Last prophet

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The last prophet, or final prophet, is a term used in religious contexts, especially in the Abrahamic religions, to refer to the last person through whom God or several gods speak, after which there is to be no other. The appellation also refers to the prophet who will induce mankind to turn back to God.

Contents

Abrahamic religions

Abrahamic religions all believe in the same god, but disagree on who is considered God's final prophet.

Judaism

Judaism considers Malachi to be the last of the biblical prophets. [1]

Christianity

John the Baptist is the last prophet of the Old Covenant. TitianStJohn.jpg
John the Baptist is the last prophet of the Old Covenant.

In Christianity, the last prophet of the Old Covenant before the arrival of Jesus is John the Baptist (cf. Luke 16:16). [2] The Eastern Orthodox Church holds that Malachi was the "Seal of Prophets" in the Old Testament. [3] Christian denominations who hold that spiritual gifts (including prophecy) continue to be bestowed by the Holy Spirit on Christians are known as "continuationists" (including Catholics, Methodists, and Pentecostals), while the cessationist perspective, which teaches that charismata ended in the Apostolic era, is held by much of Reformed Christianity and Baptists. [4] [5]

Gnosticism

In Mandaeism, John the Baptist is the greatest and final prophet. [6] [7]

Manichaeism

In Manichaeism, the founder Mani is believed by adherents of the faith to be the last and final prophet after a long succession of religious figures, including Zoroaster, the Gautama Buddha and the Jesus Christ. According to Al-Biruni, a 10th-century Iranian scholar, Mani claimed to be the Paraclete promised in the New Testament and the Last Prophet. [8]

Islam

The phrase Khatamu ’n-Nabiyyīn ("Seal of the Prophets") is a title used in the Quran to designate the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It is generally regarded to mean that Muhammad is the last of the prophets sent by God.

Indian religions

Hinduism

In Hinduism, the history of mankind is described in four religious ( dharmic ) ages (yugas), which depict a gradual decline in religious activities, only to be renewed at the end to start a new cycle of the four ages. At the end of the Kali Yuga , the current and last age in a cycle, Kalki, the tenth avatar of Vishnu, is prophesied to appear to punish the wicked, reward the good, and inaugurate the Satya Yuga of the next cycle. Kalki is the last avatar in the current cycle. [9]

Related Research Articles

The Book of Malachi is the last book of the Neviim contained in the Tanakh, canonically the last of the Twelve Minor Prophets. In most Christian orderings, the grouping of the prophetic books is the last section of the Old Testament, making Malachi the last book before the New Testament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eschatology</span> Part of theology concerned with the final events of history, or the ultimate destiny of humanity

Eschatology concerns expectations of the end of the present age, human history, or the world itself. The end of the world or end times is predicted by several world religions, which teach that negative world events will reach a climax. Belief that the end of the world is imminent is known as apocalypticism, and over time has been held both by members of mainstream religions and by doomsday cults. In the context of mysticism, the term refers metaphorically to the end of ordinary reality and to reunion with the divine. Religions treat eschatology as a future event prophesied in sacred texts or in folklore. While other religions may have concepts of renewal or transformation after significant events, the explicit description of a new earth is primarily found in Christian teachings within the context of eschatology, this description can be found in the book of Revelation, Chapter 21.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elijah</span> Biblical prophet

Elijah was, according to the Books of Kings in the Hebrew Bible, a prophet and a miracle worker who lived in the northern kingdom of Israel during the reign of King Ahab.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John the Baptist</span> 1st-century Jewish itinerant preacher

John the Baptist was a Jewish preacher active in the area of the Jordan River in the early 1st century AD. He is also known as Saint John the Forerunner in Eastern Orthodoxy, John the Immerser in some Baptist Christian traditions, Saint John by certain Catholic churches, and Prophet Yahya in Islam. He is sometimes alternatively referred to as John the Baptiser.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prophet</span> Intermediary between humanity and the divine

In religion, a prophet or prophetess is an individual who is regarded as being in contact with a divine being and is said to speak on behalf of that being, serving as an intermediary with humanity by delivering messages or teachings from the supernatural source to other people. The message that the prophet conveys is called a prophecy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Revelation</span> Communication with a deity or other supernatural entity

In religion and theology, revelation is the disclosing of some form of truth or knowledge through communication with a deity (god) or other supernatural entity or entities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Comparative religion</span> Systematic comparison of the worlds religions

Comparative religion is the branch of the study of religions with the systematic comparison of the doctrines and practices, themes and impacts of the world's religions. In general the comparative study of religion yields a deeper understanding of the fundamental philosophical concerns of religion such as ethics, metaphysics and the nature and forms of salvation. It also considers and compares the origins and similarities shared between the various religions of the world. Studying such material facilitates a broadened and more sophisticated understanding of human beliefs and practices regarding the sacred, numinous, spiritual and divine.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Covenant theology</span> Protestant biblical interpretive framework

Covenant theology is a conceptual overview and interpretive framework for understanding the overall structure of the Bible. It uses the theological concept of a covenant as an organizing principle for Christian theology. The standard form of covenant theology views the history of God's dealings with mankind, from Creation to Fall to Redemption to Consummation, under the framework of three overarching theological covenants: those of redemption, of works, and of grace.

The Hebrew Bible makes reference to a number of covenants with God (YHWH). These include the Noahic Covenant set out in Genesis 9, which is decreed between God and all living creatures, as well as a number of more specific covenants with Abraham, the whole Israelite people, the Israelite priesthood, and the Davidic lineage of kings. In form and terminology, these covenants echo the kinds of treaty agreements existing in the surrounding ancient world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">False prophet</span> Person who falsely claims the gift of prophecy or divine inspiration

In religion, a false prophet is a person who falsely claims the gift of prophecy or divine inspiration, or to speak for God, or who makes such claims for evil ends. Often, someone who is considered a "true prophet" by some people is simultaneously considered a "false prophet" by others, even within the same religion as the "prophet" in question. In a wider sense, it is anyone who, without having it, claims a special connection to the deity and sets him or herself up as a source of spirituality, as an authority, preacher, or teacher. Analogously, the term is sometimes applied outside religion to describe someone who fervently promotes a theory that the speaker thinks is false.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Religious significance of Jerusalem</span> Religious ties to a specific geography

The city of Jerusalem is sacred to many religious traditions, including the Abrahamic religions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam which consider it a holy city. Some of the most sacred places for each of these religions are found in Jerusalem, most prominently, the Temple Mount/Haram Al-Sharif.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prophets of Christianity</span> Prophets of Christianity

In Christianity, the figures widely recognised as prophets are those mentioned as such in the Old Testament and the New Testament. It is believed that prophets are chosen and called by God.

The term Abrahamic religion groups three of the major religions together due to their historical coexistence and competition; it refers to Abraham, a figure mentioned in the Hebrew Bible, the Christian Bible, and the Quran, and is used to show similarities between these religions and put them in contrast to Indian religions, Iranian religions, and the East Asian religions. Furthermore, some religions categorized as "Abrahamic" also share elements from other categories, such as Indian religions, or for example, Islam with Eastern religions.

Continuous revelation or continuing revelation is a theological belief or position that God continues to reveal divine principles or commandments to humanity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cessationism versus continuationism</span> Christian theological dispute

Cessationism versus continuationism involves a Christian theological dispute as to whether spiritual gifts remain available to the church, or whether their operation ceased with the Apostolic Age of the church. The cessationist doctrine arose in the Reformed theology: initially in response to claims of Roman Catholic miracles. Modern discussions focus more on the use of spiritual gifts in the Pentecostal and Charismatic movements, though this emphasis has been taught in traditions that arose earlier, such as Methodism.

New Covenant theology is a Christian theological position teaching that the person and work of Jesus Christ is the central focus of the Bible. One distinctive assertion of this school of thought is that Old Testament Laws have been abrogated or cancelled with Jesus' crucifixion, and replaced with the Law of Christ of the New Covenant. It shares similarities with, and yet is distinct from, dispensationalism and Covenant theology.

Prophets in Islam are individuals in Islam who are believed to spread God's message on Earth and serve as models of ideal human behaviour. Some prophets are categorized as messengers, those who transmit divine revelation, most of them through the interaction of an angel. Muslims believe that many prophets existed, including many not mentioned in the Quran. The Quran states: "And for every community there is a messenger." Belief in the Islamic prophets is one of the six articles of the Islamic faith.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Outline of Jesus</span>

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Wikipedia articles on the life and influence of Jesus.

References

  1. Anne de Graaf; José Pérez Montero (2015). Reform - The Last Prophets. Trajectory, Incorporated. p.  30. ISBN   9788771327663.
  2. 1 2 John F. MacArthur (1 March 2006). John 1-11 MacArthur New Testament Commentary. Moody Publishers. p. 124. ISBN   978-0-8024-8044-6. John the Baptist was the last prophet under the old covenant (Luke 16:16); Jesus came as the mediator of the new covenant (Heb. 8:6; 12:24), which He ratified by His sacrificial death (Luke 22:20; 1 Cor. 11:25).
  3. "Marina Finogenova. Malachi, the "Seal of the Prophets"". OrthoChristian.Com.
  4. Bellini, Peter (4 September 2015). "Pentecostals Don't Have a Copyright on the Holy Spirit (Part I)" . Retrieved 20 August 2021.
  5. Dawson, Steve; Hornbacher, Mark (10 April 2019). Ordinary Christians, Extraordinary Signs: Healing in Evangelization. The Word Among Us Press. ISBN   978-1-59325-007-2. The Catholic Church is "continuationist," rather than "cessationist." What does that mean? Cessationism is the belief that the signs and wonders of the New Testament Church—the extraordinary spiritual gifts (charisms) like tongues, prophecy, or healing—were only intended for a time and ceased to be present in the Church after that period of time had elapsed. Continuationism, on the other hand, is the belief that the signs and wonders of the early Church have continued.
  6. Buckley, Jorunn Jacobsen (2002), The Mandaeans: ancient texts and modern people (PDF), Oxford University Press, ISBN 9780195153859
  7. Drower, Ethel Stefana. The Mandaeans of Iraq and Iran. Oxford At The Clarendon Press, 1937.
  8. al-Biruni, Muhammad ibn Ahmad; Eduard Sachau ed.; The Chronology of Ancient Nations ; p. 190; W. H. Allen & Co.; London: 1879
  9. Brockington, J. L. (1998). Sanskrit Epics. ISBN   9004102604 . Retrieved 2020-07-30.