As a theological principle, those who hold themselves out as a “prophet” or “seer” today really eventually run in contradiction to God and what is in His word. This post concerns the reasons false prophets are a problem.
Within the Old Testament and Ancient Near Eastern historical context of Canaan, Israel and Judah’s kings established for themselves “court prophets” who served the interests of their royal leadership. A leadership that was disloyal and disobedient to Yahweh sought to install for themselves prophets of Yahweh and foreign gods to offset the pressures from true prophets of Yahweh who spoke God’s Word. The ancient Biblical kings of Judah and Israel appointed prophets beholden to them and served their interests as a priority and not according to the truth of what Yahweh revealed in His word through the Deuterocanonical covenant and His prophets that would appear before them.
These were prophets selected and put into position as the Kings of Israel and Judah observed what the kings of other nations did to organize and put their prophets of false gods before them, and their people. As the people of Yahweh sought to put a King before them to be like other nations, the kings of Israel and Judah put false prophets before them to be like other nations. In essence, this was yet another rejection of the God, His Word, and the covenant that was formed between Him and them as His people. The kings of Israel and Judah knew that the false prophets and priests would bring pagan gods to them and their people to worship and serve. Still, their rejection of God in this way was not fully complete in the absence of outright contradiction and opposition to what the prophets of Yahweh advised, instructed, or decreed on His behalf.
The historical and biblical case of Jeremiah 28:5-11 illustrates this matter clearly. The confusion and uncertainty caused by Hananiah eventually brought confrontation between him and Jeremiah. Moreover, the false prophet Hananiah caused people to trust a lie and not the truth of God’s message through Jeremiah. While it appeared that Yahweh’s message through Jeremiah was temporarily thwarted, He used adverse circumstances to make a clear theological point about obstruction and dishonest behavior as an agent of God’s interests and His message.
As false prophets place their loyalties and obligations across competing interests, people of all levels within their Ancient Near Eastern context commit idolatry. Before Yahweh, a grievous sin facilitated by the kings, priests, prophets, and others to live an idolatrous lifestyle and live a lie that would eventually contribute to their demise. Judah, who was in Babylon’s captivity, were there because of their outright rejection of God, which included idolatry. Those who remained in Israel and Judah were still steeped in the practice of rebellion while learning nothing about the circumstances that befell their people according to God’s warnings and judgment.
The leadership that sets in place people, systems, and processes that cause God’s people to sin against Him and each other is condemned with severe repudiation, judgment, and punishment. From a Biblical perspective, passage after passage, there is no uncertainty about it or a shortage of stories to articulate the harshest of condemnation.
