What is prophecy and what does it mean? "The word prophecy comes from the Greek "proclaimer" and refers to one who speaks on behalf of a god or goddess" (Collins, 2004, 299). The roles of such individuals are unique to specific cultures. These prophets often get their messages, revelations, from either visions, inspirations, or ecstasy, and the Hebrew Bible refers to them as nabi', which is a highly debated term but most likely is used to mean "the one who is called"(Collins, 2004, 300). In the Ancient Near East, the prophets, which can be male or female are referred to as "answerer" "ecstatic" or nabu, which is the same as Hebrew nabi'. These prophets often receive revelation from their dreams or temples. Prophecy is distinct from divination, and prophecy often is divided into two forms, one ancient and one modern, which will be displayed throughout this webpage.
When a college community was asked a series of questions regarding both anicent and modern prophecy, heres what they said: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/YWSKQGT