Ezekiel 13:17-23

The False Prophetesses (Ezekiel 13:17).

We know from Miriam (Exodus 15:20), Deborah (Judges 4:4) and Huldah (2 Kings 22:14) that there were recognised prophetesses in Israel (see also Nehemiah 6:14), the latter two playing an important role in guidance in the ways of Yahweh, although they were exceptional. But we know little else about their function as a whole. Here again we come across prophetesses, but like the prophets they had ceased to speak truly and were involved in occult activity. Indeed ‘prophetesses' may simply refer to women who seek to foretell the future through occult means, rather than a genuine group of cult prophetesses.