Oracle

Repeatedly through Jeremiah 23, we see the word "oracle" used, and in this case, usually in terms of a false oracle, as Jeremiah continued his warnings against false prophecy. For those of you with a taste for Greek mythology, when you hear the word oracle, it's hard not to think of the Oracle at Delphi.

Quick Wikipedia research suggests that the Oracle at Delphi was limited in its scope,  giving prophecies only on the seventh day of the nine warmer months. We've seen oracle used in the Bible before--Balaam's prophecies in Numbers 23-24 were titled oracles, but the vast majority of uses are as titles to a prophecy. Isaiah did this eleven times, and this chapter of Jeremiah is the only one where he used this word. As such, oracle isn't necessarily a negative term in the Bible.

But as Jeremiah used it, it IS a bad term, since he was discussing the false prophets of his time. By this time, we're pretty clear of what Jeremiah's message was--the time for repentance had passed, and it was time for the people of Judah to prepare for Babylonian captivity. Apparently there were others saying completely different things, suggesting better times were just around the corner. We still see the same thing today. The message of Jeremiah is just as apt for us, and there are no shortage of false prophets around us, telling us things that are total contradictions to Scripture. 

And in this day and age, that's how we determine false prophecy. Determining the truth or falseness of prophecy isn't some clever test that God gives to see if we pass, because God is never about tricking us. Determining the truth of a prophecy is fairly straightforward--does it square with Scripture? In fact, this even begs a question--IS there any new prophecy for us today, or were we given all the prophecy we need in the Bible? I'm not going to answer that, I'll add that as a discussion question for Sunday and put the onus on you. No need to thank me.

Scott