Where Have All the Prophets Gone? The "Disappearing" Israelite Prophet Against the Background of Ancient Near Eastern Prophecy

Abstract

While the phenomenon of the "disappearing prophet" has become a feature (indeed function) of some modern approaches to Israelite prophecy, at the same time the profile of Syro-Mesopotamian prophecy has been becoming increasingly clear, and there are now definite cognates for the basic Hebrew word for "prophet". Against this background it is argued that, though eighth century prophets like Amos and Hosea may not have been much interested in the title "prophet" (and not surprisingly, when the cognate term was used for non-Israelite prophets), they nevertheless saw themselves functioning as such. No single aspect of Israelite prophecy marks it out as distinct from its near eastern cultural equivalents; its obvious distinctiveness derives from Israel's unique perception of God.