It is important to recognize that the prophecies of Moses that we call the Law of Moses is the measure of all other prophecy.

It is also obvious that there were many other prophets who spoke for God and were recognized for their ministry whose words were never recorded as Scripture.  Abraham was called a prophet by God Himself.  Miriam had the reputation as a prophetess beyond the song of victory that she wrote.  Samuel had words of prophecy.  It says God did not allow any of his words to fall to the ground but does not identify those words.  Saul met a group of prophets and asked them where his father’s donkeys were. They told him but it is not recorded why he thought asking them would be useful. What reputation did they have?  Meeting one of these guys would be great when I can’t find my car in the huge local mall, never mind the keys.  Then we could move to Stephen’s seven daughters who prophesied and Agabus who is only recorded as having one prophecy but who had a reputation as a prophet not just bringing encouragement but also foretelling the future.  With some thought you can add to the list.  Prophecy in and of itself is not now and never was considered Scripture even if it was accurate and met all the other requirements of valid prophecy.  There were other factors at work that caused our spiritual forefathers to esteem some prophetic revelation and place it in a unique category and compile it in books and draw them together in the canon of Scripture.

Did the prophets know they were writing Scripture? I think not.  I think they were concerned to hear correctly and record their words accurately.  Others made the decision, under the direction of the Holy Spirit, to collect their words and in some cases edit them, and record them with great care and pass them on from generation to generation.

Prophecy is a precious gift in our assemblies.  It is  important to desire it and to pay attention to it even as it creates tests for us in discernment and application.

Ken Hall c. Dec. 12, 2014 all rights reserved.