Rabbinic Reception of the Prophets

Abstract

The Rabbinic reception of prophets covers thousands of individual statements made by named or unnamed rabbis, recorded within a vast literature (Mishnah, Midrash, Talmud) that spans over 750 years (225–1000 C.E.). It deals with questions and issues such as the following: who is a prophet, what did prophets see, prophetic use of metaphor, the prophet as messenger, prophecy among the Gentiles, the chronology of the prophets, rebuke and consolation, criticism of the prophets, the place of repentance in prophecy, and the end of prophecy. Besides a survey of general statements, rabbinic remarks about nine out of fifteen individual prophets from Isaiah through Malachi are also cited.