The Mission of Prophets

Prophets are commonly perceived as possessing the gift of being able to reveal the future, so that the words  prophecies and predictions have become synonymous. However, in its evangelical sense the word prophet has a broader meaning. It applies to all who have been sent by God  with the mission of instructing humankind and revealing hidden the things and mysteries of the spiritual life. Hence, a person can be a prophet without making predictions. That was the notion of the Jews during the time of Jesus. Thus, when he was taken before the high priest, Caiaphas, the assembled scribes and elders spat in his face, struck him with their fists and insulted him by saying, “Christ, prophecy for us and tell us who struck you.” Nevertheless, there have been instances in which prophets have had foreknowledge of the future, whether by intuition or by providential revelation, in order to transmit warnings to  humankind.  Since such predicted events actually occurred, the gift of predicting the future came to be regarded as one of the attributes of a prophet.