The LORD’s Prophets

The LORD gave this message to Micah of Moresheth during the years when Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah were kings of Judah. The visions he saw concerned both Samaria and Jerusalem.  Attention! Let all the people of the world listen! Let the earth and everything in it hear. The Sovereign LORD is making accusations against you; the Lord speaks from His holy Temple. Look! The LORD is coming! He leaves His throne in heaven and tramples the heights of the earth. The mountains melt beneath His feet and flow into the valleys like wax in a fire, like water pouring down a hill. And why is this happening? Because of the rebellion of Israel--yes, the sins of the whole nation. (Micah 1:1-5a NLT)
People have lots of misunderstandings about prophets.  Prophets are simply spokespersons for a deity or god.  The prophet is a true prophet when he or she accurately communicates what their god instructs them to communicate.  The God told us that we could recognize true prophets of the LORD by their miraculous signs or short-term predictions and by their consistency with what had already been revealed by the LORD.
"So I, the LORD, will make the city of Samaria a heap of ruins. Her streets will be plowed up for planting vineyards. I will roll the stones of her walls into the valley below, exposing her foundations. All her carved images will be smashed. All her sacred treasures will be burned. These things were bought with the money earned by her prostitution, and they will now be carried away to pay prostitutes elsewhere." (Micah 1:6-7 NLT)
Prophets are often misunderstood, too.  We tend to forget that the prophets, whose writings are captured in the pages of Scripture, lived in a certain time and a certain place.  Their context tells us a lot about how to understand the messages that they delivered from the LORD.
What sorrow awaits you who lie awake at night, thinking up evil plans. You rise at dawn and hurry to carry them out, simply because you have the power to do so. When you want a piece of land, you find a way to seize it. When you want someone's house, you take it by fraud and violence. You cheat a man of his property, stealing his family's inheritance. But this is what the LORD says: "I will reward your evil with evil; you won't be able to pull your neck out of the noose. You will no longer walk around proudly, for it will be a terrible time." (Mic 2:1-3 NLT)
Micah, for example, lived during the days when Israel was defeated and taken into captivity by Assyria.  His messages were delivered to Israel prior to their defeat, so they would know what was about to happen.
I said, "Listen, you leaders of Israel! You are supposed to know right from wrong, but you are the very ones who hate good and love evil. You skin My people alive and tear the flesh from their bones. Yes, you eat My people's flesh, strip off their skin, and break their bones. You chop them up like meat for the cooking pot. Then you beg the LORD for help in times of trouble! Do you really expect Him to answer? After all the evil you have done, He won't even look at you!" (Micah 3:1-4 NLT)
Micah’s message was also delivered to them so they would know the reasons that the LORD was going to do what the LORD was about to do.  They had rebelled against God for too long, now.  The LORD was finally saying, “Enough!”
Listen to me, you leaders of Israel! You hate justice and twist all that is right. You are building Jerusalem on a foundation of murder and corruption. You rulers make decisions based on bribes; you priests teach God's laws only for a price; you prophets won't prophesy unless you are paid. Yet all of you claim to depend on the LORD. "No harm can come to us," you say, "for the LORD is here among us." Because of you, Mount Zion will be plowed like an open field; Jerusalem will be reduced to ruins! A thicket will grow on the heights where the Temple now stands. (Micah 3:9-12 NLT)
How about you?  Do you read the books of the Bible written by the prophets?  Do you have a Bible (or some other resource) that helps you understand the time and place that they lived?  Does it help you understand these books of prophecy?  Do you listen to the LORD’s true prophets?