The wisdom of God is said to be of ultimate totality, and a prophet, according to Hebrew and Christian scriptures, is the means through which he relays this wisdom to the people. But what constitutes Gods selections? Are prophets spiritually superior to the common man? Are some prophets more powerful than others, or does God, in effect, distribute the same amount of power to all of his prophets? Is there, in other words, a hierarchy and if so are the reasons for it contingent upon the individual, or the situation that God commands him/her to handle? The answer to these questions, and many like them, are subject to debate, but from a literary standpoint few will argue that there is indeed a physical hierarchy of prophets. What this inquiry is primarily concerned with, are the grounds for such a hierarchy within the context of Hebrew Scriptures and Christian Gospels. What it will propose, moreover, is that the unequal distribution of power is contingent upon the situation, not the status of the individuals selected. Prophets, messianic or otherwise, are merely mechanisms through which God handles the situation, not all-powerful emissaries as theyre commonly perceived. The suggestion of a hierarchy stems from the addition of the term Messiah to the term Prophet, in the following analysis both of these terms will be described within the beliefs of their respective religions.I will put my words into the mouth of the prophet who shall speak to them everything that I command (Dt, 18:18). Prophecy is said to be the voice of God, and a prophet is simply Gods ambassador, relaying the word of God to the people. However, it is not by any means his/her choice, for once a prophet is called upon by God and commanded to speak his will, he/she is required to do so (Amos, 3:8), and despite some initial reluctance (Ex, 3:11)(Jon, 1:1), they eventually obey. Furthermore, when they accepted their roles as messengers of God they did so fearlessly. Prophesy...
