True and False Prophets

Moses gave Israel a simple test in Deuteronomy 18: if a prophet’s word does not come to pass, that word did not come from the LORD. Scripture gives other tests as well, including whether a prophet remains faithful to God, the fruit their life produces, and what they confess about Christ. More than once, Scripture puts a true prophet and a false prophet side by side and lets the difference speak for itself.

The Tests

True prophet False prophet

Fulfilled Prophecy

True prophet: What he predicts comes true

False prophet: Predicts, and it fails

Deuteronomy gives the baseline test: if what a prophet says in the LORD's name does not happen, the LORD did not speak it, and no one needs to fear that prophet.

Deuteronomy 18:20-22

Fidelity to the LORD

True prophet: Points to the LORD, even when the sign works

False prophet: Leads toward other gods, even when the sign works

A sign coming true is not enough on its own. Even a prophet whose sign or wonder comes to pass is false if the message leads Israel to worship another god.

Deuteronomy 13:1-5

Source of the Word

True prophet: Stood in the LORD's council

False prophet: Speaks from his own heart

Jeremiah accuses Jerusalem's prophets of never standing in the LORD's council to hear his word, and of repeating prophecies they heard from one another instead.

Jeremiah 23:16-22 Jeremiah 23:30-32

Fruit of Life

True prophet: Good fruit, marked by repentance and righteousness

False prophet: Bad fruit, marked by adultery, lies, and corruption

Jesus points to the fruit a prophet bears, not their claims or credentials. A good tree does not produce bad fruit. Jeremiah likewise condemns the prophets of his day for their adultery, lies, and failure to turn people from their wickedness.

Matthew 7:15-20 Jeremiah 23:14

Confession of Christ

True prophet: Confesses Jesus Christ come in the flesh

False prophet: Spirit of antichrist

John gives a specifically Christian test: a spirit that confesses Jesus Christ come in the flesh is from God; one that does not is the spirit of antichrist.

1 John 4:1-3

Motive

True prophet: Serves without demanding pay

False prophet: Divines for money

Micah accuses prophets who cry "peace" for anyone who pays them and "war" on anyone who does not. Peter later warns of teachers who exploit people with made-up words for the same reason: profit.

Micah 3:5-7 2 Peter 2:3

Confrontations

900 BC AD 100

Elijah vs. the Prophets of Baal

875 BC

Elijah vs. the prophets of Baal

On Mount Carmel, Elijah challenges 450 prophets of Baal to call down fire on a sacrifice. They cry out to Baal and cut themselves for hours, but nothing happens. Elijah prays once, and fire falls from heaven, consuming the sacrifice, the wood, the stones, and the water.

The people fall on their faces and confess, “The LORD, he is God.” The prophets of Baal are then seized and executed at the Kishon."

1 Kings 18:20-40

Micaiah vs. Zedekiah & Ahab's 400

853 BC

Micaiah vs. Zedekiah son of Chenaanah

Ahab's 400 court prophets, led by Zedekiah son of Chenaanah, unanimously promise victory at Ramoth-gilead. Micaiah alone predicts defeat and Ahab’s death. He also says the other prophets are speaking under a lying spirit sent by God to draw Ahab into battle.

Ahab goes to war anyway, disguised so the enemy will not recognize him. A random arrow strikes him, and he dies, just as Micaiah had warned.

1 Kings 22:13-28

Jeremiah vs. Hananiah

594 BC

Jeremiah vs. Hananiah

Hananiah publicly breaks the wooden yoke Jeremiah wears as a sign and declares that Babylon's rule will end within two years. Jeremiah responds with an iron yoke and gives a specific test: Hananiah himself will die that same year.

Hananiah dies two months later, in the seventh month of that year.

Jeremiah 28:1-17

Nehemiah vs. Shemaiah

444 BC

Nehemiah vs. Shemaiah

Shemaiah, who had been hired by Nehemiah's enemies, urges him to hide inside the Temple because men are supposedly coming to kill him. Nehemiah realizes the message is not from God and refuses to go. The prophetess Noadiah and other prophets also try to intimidate him.

Nehemiah refuses to be frightened or compromise his position. He finishes rebuilding Jerusalem's wall in 52 days despite the opposition.

Nehemiah 6:10-14

Paul vs. Elymas (Bar-Jesus)

AD 46

Paul vs. Elymas (Bar-Jesus)

Elymas the sorcerer opposes Paul and Barnabas before the Roman proconsul Sergius Paulus, trying to keep him from the faith. Paul calls him a son of the devil, full of deceit, and pronounces temporary blindness on him.

Sergius Paulus, watching it happen, believes.

Acts 13:6-12