Sometimes we don’t know what we’re missing.

For exactly one millennium, a dynamic, crucial phenomenon existed in Klal Yisrael: nevuah, prophecy. Many students of Tanach remember the story of Shaul, soon to be crowned king of Yisrael, approaching Shmuel Hanavi for help in locating his father’s lost donkeys. The prophets, however, offered much more than mundane information. Rav Samson Raphael Hirsch emphasizes that the primary role of the navi was not to reveal to us what we wanted to know; he was Hashem’s messenger to inform us of what Hashem wanted us to know.

Human Sanctuary

An enigmatic conversation in Tanna Dvei Eliyahu sheds light on the significant role that the neviim played in daily Jewish life. Although the last navi, Malachi, passed away over 2,000 years ago, the Midrash narrates a number of subsequent exceptional encounters with Eliyahu Hanavi. One such account records the words of an unidentified questioner who sought information from Eliyahu about Klal Yisrael’s prophets.

Rebbi, how many prophets delivered prophecies to Klal Yisrael?

There were 48 prophets in total.

Rebbi, why 48? Why not 45 or 50?

Because, my son, the number 48 corresponds to the 48 arei miklat, the designated cities of refuge.

Obviously, there’s more to Eliyahu’s observation than a seemingly random correlation of numbers. What is the equivalency between the cities of refuge in Eretz Yisrael and the Jewish prophets?

The commentary Tosfos ben Yechiel explains this Midrash. The purpose of an ir miklat was to provide a new residence for the individual who had committed accidental murder. The ir miklat actually served a dual function: it served both as refuge and confinement. The murderer found shelter in these cities from the victim’s family who sought to avenge their loved one’s death. At the same time, he was detained there as punishment for his crime, which, although unintentional, was caused by negligence or too casual an attitude toward human life.

How was the prophet’s role similar to that of a city of refuge? The navi also served as sanctuary — for sinners, penitents, and for the nation at large, who constantly required coaching and direction. They, as the hapless slayer, required a combination of nurturing and protection, as well as admonishment and atonement. By informing them of Hashem’s message, the navi helped them avoid sin and punishment. He used the power of prophecy to guide them in the very personal process of teshuvah, identifying their sins and the flawed attitudes that had led to their negligence.

The sixth principle of the Rambam’s Thirteen Articles of Faith states, I believe with complete faith that all the words of the prophets are authentic.

With this fundamental, the Rambam begins a new group of principles. The first five ikrim centered about our knowledge of Hashem: His existence and oneness, and the facts that He has no physical form and preceded all of existence. The second group, principles six through nine, pertain to the Torah. Once we believe in Hashem, the next step is to establish that He’s given us instructions for our lives. The starting point for this crucial conviction is belief in the phenomenon of prophecy, for had Hashem never communicated with man, we wouldn’t be cognizant of His Will.