What did Jesus say about false prophets?

The warning against false prophets follows. They are to be known not by their fine words but by their fruits. Fruit is the result and crowning expression of life, and it reveals the character of the life that it consummates. The false prophet has a false life, which must reveal itself in false fruit.

The Lord Jesus at a very early stage warns His disciples against false prophets. However they did not appear immediately; they are rather a feature of the last days. He also refers to then in the Olivet discourse (Matt. 24:11,24), but there He speaks about the last days still to come. The grievous wolves against which Paul warned only entered among the flock after his departing (Acts 20:29), and the apostle John wrote of false prophets at a time when the first deviations from the truth of the gospel were already manifest (1 John 4:1).

The characteristic of false prophets is that they come in sheep's clothing but in truth are ravening wolves. They pass for believers (and some might even be such) and yet their true intention is only manifested when they have entered among the flock: they are have come to steal and to scatter the sheep (John 10:12). They are able to deceive unwatchful children of God by cunningly transforming themselves into apostles of Christ (2 Cor. 11:13-15).

There follows now a warning about false prophets, which is in very plain connection with that about the different roads which men were taking to reach a common end. This is intensified by the fact that, wherever the true Voice speaks, there will come the false voice after it, its mocking echo; like Jannes and Jambres opposing by imitation, putting on the dress of the sheep, but as a lure, over the evil heart within. The fruit would manifest them, but we must remember that this is not necessarily immoral conduct, in which the sheep's clothing would no longer remain, but rather their doctrines tested by experience, as when men looking for grapes find nothing but at most the mockery of these. Satan; when coming in as an angel of light, does not send out open evil-doers to commend his doctrines, while on the other hand an evil life may dishonor the preacher of substantial truth. But a true and needy soul, testing for itself the fruit of what is spoken, will assuredly find that the truth has its own witness to the heart and conscience, such as nothing but the truth can have. Here, above all, the Lord's words apply, that a good tree cannot bring forth bad fruit.

"But beware of false prophets, which come unto you in sheep's clothing but within are ravening wolves. By their fruits ye shall them recognise. Do they gather from thorns a grape bunch or from thistles figs? So every good tree produceth good fruits, but the worthless tree produceth bad fruits. A good tree cannot produce bad fruits, nor a worthless tree produce good fruits. Every tree that produceth not good fruit is cut down and cast into the fire. Therefore at least by their fruits ye shall recognise them well

Every reader of the O.T. may learn the destructive part by the false prophets who followed like a dark shadow the holy men whom the Holy Spirit inspired, and took up popular cries to oppose the warnings of God as evil became more rampant. There is no less danger now, as Peter particularly insists under the gospel; not to say that there is so much the more when good men pretend not to inspiration and are no longer invested with miraculous vouchers, but press only the word in the Spirit. And so it will be again for the godly remnant in the last days when, the heavenly ones being caught up, it becomes a question of that land and people. But the Lord's warning is of living value now also, as we hear in the worst and deceptive form (1 John 2:18-23; 1 John 4:1-6; 2 John 7-11). What believer does not know of the boldest antagonism to the truth? What Christian has not tasted bitter grief in seeing saints of God deluded by the sheerest clap-trap? Yea, even conniving, for alleged peace, unity, or testimony, at the denial of Christ's Person?

They who love Christ do well to beware of false prophets, who are such as come unto them in the garb of sheep, but within are ravening wolves. They may cultivate sanctimoniousness and pretend to devotion, but are under the dominion of a mightier foe than themselves, and filled with the keenest zeal to deprive the Christian of a true Christ, of life eternal possessed, of present standing as God's righteousness in Christ, of association with Him in and for heavenly glory. Are not such truly ravening wolves? What remains, if the disciple lose all the treasure distinctive of Christianity?

"By their fruits ye shall recognise them." Do they exalt Him who humbled Himself? Do they confess His incomprehensible being, God and man in one Person? Do they proclaim His grace and truth? Do they follow Christ in absolute subjection to scripture? Do they own it, as the invaluable standard, and the sure communication, of God's mind by His Spirit? Is the believer established? Is the sinner won and delivered? Or are minds filled with ideas which but inflate the spirit, inspire self-complacency, and end in death? For these are practical effects which test what men teach, and which are legible enough to simple souls little versed in scriptural truth, and still less in human subtleties. And thus the Lord safeguards the sheep in various ways.

After that (v. 23) come the great signs. There will also be in those last times false Christs and false prophets, promises of deliverance which hearts will so greatly need at that terrible moment when all the false hopes of an unbelieving nation will have passed away. "Behold," they will say, he is in the desert; behold, he is in the secret chambers. There will also be those who will work great signs and miracles, so as to deceive, if possible, the very elect. The wickedness of men and the deceits of Satan will again be employed to turn souls aside, and to hinder them from humbling themselves, and from seeking deliverance where alone it can be found.

Just as during the present dispensation (v.6) false christs and false prophets will arise, even showing signs and wonders so convincing as to deceive (if it were possible) even the elect. The qualifying clause "if it were possible" evidently infers that they would be deceived if it were not for the protection of the grace and power of God. For God has decreed that the elect will not be carried away in spite of their being so close to it. At this time the chief of all false christs, the Anti Christ, will entice great numbers "with all power and signs and lying wonders" (2 Thess.2:9). Believers however have no excuse for accepting such deception, for the Lord has forewarned them of its subtle character, and their protection is in His Word.

On the other hand, Matthew names features of the last time which have nothing corresponding with them in Luke's prophecy. He says, "And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved." (vv. 11-13.) Here prominence is given to false prophets and their deceptions. In Luke, where the warning is intended for believers, before the siege of Jerusalem, these are not mentioned. But to the Jews awaiting Christ's return, the danger from this source will be exceedingly great, and therefore the warning is specially emphasised, and the extent of the deception specially foretold. Again, in Matthew it is predicted that "because iniquity shall abound the love of many shall wax cold; but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved." Luke, who is recording the parts of the prophecy relating to the events before the destruction of Jerusalem, entirely omits these verses, because no such apostacy as that which is here foretold then took place. But such an apostacy will form one great feature of the days spoken of in Matthew's prophecy, when numbers, who begin to wait for the coming of the Messiah, will grow cold, and faint under the persecution and oppression to which they will then be subjected. The verse, "He that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved," is often used to show that believers have only a conditional security depending on their own faithfulness. It has, however, nothing to do with the subject, but refers only to the Jews waiting for a national redemption before the Messiah's advent. Some of these, God's elect, will stand faithful to the end. Others, seduced by false Christs or false prophets, or wearied out with the sufferings besetting the path of the faithful, will turn aside, and perish with the unbelievers.

What encouragement was thus offered to faithful disciples! And to emphasise it, the contrast is brought out. Woe was pronounced on those who were rich and full, and laughed, and on those who were well spoken of by all men; "for so," added the Lord, "did their fathers to the false prophets" (6:26). Suffering here has ever been the lot of the true prophets. Popularity and general acceptance have been accorded to the false ones. The world was not changed. The devil had not altered. Men's hearts were as bad naturally as ever. Faithfulness to God would still entail trouble, and it might be persecution, on those whom it characterised. Would they be hated for the Son of man's sake? That only demonstrated whose they were. Hence they should rejoice. Now the Lord here furnishes them with an antidote to the sting of the trial by pointing them upward to heaven; for trial it certainly is for any to have their name unjustly cast out as evil. But He provided the antidote ere the disciples had begun to feel the sting.

Secondly, they were to learn the supremacy of the moral in what might claim to be miracle, and thus decisive witness of what it was wrought to attest. This is a most important principle even now, when from Romanism to Mormonism and to Spiritualism, the supernatural is appealed to as establishing any thing as truth. Not so does the Word of God use it. Confirm the truth it may awaken attention to it, it will: sound the alarm-bell in the conscience, summon response from the heart but that which compels belief is the manifest truth, — truth which is always pure, always holy, always witnesses for God within the soul. "By their fruits shall ye know them," says the Lord as to the false prophets. No jugglery can bring forth grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles.

Verses 23-26 need not be confined to the last three and a half years, however. No doubt through the entire seven years men claiming to be Christ will foist themselves upon the public, some showing great signs and wonders, as will be true of the anti-christ, the man of sin (2 Thess.3:12). In fact, even today there are many antichrists (1John 2:16). Even the elect must be on their guard, for the deceptions of such men are most plausible. The elect here are of course the godly elect of Israel. But the Lord has forewarned them, so that they have no proper excuse for being deceived.