The case of the prophet who didn’t prophesy

There is no blueprint for prophets in the bible.  There’s Jonah who runs from God, Moses who doesn’t want to speak and Amos who flatly denies being a prophet.  There’s Jeremiah who is told to prophecy but also told that no-one will listen, Ezekiel who speaks to dry bones and David who sings his prophecies.  Then there is Abraham, the prophet who didn’t prophesy.  

Abraham is a hugely significant figure in scripture.  Paul tells us that all who have faith in God are his sons.  His relationship with God was dynamic, as God progressively revealed to him not just his purposes for him but also for his distant descendants.  He had visions and encounters with God.  He clung onto the promise of a child even when Sarah his wife was past childbearing age.  And in being ready to sacrifice his only child but also believing that God could raise him from the dead, he anticipated the central drama of God’s plan of salvation; the death and resurrection of Jesus.  But scripture does not record a single “thus says the Lord” prophetic word from Abraham. In view of this why do we call him a prophet?  Surely to be a prophet you have to prophesy?   

God himself calls Abraham a prophet in Genesis 20.  He tells King Abimelech that “he (Abraham) is a prophet, he will pray for you and you will live”.  So there can be no doubt about whether Abraham was a prophet.  But if this is true, perhaps we need to reconsider our idea of what a prophet is and whether our definition matches God’s.  

If a prophet is someone to whom God reveals his plans then Abraham fits the bill.  God not only reveals his intention to judge Sodom and Gomorrah but he allows Abraham to intercede for them.  Like other prophets, Abraham saw far past his own lifetime.  Not only did he receive and believe God’s promise of a land for his physical descendants, Hebrews 11 tells us that he was even looking beyond this to the city whose architect and builder was God, the Heavenly City.  He saw what existed only in God’s mind.  In being counted righteous because of his faith, Abraham experienced salvation by faith long before Paul preached it.  Despite his flaws – which scripture makes no attempt to hide – Abraham, perhaps more than anyone else in the Old Testament, sees God’s ultimate intentions: salvation by faith, resurrection, the new Jerusalem, a holy nation.  His life announced the will and the purposes of God.  He may never have proclaimed “thus says the Lord”, he may not have fitted our usual expectations of a prophet, but a prophet he certainly was.

In contrast with Abraham, there is another Old Testament figure who at first glance seems to better fit the usual definition of a prophet.  This person spoke with God, heard God accurately and communicated what he had heard.  He called down blessing on the people of God.  He even saw and spoke with an angel.  His ability to hear God was undoubted.  Based on all this you may be wondering what the problem is.  But this person is Balaam, the pagan diviner who helped lead the people of God into idolatry (Num.22-24).  Motivated by greed, he brought confusion and sickness to the Israelites.  Centuries later, his teachings were still causing problems for God’s people (Rev.2:14)

So we have the true prophet who didn’t prophecy and the false prophet who did.   What does this teach us?  Perhaps the most important lesson is that gift alone is not enough.  By itself it is worthless or even dangerous.  Chapter 13 of Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians puts it very clearly.  What God wants more than anything is that we embody and express his love.  Without it, we are nothing.  And remember that love is much more than an emotion.   It involves a conscious and willing commitment to care and is often sacrificial.  And love and obedience must go together.  Jesus declares that if we love him, we will keep his commandments.  Abraham made many mistakes but he obeyed, trusted, and worshipped God.  Every generation of God’s people have owed Abraham’s faithful obedience a great debt, whereas Balaam’s loveless and disobedient prophetic gift caused huge harm.   

“Perhaps the most important lesson is that gift alone is not enough.  By itself it is worthless or even dangerous. ”

We should not be too quick to say who is and who isn’t a prophet based on our traditions or preconceptions.  Would David be received as a prophet today or just a gifted songwriter? Would challenging and unconventional characters like Elijah and John the Baptist fit our expectations?   And what would we do with Abraham, the prophet who didn’t prophecy?  The need to weigh prophecy is as great as ever but we need to make sure the measures we are applying are God’s rather than our own.  

Abraham’s prophetic message was his life.  He saw and anticipated something that was yet to come.  Before the giving of the Law, without a community of faith around him, without the traditions and teachings that guided later prophets, he heard God and trusted him.  His willingness to put God first, even before his only son, is a level of commitment and obedience that still challenges us.