ot only are prophets not stoned for failed prophecies, there are several examples of respected prophets that are not even reproached for prophetic predictions that did not come to pass. The most notable example, of course, is Jonah. This highly visible seer prophesied against Nineveh with "yet 40 days and Nineveh shall be overthrown." 22 While the text tells us that Jonah had other successful prophesies, 23 in this case Nineveh repented and the Lord chose to turn back his wrath against the Assyrian capital - yet nowhere do we read of Jonah having been accused of being a false prophet.

     Apparently, the sovereignty of God supercedes his instructions to a prophet to speak his words. In the case of Jonah, the text clearly says that the Lord instructed Jonah to "go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it...." 24 Even though Jonah resisted his prophetic calling, he ultimately obeyed the Lord. The act of obedience to the prophetic call is also a pattern that repeats itself, as we shall see.

     In yet another example of a prophecy that was not obviously fulfilled, we see the widely known prediction of Daniel's 70 weeks. In Daniel 9, the prophet says that "from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem, unto the Messiah the prince shall be seven weeks and threescore and two weeks." 25

     While prophecy commentators have been routinely teaching for over a century that everyone in ancient Israel "knew" that a prophetic "week" is actually a period of seven years, there is not one verse in the Bible that actually says that! Indeed, the literal rendering of 69 weeks elapsing between the commandment to restore Jerusalem and the coming of Messiah should be preferred - unless there is some overriding statement in the scriptures to the contrary.

     While I actually do hold to the premise of a prophetic "week" being a period of 7 years, that's beside the point. Since it cannot be demonstrated in scripture that this was always the case whenever a "week" was being mentioned, about 16 1/2 months (70 literal weeks) after Daniel's prophesied "commandment to restore and rebuild Jerusalem," the Jews would have expected their Messiah. Of course, Jesus didn't come 70 weeks after that prophesied edict to rebuild the city and the temple. He came almost 500 years later.

     Many are aware that the usual interpretation of this prophetic "week" makes each 7 day week into a 7 year period - which then calculates 70 weeks out to 490 years. I also hold this view, but many that do not could plausibly accuse Daniel of having issued a false prophecy. The truth of the prophecy is based on the perspective of time, and how we interpret the times spoken by the prophet. There is yet another example of major prophets in the Bible that have issued a time-based prophecy that did not occur within the specified period.

     In Jerusalem, at the actual fall of the Assyrian empire about 150 years after Jonah's inaccurate prophecy, we find another failed prediction by a prophet of the Lord. Incredibly, the major prophet Isaiah issued a specific prophecy that was not fulfilled in the way it was stated.

     In II Kings, we read how "In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And the prophet Isaiah the son of Amoz came to him, and said unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Set thine house in order; for thou shalt die, and not live." 26 In this instance, it's clear the prophet is stating the illness would take Hezekiah - yet after the good king sought the Lord with tears, God decides to "add unto thy days fifteen years...." 27 Furthermore, the text tells us that Hezekiah "recovered" from the illness that Isaiah prophesied would kill him. Once again, the sovereignty of God intervenes in a course that was pronounced by one of His prophets.

     Here is a point blank example of a "thus saith the Lord" prophecy that failed to be fulfilled--by no less a prophet than Isaiah. There is not a verse in the Bible that lays any charge of false prophet to Isaiah. Indeed, Isaiah is highly revered for his many messianic prophecies - several of which were cited by Jesus Christ himself.

     Similarly, nowhere is Jonah seen to be executed, or even reviled or rebuked, for his failed prophecy. It would seem then, that the Israelites knew that the acts of a false prophet were those specified by Moses as leading the people towards other gods - and clearly neither Jonah, Daniel, nor Isaiah did that.

     It's significant to note that in all three cases, the failed prophecies were focused on timing. Nineveh was later destroyed, and obviously Hezekiah eventually died - the timing was the only aspect of the prophecies that seemed to be in question.

     It's worth noting that even in the Deuteronomy passage concerning the Messiah/Prophet the text says "if the thing follow not...." 28 the prophecy is then seen to be false. In every case I've just mentioned, the thing did "follow" at a later time than the prophecy precisely stated. Thus, it would seem that a true prophet of the Lord will ultimately be vindicated through the eventual fulfillment of every prophecy, but not necessarily within the immediate time frame.

     It's also interesting to see that even the scriptural exhortation to kill the prophets that led the people to worship other gods was not followed to the letter - even in the Old Testament times. For example, in Exodus the Lord appoints Aaron to be a prophet when he says to Moses, "and Aaron thy brother shall be thy prophet." 29 Yet in the provocation in the wilderness, it is Aaron who is deeply implicated as he told the Israelites to "...break off the golden earrings" that he subsequently "fashioned it with a graving tool, after he had made it a golden calf." 30 Although the text tells us it was the Israelites themselves that put him up to it, clearly the idolatrous golden calf was worshiped and we see no outright penalty against Aaron for his part in it.

     While one could argue that Aaron was actually a prophet of Moses, as opposed to a prophet of the Lord, it seems rather evident that the office of prophet was frequently given a rather wide berth when it came to transgressions of the law.