False Prophets

False Teachers

Scripture concerning false teachers/prophets...
Jeremiah 5:	30“An astonishing and horrible thing has been committed in the land: 31the prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule by their own power; And My people love to have it so. But what will you do in the end?
2 Peter 2 and false teachers/prophets in general... This chapter deals with false teachers/prophets who deliberately and intentionally teach false doctrines...
2 Peter 2: 1-3	Destructive Doctrines 1But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction. 2And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed. 3By covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words; for a long time their judgment has not been idle, and their destruction does not slumber.
2 Pete 2r: 4-11	Doom of False Teachers 4For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment; 5and did not spare the ancient world, but saved Noah, one of eight people, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly; 6and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterward would live ungodly; 7and delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked 8(for that righteous man, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds) Sin is the work of darkness, and darkness is the wages of sin. See how God dealt with the old world. The number of offenders no more procures favour, than their quality -Matthew Henry 9then the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment, 10and especially those who walk according to the flesh in the lust of uncleanness and despise authority. They are presumptuous, self-willed. They are not afraid to speak evil of dignitaries, 11whereas angels, who are greater in power and might, do not bring a reviling accusation against them before the Lord. When God sends destruction on the ungodly, he commands deliverance for the righteous -MH
2 Peter2 : 12-17	Depravity of False Teachers 12But these, like natural brute beasts made to be caught and destroyed, speak evil of the things they do not understand, and will utterly perish in their own corruption, 13and will receive the wages of unrighteousness, as those who count it pleasure to carouse in the daytime. They are spots and blemishes, carousing in their own deceptions while they feast with you, 14having eyes full of adultery and that cannot cease from sin, enticing unstable souls. They have a heart trained in covetous practices, and are accursed children. 15They have forsaken the right way and gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness; Outward temporal good things are the wages sinners expect and promise themselves. And none have more cause to tremble, than those who are bold to gratify their sinful lusts, by presuming on the Divine grace and mercy. -MH 16but he was rebuked for his iniquity: a dumb donkey speaking with a man’s voice restrained the madness of the prophet. 17These are wells without water, clouds carried by a tempest, for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever.
2 Peter 2: 18-22	Deceptions of False Teachers 18For when they speak great swelling words of emptiness, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through lewdness, the ones who have actually escaped from those who live in error. 19While they promise them liberty, they themselves are slaves of corruption; for by whom a person is overcome, by him also he is brought into bondage. In the midst of their talk of liberty, these men are the vilest slaves; their own lusts gain a complete victory over them... -MH 20For if, after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the latter end is worse for them than the beginning. 21For it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered to them. 22But it has happened to them according to the true proverb: “A dog returns to his own vomit,” and, “a sow, having washed, to her wallowing in the mire.” When men are entangled, they are easily overcome; therefore Christians should keep close to the word of God, and watch against all who seek to bewilder them. A state of apostacy is worse than a state of ignorance. To bring an evil report upon the good way of God, and a false charge against the way of truth, must expose to the heaviest condemnation. How dreadful is the state here described! Yet though such a case is deplorable, it is not utterly hopeless; the leper may be made clean, and even the dead may be raised. Is thy backsliding a grief to thee? Believe in the Lord Jesus, and thou shalt be saved. -MH
And Paul notes the evil intent of some false teachers as well...
Roman 16: 17, 18	17Now I urge you, brethren, note those who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the doctrine which you learned, and avoid them. 18For those who are such do not serve our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly, and by smooth words and flattering speech deceive the hearts of the simple.
As true believers in Christ and His cross, we want only to know and to dwell in that truth... that the truth of the cross is our redemption, and that is the truth we grasp and hold dear. Knowing His sacrifice and the reality of the greatest gift that ever could be bestowed upon us, we choose only His truth, and our goal is to walk the path of the redeemed, and not to be lured down any detours made attractive for any reason. Too many preachers today want to preach only that which will grow their church, or they emphasize certain aspects of Christ's gift that were only incidental to His life and death and redemption. I'm speaking about healing, tongues, and things that pretend to offer proof of the teachers right relationship with God.
Psalm 119: 30	I have chosen the way of truth; Your judgments I have laid before me.
1 Timothy 2: 3	3For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior,
For Christ wants us to know the truth above all things --- Notice the order of verse 4, that it is 1)be saved, and 2) come to the knowledge of the truth
1 Timothy 2: 4 -7	4who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 5For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, 6who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time, 7for which I was appointed a preacher and an apostle—I am speaking the truth in Christ and not lying—a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.
2 John 4	I rejoiced greatly that I have found some of your children walking in truth, as we received commandment from the Father.
Knowing the truth and speaking it, yes... But even more important is loving the truth and speaking the truth in love.
2 Thess. 2: 9-12	9The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, 10and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. 11And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, 12that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
Ephesians 4: 11-16	11And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ—
The truth is in our hearts... It was hidden from us when we were sinners, but it was instantly recognizable when we were saved. But it was in our heart then as it is now.
2 Timothy 2: 15	Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
Romans 6: 17, 18	17But God be thanked that you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. 18And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.
2 John. 2	because of the truth which abides in us and will be with us forever:
Colossians 1: 23	...if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which was preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister.
John 8:32	"...And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”
But the world can still call and tempt some to resist, for their worldly gain, the truth of Christ. It is idolatry to substitute worldly gain for the truth of Christ, when the things of the world become your god, your goal, and the things to which you place your allegiance. It sounds an exaggeration to call, for instance, money, one's god, but that is what it has become to someone who places their love of money above their salvation, above the truth of Christ.
2 Timothy 3: 8	Now as Jannes and Jambres resisted Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, disapproved concerning the faith;
James 5: 19, 20	19Brethren, if anyone among you wanders from the truth, and someone turns him back, 20let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save a soul from death and cover a multitude of sins.
Philippians 3: 18-19	18For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: 19whose end is destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame—who set their mind on earthly things.
The truth must not be changed, buttered, altered, concealed, added to, qualified, edited or hidden. Above all, it must not be sold! Anointings and prayers are not commodities to be sold, and blessings are not bonus gifts that come with the purchase of a prayer cloth.
Proverbs 23: 23	Buy the truth, and do not sell it, Also wisdom and instruction and understanding.
Psalm 40: 10	I have not hidden Your righteousness within my heart; I have declared Your faithfulness and Your salvation; I have not concealed Your loving kindness and Your truth from the great assembly
Romans 1: 24,25	24Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, 25who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
But true Christians have been pulled away from the gospel from the very first, even though they have been warned.
Galatians 1: 6-9	6I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, 7which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. 8But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. 9As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.
To resist the truth is to resist the Holy Spirit... I think the strongest denials of Christ come from people who are not ignorant of the truth, but resisting it.
Acts 7: 51-53	51You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit; as your fathers did, so do you. 52Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who foretold the coming of the Just One, of whom you now have become the betrayers and murderers, 53who have received the law by the direction of angels and have not kept it.
...but accepting and speaking the truth in love is the way to go...
Ephesians 4:15	but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ—
One may teach error, but have a good heart and motives.
Acts 18: 24-28	24Now a certain Jew named Apollos, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man and mighty in the Scriptures, came to Ephesus. 25This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things of the Lord, though he knew only the baptism of John. 26So he began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Aquila and Priscilla heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately. 27And when he desired to cross to Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples to receive him; and when he arrived, he greatly helped those who had believed through grace; 28for he vigorously refuted the Jews publicly, showing from the Scriptures that Jesus is the Christ.
One may also teach the truth, but have impure motives. Note that Paul seems to accept and be thankful for the teachers whose motive is their personal greed, in that Christ is being preached.
Philippians 1: 15-18	15 Some indeed preach Christ even from envy and strife, and some also from goodwill: 16The former preach Christ from selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my chains; 17but the latter out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel. 18What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is preached; and in this I rejoice, yes, and will rejoice.
Whether the gospel being preached is in error or is truth can be determined through the Scriptures. Determining the heart and motives of the teacher is not so easy.
Acts 17: 11	These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so.
And those found not to abide by the truth of Christ after having received it should be shunned. Those who knowingly teach false doctrine can expect the worst punishment
2 John. 9-11	9Whoever transgresses and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God. He who abides in the doctrine of Christ has both the Father and the Son. 10If anyone comes to you and does not bring this doctrine, do not receive him into your house nor greet him; 11for he who greets him shares in his evil deeds.
Jeremiah 23: 25-36	25“I have heard what the prophets have said who prophesy lies in My name, saying, ‘I have dreamed, I have dreamed!’ 26How long will this be in the heart of the prophets who prophesy lies? Indeed they are prophets of the deceit of their own heart, 27who try to make My people forget My name by their dreams which everyone tells his neighbor, as their fathers forgot My name for Baal. 28The prophet who has a dream, let him tell a dream; And he who has My word, let him speak My word faithfully. What is the chaff to the wheat?” says the LORD. 29Is not My word like a fire?” says the LORD, “ And like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces? 30“Therefore behold, I am against the prophets,” says the LORD, “who steal My words every one from his neighbor. 31Behold, I am against the prophets,” says the LORD, “who use their tongues and say, ‘He says.’ 32Behold, I am against those who prophesy false dreams,” says the LORD, “and tell them, and cause My people to err by their lies and by their recklessness. Yet I did not send them or command them; therefore they shall not profit this people at all,” says the LORD. 33“So when these people or the prophet or the priest ask you, saying, ‘What is the oracle of the LORD?’ you shall then say to them, ‘What oracle?’ I will even forsake you,” says the LORD. 34“And as for the prophet and the priest and the people who say, ‘The oracle of the LORD!’ I will even punish that man and his house. 35Thus every one of you shall say to his neighbor, and every one to his brother, ‘What has the LORD answered?’ and, ‘What has the LORD spoken?’ 36And the oracle of the LORD you shall mention no more. For every man’s word will be his oracle, for you have perverted the words of the living God, the LORD of hosts, our God. 37Thus you shall say to the prophet, ‘What has the LORD answered you?’ and, ‘What has the LORD spoken?’ 38But since you say, ‘The oracle of the LORD!’ therefore thus says the LORD: ‘Because you say this word, “The oracle of the LORD!” and I have sent to you, saying, “Do not say, ‘The oracle of the LORD!’” 39therefore behold, I, even I, will utterly forget you and forsake you, and the city that I gave you and your fathers, and will cast you out of My presence. 40And I will bring an everlasting reproach upon you, and a perpetual shame, which shall not be forgotten.’”
1 Peter 4: 11	If anyone speaks, let him speak as the oracles of God. If anyone ministers, let him do it as with the ability which God supplies, that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belong the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen
1 John. 2: 18, 19	18Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour. 19They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us.

1 John 4: 1	Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.
2 Corinthians 11:	1Oh, that you would bear with me in a little folly—and indeed you do bear with me. 2For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. 3But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. 4For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted—you may well put up with it! 5For I consider that I am not at all inferior to the most eminent apostles. 6Even though I am untrained in speech, yet I am not in knowledge. But we have been thoroughly manifested among you in all things. 7Did I commit sin in humbling myself that you might be exalted, because I preached the gospel of God to you free of charge? 8I robbed other churches, taking wages from them to minister to you. 9And when I was present with you, and in need, I was a burden to no one, for what I lacked the brethren who came from Macedonia supplied. And in everything I kept myself from being burdensome to you, and so I will keep myself. 10As the truth of Christ is in me, no one shall stop me from this boasting in the regions of Achaia. 11Why? Because I do not love you? God knows! 12But what I do, I will also continue to do, that I may cut off the opportunity from those who desire an opportunity to be regarded just as we are in the things of which they boast. 13For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. 14And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. 15Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works.