voices in the wilderness

Noun

voice in the wilderness (plural voices in the wilderness)

1. (idiomatic) A person, publication, or other source of assertions that expresses an opinion, doctrine, or point of view which is ignored or rejected by almost all others; the actual utterance of an unpopular opinion, doctrine, or point of view.
   • Eysenck (1952) was just beginning to seriously question the validity of dynamically oriented therapy, but he was a lone voice in the wilderness at that time. Not until the sixties did opposing points of view . . . begin to gain prominence.1974, Leonard Horwitz, Clinical Prediction in Psychotherapy, →ISBN, page 1

   Synonyms:

   call in the wilderness, cry in the wilderness, voice calling in the wilderness, voice crying in the wilderness

2. (idiomatic, rare) An influential religious personage, especially one who makes prophetic utterances.
   • "I don't know," said Anne. "He gathers together a little flock of all denominations, who only care to hear the word."
     "Such a voice in the wilderness as often does good service," said Julius.1876, Charlotte M. Yonge, chapter 3, in The Three Brides