Hundredfold Ministries, Int'l

Prophecy is wide and varied in its scope. There are a number of ways to divide, or categorize prophecy. For example, there are prophecies concerning individuals, groups of people, and nations. There are prophecies of prediction, prophecies of rebuke, prophecies of guidance and so on. In this chapter I will divide prophecy into various categories and sub-categories. This analysis is not to be held too rigidly. My purpose is to assist the reader in better understanding the various kinds of prophecy, not to try to over categorize the prophetic word.

Prophecy Relative to Human Action

Some prophecies involve the need for human action and some do not. There are: 1) prophecies that are independent of man, 2) prophecies based on past actions by man but requiring no further action on man's part, and 3) conditional prophecies based on man's future action.

1. Prophecy Independent of Human Action

Prophecy independent of human action is that prophecy which God brings about regardless of what any human being does or does not do. An excellent example of this category of prophecy is found in Isaiah:

For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of his government and peace
there will be no end.
He will reign on David's throne
and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it
with justice and righteousness
from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the Lord Almighty
will accomplish this. (Is 9:6-7 NIV).

Here we see a prophecy that God without doubt intended to bring about regardless of human action or inaction. This prophecy concerning the coming of Christ was completely independent of man. Man could do nothing to stop nor fulfill this prophecy. God alone was in control of its fulfillment. Note that the end of verse seven says, “The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.”

Another example of this kind of prophecy is found in Genesis, chapter 25. The Lord was speaking to Rebekah about her two as yet unborn sons:

The Lord said to her,
“Two nations are in your womb,
and two peoples from within you will be separated;
one people will be stronger than the other,
and the older will serve the younger.” (Gen 25:23 NIV).

God acted to bring the prophecy to pass. Let's look at Paul's analysis of this passage:

I believe that prophecies in this category pertain to the eternal plans and purposes of God. They concern events that, from God's viewpoint, must happen. Therefore God sees to it that they do happen.

2. Prophecy That Does Not Depend on Further Human Action

Prophecies in this category are those which are based on past human deeds or actions but that require no further action. An example of this type of prophecy is found in the book of Jeremiah. Jeremiah prophesied to the King of Judah a period of 70 years of Babylonian captivity. A false prophet named Hananiah opposed Jeremiah and prophesied that God would break the “yoke” of the King of Babylon within two years. Hananiah then removed and broke the wooden yoke Jeremiah was symbolically wearing. Here's God's response:

There was no “if” or “but” given Hananiah. His past action sealed his fate. God spoke. Hananiah died.

3. Conditional Prophecy Based on Man's Obedience

Conditional prophecy is that prophecy which is dependent upon man's further action to cause it to come to pass. The word “if” is often used in this type of prophecy although not always. An excellent example of this type of prophecy is found in the Lord's word to Israel:

Another example of this conditional prophecy is found in Deuteronomy 30:15-20:

A New Testament example of conditional prophecy is found in Revelation:

In each of these examples man must act in accordance with stated conditions in order to fulfill the prophecy. Human action is a prerequisite for fulfillment. In the case of the “if” prophecies, when man does not do what is required of him, the prophecy goes unfulfilled. In the case of the “repent” prophecies, if man does not repent, then certain consequences flow. On the other hand, if man does repent, certain other consequences flow.

I know of a prophecy that called a woman to a powerful ministry. She choose instead a life of sin and never entered the ministry call that was on her life. It would be wrong to say that the prophecy was false. She failed to fulfill the required conditions which were to live a godly life, be diligent in prayer and Bible study, and so on. Unfortunately prophecies in this conditional category often go unfulfilled, yet the prophecies themselves are truly the word of the Lord. It is just that the required subsequent human action never happened.

Prophecies Categorized by Content

I don't believe in reducing God's word to formulas nor do I like putting God's prophetic words into little boxes. Yet I do think it is helpful to recognize the following six different categories of the prophetic word. Please note that one prophetic utterance may contain two or more of these categories. They are:

In Chapter 15 we deal in depth with mature and immature prophets. But for purposes of this section, I will just refer to “mature” and “immature” prophets. The first three types of prophetic word, edification, exhortation and comfort, may be delivered by either a mature or immature prophet. Or they may also be delivered by one who is not a called prophet but who is simply operating the gift of prophecy. Why is this so? Because prophetic words in these three categories generally can't do harm to the hearer.

We all need to hear the Lord's words of edification, exhortation and comfort from time to time. They are for the building up of the body of Christ. Furthermore, these words are easy to give. It is very reasonable that the Lord would give these kinds of words through the fledgling prophet or one who simply moves in the gift of prophecy. It does not take a mature prophet with all the authority that that entails to deliver these kinds of words.

The latter three kinds of words, predictive, rebuke, and directive, are generally delivered by a more mature prophet. Why? First, they can do much harm if they are not correct or are given at the wrong time. It takes a seasoned prophet to know when he is receiving this kind of word from God and what he or she should do about it.

For instance, a mature prophet often will be given a word of this kind but he knows that the time is not right to deliver it. A less mature prophet lacks such wisdom on timing.

A mature prophet takes no pleasure in delivering these kinds of words, especially words of rebuke. A less mature prophet is all too often eager to deliver words of rebuke. A mature prophet also realizes the heavy responsibility and burden of directional words. Again, the less mature prophet may not.

Words of prediction, rebuke or direction are most often delivered with authority and, if the speaker is a tested and proven prophet, the hearers are more likely to hear and respond. It simply makes good sense that God would select His mature prophets to “go and tell my people” these kinds of words. The young prophet who is not too far along in the learning process is not as likely to be given a harder word to deliver.

However, this is not a hard and fast rule. God certainly has the prerogative to set this rule aside and may, on occasion, use a less mature prophet to deliver His word, whatever its content. This is especially true in the absence of a mature prophet.

Timing of the Prophetic Word

There are two different time frames in the delivery of the prophetic word. God causes his word to be given in what I call the “Word of the Moment” and/or the “Word for a Season.”

1. The Word of the Moment

The Word of the Moment is an utterance which is spontaneous to the speaker. It occurs when God sovereignly moves on an individual to speak forth a word that He wants the hearers to receive immediately. This kind of word can be delivered by either a called prophet or a person moving in the gift of prophecy.

For those churches with a more free move of the Holy Spirit, an utterance of this kind most often comes in the weekly public services. This is known as a public utterance and will always be in harmony with the rest of the service if it is truly from God and if the leadership is moving the service in harmony with the Holy Spirit's leading.

Occasionally more private prophetic utterances of the moment occur when believers are together in prayer, counseling, worship, or even in conversation.

2. The Word for a Season

I define the Word for a Season as the word of the Lord delivered after some time has been spent in prayer. It is a word the Lord wants delivered to an individual or a church. Its content will often be prediction, rebuke or guidance.

Most often this kind of word is delivered by a called prophet who has been burdened by the Holy Spirit on behalf of an individual or church. The prophet may spend days, weeks, or even months in prayer with this burden. Then, when it has a fullness in his or her spirit, and the Lord's timing is right, that person knows it is time to deliver the word. Although less common, this word may also be delivered by one who is not a called prophet but whom the Holy Spirit has burdened about a situation and who has thoroughly prayed that burden through.

This word for a season is often delivered in the form of a sermon or prophetic message to an entire church or group. A speaker who has a prophetic call may come from outside a church with this kind of word. Note, this word does not need to be a long sermon. I recall once when the Lord sent our church a clear directive word which was delivered by a visiting speaker in less than fifteen minutes. It was very powerful and we knew at the time that it was the word of the Lord to us for that season.

Note the word “season” does not necessarily mean now. It can apply to the past, present, or future. And remember, all prophecy, both public and private, is to be submitted for judgement. It is this judging of the prophetic word we now examine in chapter four.