Preaching

Preaching in Scripture denotes the authoritative public proclamation of God's word — the heralding (kerysso) of the gospel rather than merely the explaining (didasko) of doctrine, though the two overlap. The OT prophets are the primary models of preaching: they proclaimed God's word under divine commission, often against hostile audiences, calling for covenant renewal. Ezekiel's commissioning as a watchman (Ezek. 3:17) and Jonah's reluctant preaching at Nineveh are paradigmatic cases.

In the NT, preaching is the central activity of Jesus's ministry: "He came into Galilee, proclaiming (kerysso) the gospel of God" (Mark 1:14). His sermon at Nazareth (Luke 4:18–19) applies Isaiah 61 to his own mission. The apostolic preaching (the kerygma) centered on the death and resurrection of Jesus as fulfillment of the scriptures and the call to repentance and faith (Acts 2:14–39). Paul declares it a divine necessity: "Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel" (1 Cor. 9:16), and the method is primary: faith comes by hearing the word proclaimed (Rom. 10:14–17).