The prophets of the Bible
The Old Testament has 16 prophets with books named after them: four major prophets (Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel) and twelve minor prophets (Hosea to Malachi). Many other prophets wrote no book, including Moses, Samuel, Nathan, Elijah, Elisha and Huldah.
A prophet in the Bible is someone who speaks for God. The text notes an older word for the same role: "he that is now called a Prophet was beforetime called a Seer" (1 Samuel 9:9).
Major and minor refer to the length of the books, not how important the prophet was. Hosea is a minor prophet only because his book is shorter than Isaiah's.
Writing prophets first (in Bible order), then prophets who wrote no book
Isaiah (major)
Son of Amoz, who prophesied in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah. When God asked whom He should send, Isaiah answered, Here am I; send me.
Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.
Isaiah 6:8Jeremiah (major)
Called before birth, he protested that he was a child. He warned Judah before Babylon took Jerusalem. Lamentations is traditionally attributed to him.
Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.
Jeremiah 1:5Ezekiel (major)
A priest among the exiles by the river Chebar in Babylon. Known for his visions, including the valley of dry bones.
Ezekiel 1:3
Daniel (major)
Taken to Babylon as a young man of Judah. God shut the lions' mouths for him. Jesus calls him Daniel the prophet; the Hebrew Bible places his book among the Writings.
Matthew 24:15
Hosea (minor)
Prophesied to the northern kingdom. God told him to marry a wife of whoredoms as a picture of Israel's unfaithfulness.
Hosea 1:2
Joel (minor)
Son of Pethuel. He foretold the LORD pouring out His spirit upon all flesh, which Peter quotes in Acts 2.
Joel 2:28
Amos (minor)
A herdman of Tekoa who said he was no prophet nor a prophet's son, yet God sent him to Israel.
Amos 7:14
Obadiah (minor)
The shortest book of the Old Testament, one chapter. It is a vision concerning Edom.
Obadiah 1:1
Jonah (minor)
Son of Amittai, sent to Nineveh. He fled, and the LORD prepared a great fish to swallow him. 2 Kings 14:25 also mentions him.
Now the LORD had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.
Jonah 1:17Micah (minor)
Micah the Morasthite, in the days of Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah. He named Bethlehem as the place the ruler would come from.
Micah 5:2
Nahum (minor)
Nahum the Elkoshite. His book is the burden of Nineveh, foretelling its fall.
Nahum 1:1
Habakkuk (minor)
He questioned God about injustice and received the answer, the just shall live by his faith.
Habakkuk 2:4
Zephaniah (minor)
A descendant of Hizkiah who prophesied in the days of King Josiah.
Zephaniah 1:1
Haggai (minor)
Spoke after the return from exile, in the second year of Darius, urging the people to rebuild the house of the LORD.
Haggai 1:8
Zechariah (minor)
Prophesied alongside Haggai. He foretold the King coming lowly and riding upon an ass.
Zechariah 9:9
Malachi (minor)
The last book of the Old Testament. It closes with the promise to send Elijah the prophet.
Malachi 4:5
Moses
The text says there arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face.
And there arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face,
Deuteronomy 34:10Miriam
Called the prophetess, the sister of Aaron. She led the women with a timbrel after the Red Sea crossing.
Exodus 15:20
Deborah
A prophetess who also judged Israel.
Judges 4:4
Samuel
All Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew he was a prophet of the LORD. He anointed Saul and David.
And all Israel from Dan even to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet of the LORD.
1 Samuel 3:20Gad
Called David's seer. He brought the LORD's word to David after the census.
2 Samuel 24:11
Nathan
Confronted David over Bathsheba and Uriah with the parable of the poor man's lamb, then said, Thou art the man.
2 Samuel 12:7
Ahijah
Ahijah the Shilonite tore a new garment into twelve pieces and told Jeroboam he would rule ten tribes.
1 Kings 11:29
Elijah
Elijah the Tishbite announced a drought to Ahab and faced the prophets of Baal on mount Carmel. He went up by a whirlwind into heaven.
And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the LORD God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word.
1 Kings 17:1Micaiah
The one prophet King Ahab hated because he did not prophesy good concerning him.
1 Kings 22:8
Elisha
Elijah's successor, who asked for a double portion of his spirit. Many miracles are told of him in 2 Kings.
2 Kings 2:9
Huldah
A prophetess in Jerusalem. King Josiah's officials consulted her when the book of the law was found.
2 Kings 22:14
John the Baptist
Called the prophet of the Highest, sent to prepare the way of the Lord. Jesus said he was more than a prophet.
Luke 1:76
Anna
A prophetess of the tribe of Aser who saw the baby Jesus in the temple.
Luke 2:36
Agabus
A prophet in the book of Acts who foretold a famine and Paul's arrest in Jerusalem.
Acts 21:10
The major prophets
Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Daniel. Lamentations sits among them in the English Bible and is traditionally attributed to Jeremiah, so some lists count five major prophetic books.
The twelve minor prophets
Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi. In the Hebrew Bible these twelve are one scroll, called the Book of the Twelve.
When did the prophets speak?
Many books open by naming the kings of their day. Isaiah, Hosea, Amos and Micah spoke in the 700s BC by common reckoning, when Assyria was rising. Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Daniel lived through Babylon's conquest of Judah. Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi spoke after the return from exile. Scholars differ on the dates of some books, such as Joel and Obadiah, which do not name a king.
Prophets in the New Testament
The New Testament opens with John the Baptist and also names Anna, Agabus and others as prophets. Hebrews 1:1 looks back on the whole line: God "spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets".
God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,
Hebrews 1:1 · KJV
How well do you know The prophets of the Bible?
9 questions, every answer checked against the King James text. Play it here, then try a full book quiz.
Common questions
Who are the major prophets?
Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Daniel. They are called major because their books are long.
Who are the 12 minor prophets?
Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi.
Who was the greatest prophet in the Old Testament?
The text says of Moses, "there arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face" (Deuteronomy 34:10). Jesus said of John the Baptist that he was more than a prophet (Matthew 11:9).
Were there women prophets in the Bible?
Yes. The text calls Miriam, Deborah, Huldah and Anna prophetesses, among others.
Who was the last prophet of the Old Testament?
Malachi is the last book of the Old Testament. Jesus treated John the Baptist as the last of the line before Him (Matthew 11:13).
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