📖 Biblical Definition
Agabus was a New Testament prophet active in the AD 40s and 50s. Acts 11:28 records his first foretelling: "And there stood up one of them named Agabus, and signified by the Spirit that there should be great dearth throughout all the world: which came to pass in the days of Claudius Caesar" — prompting the Antioch church to send relief to the Judean brethren through Barnabas and Saul. His second appearance is dramatic. At Caesarea on Paul’s return journey to Jerusalem, Agabus took Paul’s belt, bound his own hands and feet with it, and prophesied: "So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man that owneth this girdle, and shall deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles" (Acts 21:11). Paul went anyway, knowing the cost.
📜 Webster 1828 Definition
AGABUS, n.
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A scriptural proper name; in Acts, a New Testament prophet.
📖 Key Scripture
Acts 11:28 — "There stood up one of them named Agabus, and signified by the Spirit that there should be great dearth throughout all the world: which came to pass in the days of Claudius Caesar."
Acts 21:10 — "There came down from Judaea a certain prophet, named Agabus."
Acts 21:11 — "He took Paul's girdle, and bound his own hands and feet, and said, Thus saith the Holy Ghost, So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man."
Acts 11:30 — "Which also they did, and sent it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas and Saul."
⚠️ Modern Corruption
Agabus prophesied a famine and got fed; he prophesied an arrest and was disregarded; the Spirit's word stands either way.
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No major postmodern redefinition of this figure. The risk is simply that they fade from common Christian vocabulary, and the lessons their life teaches fade with them. Recover the figure to recover the lesson.
Usage
"Agabus prophesied a famine and got fed; he prophesied an arrest and was disregarded."
"True prophecy does not always cancel the journey; sometimes it prepares the saint for it."
"Listen to the Spirit; weigh the prophecy with Scripture; obey the deeper call."