scholars that Paul was its author. See, e.g., James D. G. Dunn, The Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon, The New International Greek Commentary (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1996), 286, 287; Eduard Lohse, Colossians and Philemon, Hermeneia — A Critical and Historical Commentary on the Bible (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1971), 174, 175; Petr Pokorný, Der Brief des Paulus an die Kolosser, Theologischer Handkommentar zum Neuen Testament 5 (Berlin: Evangelische Verlagsanstalt, 1990), 164; Charles H. Talbert, Ephesians and Colossians, Paideia Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2007), 242; Marianne Meye Thompson, Colossians and Philemon, The Two Horizons New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2005), 107. In addition, the Corinthian correspondence seems to indicate that Paul wrote at least one additional letter to the believers in Corinth (1 Cor. 5:9; 2 Cor. 2:3, 4) that has not been preserved in the canon.} is the Holy Spirit that speaks through the gift of prophecy, that is, the ministry and the messages of genuine prophets, including that of Ellen G. White, as Adventists believe.GOP 55.7

7. While the New Testament highlights the importance of genuine prophecy, it clearly warns against false prophets with their heresies. It also provides criteria to distinguish between the true and the false. Revelation adds a new dimension by singling out the false prophet, the climax of all false prophecy, which will be involved in the last showdown between the divine powers and the satanic agencies.GOP 56.1

8. Although the vocabulary “prophet,” “prophecy” or “to prophesy” is frequently associated with prophets of God, in the New Testament other vocabulary or other concepts may also be used to identify persons as genuine prophets. A prophet, whether called so or not, would receive divine revelations that he or she communicates with God’s people and/or humanity.GOP 56.2

9. Here we have to pause for a moment. When talking about the gift of prophecy, one has to also speak about the giver of the gift, the Holy Spirit. As just mentioned, He is called Spirit of prophecy in Revelation. As such He is pervasive in the book, ^{31See Ekkehardt Müller, “O Espírito Santo no Livro de Apocalipse,” in Reinaldo W. Siqueira and Alberto R. Timm, orgs., Pneumatologia: pessoa e obra do Espírito Santo (Engenheiro Coelho, SP, Brazil: Unaspress, 2015), 321-352.} especially through the related term “testimony of Jesus.” The activity of the Holy Spirit as Spirit of prophecy is, for instance, clearly exhibited at the end of all messages to the seven churches, namely, through the phrase “what the Spirit says to the churches” (e.g., Rev. 2:7). The Spirit of prophecy, although not called this way, is also very active in the book of Acts. He is associated with the word family prophēt- in Acts 2:17, 18; 19:6; 28:25. The Holy Spirit spoke (legō) to Philip (Acts 8:29), to Peter (Acts 10:19; 11:12,13) , and to the prophets in Antioch (Acts 13:1, 2). He spoke (laleō) through the prophet Isaiah (Acts 28:25). On the other hand, Paul and Timothy were “forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia” (Acts 16:6, NASB). The Holy Spirit testified (diamartyromai) to Paul. However, the Holy Spirit did not only speak to the prophets but also through them. He foretold (prolegō) things and spoke (legō) through the mouth of David (Acts 1:16; 4:25). Finally, Agabus approached Paul and told him: “This is what the Holy Spirit says” (Acts 21:11, NASB). The source of true prophecy is the Holy Spirit.GOP 56.3

New Testament Prophets Who Are Not Directly Called “ Prophet”

The Relation Between Old Testament Prophecy and New Testament Prophecy