Prophecy

== Prophecy in religion ==

=== Judeo-Christian Religion ===
There are many prophecies in the [[Bible]]. Some of these warn of punishments to come.  There are two kinds of Bible prophecies.  Some are conditional, that is, they include the possibility that the punishment can be avoided based on the hearers changing their ways. <ref>https://spiritandtruthonline.org/the-conditional-nature-of-prophecy/</ref> An example of this is found in the [[Book of Jonah]].  Other prophecies are unconditional.  That means that the event will happen no matter what the hearers do to avoid it. There are also Bible prophecies that tell of future blessings.  Blessings are good things that happen because of God's mercy and forgiveness. Some prophecies contain both punishment and blessings.  [[Jesus]] made prophecies like this, warning people to believe in Him and live right, to get the blessing instead of the punishment. While some of the prophecies in the bible about future events are hard to understand, the moral warnings from Jesus are not hard to understand.  For this reason, some preachers, like Moses, Jesus and other religious leaders who tell people to live a good life are called [[prophet]]s by their followers even though they may not tell about future events.

===False Prophecies===
Sometimes people think that God has told them something or that they have discovered something in the Bible that tells the future.  Predictions of the end of the world have been made many times in history. 
When people set dates for events such as Christ's return, they have often been disappointed.<ref>https://catholicexchange.com/apocalypse-then-six-false-prophecies-of-the-end-times/</ref> Jesus himself said that "No one knows the day or the hour" of his return. <ref> Matthew 24:36 </ref>