Arbitrary Hierarchies

Arbitrary Hierarchies

The wisdom of God is said to be of ultimate totality, and a prophet, according to Hebrew and Christian scriptures, is the means through which he relays this wisdom to the people. But what constitutes God’s selections? Are prophets spiritually superior to the common man? Are some prophets more powerful than others, or does God, in effect, distribute the same amount of power to all of his prophets? Is there, in other words, a hierarchy and if so are the reasons for it contingent upon the individual, or the situation that God commands him/her to handle? The answer to these questions, and many like them, are subject to debate, but from a literary standpoint few will argue that there is indeed a physical hierarchy of prophets. What this inquiry is primarily concerned with, are the grounds for such a hierarchy within the context of Hebrew Scriptures and Christian Gospels. What it will propose, moreover, is that the unequal distribution of power is contingent upon the situation, not the status of the individuals selected. Prophets, messianic or otherwise, are merely mechanisms through which God handles the situation, not all-powerful emissaries as they’re commonly perceived. The suggestion of a hierarchy stems from the addition of the term Messiah to the term Prophet, in the following analysis both of these terms will be described within the beliefs of their respective religions.

“I will put my words into the mouth of the prophet who shall speak to them everything that I command” (Dt, 18:18). Prophecy is said to be the voice of God, and a prophet is simply God’s ambassador, relaying the word of God to the people. However, it is not by any means his/her choice, for once a prophet is called upon by God and com...

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... I am the Lord” (Ex, 14:15-17). Here it is obvious that God is trying to make an emphatic point to the people of Egypt, and Israel, so he gives Moses the superhuman power to part an entire sea. In a contrasting instance, God takes power away from Moses and spreads it upon seventy elders to lighten the burden (Nu, 11:25-6). Therefore, the distribution of power, or the hierarchy of power, is rather arbitrary, making the so-called hierarchy a false one. If the power can indeed be given to, or taken away from, anyone, at any given time, than the vessel in which the power is carried is inconsequential. What is consequential, however, is the situation that requires the power to be used in the first place. Thus, there is no true hierarchy, there only appears to be one on the account of the physical attributions and classifications we often asses to people and situations.