Shabbat shalom kol beit Yisra'el and Mishpachah and welcome back to the third part of our series on the return of the Elijah Prophets.

Last week we closely examined the prophetic careers of Samuel the Seer, Balaam the pagan prophet and Deborah the Judge and have so far learned that there are at least four types of 'prophet' or categories of 'prophesying':

• 1. The ro'eh, seer, wise man (or woman) who may (or may not) also see visions, foretell the future (prophecy) or receive revelations and be national leaders;
• 2. The navi or prophet, the later name applied exclusively to the male ra'ah (seers);
• 3. The chazah seer who saw visions with his eyes wide open; and
• 4. The neviah or prophetess who was not a national leader (Deborah acting only in an advisory capacity to Barak) but who oftentimes received prophetic songs and revelations.

We also learned that there was some overlap between these four ministries and that sometimes the terms were used interchangeably at different stages of Israelite history which has been the source of some confusion. We also learned that there was a certain amount of evolution in terminology with the earlier more general term of ro'eh later becoming associated with the navi (prophet) and having a more specialised rôle of seeing visions fully awake (the chazah seer), asleep (prophetic dreams) or in the intermediate state between the two.

We also understood that later commentators (principally from the Babylonian Exile period) added parenthetical comments into the earlier texts, as well as modifying some voculary by changing words here and there to reflect the evolution of language that had taken place over long stretches of time, in order to make the ancient texts more comprehensible to their present readership and listeners, something that we in our turn do in the 21st century in our English (and other language) translations. Misunderstanding of these processes, we learned, has fuelled the scepticism of liberal, atheistic theology which denies the supernatural, which has led to much unbelief in the Body of Christ.

Today we want to move on from the individual ro'eh (seer) or navi (prophet) and look at them as groups of men (there does not appear to be a female equivalent) and see how those groups worked. The first hint that the nevi'im (prophets) were in some way 'organised' comes as early as 1 Samuel 10, so let's turn to that particular account where we may be in for a few surprises. I am going to give you lots of alternative readings - Protestant, Catholic and Messianic - without telling you which versions they are from so as to maintain a reasonable flow, but these will be listed in the website version for those who want to dig deeper and perhaps look at other versions too. I am also adding the alef-taw's ('s) for those who may want to follow up on that aspect of the text too (Evidence Bible/EB, p.368):

"Then Samuel took a flask of oil and poured it on [Saul's] head, and kissed him and said: 'Is it not because Yahweh has anointed you commander ('prince' - MATS, CJB, JB) over His inheritance ('the people of Israel' - NEB)? When you have departed from me today, you will find two men by Rachel's tomb in the territory of Benjamin at Zelzah; and they will say to you, 'The donkeys ('asses' - NEB) which you went to look for have been found. And now your father has ceased caring about the donkeys and is worrying about you, saying, 'What shall I do about my son?'' Then you shall go on forward from there and come to the terebinth tree ('oak' - CJB) of Tabor. There three men going up to Elohim (God) at Bethel will meet you, one carrying three young goats ('kids' - NEB), another carrying three loaves ('elevated offerings' - RNAB) of bread, and another carrying a skin ('flaggon' - NEB) of wine. And they will greet you and give you two loaves of bread, which you shall receive from their hands. After that you shall come to the hill of Elohim (God) ('Gibeath-elohim' - NRSV, RNAB; 'Gibeah of God' - NIV) ^JB{where the Philistine garrison (also NLT) ('outpost' - NIV; 'pillar' - JB; 'governor' - NEB) is ('resides' - NEB)}^JB [1]. And it will happen, when you have come there to the city, that you will meet a group ('band' - RNAB) of nevi'im (prophets) coming down from the high place ('sanctuary' - Mowvley) with a stringed instrument[s] ('psaltry' - MATS; 'lutes' - CJB; 'lyres' - RNAB), a tambourine[s], a flute[s], and a harp[s] before them; and they will be prophesying ('in a prophetic frenzy' - NRSV; 'be in prophetic ecstasy' - RNAB; 'be filled with prophetic rapture' - NEB). Then the Ruach (Spirit) of Yahweh will come ('fall' - CJB) ['mightily' - MATS] upon ('possess' - NRSV; 'rush upon' - ESV, RNAB) you, and you will prophesy ('be rapt like a prophet' - NEB; 'be in a prophetic frenzy' - NRSV; 'join them in their prophetic ecstasy' - RNAB) with them and be turned into another man. And let it be, when these signs come to you, that you do as the occasion demands ('serves' - JB) ('just do whatever you feel like doing'|!| - CJB; 'do whatever lies at hand' - RNAB); for Elohim (God) is with you. You shall go down before me to Gilgal; and surely I will come down to you to offer burnt offerings and make sacrifices of peace offerings. Seven days you shall wait, till I come to you and show you what you should do.'

"So it was, when he had turned his back to go from Samuel, that Elohim (God) gave him another heart ('changed his heart' - JB); and all those signs came to pass that day. When they came there to the hill, there was a group of nevi'im (prophets) to meet him; then the Ruach Elohim (Spirit of God) came ('fell' - CJB) ['mightily' - MATS] upon ('possessed' - NRSV; 'rushed upon' - ESV) him, and he prophesied among them ('fell into a prophetic frenzy with them' - NRSV; 'was filled with prophetic rapture' - NEB). And it happened, when all who knew him formerly saw that he indeed prophesied among the nevi'im (prophets), that the people said to one another, 'What is this that has come upon the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the nevi'im (prophets)?' Then a man from there answered and said, 'But who is their ('his' - NLT) father?' Therefore it became a proverb: 'Is Saul also among the nevi'im (prophets)?" And when he had finished prophesying ('came out of the prophetic ecstasy' - RNAB), he went to the high place ('home' - RNAB)" (1 Sam.10:1-13, NKJV).

This is a really hard passage to translate as you have no doubt noticed from all the different versions I have just read out to you, and I have just picked a handful of the more important ones so as not to overwhelm you, but I think they pretty much cover the range of interpretations usually given. You see, the stakes are high here doctrinally-speaking and you can already imagine, I am sure, how a Pentecostal or Charismatic is going to want to interpret this prophetic activity because on the surface it does rather look as though the prophets were in some sort of wild ecstatic trance and all talking together - I repeat, on the surface,

So what's really going on here? What is being described in real-time and not what we would like to imagine is going on? Scholars don't know and that's why we have conflicting translations. We, on the other hand, must be historically-minded and constantly remind ourselves this is (of course) not the 21st century, this is not not New Testament times, and this is not even the time of later Israel. This is a time of chaos and anarchy where the teachings of Moses as found in the Torah have been seriously compromised with paganism and laxity generally throughout the wild days of the Judges which we are now at the very end of.

Let's break down the text. Samuel gives Saul three signs following his anointing as king to authenticate him as a true ro'eh (seer) and/or navi (prophet) (vv.2-7) and as an assurance that he has indeed been chosen to be Israel's first monarch. In verse 5 Saul is told he will go to "Gibeah of Elohim (God)" or, literally translated, the "The Hill of Elohim (God)", which was a few miles north of Jebus, which would later become Jerusalem after David conquered it. This name itself should cause us to pause - why not just 'Gibeah' (or Gib'ah in Hebrew, meaning 'The Hill') as elsewhere in the Tanakh (Old Testament)? Maybe the reason it is called "Gibeah of Elohim" is because at that time this was one the spiritual centres of the Confederacy in the days of Judge Samuel, remembering that Bethel ('House of El/God) and Gilgal ('rolled away', where Israel under Joshua was circumcised after the Jordan crossing) are also mentioned as possibly being similar.

Gibeah is Saul's home town (1 Sam.10:26; 11:4) in the territory of Benjamin (Josh.18:28; Judg.19:12-14) which was usually known as "Gibeah of Benjamin" (1 Sam.13:2,15) and later, when he became established as king, "Gibeah of Saul" (1 Sam.15:34; 2 Sam.21:6). So why did Samuel rename it "Gibeah of Elohim (God)"? To remind Saul, first of all, that this town and territory belonged to Yahweh no doubt (Dt.32:43; Is.14:2; Hos.9:3). Why would that be necessary? Because it sounds as though it's under Philistine occupation, a reason why two translations say it was a 'Philistine outpost', had a 'garrison' or 'governor' with one version claiming the text means there was a pagan Philistine 'pillar' there. I understand why all the translations say this and probably all are correct at least by implication.

Now we come to the tricky part of the text - what on earth were these 'prophets' actually doing when they were "prophesying"? Were they forthtelling, foretelling or just babbling in a trance all at the same time? If the latter, then an experience I had springs to mind when I attended a 'Church of God of Prophecy' [1] congregation in Oxford one Sunday (when I was doing my rounds of all the churches seeking for truth). I was shocked when the entire congregation started babbling loudly in 'tongues' (so called) causing the most frightful din and it was impossible for anyone to know what anyone else was saying both because maybe a hundred people were talking all at once but also because there were no interpreters. Was that what happened in Saul's home town? Or was it something else?

The term navi (prophet) now comes to the fore in the stories about Saul in the 10th chapter. The newly anointed king falls in with a band of nevi'im (prophets) as they are coming down from a 'high place'. The question is: was this, as some believe, a 'sanctuary of Yahweh' or was it a pagan site which were notoriously located in 'high places'? (Centres of religious importance were always located on hills or mountains anciently). Leaving that aside for a moment, let's focus on the fact that in this early time of Israelite history, when Saul was after David's blood, the nevi'im (prophets) are found in a group and not as individuals or hermits. Later on in the 19th chapter when Saul is firmly established as Israel's first king, we read:

"When David had fled and made his escape, he went to Samuel at Ramah and told him all that Saul had done to him. Then he and Samuel went to Naioth and stayed there. Word came to Saul: 'David is in Naioth at Ramah'; so he sent men to capture him. But when they saw a group of nevi'im (prophets) prophesying, with Samuel standing there as their leader, the Ruach Elohim (Spirit of God) came upon Saul's men and they also prophesied. Saul was told about it, and he sent more men, and they prophesied too. Saul sent men a third time, and they also prophesied. Finally, he himself left for Ramah and went to the great cistern at Secu. And he asked, 'Where are Samuel and David?'

"'Over in Naioth at Ramah,' they said.

"So Saul went to Naioth at Ramah. But the Ruach Elohim (Spirit of God) came even upon him, and he walked along prophesying until he came to Naioth. He stripped off his robes and also prophesied in Samuel's presence. He lay that way (naked) all that day and night. This is why people say, 'Is Saul also among the nevi'im (prophets)?'" (1 Sam.19:18-24, NIV)

This is the second time this has happened to Saul. Whatever is going on, there is a force, power or spirit, specifically identified as the Ruach (Spirit) of Yahweh, which overwhelms those who come within the circumference of this band of nevi'im (prophets) or even while they're approaching afar off. Prior to approaching this place, Saul and his men had been in pursuit of David with murder in mind. The power affects Saul so strongly he is forced to lie down for a whole day and night. But we're not told what the 'prophesying' actually consisted of. Was it the same kind of 'prophesying' Saul experienced the first time? Why was Saul not affected in the same way the first time - we're not told that he or anyone else had to lie down for 24 hours totally bereft of clothing. Remember, that the first time he was in right-relationship with Yahweh but on this occasion he was not. Right after this incident, in chapter 20, David had to flee from Saul again so it is clear that whatever happened to Saul this time did not change his heart, or make him into "another man", as it had the first time. He is still the same man filled with jealousy, anger and the spirit of murder, as presumably were those three groups of men who were with him who each in turn was 'struck' by this 'prophetic anointing' too. In chapter 22 Saul would order the murder of the cohenim because they sheltered David. This is an evil man we are now regarding here, not at all like the humble Saul of chapter 10 whose heart Yahweh changed. Remember as well that the power compelled him to strip naked, an act of humiliation.

Whatever Saul and his three groups of men were doing when they were struck by the power of Elohim (God) it is unlikely to have been authentic worship, at least not on the part of Saul. Saul was now a murderer in his heart and he would soon commit a terrible crime in killing 85 cohenim (priests) and then went on to massacre the entire village of Nob - men, women, children, infants and animals (2 Sam.22:18-19) Whatever it was that happened when Saul came upon Samuel, David and the nevi'im (prophets), the outcome looks very much to me like this was in some way the restraining hand of Yahweh to give David the chance to escape from his machinations. Thus when Saul was 'prophesying' must be viewed in a different way to those righteous souls who were also 'prophesying'. People don't as a rule think through the implications of this incident very carefully and just assume that Saul was being 'blessed' in the same way as Samuel, David and the other nevi'im (prophets). (Saul's men, by the way, refused to murder the cohenim (priests), leaving the dastardly deed up to Doeg the Edomite). Again, we don't know what Saul or his men 'prophesied' or even necessarily that the English word 'prophesy' is the best or correct one here because like all words it is loaded with meaning that may not be equivalent to the sense of the Hebrew root nava'. We are quite simply left to guess.

But let's not give up quite so easily. Let's try to put this problem another way by subjecting it to careful analysis and ask some more questions. Why, if Yahweh was giving David space to escape, not just subject Saul and his men to a 'stun' version of the Elijah Prophets' 'fire from heaven' which burned their human targets up to a cinder? (Notice, would you, that in the same way Saul sent three groups of his men to find out what was happening when they didn't return, King Ahaziah sent three groups of soldiers to Elijah to arrest him - 1 Ki.1). Why did Yahweh cause Saul and his men to 'prophesy' at all, assuming it wasn't just inevitable because they inadvertantly entered a 'prophetic zone', as it were? Were they compelled to prophesy? And are there other examples where false men are forced to say things against their will?

The nearest example we have to compulsory, or near compulsory, prophesying is Balaam the pagan ro'eh (seer) or navi (prophet) who was forced to bless rather than curse Israel. So, yes, there is a precedent. Did Balaam not have agency? The Calvinists would say No, of course, since they don't believe in the freedom to choose at all. However, as one endowed with the gifting of seership, he was obliged, to some extent, to say what the Master of the gift demanded of him. We don't know what happened in his mind, of course, but I personally believe he could have chosen to have been silent, but recognised a Power greater than the one(s) he had hitherto known and as a natural, 'pagan' ro'eh (seer), just yielded in awe to 'one' (as he supposed) of the many gods.

Not knowing what Saul and his men 'prophesied' deosn't really give us any data. - Maybe the prophesying was positive - declaring words of emet (truth) (but who would have heard it as everyone was apparently 'prophesying' at the same time) or maybe it might have been negative - a prophecy of their eventual doom (in which case it might have been to him personally). Saul, and nearly all his men, were eventually killed at the Battle of Gilboa during which Saul took his own life (1 Sam.31). The forced stripping naked under Yahweh's Power might well have been a prophetic sign that his royal anointing would be stripped from him (as it was and later given to David) and his lying down a prophecy of his own death at his own hand, since he lay down of his own choosing. Were Saul and his men 'Elijah Prophets' when they were seized by the power of Elohim (God)? No. Did they prophesy? Yes. But it was, one must presume, to their own detriment, harm or condemnation, at least as far as Saul himself was concerned since apparently the men did not strip and lie down like their royal master.

That isn't a complete answer, I realise, but we are not without further useful information. Much later on, in the time of the divided kingdoms, we read of another band of nevi'im, about 400 strong, who are in the service of the northern King of Israel, Ahab, who was one of the wickedest of the northern monarchs, perverting the worship of Yahweh and merging it with the worship of Baal. Ahab approaches the King of Judah, Jehoshaphat, with a proposition to be allies for the purpose of recapturing the occupied Israelite city of Ramoth-gilead which the Syrians have taken. But before Jehosophat would accept the offer, he wanted to know (being a more faithful Yahwist than Ahab) what the will of Yahweh was in the matter and so Ahab consults his source but Jehoshaphat is suspicious of the prediction. Let's turn to chapter 22, beginning at verse 6 (EB, p.475), and read an extract from the story (I'm using the New International Version this time):

"So the king of Israel (Ahab) brought together the nevi'im (prophets) - about 400 men - and asked them, 'Shall I go to war against Ramoth Gilead, or shall I refrain?'

'Go,' they answered, 'for Yahweh will give it into the king's hand.'

But Jehoshaphat asked, 'Is there not a navi (prophet) of Yahweh here whom we can inquire of?'

The king of Israel (Ahab) answered Jehoshaphat, 'There is still one man through whom we can inquire of Yahweh, but I hate him because he never prophesies anything good about me, but always bad. He is Micaiah son of Imlah'" (1 Kings 22:6-8, NIV).

To cut a long story short, Micaiah predicts disaster for Israel. It's a fascinating account but one we can learn from so let's return to 1 Kings 22 beginning at verse 10:

"Dressed in their royal robes, the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat king of Judah were sitting on their thrones at the threshing floor by the entrance of the gate of Samaria, with all the [400] nevi'im (prophets) prophesying before them. Now Zedekiah son of Kenaanah had made iron horns and he declared, 'This is what Yahweh says: 'With these you will gore the Arameans (Syrians) until they are destroyed.''

"All the other nevi'im (prophets) were prophesying the same thing. 'Attack Ramoth Gilead and be victorious,' they said, 'for Yahweh will give it into the king's hand.'

"The messenger who had gone to summon Micaiah said to him, 'Look, as one man (in unison) the other nevi'im (prophets) are predicting success for the king. Let your word agree with theirs, and speak favourably.'

"But Micaiah said, 'As surely as Yahweh lives, I can tell him only what Yahweh tells me.'

"When he arrived, the king asked him, 'Micaiah, shall we go to war against Ramoth Gilead, or shall I refrain?'

"'Attack and be victorious,' he answered {in a mocking voice}, 'for Yahweh will give it into the king's hand.'

"The king said to him, 'How many times must I make you swear to tell me nothing but the truth in the name of Yahweh?'

"Then Micaiah answered {with a serious tone}, 'I saw all Israel scattered on the hills like sheep without a shepherd, and Yahweh said, 'These people have no master. Let each one go home in peace.''

"The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, 'Didn't I tell you that he never prophesies anything good about me, but only bad?'

"Micaiah continued, 'Therefore hear the Davar (Word) of Yahweh: I saw Yahweh sitting on his throne with all the host of heaven standing around Him on his right and on his left. And Yahweh said, 'Who will entice Ahab into attacking Ramoth Gilead and going to his death there?'

"'One suggested this, and another that. Finally, a spirit came forward, stood before Yahweh and said, 'I will entice him.'

"'By what means?' Yahweh asked.

"'I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouths of all his nevi'im (prophets),' he said.

"'You will succeed in enticing him,' said Yahweh. 'Go and do it.'

"'So now Yahweh has put a lying spirit in the mouths of all these nevi'im (prophets) of yours. Yahweh has decreed disaster for you.'

"Then Zedekiah son of Kenaanah went up and slapped Micaiah in the face. 'Which way did the spirit from Yahweh go when he went from me to speak to you?' he asked.

"Micaiah replied, 'You will find out on the day you go to hide in an inner room.'

"The king of Israel then ordered, 'Take Micaiah and send him back to Amon the ruler of the city and to Joash the king's son and say, 'This is what the king says: Put this fellow in prison and give him nothing but bread and water until I return safely.'' Micaiah declared, 'If you ever return safely, Yahweh has not spoken through me.' Then he added, 'Mark my words, all you people!'" (1 Kings 22:10-28, NIV).

Anyway, in the Battle of Ramoth-gilead that followed, Ahab was struck by a 'random' arrow and died a lingering death, proving Micaiah to be the authentic navi (prophet) and the band of 400 to all be false. Note it well: there were 400 false 'prophets', all agreeing with one another and all sounding like true prophets by using the kind of language and symbolic gestures (like the two iron horns) that true nevi'im (prophets) use, to one solitary true one (Micaiah). The lying spirit or demon, authorised by Yahweh, evidently did a good job in making the prophecy sound authentic, even using Yahweh's Name. I hope this is getting you to think about today and how modern 'prophets' can sound authentic and yet are not.

There are many who are surprised that Yahweh would permit a demon to do this deceiving and yet this is a New Testament teaching too. Hear Paul out on this one to the Thessalonians, 2nd book, chapter 2 (EB, p.1724):

"Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Master Yah'shua the Messiah (Lord Jesus Christ) and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come. Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called Elohim (God) or that is worshiped, so that he sits as Elohim (God) in the temple of Elohim (God), showing himself that he is Elohim (God). Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time. For the mystery of Torahlessness (Lawlessness) is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. And then the Torahless (Lawless) one will be revealed, whom the Master will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming. The coming of the Torahless (lawless) one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the emet (truth), that they might be saved. And for this reason Elohim (God) will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, that they all may be condemned who did not believe the emet (truth) but had pleasure in unrighteousness" (2 Thess 2:1-12, NKJV).

Yahweh will indeed permit those who do not believe the truth and who love unrighteousness to be completely swamped by demons until they are living in a strong delusion. We should not, then, be surprised when those claiming to be 'Christian' or 'Messianic' prophets succumb in exactly the same way. Indeed, the delusion may well be all that much greater for those entrusted with responsible gifts who choose to pervert them in lawlessness. As I keep saying again and again, THERE ARE NO TRUE LAWLESS OR TORAHLESS 'PROPHETS', and what happened to Saul latterly was a consequence of his going rogue in disobeying the mitzvah (commandment) not to murder! He 'prophesied', remember? Was he in the same spiritual league as Samuel and David? Of course not! As the years roll on, this delusion generally will get greater and greater until a certain line is crossed - a global ripening in iniquity - whereafter there can be no return, no turning back, no repentance, and no deliverance, leaving only FINAL JUDGMENT like the penultimate judgment we are entering into now. That is why you must always nip sin in the bud before it masters you completely, especially in this world of exponentially increasing darkness.

With these accounts lodged in our minds, let's go back to the story of Saul and the band of nevi'im that he encountered, as prophesied by Samuel, who, by being in their midst, caused him to burst out into prophecy in the same way Saul would later on when Samuel and David were together at Naioth. One thing we have clearly learned today is that Yahweh not only sends out the Ruach haQodesh (Holy Spirit) on righteous nevi'im (prophets) but that He sends out lying spirits to unrighteous ones too and so outwardly there may not appear to be much difference. Just because someone prophesies doesn't necessarily mean he is truly in the service of Yahweh. Indeed, Micaiah, who is both a navi (prophet) and a ro'eh (seer or visionary) in the classical sense, is shown a vision of Yahweh ordering a dark spirit, a demon, in the Heavenly Council to go and take possession of Ahab's 400 and give them a lying revelation.

This will, I hope, remind you of the story of Job, where no less than Satan himself is given permission to afflict the patriarch as a test of his loyalty and faithfulness, as a witness to the malakim (angels). Again, like the lying spirit sent to the 400, Satan had presented himself as an accuser while in attendance at the Heavenly Council - the Council of Yah's Elohim. We need not suppose (because it makes no sense) that these 400 nevi'im (prophets) were godly Yahwists on whom Yahweh imposed a demonic spirit because that is not how Heaven works. There was a prior cause and justification for such action, their unrighteousness, evidenced by the way they tried to force Micaiah to speak falsely so as to appease a wicked king who doubtless paid their salaries too. Yes, both Ahab and the 400 invoked the name of Yahweh, proving only that false nevi'im (prophets) are able to use the Divine Name whether they are openly or ignorantly deceiving. The fact that one of their number, Zedekiah the son of Kenaanah, either as an elected representative or as a kind of 'chief' prophet tried to force Micaiah to agree with them shows that these were not honourable men, and you will remember that one of the characteristics of a true navi (prophet) is that he has integrity, which Micaiah clearly did, even though he sported humorously and mockingly with Ahab in the beginning because he knew his king was not at all sincere. Yes, the true nev'im (prophets) are a little 'different' and at times make sport of the wicked, as Elijah did on Mount Carmel mocking the false prophets of Baal when nothing happened in response to their 'prophesying' or prayers! Nota bene - note these things well so that you don't miss a true navi (prophet) because he might make light of your prudery or some other weakness.

The second point I want to make is that when it says the 400 were 'prophesying' it could either mean that they were all speaking at one time as often happens in modern Pentecostal or Charismatic meetings so that nobody can hear a word above the din or that one, like Zedekiah, spoke representationally. You'll find many references in Scripture to a body of people who 'say' a particular thing as though they're all speaking the same thing when in reality there is a spokesman saying what it is they are all agreed upon. Yes, sometimes it can be a crowd literally all shouting "Crucify Him!" (e.g. Mt.27:22-23) or it can be a figure of speech meaning that they were of one mind or echad concerning what a representative speaks audibly to someone else. So what was happening in that first recorded encounter Saul had with the band of nevi'im (prophets)? Were they all muttering, speaking or shouting different prophecies at once, was one of them speaking representationally, or were they in some sort of ecstatic trance mumbling in what moderns would call 'tongues'? Or did, in the case of the 400, each navi (prophet) speak one-by-one in turn to the King saying the same thing? Somehow I cannot imagine the king having the patience to hear all of that, can you? That is why I opt to believe in the respresentational form of prophecy when it comes to a body of nevi'im (prophets), and not an unholy, disorderly, lawless mob. Paul says as much about prophets and tongue-speakers: "the spirits of the nevi'im (prophets) are subject to (under the control of) the nevi'im (prophets) for Elohim (God) is not the author of confusion but of shalom (peace)" (1 Cor.14:32-33, NKJV). And, "If anyone speaks in a tongue (a contemporary foreign language supernaturally), let there be two or at the most three, each in turn, and let one interpret" (1 Cor.14:27, NKJV).

We're told in the first text that the effect of the Ruach haNevi'im or 'Spirit of the Prophets' was to turn Saul into "another person", receiving a "new heart". He was transformed, though unlike the New Birth in Messiah was was only apparently temporary for some. Not only that but on the second occasion, when David was there with Samuel, Saul's men started prophesying as well. Nobody was their 'usual self'. And furthermore, we're told, this transformation was brought about by the Ruach Elohim (Spirit of God). Saul's meeting with the nevi'im (prophets) was one of those three signs Samuel had prophesied would happen on his way home to Gibeah. The important point is this: from this moment onwards Saul was under divine constraint and Yahweh promised to be with him provided He remained true.

I'd like to finish today with some sort of concrete conclusion as to what is going on here. So was this a supernatural ecstatic experience and if so what did it consist of? According to one scholar, J.Lindblom, this was "an abnormal state of consciousness in which one is so intensely absorbed by one single idea or one single feeling, or by a group of ideas and feelings, that the normal stream of psychic life is more or less arrested (stopped). The bodily senses cease to function; one becomes impervious to impressions from without; consciousness is exalted above the ordinary level of daily experience; unconscious mental impressions and ideas come to the surface in the form of visions and auditions" [3].

That's certainly well put and I can attest from personal experience that when I see visions it's something very much along those lines. When you see pictures (in visions) they are crystal clear and when you hear the voice of Yahweh it is likewise crisp and clear. Whatever may be meant by 'ecstasy' or 'ecstatic' in other religions, it does not mean that one is speaking gibberish when Yahweh speaks through His nevi'im (prophets). I realise that sceptics will claim that the nevi'im (prophets) whom Saul met on the way home, because they were playing music, must have meant they were in some sort of hypnotic trance like a Moslem 'whirling dervish' or like one 'slain in the spirit (so-called)' amongst the charismatics but I get little or no sense of this at all in the passages we are reading here. Clearly this is very different from the kind of wild, uncontrollable yelling and cutting of the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel.

The nevi'im (prophets), whom Saul met the first time, lived in small communities, especially in spiritually decadent times and in times of persecution, for mutual cultivation of their religious zeal for truth and righteousness. And interestingly, such bands of nevi'im (prophets) are given a specific name, namely, "sons of the nevi'im (prophets)" (1 Ki.20:35), not meaning the literal male descendants of nevi'im (prophets) but rather those under instruction from elder or mature or experienced nevi'im (prophets) like Samuel in the second example cited today. And we also see that such maturer nev'im (prophets) such as Samuel, Elijah and Elisha had a close association with these "sons" to whom they were spiritual 'fathers' or mentors. These mentors are the ELIJAH PROPHETS, the title of this series, and those in training are therefore the 'sons of the Elijah prophets'. Though, as we saw last week in particular, there are most certainly women nevi'im (prophets), there is no evidence that they were ever a part of the Elijah Prophets and their 'sons', something we'll talk more about later in the series.

We may never know what exactly happened in the two episodes involving Saul, the first when he was in right relationship with Yahweh and the seond when he was not. I still have unanswered questions as we are hampered by a lack of data and possibly by linguistic issues too. By the time we arrive at the days of Ahab and Jehoshaphat, the "sons of the prophets" seem to have apostacised leaving only the Elijah Prophets like Micaiah to actually represent Yahweh authoritatively. I see a parallel here with what happened in Corinth where Paul bemoans that there aren't many "spiritual fathers" (1 Cor.4:15) like himself with the 'spiritual sons' tending to quickly go off the tracks and into lawless chaos. This has ever been a problem, first in Old Covenant Israel, and then in New Covenant Messianic Israel. We have a lot more to yet uncover when it comes to the dynamic between the 'fathers' and the 'sons' of the nevi'im (prophets) which we will return to next week, Yahweh willing.

I hope this has been stimulating and instructive and that it will encourage you to probe deeper. You are perhaps surprised there is so much work to be done in this subject and no wonder, as we are covering 3,000-3,500 years of history. Things do get clearer as we progress in time, language changes and memory gets dull which is why there is so little recorded in Genesis that covers such a long stretch of time. But we have to do this. The Remnant has to do this so we can be rid of all the deceptions of the false prophets out there and admit only the pure stream of prophecy in our midst. We will meet in two days for Rosh Chodesh and then a week later we will resume our study of the nevi'im (prophets). Yahweh bless you all most richly. Amen.

Endnotes

[1] The Jerusalem Bible (JB, 1st edition), a scholarly Catholic translation, put this sentence in parentheses/brackets because the translators believe this was a later insertion similar to the one we studied in Parts 1 & 2 in 1 Samuel 9:9, as well it might be.
[2] A Pentecostal Church started by A.J.Tomlinson for Afro-Americans
[3] J.Lindblom, Prophecy in Ancient Israel (OUP: 1973), p.4ff.

Acknowledgments

[1] Harry Mowvley, Guide to Old Testament Prophecy (Lutterworth Press, Guildford & London: 1979)
[2] John Bright, A History of Israel, 3rd ed. (SCM Press, London: 1982)
[3] Bernhard W.Anderson, The Living World of the Old Testament, 2nd ed., 5th impression (Prentice Hall, Hew Jersey: 1976)
[4] E.W.Heaton, The Hebrew Kingdoms - New Clarendon Bible (OUP, Oxford: 1968)
[5] G.W.Anderson, The History and Religion of Israel - New Clarendon Bible (OUP, Oxford: 1976)
[6] Peter R.Ackroyd, Israel under Babylon and Persia - New Clarendon Bible (OUP, Oxford: 1979)
[7] D.S.Russel, The Jews from Alexander to Herod - New Clarendon Bible (OUP, Oxford: 1978)
[8] D.Winton Thomas (ed.), Documents from Old Testament Times (Harper & Row, NY: 1961)
[9] Othmar Keel, The Symbolism of the Biblical World: Ancient Near Eastern Iconography and the Book of Psalms (SPCK, London: 1978), translated from the German, Die Welt der altorientalischen Bildsymbolik und das Alte Testament: Am Veispiel der Psalmen (Köln: 1972)
[10] Clifford M.Jones (ed.), Old Testament Illustrations - The Cambridge Bible Commentary on the New English Bible (CUP, Cambridge: 1971)
[11] Matthew Black & H.H.Rowley (eds.), Peake's Commentary on the Bible (Van Nostrand Reinhold, Wokingham, England: 1982)
[12] Gerhard von Rad, Old Testament Theology, 2 vols (SCM Press, London: 1975), translated from the German, Teologie des Alten Testamentes: Die Teologie der historischen Überlieferungen Israels (München: 1957)