“And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.” (Matthew 24:11)
In the common use of the word, a “prophet” is one that foretells; but the word sometimes means simply a “teacher”. True and false prophets may be known. The prophets of God are teachers of purity, reprovers of sin, and faithful in warning the people of coming dangers. The duties of those whom God calls to speak in his great name are clearly expressed by the sacred writers. We here quote from three of them:
“Cry aloud, spare not, lift up your voice like a trumpet, and show my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins.” (Isaiah 58:1)
“Blow the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain; let all the inhabitants of the land tremble; for the day of the Lord comes, for it is nigh at hand.” (Joel 2:1)
“I charge you therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering and doctrine.” (2 Timothy 4:1-2)
False prophets do not reprove the people for their sins, and do not warn them of coming danger; but they proclaim peace to the sinner. Their teachings lead from God and his word, and are such as please the unconverted mind. The inspired writers have also spoken definitely of the testimony and work of false prophets. We here give several for example:
“And my hand shall be upon the prophets that see vanity, and that divine lies; they shall not be in the assembly of my people, neither shall they be written in the writing of the house of Israel, neither shall they enter into the land of Israel; and you shall know that I am the Lord God. Because, 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 13:910)
“For from the least of them even unto the greatest of them every one is given to covetousness; and from the prophet even unto the priest, every one deals falsely. They have healed also the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace: when there is no peace.” (Jeremiah 6:13-14)
“Then said I, Ah, Lord God! behold, the prophets say unto them, You shall not see the sword, neither shall you have famine; but I will give you assured peace in this place. Then 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.” (Jeremiah 14:13-14)
After stating the duty of the faithful servant of God to preach the word, to reprove, to rebuke, and to exhort with all long-suffering and doctrine, the apostle says:
“For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn, away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.” (2 Timothy 4:3-4)
That time has now fully come. The people choose pleasing fables, which do not disturb them in their sins, rather than the reproving, searching declarations of the word of God. They love to be deceived by the teachings of false prophets, and
“...say to the seers, See not; and to the prophets, Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits.” (Isaiah 30:10)
The ears of the people are filled with the pleasing fables of the world’s conversion, a good time coming, and that we are just entering the golden age.
The threatenings of God’s word on the proud, the haughty, the vain, the rich, the sinners in Zion, and those out of Zion, are kept back by the false teachers these times.
Many of them even dare to teach that the moral code of the ten commandments is abrogated. And as the result of such a course and such teaching, we see in the professed church of Jesus Christ that iniquity abounds.