Leave it to Proverbs to say so succinctly what what others (ahem!) take whole books to say. Here in a nutshell is the case for keeping the prophetic books and the apocalyptic discourse in play.
Where there is no prophecy, the people cast off restraint, but happy are those who keep the law (Proverbs 29:18).Notice, it says "happy" (or blessed), not "saved." This is not a soteriological text, but one that speaks to one's state of health and well-being, and perhaps even the well being of whole churches. But the main thing to notice is the role of prophecy: not to tell the future in a rigid way, for God can change his mind about how he will respond to certain situations; it is not even necessarily to "come true," though the truth of it is beyond doubt; it is rather to keep people from giving in to self-destructive and wild abandon. Strange as much prophecy may sound, it is in fact a check against insanity.
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