Who are the 17 prophets in the old testament? The timeline of prophets in the bible begins with Adam, who was the first prophet. He received revelations from God and passed them on to his children. Then, there was Enoch, who prophesied about the flood and other things. After him came Noah, who warned people about the coming flood. Check out Prophets of the Old Testament and 17 prophets in the old testament.
After that, there were many prophets such as Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Samuel and David. These prophets were known for receiving revelations from God and passing them on to their people. They were also instrumental in bringing forth new laws that would help guide their people through difficult times.
The next group of prophets had a strong connection with Jesus Christ because they received revelations from God while they were still alive but they did not pass them on to anyone else until after Jesus died on the cross and resurrected three days later. These men include John the Baptist (who baptized Jesus), Peter (one of Jesus 12 apostles), Paul (one of Jesus 12 apostles), James (another one of Jesus 12 apostles) and John (the author of Revelation).
Who Are The 17 Prophets In The Old Testament
Introduction. The purpose of this survey is to examine a somewhat “dustier” part of the Bible’s library of books. While religious people in general are somewhat familiar with the historical books in the Old Testament (Genesis, Exodus, Judges, 1&2 Samuel, 1&2 Kings, etc.), many people have limited or no familiarity with some of the prophetic works in the OT.
The Books. This survey will cover what is commonly known as the Major and Minor Prophets of Isaiah through Malachi. The first five books (Isaiah through Daniel) are commonly described as “major” simply due to their length relative to twelve, shorter prophetic books (Hosea through Malachi). The following dates are approximate.
| Old Testament Order 740-690 B.C. Isaiah627-585 B.C. Jeremiah585 B.C. Lamentations 592-570 B.C. Ezekiel606-536 B.C. Daniel760-710 B.C. Hosea 830 B.C. Joel 760-750 B.C. Amos845 B.C.? Obadiah 780-750 B.C. Jonah 735-700 B.C. Micah 650-612 B.C. Nahum612-606 B.C. Habakkuk525 B.C. Zephaniah 520 B.C. Haggai 520-518 B.C. Zechariah 445-425 B.C. Malachi | The Major and Minor Prophets cover over a 400 year span from roughly 850 B.C. to 425 B.C.: Five written between the death of Solomon and the fall of the Northern Kingdom Eight written prior to the fall of the Southern Kingdom Four written after the return from Babylonian captivity | Chronological Order 845 B.C.? Obadiah 830 B.C. Joel 780-750 B.C. Jonah 760-750 B.C. Amos 760-710 B.C. Hosea 740-690 B.C. Isaiah 735-700 B.C. Micah 650-612 B.C. Nahum 627-585 B.C. Jeremiah 625 B.C. Zephaniah 612-606 B.C. Habakkuk 606-536 B.C. Daniel 592-570 B.C. Ezekiel 585 B.C. Lamentations 520 B.C. Haggai 520-518 B.C. Zechariah 445-425 B.C. Malachi |
Historical Background of the Books. The nation of the Israelites was unified under the kingship of Saul, David, and Solomon between roughly 1050 B.C. and 930 B.C. (described in 1 & 2 Samuel, 1 Kings 1-11). With the death of King Solomon, the nation divided along tribal boundaries (1 Kings 12). Roughly ten tribes in the northern part of the nation aligned to form the Northern Kingdom, often referred to as “Israel” in the scriptures. Roughly two tribes in the southern part of the nation aligned to form the Southern Kingdom, often referred to as “Judah” in the scriptures.
Over the centuries, both kingdoms suffered from external military threats from surrounding Gentile kingdoms, including Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, and Persia. Around 720 B.C., the nation of Israel fell to the Assyrian Empire and was scattered throughout their Empire never to return (2 Kings 17). The nation of Judah fell to the Babylonian Empire around 600 B.C. (2 Kings 25). Much of the nation was taken into captivity by the Babylonians, but allowed to return to their lands starting around 540 B.C. (Ezra 1) after the Babylonians were conquered by the Medes/Persians (Dan. 5).
Timeline of prophets in the bible
The Authors and the Audiences. Each of the 17 books is entitled with the person’s name normally credited with writing the book (Lamentations also written by Jeremiah is the exception). These 16 men all appear to be of Jewish descent, although we know little about most of them. 15 appear to have been from the Southern Kingdom while one was from the Northern Kingdom (Hosea).
Most of these prophetic works were written to address the spiritual apostasy of the Jews. Such apostasy often took the form of disregard for the Law of Moses and overt idol worship of pagan gods. Most of the books were addressed to the Southern Kingdom with two of the books being addressed primarily to the Northern Kingdom (Hosea, Amos).
Interestingly, three of the books were addressed to Gentile nations (Jonah, Obadiah, Nahum). This shows God held Gentile nations accountable for their actions, although they were not subjects of the Law of Moses.
Messages for Christians. While the books of the Major and Minor Prophets were written to predominately Jewish audiences over 2500 years ago, many of their messages are echoed in the books of the New Testament written for Christians. Hence, we can obtain spiritual value by becoming familiar with these ancient books. We can also gain a greater appreciation for the interaction of God with both Jew and Gentile peoples as well as improve our knowledge of the overall historical framework of ancient events in the Middle East.
Approach. This survey takes a historical-chronological approach. The sequence of books in our Bibles is not based entirely on the chronology of when they were written. Although there is some uncertainty regarding dates of authorship, each book is addressed in somewhat chronological order and within its historical setting. At the end of the survey is an epilogue bridging the time between the last prophet, Malachi, and the New Testament.
The discussion of each book is organized similarly to this Introduction and addresses the following topics:
- Historical Background of the Book
- The Author and the Audience
- Outline/Major Themes
- Messages for Christians
Credits. This material and the survey of each book were originally presented as a series of ten minute Wednesday night talks at the Holly Street church of Christ in Denver, Colorado, between 2007 and 2009. Special recognition is given to the following major sources of information:
- “A Book-by-Book Study of the Old Testament” by Rubel Shelly
- “The Pulpit Commentary” by Hendrickson Publishers
- www.bible-history.com for maps of the Middle East
Prophet is a term used to describe an individual who has been called by God to deliver a message from God. In the Hebrew Bible, the word “prophet” is then applied to many who speak in the name of God or express God’s word:
Prophets of the Old Testament
The prophets in the Old Testament were primarily concerned with proclaiming God’s will and judgment on Israel and Judah. The prophets also foretold of Messiah’s coming, thus fulfilling their office as “seers” (see Isa. 29:10). The following is a list of Old Testament prophets:
1) Adam (Genesis 3:15)
2) Seth (Genesis 5:3)
3) Enoch (Genesis 5:24; 6:1-4; Jude 14)
4) Methuselah (Genesis 5:21-27)
5) Noah (Genesis 6:9-10; 7:1-5; 8:20-22; 9:6-17; 10:1-32; 11:10-32; 12:1-9)
6) Shem (Genesis 11:10-26; 12:1-3, 4b; 13:8b-13a [
major and minor prophets in chronological order
The prophets in the Bible are listed in chronological order below, along with a brief description of their stance on human rights and social justice.
Moses (c. 1391-1271 BCE): Moses is the prophet who led the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt and into the Promised Land; he was also one of the first to speak out for human rights, advocating for women and slaves as well as for children. He was known for his compassion, and many believed that he possessed supernatural powers.
Abraham (c. 1813-1762 BCE): Abraham was an important figure in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam; he is considered by some to be the founder of monotheism because he believed in one God. He also took care of his nephew Lot when Lot’s father died. According to tradition, Abraham taught his wife Sarah how to read so she could do household tasks like sewing or cooking while he traveled; this is often cited as evidence that literacy was valued among ancient peoples like those who lived during Abraham’s time period (which overlaps with Moses’ life!).