Library Home>Reference>R.A. Torrey>The New Topical Textbook>Prophets, False. (#142357)

Prophets, False.

From: The New Topical Textbook By: Reuben Archer Torrey

• 1 min. read • grade level: 12

Pretended to be sent by God. Jer. 23:17, 18, 31¹⁷They say still unto them that despise me, The Lord hath said, Ye shall have peace; and they say unto every one that walketh after the imagination of his own heart, No evil shall come upon you. ¹⁸For who hath stood in the counsel of the Lord, and hath perceived and heard his word? who hath marked his word, and heard it? (Jeremiah 23:17‑18)
³¹Behold, I am against the prophets, saith the Lord, that use their tongues, and say, He saith. (Jeremiah 23:31).

Not sent or commissioned by God. Jer. 14:14¹⁴Then the Lord said unto me, The prophets prophesy lies in my name: I sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spake unto them: they prophesy unto you a false vision and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart. (Jeremiah 14:14). Jer. 23:21²¹I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran: I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied. (Jeremiah 23:21). Jer. 29:31³¹Send to all them of the captivity, saying, Thus saith the Lord concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite; Because that Shemaiah hath prophesied unto you, and I sent him not, and he caused you to trust in a lie: (Jeremiah 29:31).

Made use of by God to prove Israel. Deut. 13:3³Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the Lord your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. (Deuteronomy 13:3).

DESCRIBED AS

Light and treacherous. Zeph. 3:4⁴Her prophets are light and treacherous persons: her priests have polluted the sanctuary, they have done violence to the law. (Zephaniah 3:4).

Covetous. Mic. 3:11¹¹The heads thereof judge for reward, and the priests thereof teach for hire, and the prophets thereof divine for money: yet will they lean upon the Lord, and say, Is not the Lord among us? none evil can come upon us. (Micah 3:11).

Crafty. Matt. 7:15¹⁵Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. (Matthew 7:15).

Drunken. Isa. 28:7⁷But they also have erred through wine, and through strong drink are out of the way; the priest and the prophet have erred through strong drink, they are swallowed up of wine, they are out of the way through strong drink; they err in vision, they stumble in judgment. (Isaiah 28:7).

Immoral and profane. Jer. 23:11, 14¹¹For both prophet and priest are profane; yea, in my house have I found their wickedness, saith the Lord. (Jeremiah 23:11)
¹⁴I have seen also in the prophets of Jerusalem an horrible thing: they commit adultery, and walk in lies: they strengthen also the hands of evildoers, that none doth return from his wickedness: they are all of them unto me as Sodom, and the inhabitants thereof as Gomorrah. (Jeremiah 23:14).

Women sometimes acted as. Neh. 6:14¹⁴My God, think thou upon Tobiah and Sanballat according to these their works, and on the prophetess Noadiah, and the rest of the prophets, that would have put me in fear. (Nehemiah 6:14). Rev. 2:20²⁰Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee, because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto idols. (Revelation 2:20).

Called foolish prophets. Ezek. 13:3³Thus saith the Lord God; Woe unto the foolish prophets, that follow their own spirit, and have seen nothing! (Ezekiel 13:3).

Compared to foxes in the desert. Ezek. 13:4⁴O Israel, thy prophets are like the foxes in the deserts. (Ezekiel 13:4).

Compared to wind. Jer. 5:13¹³And the prophets shall become wind, and the word is not in them: thus shall it be done unto them. (Jeremiah 5:13). Influenced by evil spirits. 1 Kin. 22:21, 22.

PROPHESIED

Falsely. Jer. 5:31³¹The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means; and my people love to have it so: and what will ye do in the end thereof? (Jeremiah 5:31).

Lies in the name of the Lord. Jer. 14:14¹⁴Then the Lord said unto me, The prophets prophesy lies in my name: I sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spake unto them: they prophesy unto you a false vision and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart. (Jeremiah 14:14).

Out of their own heart. Jer. 23:16, 26¹⁶Thus saith the Lord of hosts, Hearken not unto the words of the prophets that prophesy unto you: they make you vain: they speak a vision of their own heart, and not out of the mouth of the Lord. (Jeremiah 23:16)
²⁶How long shall this be in the heart of the prophets that prophesy lies? yea, they are prophets of the deceit of their own heart; (Jeremiah 23:26). Ezek. 13:2²Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel that prophesy, and say thou unto them that prophesy out of their own hearts, Hear ye the word of the Lord; (Ezekiel 13:2).

In the name of false gods. Jer. 2:8⁸The priests said not, Where is the Lord? and they that handle the law knew me not: the pastors also transgressed against me, and the prophets prophesied by Baal, and walked after things that do not profit. (Jeremiah 2:8).

Peace, when there was no peace. Jer. 6:14¹⁴They have healed also the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace. (Jeremiah 6:14). Jer. 23:17¹⁷They say still unto them that despise me, The Lord hath said, Ye shall have peace; and they say unto every one that walketh after the imagination of his own heart, No evil shall come upon you. (Jeremiah 23:17). Ezek. 13:10¹⁰Because, even because they have seduced my people, saying, Peace; and there was no peace; and one built up a wall, and, lo, others daubed it with untempered mortar: (Ezekiel 13:10). Mic. 3:5⁵Thus saith the Lord concerning the prophets that make my people err, that bite with their teeth, and cry, Peace; and he that putteth not into their mouths, they even prepare war against him. (Micah 3:5).

Often practiced divination and witchcraft. Jer. 14:14¹⁴Then the Lord said unto me, The prophets prophesy lies in my name: I sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spake unto them: they prophesy unto you a false vision and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart. (Jeremiah 14:14). Ezek. 22:28²⁸And her prophets have daubed them with untempered mortar, seeing vanity, and divining lies unto them, saying, Thus saith the Lord God, when the Lord hath not spoken. (Ezekiel 22:28). Acts 13:6⁶And when they had gone through the isle unto Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew, whose name was Bar-jesus: (Acts 13:6).

Often pretended to dreams, &c. Jer. 23:28, 32²⁸The prophet that hath a dream, let him tell a dream; and he that hath my word, let him speak my word faithfully. What is the chaff to the wheat? saith the Lord. (Jeremiah 23:28)
³²Behold, I am against them that prophesy false dreams, saith the Lord, and do tell them, and cause my people to err by their lies, and by their lightness; yet I sent them not, nor commanded them: therefore they shall not profit this people at all, saith the Lord. (Jeremiah 23:32).

Often deceived by God as a judgment. Ezek. 14:9⁹And if the prophet be deceived when he hath spoken a thing, I the Lord have deceived that prophet, and I will stretch out my hand upon him, and will destroy him from the midst of my people Israel. (Ezekiel 14:9).

THE PEOPLE

Led into error by. Jer. 23:13¹³And I have seen folly in the prophets of Samaria; they prophesied in Baal, and caused my people Israel to err. (Jeremiah 23:13). Mic. 3:5⁵Thus saith the Lord concerning the prophets that make my people err, that bite with their teeth, and cry, Peace; and he that putteth not into their mouths, they even prepare war against him. (Micah 3:5).

Made to forget God's name by. Jer. 23:27²⁷Which think to cause my people to forget my name by their dreams which they tell every man to his neighbor, as their fathers have forgotten my name for Baal. (Jeremiah 23:27).

Deprived of God's word by. Jer. 23:30³⁰Therefore, behold, I am against the prophets, saith the Lord, that steal my words every one from his neighbor. (Jeremiah 23:30).

Taught profaneness and sin by. Jer. 23:14, 15¹⁴I have seen also in the prophets of Jerusalem an horrible thing: they commit adultery, and walk in lies: they strengthen also the hands of evildoers, that none doth return from his wickedness: they are all of them unto me as Sodom, and the inhabitants thereof as Gomorrah. ¹⁵Therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts concerning the prophets; Behold, I will feed them with wormwood, and make them drink the water of gall: for from the prophets of Jerusalem is profaneness gone forth into all the land. (Jeremiah 23:14‑15).

Oppressed and defrauded by. Ezek. 22:25²⁵There is a conspiracy of her prophets in the midst thereof, like a roaring lion ravening the prey; they have devoured souls; they have taken the treasure and precious things; they have made her many widows in the midst thereof. (Ezekiel 22:25).

Warned not to listen to. Deut. 13:3³Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the Lord your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. (Deuteronomy 13:3). Jer. 23:16¹⁶Thus saith the Lord of hosts, Hearken not unto the words of the prophets that prophesy unto you: they make you vain: they speak a vision of their own heart, and not out of the mouth of the Lord. (Jeremiah 23:16). Jer. 27:9, 15, 16⁹Therefore hearken not ye to your prophets, nor to your diviners, nor to your dreamers, nor to your enchanters, nor to your sorcerers, which speak unto you, saying, Ye shall not serve the king of Babylon: (Jeremiah 27:9)
¹⁵For I have not sent them, saith the Lord, yet they prophesy a lie in my name; that I might drive you out, and that ye might perish, ye, and the prophets that prophesy unto you. ¹⁶Also I spake to the priests and to all this people, saying, Thus saith the Lord; Hearken not to the words of your prophets that prophesy unto you, saying, Behold, the vessels of the Lord's house shall now shortly be brought again from Babylon: for they prophesy a lie unto you. (Jeremiah 27:15‑16).

Encouraged and praised. Jer. 5:31³¹The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means; and my people love to have it so: and what will ye do in the end thereof? (Jeremiah 5:31). Luke 6:26²⁶Woe unto you, when all men shall speak well of you! for so did their fathers to the false prophets. (Luke 6:26).

Mode of trying and detecting. Deut. 2:13-1. Deut. 18:21, 22²¹And if thou say in thine heart, How shall we know the word which the Lord hath not spoken? ²²When a prophet speaketh in the name of the Lord, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the Lord hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him. (Deuteronomy 18:21‑22). 1 John. 4:1-3.

PREDICTED TO ARISE

Before destruction of Jerusalem. Matt. 24:11, 24¹¹And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. (Matthew 24:11)
²⁴For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. (Matthew 24:24).

In the latter times. 2 Peter 2:1¹But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. (2 Peter 2:1).

Judgments denounced against. Jer. 8:1, 2¹At that time, saith the Lord, they shall bring out the bones of the kings of Judah, and the bones of his princes, and the bones of the priests, and the bones of the prophets, and the bones of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, out of their graves: ²And they shall spread them before the sun, and the moon, and all the host of heaven, whom they have loved, and whom they have served, and after whom they have walked, and whom they have sought, and whom they have worshipped: they shall not be gathered, nor be buried; they shall be for dung upon the face of the earth. (Jeremiah 8:1‑2). Jer. 14:15¹⁵Therefore thus saith the Lord concerning the prophets that prophesy in my name, and I sent them not, yet they say, Sword and famine shall not be in this land; By sword and famine shall those prophets be consumed. (Jeremiah 14:15). Jer. 28:16, 17¹⁶Therefore thus saith the Lord; Behold, I will cast thee from off the face of the earth: this year thou shalt die, because thou hast taught rebellion against the Lord. ¹⁷So Hananiah the prophet died the same year in the seventh month. (Jeremiah 28:16‑17). Jer. 29:32³²Therefore thus saith the Lord; Behold, I will punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite, and his seed: he shall not have a man to dwell among this people; neither shall he behold the good that I will do for my people, saith the Lord; because he hath taught rebellion against the Lord. (Jeremiah 29:32).

Involved the people in their own ruin. Isa. 9:15, 16¹⁵The ancient and honorable, he is the head; and the prophet that teacheth lies, he is the tail. ¹⁶For the leaders of this people cause them to err; and they that are led of them are destroyed. (Isaiah 9:15‑16). Jer. 20:6⁶And thou, Pashur, and all that dwell in thine house shall go into captivity: and thou shalt come to Babylon, and there thou shalt die, and shalt be buried there, thou, and all thy friends, to whom thou hast prophesied lies. (Jeremiah 20:6). Eze. 14:10¹⁰And they shall bear the punishment of their iniquity: the punishment of the prophet shall be even as the punishment of him that seeketh unto him; (Ezekiel 14:10).

Click here to show subject links in the text for more information.

Previous Article

The New Topical Textbook

• Presumption.

• Privileges of Saints.

• Procrastination.

• Promises of God. 2 Corinthians 7:1; 2 Pet. 1:4, The

• Prophecies Respecting Christ.

• Prophets, False.

• Proselytes.

• Protection.

• Providence of God, the.

• Publicans, the.

• Publishers' Foreward

• Punishment of the Wicked, the.

• Punishments.

• Purifications or Baptisms.

• Raven, the.

• Rechabites.

• Reconciliation With God.

• Red Heifer, the.

• Redemption.

• Repentance.

• Rephaim, or Giants, the.