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The Gift of Prophecy

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    Basic Continuity

    Yet, in spite of some discontinuity, the New Testament highlights the basic continuity between Old Testament and New Testament prophecy. Here are some examples.GOP 59.1

    Prophetic Figures

    With John the Baptist, the line of the renowned Old Testament prophets, interrupted by the Intertestamental Period, was continued. Not only did his appearance, clothing, and lifestyle remind his contemporaries of some of the Old Testament prophets, his message did also. Seeing him, people recalled Elijah, and yet he was more than Elijah. He prepared the way for the Messiah. John W. Hilber maintains thatGOP 59.2

    the monumental transition in the kingdom that took place around the advent of Messiah and the founding of his church was accompanied by a flurry of prophetic activity. The proclamations around the birth of Jesus correspond in form and function with OT cultic prophecy. 45See John W. Hilber, “Diversity of OT Prophetic Phenomena and NT Prophecy,” Westminster Theological Journal 56 (1994): 255. Rice, 625, specifies: “With the opening chapter of Luke, the prophetic gift is seen in the hymns of Elizabeth, Mary, and Zechariah. All four gospels record the prophetic ministry of John the Baptist.”GOP 59.3

    Agabus performed a symbolic action (Acts 21:10, 11), 46Richard I. Pervo, Acts, Hermeneia — A Critical and Historical Commentary on the Bible (Minneapolis: Fortress, 2009), 537, claims: “The manner, a prophet who appears without preparation, the verbal style, and the use of symbolism are all characteristic of prophecy in the Hebrew Bible.” as did, for instance, Jeremiah and Ezekiel (Jer. 13; Eze. 12; 25), and John the revelator (Rev. 10:8-11; 11:1). His predictions of future events came true, fulfilling the Old Testament test for a genuine prophet.GOP 59.4

    Old Testament Prophecy in the New Testament

    Old Testament prophets appear frequently in the New Testament, and their message was foundational to the content not only of the Old Testament but also to the message of the New Testament. All major theological themes of the Old Testament are continued in the New Testament, beginning with the revelation of the Godhead, creation, sin, anthropology, and moving on to salvation, covenant, law, judgment, and eschatology, to name just a few. The New Testament is saturated with Old Testament quotations, allusions, and echoes. “ Prophētēs and its cognates are used in fulfillment formulas in New Testament citations of Old Testament prophets.” 47Farnell, “The Gift of Prophecy,” 398.GOP 59.5

    The typological approach to understanding Scripture, first employed in the Old Testament, is carried on in the New Testament, and both parts of Scripture are strongly linked through this approach. 48See, e.g., Richard M. Davidson, “New Testament Use of the Old Testament,” Journal of the Adventist Theological Society 5 (1994): 14-39; idem, “Biblical Interpretation,” in Handbook of Seventh-day Adventist Theology, Commentary Reference Series, vol. 12, ed. Raoul Dederen (Hagerstown, Md.: Review and Herald®, 2000), 83, 84; G. K. Beale, “Did Jesus and His Followers Preach the Right Doctrine From the Wrong Texts? An Examination of the Presuppositions of Jesus’ and the Apostles’ Exegetical Method,” Themelios 14 (1989): 89-96.GOP 60.1

    The foundational nature of prophets in the New Testament is expressed in Ephesians 2:20. 49For a discussion of the verse, see Farnell, “The Gift of Prophecy,” 407-409. In this case the prophets should not be understood as Old Testament prophets but as New Testament prophets. Throughout the letter to the Ephesians, Paul consistently understands prophets as New Testament prophets, in each case associated but not identical with the apostles and referring to the first century A.D. (Eph. 2:20; 3:5; 4:11). 50See Ernest Best, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Ephesians, The International Critical Commentary on the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments (London: T. & T. Clark, 2004), 282, 283; Andrew T. Lincoln, Ephesians, Word Biblical Commentary, vol. 42 (Dallas: Word, 1990), 153; Peter T. O’Brien, The Letter to the Ephesians, The Pillar New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1999), 214-216; Frank Thielman, Ephesians, Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2010.), 180, 181. Franz Mußner, Der Brief an die Epheser, Ökumenischer Taschenbuch-Kommentar zum Neuen Testament 10 (Gütersloh: Gütersloher Verlagshaus Gerd Mohn, 1982), 93, mentions that he has changed his position, subscribing now to New Testament prophets instead of Old Testament prophets.GOP 60.2

    Old Testament predictions are fulfilled, for instance, in the New Testament messianic predictions or the prediction of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on all flesh, including the prophetic gift (Joel 2:28 and Acts 2, especially verse 17). “The same spirit who empowered the Old Testament prophets is promised once again to return.” 51Farnell, “The Gift of Prophecy,” 388. There was a restoration of the prophetic gift as known in the Old Testament. Farnell concludes:GOP 60.3

    It is highly significant that Peter tied this beginning of New Testament prophecy with prophetic phenomena of the Old Testament. The word προφητεύω (“to prophesy”), which Peter used in Acts 2:17, is also used in the Septuagint in Joel 3:1 (2:28, Eng.). . . . In light of this, Joel 2 and Acts 2 establish a fundamental continuity between Old and New Testament prophecy. 52Ibid., 393. See also pages 388-393.GOP 60.4

    Prophetic Language and Experience

    The same prophetic terminology (the word family prophēt-), used already in the LXX, appears in the New Testament with no direct statements or hints that a shift in meaning has occurred. 53Cf. ibid., 398, where he states: “Clearly the New Testament makes no distinctions in vocabulary or phraseology between the Old and New Testament prophecy or prophets.” We will discuss 1 Corinthians 14 later. Prophetic revelation and speech formulas, such as “(and) I saw” (kai eidon), 54For instance, (kai) eidon, (“[and] I saw”), referring to divine revelations, occurs in the LXX [canonical part) of the Old Testament prophetic writings, e.g., Isaiah 6:1; Jeremiah 4:24; Ezekiel 1:14, 15; Daniel 8:4, 6, 7; Amos 9:1; Habakkuk 3:7, as well as in Acts 26:13 and Revelation 5:1; 7:1; 8:2; 9:2, etc. The Greek of the Aramaic part of Daniel uses another term—however, with the name basic meaning (theōreōDan. 4:13; 7:2). The full formula (kai) eidon kai idou (“I saw and behold”) occurs eight times in Ezekiel (e.g., 1:4, 15, twice in the Greek of the Hebrew part of Daniel (8:3 [however, only Theodotion]; 12:5 [both LXX and Theodotion]), five times in Zechariah (1:18; 2:1; 5:1, 9; 6:1), and seven times in Revelation (4:1; 6:2, 5, 8; 7:9; 14:1, 14). The rare term ophtē is used in a visionary sense in Jeremiah 38:3 and Daniel 8:1 (Theodotion) as well as in Revelation 11:19; 12:1, 3. “(and) I heard” (kai ēkousa), 55The audition formula (kai) ēkousa occurs in various prophetic books of the Old Testament (Isa. 6:8; 28:22; Jer. 4:31; 49:14; Eze. 1:24, 28; 2:2; 3:12, 13; Dan. 8:13, 16; 10:9; 12:7, 8) and in Acts 11:7; 22:7; 26:14, plus 27 times in Revelation (e.g., 5:13; 6:3; 7:4; 9:16; 16:5, 7). In the Old Testament prophets and in Revelation hearing is frequently connected to a voice (phonē)—Isa. 6:8; Eze. 1:28; 3:12; Dan. 8:16; 10:19; and Rev. 1:10; 4:1; 5:11; 6:1, 6, 7; 8:13; 9:13; 10:4, 8; 12:10; 14:2 (twice), 13; 16:1; 18:4; 19:1, 6; 21:3. The above-mentioned texts in Acts also link hearing to a voice. But even seeing (eidon) and hearing (ēkousa) appear together in Ezekiel 1:28 and Revelation 4:1; 5:11; 6:1, 5; 8:13. Frequently, it looks as if John’s Apocalypse surpasses the Old Testament in the usage of vision and audition terminology. “thus says (the Lord)” (tade legei [kyrios]), 56This phrase appears about 400 times in the Old Testament and eight times in the New Testament (Acts 21:11; Rev. 2:1, 8, 12, 18; 3:1, 7, 14). In almost all the cases it is God that speaks to people through His human agents. The term is found in Isaiah about 34 times (e.g., 19:4); in Jeremiah about 65 times (e.g., Jer. 2:3); in Ezekiel about 130 times (e.g., Eze. 11:7). It occurs in the historic books (e.g., Ex. 4:22; Judg. 6:8; 1 Sam. 2:27; 2 Sam. 7:8; 1 Kings 11:31; 2 Kings 7:1) and in the minor prophets (e.g., Amos 1:6; Mic. 2:3; Hag. 1:2; and about 25 times in Zechariah—e.g., 1:3). and references to visions, 57The Greek translations of the Old Testament use horama, horasis, and optasia to describe visions. The term horama occurs frequently in the Old Testament, especially in Daniel (e.g., 1:17; 7:1; 8:2; 10:1), but not in Revelation; in connection with the experiences of Ananias (Acts 9:10, 12), Peter (Acts 10:3, 17, 19; 11:5), and Paul (Acts 16:9, 10; 18:9). Horasis has the meaning “appearance” and “visions.” The article is only interested in the second usage. The term is found very frequently in the Old Testament. Visions from God are mentioned, for instance, in Ezekiel 1:1; 8:4; 40:2; Daniel 4:10, 19; 8:1, 15; 10:7, 8, 14, 16; Hosea 12:4; Joel 2:28; Obadiah 1; Nahum 1:1; Habakkuk 2:2, 3. The New Testament counterpart is Revelation 9:17. False visions are also shared (Eze. 13:7; Jer. 14:14). The term optasia appears in Daniel 10:7, 8 (Theodotion) and in Acts 26:19; 2 Corinthians 12:1, where it describes Paul’s Damascus experience and visions. dreams, 58Dreams from God are not often mentioned in the New Testament. The term onar is only used in the Matthean birth narrative (Matt. 1:20; 2:12, 13, 19, 22) and in the case of Pilate’s wife (Matt. 27:19). The terms enypnion (“dream”) and enypviazomai (“to have a dream”) occur frequently in the Old Testament. Important texts are Deuteronomy 13:1, 3, 5; Daniel 4:5; 8:2; and Joel 2:28 (English numbering). Joel 2 points to its fulfillment in Acts 2:17, where the term is used again. The dream can be a dangerous alternative to the Lord’s message and will. In Jeremiah the dream seems to be consistently an invention of the own heart and in opposition to the revelation of the Lord (Jer. 23:28; 29:8). and sometimes an angelic guide that accompanies the respective prophet occur. 59Angelic guides are found in Zechariah 1:9, 13, 14, 19; 2:3; 4:1, 4, 5; 5:5, 10; 6:4, 5; Acts 27:23; and Revelation 1:1; 10:9-11; 17:1-3, 7; 19:9, 10 (see context); 21:9, 10; 22:1, 2, 6, 8, 16. In both Old Testament and New Testament the same basic genres of classical prophecy and apocalyptic prophecy are found. Both Testaments have an element of conditionality in the case of classical prophecy (Jer. 18:7-10; Isa. 65; Rev. 2:7). The apocalyptic parts of Daniel and Revelation share many common elements, such as richness in symbols, an interest in the progressive nature of world history, and a cosmic dimension.GOP 61.1

    Divine Calling and Recognition by the Community

    Repeatedly the Old Testament reports that prophets have been called by God. Prophets were not mystics striving for the union or fusion with the divine. They were persons that believed in God, followed God’s will, and probably wanted to be close to God, yet recognized the chasm between fallen humanity and divine transcendence. 60Cf. Abraham J. Heschel, The Prophets, II (New York: Harper & Row, 1962), 136, 137. They were not striving to become prophets, but were called by God to be prophets and oftentimes trembled when considering the responsibilities associated with their call (Ex. 3; Jer. 1).GOP 62.1

    The Old Testament does not always explicitly state that prophets have received such a specific divine call. In some cases, they just appear on the stage of history and perform their ministry before disappearing again. However, major prophetic figures are depicted as having had a specific encounter with God in which they were appointed and commissioned by God. The list includes people such as Moses (Ex. 3), Samuel (1 Sam. 3), Nathan (2 Sam. 7:4, 5), Isaiah (Isa. 6), Jeremiah (Jer. 1), Ezekiel (Eze. 2), and Amos (Amos 7:14-17). There were also those who claimed to have received the word of the Lord. 61See Hos. 1:1; Joel 1:1; Jonah 1:1; Mic. 1:1; Hab. 1:1; Zeph. 1:1; Zech. 1:1; and Mal. 1:1. David knew that God was speaking through him (2 Sam. 23:2, 3). Obadiah (1) and Nahum (1:1) mentioned visions and a divine message given to them. It can be safely assumed that in one way or another all genuine prophets in Old Testament times were called by God.GOP 62.2

    Such a prophetic calling happened also in the New Testament. Examples are persons such as John the Baptist, who was filled with the Holy Spirit before he was born (Luke 1:13-15) 62I. Howard Marshall, The Gospel of Luke, The New International Greek Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1978), 58, talks about “the prenatal sanctification of John,” and continues to say: “Thus in the strongest possible way the divine choice of John for his crucial task is stressed.” and predicted to be a prophet by a prophetic utterance of his father (Luke 1:67, 76); Paul, who had his Damascus experience (Acts 9:15-17; 22:14-21; 26:15-18); and John the apostle, who had a specific vision of calling in Revelation 1. 63Verse 16 with the phrase “the things which you have seen and which I will yet reveal to you” may point to a prophetic dimension of Paul’s ministry. David G. Peterson, The Acts of the Apostles, The Pillar New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2009), 667, states that “the additional words ‘and will see of me’ anticipate further revelations of the Lord’s will . . .”GOP 62.3

    Prophets did not serve themselves but the community. Therefore recognition of the prophetic gift by the community of believers was and is important. According to both Testaments, prophets need to be tested in order for believers to recognize whether or not they are genuine prophets with a divine message. Old Testament and New Testament provide the criteria. 64These criteria include: (1) no materialistic attitude—Micah 3:9-12 (Acts 8:18-21), i.e., prophesying for money; (2) full agreement with the Holy Scriptures—Isaiah 8:19, 20; Deuteronomy 13:1-4; Revelation 22:18, 19; (3) recognition of Jesus Christ as Son of God and Savior who had become fully human—1 John 4:1-3 (1 Peter 1:10, 11); (4) good fruit, i.e., an exemplary conduct of life and an effective ministry—(Daniel 1-6); Matthew 7:15-21; (5) not only proclamation of messages that people like to hear—1 Kings 22:4-8; 2 Timothy 4:2, 3; and (6) fulfillment of predictions—Deuteronomy 18:22. This last criterion must include the possibility that the prophets’ statements are conditional in nature or contain conditional elements. See Jon K. Newton, “Holding Prophets Accountable,” The Journal of the European Pentecostal Theological Association 30, no. 1 (2010): 70-72. J. K. Newton presents an impressive “Table of Prophetic Criteria in the Bible,” showing how the same or similar criteria can be found in both Testaments. His criteria include “Christology,” “community,” “character,” “challenge,” “consummation (coming true),” “confirmation (supernatural evidence),” “clarity,” “content (constructive and beneficial),” “compassion,” and “control (protocol).” 65Newton, 65-67. “Clearly not all these criteria would be used in every case, but a prophecy or prophet that failed in any of them would become suspect.” 66Ibid., 64. In addition to criteria that help to establish whether a person claiming the prophetic gift is a true prophet or a false prophet, God has given the gift of discernment to the community of believers (1 Cor. 12:10) so that the false prophet can be distinguished from the true prophet.GOP 62.4

    Again there is continuity between prophecy in the Old Testament and prophecy in the New Testament. “The NT standard for evaluation prophets is comparable to relevant guidelines in the OT.” 67Farnell, “Fallible New Testament Prophecy/Prophets?” 175.GOP 63.1

    The Life of a Prophet

    The divine call makes a person a prophet. It deepens and widens the relationship that he or she already has with God. In other words, God brings about a special relationship with the prophet. His or her life is being transformed (1 Sam. 10:6; Gal. 2:20). That does not mean that God forces a person against his or her will to become a prophet. Jonah could still attempt to escape the prophetic task, and Balaam could go against God’s message and become the cause for the apostasy in Israel.GOP 63.2

    The prophetic ministry can be a burden and a joy at the same time. The prophet has to endure conflict and challenges, as A. Heschel notes:GOP 63.3

    To be a prophet is both a distinction and an affliction. The mission he performs is distasteful to him and repugnant to others; no reward is promised him and no reward could temper its bitterness. The prophet bears scorn and reproach (Jer. 15:15). He is stigmatized as a madman by the contemporaries, and, by some modern scholars, as abnormal. 68Abraham J. Heschel, The Prophets, I (New York: Harper & Row, 1955), 17, 18.GOP 63.4

    But it is not only the rejection of the prophetic message by a larger part of the community of faith that causes distress to the prophet, it is also the conflict with false prophets into which the true prophet is drawn (e.g., Jer. 23; 28; 29). “As in the OT, conflict is a major theme of prophecy in the New Testament. Jesus warned that false prophets would arise (Matt. 7:15; Mark 13:22). And Paul engaged in prophetic conflict at least once in his travels (Acts 13:6).” 69Hilber, 256. First and 2 John are witnesses to the extreme struggle that John had to engage in with the false prophets, called “antichrists.” But the struggle with false teachings and false prophecy can be seen in many books of the New Testament (e.g., 2 Peter 2, Jude, 1 Tim. 1:3, 4; 4; 6:3-5, 20). In Revelation 2:20 there is even the symbolic false prophetess Jezebel.GOP 64.1

    Yet in spite of conflict, the true prophet can also sing, “Your words were found and I ate them, and Your words became for me a joy and the delight of my heart; for I have been called by Your name, O Lord God of hosts” (Jer. 15:16, NASB) and he can exclaim: “Amen. Come, Lord Jesus” (Rev. 22:20, NIV)!GOP 64.2

    Revelation, Inspiration, and Transmission of a Message

    Prophecy and divine revelations are closely connected. After the call of a prophet typically God would repeatedly draw close to him or her, having an encounter with the prophet. In such encounters God would reveal Himself to the prophet and would also reveal His will and message. Heschel says perceptively: “It was not Isaiah who produced prophecy; it was prophecy which produced Isaiah.” 70Heschel, 2:188. And this is certainly true for all genuine prophets. We mentioned already the prophets’ claims to such experiences by the usage of formulas such as “I saw” (Dan. 7:2; Luke 10:18; Rev. 1:17), “I heard” (Isa. 6:8; Acts 11:7; Rev. 1:10); “the word of the Lord came to . . .” (Jer. 1:4), “the hand of the Lord was there upon me/with him” (Eze. 3:22; Luke 1:66). Divine revelations would, for instance, occur in visions and dreams (Num. 12:6: Rev. 4:1) as well as in auditions (1 Sam. 3; Rev. 12:10) or through an angel (Dan. 9:20-23; Luke 1:11, 12; Rev. 19:9). 71Niels Christian Hvidt, “Prophecy and Revelation: A Theological Survey on the Problem of Christian Prophecy,” Studia Theologica 52 (1998): 149, 150, describes four models of revelation: 1. “The epiphanic model of revelation,” which is “predominantly found in the Bible.” He suggests that this appeared “in the spirituality of Mary Margareth a la Coque.” Her revelations “were based on the Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus” (149). 2. “According to the instructive model [of revelation] that has been predominant in the Catholic tradition . . . , revelation primarily has to do with teaching.” He mentions Catherine Labouré at Rue de Bac in Paris who received revelation about Mary and was instrumental in spreading the dogma of the Immaculate Conception (149). 3. The “personalistic model of revelation” that “has been predominant after the time of the Lutheran orthodoxy. . . . Here revelation is primarily seen as the relationship between persons” (149). “The personalistic aspects prophecy can be viewed in the writings and spirituality of almost all recognized Christian prophets” (150). 4. “In the historical model, revelation is seen as manifestation of God’s action in and through history.” He sees this as given in Birgitta of Sweden and Catherine of Siena, who rebuked three rival popes (150). On pages 152, 153 he list other persons that he believes were proclaiming prophetic messages, such as Julian of Norwich (a woman), Birgitta of Vadstena, Jeanne d’Arc, and Faustina Kowalska. Most of these approaches would redefine what a biblical prophet is and go beyond Scripture by using it in a more general sense. We do not have precise knowledge about the nature of these revelations and “about the frequency with which the various prophets received such extraordinary revelation.” 72Gerhard von Rad, The Message of the Prophets (New York: Harper & Row, 1965), 46.GOP 64.3

    The second phase in the revelation process is that the prophets transmit to their audiences these direct and personal communications from God. 73Cf. Rice, 620. In a certain sense a prophet is a mediator between God and His children, even between God and humanity at large, “the mouthpiece of God.” 74Francis D. Nichol, ed., The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald®, 1957), 6:771. In the proclamation of the divine messages—orally, in symbolic actions, or in writing— the prophets were moved by the Holy Spirit, that is, inspired (2 Peter 1:20, 21). 75Heschel, 2:190-205, discusses various rationalistic attempts to explain the phenomenon of prophecy, revelation, and inspiration without recourse to a supernatural source and states: “Owing to a bias against any experience that eludes scientific inquiry, the claim of the prophets to divine inspiration was . . . a priori rejected.” David G. Firth and Paul D. Wegner, Presence, Power and Promise: The Role of the Spirit of God in the Old Testament (Downers Grove, Ill.: IVP Academic, 2011), 176, maintain: “Second Peter 1:20, 21 asserts that no prophecy of Scripture represents a private interpretation of reality, for no (true) prophecy was ‘auto-inspired,’ true prophets ‘spoked from God as they were borne along by the Holy Spirit’ . . .” Typically, they expressed the received truth in their own words, and yet the message was the Word of God. This is also what they claimed with phrases such as “thus says the Lord” (Isa. 43:14). 76This is also called the “message-formula.” See Rolf Rendtorff, “ איִבָנ in the Old Testament,” in Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, ed. Gerhard Friedrich (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1968), 6:810.GOP 65.1

    A third stage would occur occasionally and can be called inscripturation. The prophet is asked by God to write down his or her message (Jer. 36:27, 28; Rev. 1:19). God “guided the mind in the selection of what to speak and what to write.” 77Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy Between Christ and Satan (Mountain View, Calif.: Pacific Press®, 1911), vi. “Inspired revelations were . . . embodied in an inspired book.” 78Ibid., v.GOP 65.2

    The biblical references to this discussion on revelation, inspiration, and transmission reveal that the New Testament is in continuity with the Old Testament regarding the prophetic ministry.GOP 65.3

    The Content of the Message

    Some scholars see discontinuity between prophecy in the Old Testament and prophecy in the New Testament based on the content or approach taken by each Testament. R. Fisichella claims that the prophecy in the New Testament is very different from prophecy in the Old Testament. He suggests that “in NT prophecy, any kind of fear, judgment, and condemnation has completely disappeared.” 79Fisichella, 795.GOP 65.4

    Lastly, setting revelation in the light of prophecy means bringing out its specific content, which is God’s compassionate love. Prophecy is never given in the form of condemnation, judgment, or fear; on the contrary, it is always and exclusively a word of encouragement, trust, and hope. 80Fisichella, 796.GOP 65.5

    This is supposedly so because of the restoration of the relationship between God and humanity through Jesus’ death on the cross. Therefore, before His crucifixion and resurrection words of condemnation can still be found.GOP 66.1

    However, such an approach raises, for instance, serious questions about the message of Christ to the seven churches in the book of Revelation. There are threats of judgment (Rev. 2:5, 16, 21, 22; 3:16; 14:6-12), judgments through the trumpets and the plagues, the destruction of Babylon, which is a worldwide religious alliance, the condemnation of those holding on to vices (Rev. 21:8; 22:15), and the destruction of evil powers and unbelievers in the lake of fire (Rev. 19:20; 20:11-15). In Galatians 1:8 Paul ascribes to the opponents to his gospel eternal condemnation. In 2 Thessalonians 2:10-12 Paul states that those who do not love the truth will perish. Second Peter 2 and Jude describe false teachers in the church and their fate. 81Hvidt, 152, 153, argues against Fisichella, but on the basis of church history, not on the basis of Scripture. The messages of persons that he and maybe the Catholic Church regard as prophetic figures “contain many examples of the seriousness of God’s warnings, given the apostasy of his creatures” (153).GOP 66.2

    While salvation is strongly affirmed, the consequences of rejecting Jesus and His message are clearly exhibited. Old Testament prophecy also portrays the blessings of salvation and the curses associated with denying the Lordship of God. 82See e.g., the book of Isaiah.GOP 66.3

    Prophecy and Scripture

    As one studies the Gospels with the intention to find out how Jesus reacted to the Word of God of His time, the Old Testament, the following picture emerges: 83In His speeches and conversations Jesus alludes to Old Testament Scriptures almost constantly. However, these conclusions are based on a study of Jesus’ use of Old Testament characters, Old Testament narratives and legal material, and Old Testament quotations only. Of specific interest are the introductory formulas to these Old Testament quotations. For a more limited study, see Ekkehardt Mueller, “Jesús y el Pentateuco,” in Volviendo a los orígenes: entendiendo el Pentateuco. VI Simposio Bíblico-Teológico Sudamericano, ed. Merling Alomía, Segundo Correa, Víctor Choroco, and Edgard Horna (Lima: Universidad Peruana Unión, 2006), 287-326. Jesus trusted Scripture of His time completely. For Him, the Old Testament was God’s Word. He regarded the prophets as trustworthy messengers of the Word of God. They were inspired by God. Many of their prophecies were fulfilled in Himself. Jesus acknowledged the historical reliability of Scripture and believed that God’s will and work can be recognized through Scripture. Biblical teachings are founded on the Old Testament. Furthermore, the Old Testament as the Bible of Jesus’ time is the yardstick to evaluate ethical behavior and is the source to justify Jesus’ own conduct. Scripture is of practical value. It fosters faith and is a weapon against temptations.GOP 66.4

    In 2 Peter 1:19-21 Peter takes up the topic again. In this passage the phrase “the prophetic word” (NKJV) seems to be identical with “all prophecy of Scripture” and “prophecy.” Obviously these phrases describe the Word of God, at least the entire Old Testament. 84The term prophētikos occurs only in 2 Peter 1:19 (“the prophetic word” [logos]) and in Romans 16:26 (“the prophetic Scriptures” [graphai]). Are these limited to the prophetic part of the Old Testament? We do not think so. Typically, graphē in the singular and plural refers to the Old Testament (John 2:22; 5:39). Romans 16:25, 26 mentions the proclamation of Paul’s gospel and the prophetic writings by which the mystery is revealed, namely the person and the ministry of Jesus as the Christ. Romans 16:25, 26 may form an inclusion with Romans 1:1, 2: “the gospel of God which He promised before through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures” (NKJV). The prophets seem to be the Old Testament prophets in Romans 1:2 and the holy Scriptures the Old Testament. Likewise, the “prophetic writings” in Romans 16:26 seem to represent the Old Testament. In his letter to the Romans, Paul had used quotations from the Pentateuch, 1 Kings, Job, Psalms, Proverbs, and the classical prophets. The summary statement in Romans 16:26 ties them together under the expressive “prophetic writings.” There is little doubt that Paul has in mind the entire Old Testament. Cf. Nichol, ed., 6:652; E. Käsemann, An die Römer, Handbuch yum Neuen Testament (Tübingen: J.C.B. Mohr [Paul Siebeck], 1974), 410. The “prophetic word” of 2 Peter 1:19 seems to be a synonym of the “prophetic writings/Scriptures” as used by Paul. The center of Romans 16:25, 26 as well as of 2 Peter 1:19 is Christ, depicted as mystery in Romans and as morning star in 2 Peter. If this is true, the prophetic word would refer to the Old Testament as do the parallel expressions in 2 Peter 1:20, 21. “The involvement of the Spirit of God in the inspiration of the OT prophets is well known. Second Peter 1:21 gives classic expression to this notion.” 85Firth and Wegner, 184. However, New Testament writings may already and indirectly be included in this statement. The noun graphe (“Scripture”) occurs twice in 2 Peter (1:20 and 3:16). The verb grapho (“to write”) is also found twice (2 Peter 3:1, 15). We have the prophecy of Scripture (2 Peter 1:20). There is Peter writing his letter (2 Peter 3:1), and Paul has also written letters (verse 15), which are twisted by some, as it is done “with the other Scriptures” (plural of graphe—verse 16). The Pauline letters are at least to some extent equated with Scripture, the Old Testament. They are considered canonical works beside the canon of the Old Testament. G. L. Green emphasizes thatGOP 66.5

    early in the life of the church, the concept of “Scripture” was expanded to include the teachings of Jesus (1 Tim. 5:18; cf. Matt. 10:10; Luke 10:7). In the present verse, Peter takes one step further in the development of the canon, calling the writings of the OT “the other Scriptures.” Peter here implies that Paul’s letters are classified as “Scripture” as well. 86Green, 340. Peter H. Davids, The Letters of 2 Peter and Jude, The Pillar New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2006), 307, states: “Whatever the exact delimitations of our author’s Scriptures, clearly he is including Paul among them. There is really no other way to interpret the term ‘other.’ ” See also Duane F. Watson and Terrance Callan, First and Second Peter, Paideia Commentaries on the New Testament (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2012), 216: “Here the Letters of Paul are regarded as belonging to the same category as the Jewish Bible . . . .”GOP 67.1

    Second Peter 3:2 speaks about the holy prophets and the proclamation of the Lord’s commandment through the apostles. If the holy prophets are understood as Old Testament prophets, 87For a discussion, see Green, 312, 313. then we have another passage in 2 Peter that indicates that there is authoritative canonical word beside the Old Testament. 88A comparison with 2 Peter 1:16-21 indicates that the order apostolic word / prophetic word is reversed. Both seem to be linked, forming a unified testimony.GOP 67.2

    For our discussion, it is enough to notice that in 2 Peter the prophetic word is the Old Testament, and yet it includes New Testament authors such as Paul, who was an apostle and had the prophetic gift. This supports the notion of a basic continuity between Old Testament and New Testament prophecy. Farnell supports this conclusion by saying:GOP 68.1

    New Testament prophets and prophecy stood in direct line with their Old Testament counterparts who proclaimed God’s message and will to the people. Therefore New Testament prophecy is fundamentally a development and continuation of Old Testament prophecy. 89Farnell, “The Gift of Prophecy,” 393.GOP 68.2

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