Patriarch and Prophet
1. Where is the first mention of the word “prophet” in the Bible and who was he?
Gen. 20:7 Now therefore restore the man his wife; for he is a prophet, and he shall pray for thee, and thou shalt live: and if thou restore her not, know thou that thou shalt surely die, thou, and all that are thine.
ANSWER:
Genesis 20:7
Abraham
2. What was Abraham’s role as a prophet in Genesis chapter 20?
Gen. 20:7 Now therefore restore the man his wife; for he is a prophet, and he shall pray for thee, and thou shalt live: and if thou restore her not, know thou that thou shalt surely die, thou, and all that are thine.
ANSWER:
Intercessor
3. Who was the first prophet in the Bible?
Jude 1:14 And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints
ANSWER:
Enoch
NOTE:
Luke 11:50 That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation; Luke 11:51 From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, which perished between the altar and the temple: verily I say unto you, It shall be required of this generation.
Compare Luke 11:50-51 with Matthew 23:35.
Matt. 23:35 That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar.
According to Luke 11:50-51, it seems as though Abel is called as a prophet. However in Matthew 23:35, Abel is called as a righteous person. Therefore we can conclude that Jesus was saying all righteous people and the prophets that are martyred. Therefore, Able was a righteous person and not so much a prophet.
4. What kind of life did Enoch live when he was on the earth?
Gen. 5:24 And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.
ANSWER:
Enoch walked with God
5. Who was the second prophet in the Bible?
Gen. 7:1 And the LORD said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation.
ANSWER:
Noah
6. What kind of life did Noah live on the earth?
Matt. 5:17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.
Gen. 6:9 These are the generations of Noah: Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God.
ANSWER:
Noah walked with God
OBSERVATION:
Noah was a just and a perfect man because he walked with God.
7. What did God ask Abraham to do in Gen. 17:1?
Gen. 17:1 And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect.
ANSWER:
To walk before or with Him
8. What does it mean walk with God?
Deut. 10:12 And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul,
Deut. 10:13 To keep the commandments of the LORD, and his statutes, which I command thee this day for thy good?
ANSWER:
To love and to obey God
CONCLUSION
Certain men were chosen to be God’s prophet and patriarch because they were men who “walked with God”
The First Named Prophet of Israel
1. Who was the first named prophet for Israel?
Deut. 34:10 And there arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face
ANSWER:
Moses
2. What does it mean for God to know Moses face to face?
Ex. 33:11 And the LORD spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend.
ANSWER:
To know Moses as His friend
3. How did Jesus describe who are His friends?
John 15:14 Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.
ANSWER:
Obedient
4. What do the following texts tell us about Moses’ personality and character?
Ex. 4:10 And Moses said unto the LORD, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue.
Ex. 32:11 And Moses besought the LORD his God, and said, LORD, why doth thy wrath wax hot against thy people, which thou hast brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great power, and with a mighty hand? Ex. 32:12 Wherefore should the Egyptians speak, and say, For mischief did he bring them out, to slay them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth? Turn from thy fierce wrath, and repent of this evil against thy people. Ex. 32:13 Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, thy servants, to whom thou swarest by thine own self, and saidst unto them, I will multiply your seed as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have spoken of will I give unto your seed, and they shall inherit it for ever.
Ex. 32:32 Yet now, if thou wilt forgive their sin--; and if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book which thou hast written.
Num. 12:3 (Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.)
Num. 20:10 And Moses and Aaron gathered the congregation together before the rock, and he said unto them, Hear now, ye rebels; must we fetch you water out of this rock? Num. 20:11 And Moses lifted up his hand, and with his rod he smote the rock twice: and the water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their beasts also. Num. 20:12 And the LORD spake unto Moses and Aaron, Because ye believed me not, to sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have given them.
ANSWER:
Ex. 4:10 –Humble
Ex. 32:11 –Persistent
Ex. 32:32 –Self-sacrifice
Num. 12:3 –Meek
Num. 20:10 –Impetuous
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
Why did God allow the water to come out of the rock when Moses disobeyed His command by striking the rock?
Why didn’t God choose Aaron to be the leader of Israel?
What is the major difference between Moses and Aaron?
CONCLUSION:
God called Moses to be His prophet because Moses was humble and willing to obey whatever God asked him to do although Moses may be impetuous.
Prophets in the Bible
1. This is a general list of many prophets in the Bible and not a comprehensive list.
- Enoch (Jude 1:14)
- Abraham (Genesis 20:7)
- Joseph (Genesis 37:5 - 11)
- Moses (Deuteronomy 34:10)
- Miriam (Exodus 15:20) (Female)
- Aaron (Exodus 7:1)
- Eldad (Numbers 11:26)
- Medad (Numbers 11:26)
- Deborah (Judges 4:4) (Female)
- Samuel (1 Samuel 3:20)
- Nathan (2 Samuel 7:2)
- David (Psalms)
- Solomon (Proverbs, Song of Solomon, and Ecclesiastic)
- Gad (2 Samuel 24:11)
- Ahijah (1 Kings 11:29)
- Jehu (1 Kings 16:7)
- Elijah (1 Kings 18:22)
- Elisha (1 Kings 19:16)
- Micaiah (1 Kings 22:8)
- Shemaiah (2 Chronicles 12:15)
- Eliezer (2 Chronicles 20:37)
- Huldah (2 Kings 22:14) (Female)
- Iddo (2 Chronicles 13:22)
- Azariah (2 Chronicles 15:1)
- Oded (2 Chronicles 15:8)
- Jahaziel (2 Chronicles 20:14)
- Zechariah son of Jehoiada (2 Chronicles 24:20)
- Agur (Book of Proverbs 30:1)
- Isaiah (2 Kings 20:1)
- Jeremiah (2 Chronicles 36:12)
- Ezekiel (Ezekiel 1:3)
- Daniel (Matthew 24:15)
- Hosea (Hosea 1:1)
- Joel (Acts 2:16, Joel 1:1)
- Amos (Amos 7:8)
- Obadiah (Obadiah 1:1)
- Jonah (2 King 14:25, Jonah 1:1)
- Micah (Jeremiah 26:18, Micah 1:1)
- Nahum (Nahum 1:1)
- Habakkuk (Habakkuk 1:1)
- Zephaniah (Zephaniah 1:1)
- Haggai (Haggai 1:1)
- Zechariah son of Berechiah (Zechariah 1:1)
- Malachi (Malachi 1:1)
- Anna (Luke 2:36) (Female)
- John the Baptist (Luke 7:28)
- Barnabas (Acts 13:1)
- Simeon Niger (Acts 13:1)
- Manaen (Acts 13:1)
- Lucius of Cyrene (Acts 13:1)
- Agabus (Acts 21:10)
- John of Patmos (Revelation 1:1)
2. Those who prophesied or saw a vision
- Elisabeth, mother of John the Baptist (Luke 1:41)
- Joseph, stepfather of Jesus (Matthew 1:20)
- Mary, mother of Jesus (Luke 1:26-28)
- King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon (Daniel 2:1)
- King Saul (1Samuel 10:10)
- Simeon of Jerusalem (Luke 2:25, 26)
- Philip’s four daughters also prophesied (Acts 21:8, 9)
- The seventy elders of Israel (Numbers 11:25)
- Zechariah, father of John the Baptist (Luke 1:67)
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS BASED UPON ABOVE LISTS:
What makes someone a prophet?
Could someone prophesied and not be a prophet?
Why would God use an obvious imperfect person like Jehu to speak for Him?
Does God want all of His people to be His prophets (Num. 11:29)?
Does God require a perfect life before He calls the person to be His prophet?
What does God look for when He calls someone to be His prophet?
Could someone be a prophet of God just for a day or a week?
What would happen to the message of that “one week” prophet if he decided to walk away from God?
No comments:
Post a Comment