Deuteronomy 13:1 ¶ If there
arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a
wonder, 2 And the sign or the wonder
come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods,
which thou hast not known, and let us serve them; 3 Thou 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. 4 Ye shall walk after the LORD your God, and fear
him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice, and ye shall serve him, and
cleave unto him. 5 And that prophet, or
that dreamer of dreams, shall be put to death; because he hath spoken to turn you
away from the LORD your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt, and
redeemed you out of the house of bondage, to thrust thee out of the way which
the LORD thy God commanded thee to walk in. So shalt thou put the evil away
from the midst of thee.
Prophets teach as one of their functions.
Isaiah 9:15 The ancient and
honourable, he is the head; and the prophet that teacheth lies, he is the tail.
Acts 13:1 Now there were in
the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers; as Barnabas, and
Simeon that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been
brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.
False prophets who lie and try to steer the Israelites away from
the worship of the one true God are warned about in this passage. Peter devoted
some considerable explanation in warning Christians about false teachers.
2Peter 2:1 ¶ But 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 And many shall follow their pernicious ways;
by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of.
3 ¶ And through covetousness shall they with
feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time
lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not. 4 For if God spared not the angels that sinned,
but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be
reserved unto judgment; 5 And spared not
the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness,
bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly; 6 And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha
into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those
that after should live ungodly;
7 ¶ And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy
conversation of the wicked: 8 (For that
righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous
soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;) 9 The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out
of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be
punished:
10 ¶ But chiefly them that walk after the flesh in
the lust of uncleanness, and despise government. Presumptuous are they,
selfwilled, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities. 11 Whereas angels, which are greater in power
and might, bring not railing accusation against them before the Lord. 12 But these, as natural brute beasts, made to
be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and
shall utterly perish in their own corruption; 13 And shall receive the reward of
unrighteousness, as they that count it pleasure to riot in the day time. Spots
they are and blemishes, sporting themselves with their own deceivings while
they feast with you; 14 Having eyes full
of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; beguiling unstable souls: an heart
they have exercised with covetous practices; cursed children: 15 Which have forsaken the right way, and are
gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor, who loved the wages
of unrighteousness; 16 But was rebuked
for his iniquity: the dumb ass speaking with man’s voice forbad the madness of
the prophet. 17 These are wells without
water, clouds that are carried with a tempest; to whom the mist of darkness is
reserved for ever. 18 For
when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure
through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean
escaped from them who live in error. 19
While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of
corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in
bondage. 20 For if after they have
escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and
Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the
latter end is worse with them than the beginning. 21 For it had been better for them not to have
known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from
the holy commandment delivered unto them. 22
But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is
turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in
the mire.
And Jeremiah warned about pastors, whose functions also included
teaching as we know from Ephesians 4:11 that a pastor is a teacher and a
prophet carried out that mission. Prophets and priests who deceive are
condemned here.
Jeremiah 23:1 ¶ Woe be unto
the pastors that destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture! saith the LORD.
2 Therefore thus saith the LORD God of
Israel against the pastors that feed my people; Ye have scattered my flock, and
driven them away, and have not visited them: behold, I will visit upon you the
evil of your doings, saith the LORD. 3
And I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all countries whither I
have driven them, and will bring them again to their folds; and they shall be
fruitful and increase. 4 And I will set
up shepherds over them which shall feed them: and they shall fear no more, nor
be dismayed, neither shall they be lacking, saith the LORD. 5 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I
will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper,
and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. 6 In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel
shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD
OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS. 7 Therefore, behold,
the days come, saith the LORD, that they shall no more say, The LORD liveth,
which brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; 8 But, The LORD liveth, which brought up and
which led the seed of the house of Israel out of the north country, and from
all countries whither I had driven them; and they shall dwell in their own
land.
9 ¶ Mine heart within me is broken because of the
prophets; all my bones shake; I am like a drunken man, and like a man whom wine
hath overcome, because of the LORD, and because of the words of his holiness.
10 For the land is full of adulterers;
for because of swearing the land mourneth; the pleasant places of the
wilderness are dried up, and their course is evil, and their force is not
right. 11 For both prophet and priest
are profane; yea, in my house have I found their wickedness, saith the LORD.
12 Wherefore their way shall be unto
them as slippery ways in the darkness: they shall be driven on, and fall
therein: for I will bring evil upon them, even the year of their visitation,
saith the LORD. 13 And I have seen folly
in the prophets of Samaria; they prophesied in Baal, and caused my people
Israel to err. 14 I 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. 15 Therefore 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. 16 Thus 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. 17 They 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. 18 For who hath stood in the counsel of the
LORD, and hath perceived and heard his word? who hath marked his word, and
heard it? 19 Behold, a whirlwind of the
LORD is gone forth in fury, even a grievous whirlwind: it shall fall grievously
upon the head of the wicked. 20 The
anger of the LORD shall not return, until he have executed, and till he have
performed the thoughts of his heart: in the latter days ye shall consider it
perfectly. 21 I have not sent these
prophets, yet they ran: I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied. 22 But if they had stood in my counsel, and had
caused my people to hear my words, then they should have turned them from their
evil way, and from the evil of their doings. 23
Am I a God at hand, saith the LORD, and not a God afar off? 24 Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall
not see him? saith the LORD. Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the LORD.
25 I have heard what the prophets said,
that prophesy lies in my name, saying, I have dreamed, I have dreamed. 26 How long shall this be in the heart of the
prophets that prophesy lies? yea, they are prophets of the deceit of their own
heart; 27 Which think to cause my people
to forget my name by their dreams which they tell every man to his neighbour,
as their fathers have forgotten my name for Baal. 28 The 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. 29
Is not my word like as a fire? saith the LORD; and like a hammer that
breaketh the rock in pieces? 30 Therefore,
behold, I am against the prophets, saith the LORD, that steal my words every
one from his neighbour. 31 Behold, I am
against the prophets, saith the LORD, that use their tongues, and say, He
saith. 32 Behold, 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.
33 ¶ And when this people, or the prophet, or a
priest, shall ask thee, saying, What is the burden of the LORD? thou shalt then
say unto them, What burden? I will even forsake you, saith the LORD. 34 And as for the prophet, and the priest, and
the people, that shall say, The burden of the LORD, I will even punish that man
and his house. 35 Thus shall ye say
every one to his neighbour, and every one to his brother, What hath the LORD
answered? and, What hath the LORD spoken? 36
And the burden of the LORD shall ye mention no more: for every man’s
word shall be his burden; for ye have perverted the words of the living God, of
the LORD of hosts our God. 37 Thus shalt
thou say to the prophet, What hath the LORD answered thee? and, What hath the
LORD spoken? 38 But since ye say, The
burden of the LORD; therefore thus saith the LORD; Because ye say this word,
The burden of the LORD, and I have sent unto you, saying, Ye shall not say, The
burden of the LORD; 39 Therefore,
behold, I, even I, will utterly forget you, and I will forsake you, and the
city that I gave you and your fathers, and cast you out of my presence: 40 And I will bring an everlasting reproach upon
you, and a perpetual shame, which shall not be forgotten.
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