In 2005 Wikipedia's first sentence called it “prediction of future events”. Today it says “message that has been communicated to a person”.
Measured, not asserted. Every count, date and revision on this page was taken from Wikipedia's own history and checked against the live article. The words quoted are theirs.
Machine-checked against the full current article on 2026-08-03.
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The opening as it read in 2005
This article refers to the topic of prophecy as the purported telling of future events or supernatural revelations. Prophecy , in a broad sense, is the prediction of future events. The etymology of the word is ultimately Greek, from pro- "before" plus the root of phanai "speak", i. e. "speaking before" or "foretelling", but prophecy often implies the involvement of supernatural phenomena, whether it is communication with a deity, the reading of magical signs, or astrology . It is also used as a general term for the revelation of divine will. Throughout history, people have sought knowledge of future events from special individuals or groups who were thought to have the gift of prophecy, such as Oracles at Delphi in ancient Greece. Cultures in which prophecy played an important role include the American Indians , Mayans , Celts , Druids , Chinese , Chaldeans , Assyrians , Egyptians , Hindus , Hebrews , Tibetans , Greeks , and many in the Christian tradition, among others.1
This is Wikipedia's own text, saved in our repository. Their copy of it is revision 15978385.
The opening as it stood in 2010 7 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear
A prophecy is the message that has been communicated to a prophet which the prophet then communicates to others.Such messages typically involve divine inspiration, interpretation, or revelation of events to come (cf. divine knowledge ).The concept of prophecy is found throughout all of the world's religions .To a certain degree prophesy is an integral concept within any religion.The term has found deep usage in two of the world's largest religious groups, Christianity and Islam, along with many others.Confusion often exists between the word "prophecy" (noun) and "to prophesy" (verb).A memory phrase to help distinguish between "prophecy" (pronounced with the long e sound as in "see") and "prophesy" (pronounced with the long i sound as in "sigh"): "When a prophet prophesies he or she utters prophecies.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 370453954.
The opening as it stood in 2015 6 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear
Prophecy involves a process in which one or more messages allegedly communicated to a prophet are then communicated to other people. Such messages typically involve divine inspiration, interpretation, or revelation of events to come (compare divine knowledge ). Historically, clairvoyance has been used as an adjunct to prophecy.Prophecy (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy) Compare: Guiley, Rosemary (2006).The Encyclopedia of Magic and Alchemy .Clairvoyance has been a valued skill in divination, prophecy, and magic since ancient times.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 667955999.
The opening as it stood in 2020 5 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear
Message that is claimed by a prophet to have been communicated to them by a deity For other uses, see Prophecy (disambiguation) .A prophecy is a message that is claimed by a prophet to have been communicated to them by a deity .Such messages typically involve inspiration, interpretation, or revelation of divine will concerning the prophet's social world and events to come (compare divine knowledge ).
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 964004315.
The opening as it stood on October 6, 2023 3 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear
Message claimed to be from a deity For other uses, see Prophecy (disambiguation) . 16th century woodcut of a soothsayer delivering a prophecy to a king, deriving it from stars, fishes, and noises from the mountains In religion , a prophecy is a message that has been communicated to a person (typically called a prophet ) by a supernatural entity.Prophecies are a feature of many cultures and belief systems and usually contain divine will or law , or preternatural knowledge, for example of future events.They can be revealed to the prophet in various ways depending on the religion and the story, such as visions , divination , or direct interaction with divine beings in physical form.Stories of prophetic deeds sometimes receive considerable attention and some have been known to survive for centuries through oral tradition or as religious texts .
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1177548204.
The opening as it stood in 2025
Message claimed to be from a deity For other uses, see Prophecy (disambiguation) . 16th century woodcut of a soothsayer delivering a prophecy to a king, deriving it from stars, fishes, and noises from the mountains In religion , mythology , and fiction , a prophecy is a message that has been communicated to a person (typically called a prophet ) by a supernatural entity. Prophecies are a feature of many cultures and belief systems and usually contain divine will or law , or preternatural knowledge, for example of future events. They can be revealed to the prophet in various ways depending on the religion and the story, such as visions , or direct interaction with divine beings in physical form. Stories of prophetic deeds sometimes receive considerable attention and some have been known to survive for centuries through oral tradition or as religious texts .
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1298088009. This is our newest snapshot; the live article may have moved again since.
Today
In 2005 Wikipedia's first sentence called it “prediction of future events”. Today it says “message that has been communicated to a person”. Read the current article and compare.
2005
2010
2015
2020
Oct '23
2025
Counts in the opening at each snapshot. Green: the word gained ground. Red: it was cut. Grey: no change.
What Wikipedia says this is
Every article opens by defining its subject. This one was redefined since 2005, and today's defining sentence is their current revision.
Then
prediction of future events
Now
message that has been communicated to a person
Struck red text is no longer in the article; dotted amber text was rewritten. Every revision id links to Wikipedia's copy; the text shown is our own saved copy. Data: /data. Wikipedia text is CC BY-SA; quoted for the record; not affiliated with Wikipedia.
