Joseph (est.1886-1806 B.C.)

Joseph was born in Syria and had eleven brothers Rueben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Gad, Asher, Benjamin, Dan and Naphtali.  Joseph was son of Jacob, son of Isaac, son of Abraham.

By 17 he was his father's favourite and they were living in Canaan, he would have many dreams foretelling the future, yet his brother scorned him so they faked his death and sold him to slavery to a caravan coming from Gilead, where he ended up being sold in Egypt

He rose from slave to house assistant but his owner's wife tried to seduce him and then told lies and Joseph ended up in prison, where he interprets dreams for people, two years later he is called to interpret the king of Egypts dream; He say that a seven year famine is on the way, and Joseph is put in charge of all the officials.  His brothers come to buy food, and they do not recognize Joseph as speaks in Egyptian and he tricks them all to come to Egypt so that he can reveal his identity.

Gen44:5 states that he uses a silver cup to "learn about the future"

So his father and brothers and their families come to live in Egypt to avoid death during the famine, stopping at Beersheba to offer sacrifices.  Joseph went on to trade food for all things and by the end of the famine he owned all of the land and animals and most people were his slaves.  He went on to have two sons Ephraim and Manasseh.  Joseph died at the age of 110 and he was embalmed, later his bones were taken by Moses when the exile occurred so that he could be buried in the land of Canaan.

Prophet Zephaniah (est640-609BC)

Prophet Name:

Zephaniah, related to the Royal line, meaning ‘The Lord protects’, according to the Book of the Bee he was of the tribe of Simeon and died in peace in his own land

Mission/Message:

Zephaniah’s mission was to disclose God’s coming judgement and to speak about ‘the day of the Lord’.

Documentation:

Due to Zephaniah’s social position he would have been very knowledgeable of the political issues of the time, and was probably familiar with the writings of Isaiah and Amos. The book itself is believed to have been written after 640 but before 627.

Occupation:

Not known for sure but we know he was related to the royal line.

Best known for:

-Prediction of the Day of the Lord

Attributes of his personality:

He was of ruling class, in his twenties when he began to prophesy

Supernatural Aspects:

It says that the ‘word of God came to him’. His prophecies come across as if God revealed things to him first and then he spoke about it to others. This is slightly different to others who said directly as if God was speaking to them in present tense.

Examples of prophecies:

-The Day of the Lord

-The destruction of the world

End Times Prophecies:

This book is full of end time prophecies; death of men and birds and fish, destruction of the economy, houses and land not liveable (maybe nuclear contamination), a day of darkness, a time when wealth is worth nothing, the whole world consumed, streets deserted, cities destroyed

Prophet Nahum (est663-612BC)

Prophet Information:

Nahum, meaning “comfort”, according to the Book of the Bee he was from the city of Elkosh and was of the tribe of Simeon, died in peace and was buried in his own country.

Mission/Message:

Nahum’s mission was to portray God as one who gives refuge to those who trust in Him and as one who will not let the guilty go unpunished. In particular Nahum spoke and prophesised about the coming destruction of Nineveh, and that this would give comfort to Judah.

Documentation:

The book contains details of the vision of Nahum. The estimates of dating this book come from the events mentioned in the book. It was after the fall of Thebes in 663 and before the destruction of Nineveh in 612.

Occupation:

Unknown but his hometown was named Elkosh (location also unknown)

Best known for:

-Announcement of the coming destruction of Nineveh

Attributes of his personality:

The type of works used in the book show intense descriptions and vocabulary, the writing is poetic yet features many rhetorical questions. He was a deep thinker and analyst.

Supernatural Aspects:

The book is a vision, but it differs in the fact that other prophets would say “The Lord says” whereas Nahum describes “The Lord will” or “The Lord is”. This would give a general picture that Nahum knew the mind of God whereas others heard the words of God.

Examples of prophecies:

-The destruction of Nineveh

End Times Prophecies:

There is a possibility that the second chapter is talking about Israel being restored after ‘destroyers have laid them waste’ meaning the Israel state after the Second World War. It goes on to mention about an army in red or scarlet, which could represent a country that uses predominantly red on their flag.

Prophet Habakkuk (est640-598BC)

Prophet Information:

Habakkuk, according to the Book of the Bee he was from the land of Zoar and of the tribe of Simeon, also that he brought food to Daniel in the lions den, he was stoned to death by Jews in Jerusalem

Mission/Message:

Habakkuk was different to the other twelve Minor Prophets in that he wrote no oracle addressed directly at Israel, instead his book is like a debate between himself and God. This is supposed to be symbolic of the general feelings felt by those like him at the time.

Documentation:

The book seems like it is just a personal record between a man and God, but it could represent how the godly felt at the time about what was happening around them. The book itself is generally dated to 605 B.C. Habakkuk is also mentioned in the book Bel and the Dragon as being the person who ministered to Daniel whilst in the lions den, but this is not seen as historical. He is also mentioned in Lives of the Prophets, saying that he was born to a Shunamite woman with Elisha's blessing.

Occupation:

Unknown but there are musical notations in the book, which would give rise to the belief that he was knowledgeable in music.

Best known for:

-Prediction of the coming Babylonian invasion

Attributes of his personality:

Strong faith in religious traditions, he wrote with clearness and great feeling, and displays his trust and belief in God

Supernatural Aspects:

The book describes a relationship between the prophet and God, one where Habakkuk complains and gets his answers until finally he is happy and fully understands God’s will and accepts it.

Examples of prophecies:

-The invasion by Babylonians

-The punishment of the Babylonians

End Times Prophecies:

There is some debate about the first section of Chapter two where some believe it is talking about the anti-christ and the end times yet the traditionalists believe that it is merely talking about the fact that, even though the punishment of the Babylonians will come, that they will have to wait for the vision to come true, and they did have to wait 66 years.