PROPER. — Like the Lat. proprium, from which it is derived through the Fr. propre, ' proper ' means one's ou-n. Thus Udall, Erasmus' Para- phrase, i. 77, ' Onely God chaungetli the myndes and heartes of riche men, that they ^vill cherefully evther cast awaie that which they doe possesse, or els possesse them as common and not proper'; Tindale, Expositio}is, 124, ' Forsooth I have no goods, nor anj'tliin^ proper, or that is mine own ; it is the convent's ; Rhem. NT, note on Mt 9* ' The faithlesse Jewes thought (as Heretikes now a daies) that to forgeve sinnes was so proper to God, that it could not be communicated unto man ' ; and especially Adams, Works, i. 69, ' Sal- vation is common, as St Jude speaketh, ver. 3, " When I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation ; but few make it proper to themselves : that God is my salvation and t/it/ salvation, this is the comfort.' This meaning occurs in AV five times. For 1 Ch 29^ see Pecuuar. The other instances are Wis IS-' 19«, Ac 1", 1 Co V. The Gr. is always Mios. RV adds Wis 2^ and Jude' where the Gr. is also Wios.*
Another meaning, a derivative of the above, is 'of good appearance,' 'handsome,' as in Fuller's IIoli/ War, ii., ' Wliat a pitie is it to see a proper Gentleman to have such a crick in his neck that he cannot look backward ' ; and in Holy State, 319, of the ' Embas.sadour,' he says ' He is of a proper, at least passable person.' This is the sense of ' proper ' in He 11^ ' By faith Moses, when he was born, was hid three months of his parents, be- cause they saw he was a proper child ' {arretoy ri ToidLoii ; RV ' goodly '—see F'air).
J. Hastings. PROPHECYAND PROPHETS.— Under this head- ing four subjects fall to be treated : the history of prophecy ; the psychology of prophecy ; the pro- phetic teaching ; and the verification in history of the prophetic ideas of the future.
A. TBS HISTORY OF PnOI'HECT.
L The Origin of Pkopubot, U. The NiME Prophet. UL Historical Steps.
1. The Agi' of Samuel.
2. The Early Monarchy.
8. The Aire of the Literary Propheti. 4. The Decline and Expiry of Prophecy.
B. TBS PROHUETir M IXD.
i. The Ii>e.\ op the Peophr. ii. Inspiration. lii. Tub False Peofhktb.
* See Deissmann on i3i«» in Bibeittudien, p. 120 1. (En<. tr. p 123 f.).
PROniECY AND PROrHKTS
PKOl'HECY A^'D PKOrilKTS 107
0. The Tea crt.vc of the Prophets. i. Obneral Teaciiinq. U. Pkbdictive Pkuphkcy.
1. f*redicti->ii in OcueraL
2. Messianic I'rophecv.
Ll. iKTERfRETA TIOS A XD FVLFII.MEIfT OF PROPHECY i. I'Kul'UKCY I'OETICAL ASU luBAL.
U. I'Kiii'UECT Moral and Costinoknt. Ul Pkoi'Uicv National and Ukultivs uks OT Reuoion.
A. Tr/B JTrsTonr OFPROPllKcr.—Uehrew pro- phecy, tlioii;^!! the deepest movement of the human cpiril and in many waj-s the most mysterious, has, like other movenienta of the spirit, a history. There is the period of its obscure beginning's ; the period of its hi^'hest purity and lottiest achieve- ments ; and tlie period of its decline and exjiiry, when its work being aceomplislied other agencies in the education of mankind took its place. Its e.xpiry can be spoken of only in the sense that it ceased to be a creative power ; its results remain an imperishable heritage of the race, and the agencies in Israel that succeeded it, such as scribes and proverbial i.sts or wise men, were only the con- duits and channels that distributed the waters of its grciil stream over the individuals of the nation.
i. Ul:li;l.\ OF Pkophkcy. — Something to which the general name of prophecy might be given seems to have existed among all peoples. It originated from beliefs or feelings common to men everywhere, Buch as (1) that there was a supernatural, a God or gods, on whose will and power the wellbeing and the destiny of men depended ; (2) that these sujier- iiatural powers had communion with men and gave thein intimations of their will and their purposes ; and (3) that these intimations were not given to men indiscriminately, but to certain favoured men, wlio communicated them to others. Having these beliefs, onlinary men or States desirous of living or acting in accordance with the mind of the deity, and particularly when in perplexity in regard to what laj' in tlie future, liail recourse to those through whom the deity spoke, and consulted them.
The supernatural powers, it was supposed, gave intimation of their will and disposition towards men in two ways: (1) in an external way, by objective signs or omens in the region of nature, as by the (light or cry of birds. These creatures coming from heaven were the bearers of a message from heaven. Other creatures also were the means of signiliiant indications from the deity, for ex- amiile, in the way they met a man, or the side, the right or the left, from which tliey crossed before him.* In all countries the sacrilicial victim offered to the gods was held to exhibit signs from them, particularly in the convulsive movements of the liver and entrails of the freshly slain creature (Ezk 21). Less commonly omens were observed outside the animal world, e.g. in the rustling of the leaves of trees (Dodona; cf. Gn 12", Jg 9^, 2 S a-*). In the East the movements and conjunc- tions of the stars were regarded as prophetic, though in this case the influence on man's destinj' may have been supposed to be exerted by the stars thiiiisulves, which, however, were often identilied with deities. {-) Hesides this external or objective revelation, there was an inward revelation given in the mind of man. In this case the deity possessed the man, inspired him, and spoke through him. It is possible, indeed, that the animal omens may have sometimes been regarded as forms assumed by the deity or as possessed by him. And from the curious feelings of antiquity regarding the rnpjiiirt existing between aninuils and men, the animals may sometimes have been supposed to Come to men not as mes.sengers of the deity, but on their own impulse, knowing themselves what they told to nun (W. K. Smith, ii.s" 443). But this, if * Ablivardt, Chat^ a Atymar, p. 460.