Hungarian Church Press, 1968 (20. évfolyam, 2. szám)

1968-06-01 / 2. szám

HCP Vol XX Special Number

1968 No 2

60 -(07702)

The prophet is sent first of all to Israel, but, when he receives the task to convey some historical command^ then ybe also addresses the nations* Thus, for instance, Jeremiah speaks of Babel or Deutero-Isaiah of Cyrus, It also occurs that the prophet announces God's judgment against the peoples if they, by transgressing the laws of humaneness, provoke God's wrath (Amos 1:

15).

e) The Dynamic and' Eschatological Character of Prophecy

The prophet is the ambassador of God's Kingdom (nabhi' = legate,messenger). As the ambassador of the Kingdom, he has the Ward of God as the authentication of his mission. The meaning of the ward "d&bhar" contains noetic as'well as dynamic elements* "Dabhar" is the word which not only portrays reality but also shapes the worii, The Word given to the prophets is historical farce: ’’See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdomá, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down,to build, and to plant" — reads the narrative of Jeremiah's call,

Í s

Prophetic ministry is’ not confined to the interpretation and appraisal of the historical situations but is olosely related to the eschatological message received ■which speaks of the< coming cf the Messiah, the Servant of Yahweh, and the consummation of God's Kingdom» This eschatological message is God's final and conclusive answer to all the problems of human life, human society and human history. In the eschetological message of Deutero-Isaiah, prcphetic preaching attains, to the full width of the perspectives of revelation history, salvation history and universal world history*

The true prophets of Yahweh are always in conflict with the false prophets who, too, claim Yahweh's athority for their message. Even if it is possible to enumerate, in the retrospective view, the diacritical notes of true prophecy (unconditional obedience to the Word received, freedom from human bondages, the proclamation of the shalom only under the condition cf the mishpat), the final authentication of the true prophet is with God.

B/ Prcphetic Service in the New Testament a) Prophecy in tbc Time cf Jesus

Although it was a generally accepted dogma at the time cf Jesus, in the period of early Rabbinismj that prophecy in Israel had come to its aid,we nonetheless do well if we regard the apocalyptic literature as a late successor to Old Testament prqhecy. The apocalyptic •writings - under pseudonyms, in view of the dogna about the termination of prophecy, und" ■ the names of classical prophets *- proclaim the judgment cf God in chiffres, in a coded manner, but always with a topical emphasis.

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