Beware
of the false prophets:
Prosechete (2PPAM) apo ton
pseudopropheton
(See Torrey on
False Prophets)
(Beware
Mt 10:17;
16:6,11;
Mark 12:38;
Luke 12:15;
Acts 13:40;
Philippians 3:2;
Colossians 2:8;
2 Peter 3:17)
(False prophets
Mt 24:4,5,11,24,25;
Deuteronomy 13:1-3;
Isaiah 9:15,16;
Jeremiah 14:14-16;
23:13-16;
Jeremiah 28:15-17;
29:21,32;
Ezekiel 13:16,22;
Micah 3:5-7,11;
Mark 13:22,23;
2 Peter 2:1-3;
1 John 4:1;
Revelation 19:20)
Spurgeon writes...
Very Ahabs and Jezebels; and they
will deceive you, if you are not divinely guarded against them.
Spurgeon in his sermon
The Sieve
writes that...
IN reading this chapter one is led to
feel that it is not, after all an easy thing to be a sincere Christian.
The way is hard, the road is narrow. Who will may represent the way to
heaven as being easy; our Savior does not so speak of it. “Strait is
the gate and narrow is the way, and few there be that find it.” “Many
are called and few chosen.” The difficulty of being right is increased
by the fact that there are men in the world whose trade it is to make
counterfeits. There were, and there are, many false prophets. Our Savior
has spoken about them in this chapter, and given us a way of testing
them; but they are carrying on their trade still as successfully as
ever. Now, since there are traitors abroad whose business it is to
deceive, we ought to be doubly vigilant and constantly upon our
watch-tower, lest we be misled by them.
I charge you, examine every statement
you hear from Christian pulpits and platforms; I charge you, sift and
try every religious book by the great standard of the word of God.
Believe none of us if we speak contrary to this word — yea, believe not
an angel from heaven if he preach any other gospel than that which is
contained in inspired Scripture. “To the law and to the testimony, if
they speak not according to this word it is because there is no truth in
them. God grant us grace to escape from false prophets! We shall not do
so if we are careless and off our guard, for the sheep-skin garment so
effectually covers the wolf, the broad phylactery so decorates the
hypocrite, that thousands are deceived by the outward appearance, and do
not discover the cheat. Crafty are the wiles of the enemy, and many
foolish ones are still ignorant of his devices. Tutored by the
experience of ages, seducers and evil men not only wax worse and worse,
but they grow more and more cunning. If it were possible, they would
deceive even the very elect. Happy shall they be, who, being elect, are
kept by the mighty power of God unto salvation, so that they are not
carried away with any error. (See the full text
The Sieve)
J C Ryle comments that here...
the Lord Jesus gives us a general
warning against false teachers in the church. We are to "beware of false
prophets." The connection between this passage and the preceding one is
striking. Would we keep clear of this "broad way?" We must beware of
false prophets. They will arise. They began in the days of the apostles.
Even then the seeds of error were sown. They have appeared continually
ever since. We must be prepared for them, and be on our guard.
This is a warning which is much needed. There are thousands who seem
ready to believe anything in religion if they hear it from an ordained
minister. They forget that clergymen may err as much as laymen. They are
not infallible. Their teaching must be weighed in the balance of Holy
Scripture. They are to be followed and believed, so long as their
doctrine agrees with the Bible, but not a minute longer. We are to try
them "by their fruits." Sound doctrine and holy living are the marks of
true prophets. Let us remember this. Our minister's mistakes will not
excuse our own. "If the blind lead the blind, both will fall into the
ditch."
What is the best safe-guard against false teaching? Beyond all doubt the
regular study of the word of God, with prayer for the teaching of the
Holy Spirit. The Bible was given to be a lamp to our feet and a light to
our path. (Psalm. 119:105.) The man who reads it aright will never be
allowed greatly to err. It is neglect of the Bible which makes so many a
prey to the first false teacher whom they hear. They would have us
believe that "they are not learned, and do not pretend to have decided
opinions." The plain truth is that they are lazy and idle about reading
the Bible, and do not like the trouble of thinking for themselves.
Nothing supplies false prophets with followers so much as spiritual
sloth under a cloak of humility.
May we all bear in mind our Lord's warning! The world, the devil, and
the flesh, are not the only dangers in the way of the Christian. There
remains another yet, and that is the "false prophet," the wolf in
sheep's clothing. Happy is he who prays over his Bible and knows the
difference between truth and error in religion! There is a difference,
and we are meant to know it, and use our knowledge. (J. C. Ryle.
Expository Thoughts)
Beware
(4337)
(prosecho from pros = before + echo = hold) means
literally to hold before or to hold the mind away and then to take heed, be in a state of high
alert , watch out for or be on guard. This word always warns of danger!
Prosecho is not a call simply to notice or sense something, but
to be on guard against it because it is so harmful. The idea is to turn one’s mind or
attention to a thing by being on one’s guard against it.
The
present imperative
calls for the wise citizen of the
kingdom of heaven to be continually on the look out for false
prophets especially those who promote the wide gate and the wide way
that ends in destruction.
Jesus' point is that not every who claims to belong to God and to speak
for Him actually proclaims God's truth
Wherever the narrow demands of
following Jesus are taught, there are false prophets who advocate the
wide gate and easy way watering down the truth to the point that as
Spurgeon sarcastically quipped...
There is not enough left
to make soup for a sick grasshopper.
False prophets (
5578)
(pseudoprophetes from pseudes = false, untrue +
prophetes = prophet) who teach any other way than that our Lord has
clearly marked out in this passage. False prophets are not just wrong
but are very dangerous (cf "wolves"), and one should not expose their
minds to their message because they inevitably pervert their listener's
thinking and poison their souls. False prophets are more deadly than
physical wolves and other predators, because they can kill not just the
body but the soul.
Peter warns that false prophets and false teachers are
like unreasoning animals, born
as creatures of instinct to be captured and killed, reviling where they
have no knowledge, will in the destruction of those creatures also be
destroyed, suffering wrong as the wages of doing wrong. They count it a
pleasure to revel in the daytime. They are stains and blemishes,
reveling in their deceptions, as they carouse with you, having eyes full
of adultery and that never cease from sin, enticing unstable souls,
having a heart trained in greed, accursed children; forsaking the
right way they have gone astray, having followed the way of Balaam,
the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness, but he received
a rebuke for his own transgression; for a dumb donkey, speaking with a
voice of a man, restrained the madness of the prophet. These are springs
without water, and mists driven by a storm, for whom the black darkness
has been reserved. For speaking out arrogant words of vanity they
entice by fleshly desires, by sensuality, those who barely escape
from the ones who live in error, promising them freedom while they
themselves are slaves of corruption; for by what a man is overcome, by
this he is enslaved. For if after they have escaped the defilements of
the world by the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are
again entangled in them and are overcome, the last state has become
worse for them than the first. For it would be better for them not to
have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn away
from the holy commandment delivered to them. It has happened to them
according to the true proverb, "A DOG RETURNS TO ITS OWN VOMIT," and, "A
sow, after washing, returns to wallowing in the mire." (see notes
2 Peter 2:12-13,
2 Peter 2:14,
2 Peter 2:15-16,
2 Peter 2:17,
2 Peter 2:18,
2 Peter 2:19,
2 Peter 2:20-21,
2 Peter 2:22)
They preach a so-called "gospel" of self-indulgence which is an utterly
different message than Jesus proclaimed in the sermon on the mount. The
gate of pride, of self-righteousness, and self-satisfaction is the wide
gate of the world, not the narrow gate of God!
Pink comments that
“False prophets are to be
found in the circles of the most orthodox, and they pretend to have a
fervent love for souls, yet they fatally delude multitudes concerning
the way of salvation. The pulpit, platform, and pamphlet hucksters have
wantonly lowered the standard of divine holiness and so adulterated the
Gospel in order to make it palatable to the carnal mind.”
The Disciple's Study Bible
notes that...
False prophets plague the
church because they can easily deceive with false claims and mighty
works (7:22; 24:24; Rev 19:20). To recognize false prophets, the
ordinary Christian must examine the way they live and their message. Do
their behavior and character conform to Christ and His teaching? Do they
proclaim only what people want to hear that makes life easy and
pleasurable while ignoring the demanding and difficult requirements of
discipleship? (Disciple's
Study Bible)
Jesus predicted that in
the last days...
"false Christs and false
prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to
mislead, if possible, even the elect. Behold, I have told you in
advance." (Mt
24:24,25)
False prophets use orthodox
language, show biblical piety, and can be almost indistinguishable from
true prophets. Since false prophets are
so deceptive, how then can they be identified? The answer is that it is in the
nature of false prophets to deceive and deny their true character. They
can even deceive themselves, believing they are sheep when in fact they
are ravenous wolves. They frequently disclose
their true nature as ravenous wolves by what they do not
affirm. In other words, they are identified not so much by what they say
as by what they do not say. They say "Lord, Lord" and thus do not openly
deny Jesus’ divinity, His substitutionary atonement, the depravity and
lostness of man, the reality and penalty of sin, the destiny of hell for
unbelievers, the need for repentance, humility, and submission to God,
and other such “negative” and uncomfortable truths. They simply ignore
them. Beware of such "prophets" is Jesus' resonating warning!
False prophets includes
those elsewhere referred to as false brothers (2 Cor. 11:26), false
apostles (2 Cor. 11:13), false teachers (2 Pet. 2:1), false
speakers, that is, liars (1 Tim. 4:2), false witnesses (Matt.
26:60), and false Christs (Matt. 24:24).
Moses explained how to identify
false prophets writing that...
"If a prophet or a dreamer of
dreams arises among you and gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign
or the wonder comes true, concerning which he spoke to you, saying, 'Let
us go after other gods (whom you have not known) and let us serve
them (a clear marker of their false nature),' you shall not listen
to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams
(dreams were a common means of divine revelation, which made the
Israelites vulnerable to one who would claim such divine revelation,
especially if accompanied by signs or wonders); for (Moses explains why
God allowed false prophets some measure of "success") the LORD your God
is testing (Hebrew word conveys idea of testing or proving the
quality of someone or some thing often by subjecting them to adversity
or hardship - the ultimate goal is to show one's genuine character) you
to find out if you love the LORD your God with all your heart and with
all your soul. You shall follow the LORD your God and fear Him; and you
shall keep His commandments, listen to His voice, serve Him, and cling
to Him. But that prophet or that dreamer of dreams shall be put to
death, because he has counseled rebellion against the LORD your God who
brought you from the land of Egypt and redeemed you from the house of
slavery, to seduce you from the way in which the LORD your God commanded
you to walk. So you shall purge the evil from among you." (Deut 13:1-5)
In his last known letter Paul
warns against fallen man's tendency to gravitate toward false prophets
and false teachers warning Timothy that...
the time will come when they
will not endure ("put up with" - they despise sound teaching and so will
leave sound teachers!) sound (hugiaino > English hygiene, hygienic.
Hugiaino = Healthy and wholesome, that which protects and preserves
life) doctrine (that which is taught); but wanting to have their ears
tickled, they will accumulate (heap one thing on another) for themselves
teachers in accordance to their own desires (see
epithumia);
and will turn away their ears (it is but a short step from itching ears
to turning ears) from the truth, and will turn aside to myths (see
muthos)
(becoming a church filled with comfortable, professing ''Christians'' as
in - note
Titus 1:16
- listening to
comfortable religious talk that contains little if any of God's Holy
Word). (notes
2 Timothy 4:3-4)
Charles Spurgeon said
“You and your sins must separate
or you and your God will never come together. No one sin may you keep;
they must all be given up, they must be brought out like Canaanite kings
from the cave and be hanged up in the sun.”
who come to you in sheep's clothing:
hoitines erchontai (3PPMI) pros
humas en endhumasin probaton
(Who come
Zechariah 13:4;
Mark 12:38-40;
Romans 16:17,18;
2 Corinthians 11:13-15;
Galatians 2:4;
Ephesians 4:14;
Ephesians 5:6;
Colossians 2:8;
1 Timothy 4:1-3;
2 Timothy 3:5-9,13;
4:3;
2 Peter 2:1-3,18,19;
Jude 1:4;
Revelation 13:11-17)
Sheep's clothing - Sheep, on account of their simplicity,
mildness, inoffensiveness, patience and obedience, are used as emblems
of believers in Christ. Since these false prophets resemble sheep they
are more readily accepted into the "flock". When an enemy is seen for
what he is, as are mocking, scoffing dogs and swine (see
notes
Matthew 7:6), "sheep"
are alerted and wary, but when an enemy poses as one of "our own", then
we drop our defenses.
John MacArthur has a somewhat different interpretation of "sheep's
clothing" explaining that
Similarly, shepherds invariably wore woolen clothing, made from the wool
of the sheep they tended. That is the sheep’s clothing of which
Jesus here speaks. False prophets do not deceive the flock by
impersonating sheep but by impersonating the shepherd, who wears
sheep’s clothing in the form of his wool garments. Just as the
ancient false prophets often wore the garments of the true prophet, so
false shepherds often disguise themselves as true shepherds. Satan’s man
goes under the guise of
God’s man, claiming to teach the truth in order to deceive, mislead,
and, if possible, destroy God’s people. Scripture speaks of three basic
kinds of false teachers: heretics, apostates, and deceivers. Heretics
are those who openly reject the word of God and teach that which is
contrary to divine truth. Apostate teachers are those who once
followed the true faith but have turned away from it, rejected it, and
are trying to lead others away. Those two kinds of false teachers at
least have the virtue of a certain honesty. They do not claim to
represent orthodox, biblical Christianity. The false shepherd (the
deceiver), on the other hand, gives the appearance of orthodoxy,
frequently with great declarations and fanfare. He is not a liberal or a
cultist but one who speaks favorably of Christ, the Cross, the Bible,
the Holy Spirit, and so on, and who associates with true believers. He
may go out of his way to appear orthodox, fundamental, and evangelical.
From his looks, vocabulary, and associations he gives considerable
evidence of genuine belief. But he is not genuine; he is a fake and a
deceiver. He has the speech of orthodoxy, but is a living lie.
(MacArthur, J:
Matthew 1-7 Macarthur New Testament Commentary
Chicago: Moody Press) (Bolding added)
Paul warns the church in Corinth to be on the look out for these
men...
For such men are false apostles, deceitful (deliberately attempting to
mislead by telling lies - skilled at "baiting" the trap) workers,
disguising (transfiguring, disguising, changing the external appearance
without a change the internal, their heart and character remain
unregenerate) themselves as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for
even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. Therefore it is not
surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of
righteousness; whose end shall be according to their deeds.
(2Corinthians 11:13-15)
The amazing thing about these deceivers is that they themselves are
usually self deceived. Paul writes that...
evil men and impostors will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and
(continually -
present tense) being (passive voice
- outside force causes this effect) deceived. (see note
2 Timothy 3:13)
but inwardly are ravenous wolves:
esothen de eisin (3PPAI) lukoi
harpages (Wolves
Isaiah 56:10,11;
Ezekiel 22:25;
Micah 3:5;
Zephaniah 3:3,4;
Acts 20:29-31;
Revelation 17:6)
Ravenous (
727)
(harpax from harpazo = seize up, catch away) means
grasping. This word was used to describe a certain kind of wolf and also
for the grappling irons by which ships were boarded in naval battles. It
is the spirit which grasps that to which it has no right with a kind of
savage ferocity.
Ravenous in English is
the idea of very eager or greedy for food, satisfaction, or
gratification. The English word implies excessive hunger and suggests
violent or grasping methods of dealing with food or with whatever
satisfies an appetite.
Wolves (
3074)
(lukos) describes a literal wolf but here of course is used
metaphorically of a rapacious (excessively grasping or covetous;
living on prey and often suggests excessive and utterly selfish
acquisitiveness or avarice), violent, "wolf-like" person.
In Palestine, wolves were the most common natural enemy of sheep. They
were known for being merciless and ferocious. They
roamed the hills and valleys, looking for a sheep that strayed away from
the flock or lagged behind. When a wolf found such a sheep it quickly
attacked and tore it to pieces. Even a grown, healthy sheep was utterly
defenseless against a clever, wily wolf.
In Paul's last meeting with
the elders of the church at Ephesus he issued a similar stern warning
declaring...
Be on guard
(prosecho = same
verb Jesus used and also in
present imperative)
for yourselves (examine yourself first!) and for all the flock (guide,
guard and graze the flock, rather than "fleecing" the flock), among
which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of
God which He purchased with His own blood. I know that after my
departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock;
and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse
(literally twisted throughout, distorted truth) things,
to draw away the disciples after them. Therefore be on the alert,
remembering that night and day for a period of three years I did not
cease to admonish each one with tears. (Acts 20:28-31)
Since savage wolves, consumed
with greed,
Seek simple sheep on which to feed,
Wise are those wary lambs who graze
Close by their Shepherd's watchful gaze. --Gustafson
><>><>><>
How To Catch A Rat - My
grandson's chicken coop was invaded by rats. Attracted by the feed, they
had moved in. He asked for my help and we set out a couple of traps.
After a week, though, we had not caught a single one. Then a farmer
friend offered some advice. "No rat," he said, "will touch an exposed
trap. You must disguise it with food. Fill a pan with meal and place the
trap in it. Cover it well with meal so it is completely hidden." It
worked! The next morning we had a big fat rat.
All this reminded me that the devil knows this trick too. He carefully
disguises his trap with truth. Nowhere is it better seen than in the
numerous false cults and religions in the world today. All set their
traps of error in a pan of meal. Many quote the Bible and preach a
certain amount of gospel truth. They talk about prayer and Jesus and the
Bible. But under the layer of truth is the trap of error.
This is the age of deception. The Bible therefore warns us to "test the
spirits" (1 Jn. 4:1) and beware of deceivers (see note
2 Timothy 3:13;
2 Jn. 7). The only antidote against the clever deceptions that come in
the name of Christ (Mk. 13:5-6) is to know your Bible. Be rooted and
grounded in the truth (see notes
Colossians 2:6;
2:7;
2:8).
"Test all things; hold fast what is good" (see note
1Thessalonians 5:21).
Beware of Satan's traps. —M. R. De Haan
(Our
Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by
permission. All rights reserved)
Satan dogs the steps of the saints
And digs a pit for their feet;
He craftily sows his tares in the field,
Wherever God sows His wheat! —Anon.
Satan often disguises error with a veneer of truth.
