Page 297 - Bible History

Their IHe
270 GOD'S CHOSEN PEOPLE IN CAPTIVITY
found wanting. PHARES: Thy kingdom is divided, and is given to the Medes and the Persians.''
Then, by the king's command, Daniel was clothed with purple, and a chain of gold was put about his neck, and the king announced that he had power as the third man in the kingdom.
Daniel's prophecy was fulfilled that very night. The Persians turned the course of the Euphrates River and entered the city by way of the river bed. Baltassar was put to death. After a short battle, the Babylonian army surrendered, and Cyrus became king.
3. THE WORK OF THE PROPHETS
We usually think of a prophet as a man who fore­ tells some future event. We think of the prophets whose writings are found in the Bible as the holy men who foretold the coming of Jesus. Yet, foretelling the future was only a part of the work of a prophet among the Jews. The prophet was looked upon as the mes­ senger of God, who spoke for God in the midst of men. He not only foretold the future, but he also told the people what they must do to please God at the present time.
The prophets lived apart from the people, very much like the members of religious orders today. If anyone wished to become a prophet, he had to go through a special course of training. There were schools of prophets, where most of these. holy men
studied, though not all of them were prepared to preach the word of God. Then they went forth as missionaries among the people.