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NOTE: This article or series has not been updated recently. As such, it may possibly contain some outdated information, and/or ideas and beliefs which I no longer embrace, or which have changed to some degree.

Warnings Regarding False Prophets

As I point out in a number of other articles, the Bible is filled with verses which warn us to watch out for deceptive false prophets. In fact, it even advises us how we should respond to false prophets. Basically, we are to ignore them and not believe a word they say. Consider the following verses:

"But the prophet, which shall presume to speak a word in my name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, even that prophet shall die. And if thou say in thine heart, How shall we know the word which the LORD hath not spoken? When a prophet speaketh in the name of the LORD, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the LORD hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him."


"The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means; and my people love to have it so: and what will ye do in the end thereof?"


"For they prophesy falsely unto you in my name: I have not sent them, saith the LORD."


"Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them."


"And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many . . . For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect."


"For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect."


"For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them."


"For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works."

Sincere But Deceived

As I have already made sufficiently clear, the fact of the matter is that people such as Scott who were promoting this Comet Elenin nonsense, became very deceived and misguided, just like Harold Camping and the other individuals who I mentioned earlier in this series. While Scott and others are probably well-meaning and truly love the Lord, and were no doubt very sincere regarding their beliefs concerning the prophetic importance of Comet Elenin, it does not change the fact that they were still very wrong. There is no escape from this basic truth. They became deceived.

God-Inspired Prophecies Are Accurate

While such people may become offended by my position, there is simply no way that I will ever believe that they received their information from God by way of His Holy Spirit. People such as Scott may say "The Lord showed me this, and the Lord showed me that", but I am not convinced of it. As Jesus says in the previous verses that I shared with you, we will know a true Prophet of God by their fruits. That means accurate prophecies which come to pass precisely as they were given, without room for error. That is why I am forced to conclude that Scott's entire Elenin video was simply a fabrication of his own mind and spirit. If his predictions were truly of the Lord, then as the Prophet Ezekiel informs us, they would have come to pass. Consider this verse:

"And when this cometh to pass, (lo, it will come,) then shall they know that a prophet hath been among them."

False Prophecies Harm the Cause of Christ

As I explain in the aforementioned series, as well as in the series "Sorry . . . Jesus is Not Coming at Any Moment!", my main concern is that rather than advance the Cause of Christ, and the Message of Salvation, as with so many other false, wannabe prophets who have appeared in our modern times, their misguided pronouncements concerning Comet Elenin are going to do the exact opposite. In other words, such false predictions and misguided interpretations can only result in one thing; and that is in even more people mocking our faith, hardening their hearts, and becoming even more difficult to reach with the Gospel of Salvation. With good reason the Apostle Peter wrote the following in his second Epistle regarding wicked scoffers:

"Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation."


So as you can see, the end result is that as the false prophecies increase and fail to come to pass, the more our faith will suffer harm; because not only do we Christians begin to look like gullible, naive fools who will believe anything that happens to be uploaded to the Internet, but non-believers begin to doubt every single word that we say, including the all-important message of Salvation which we try to share with them.

The Devil's Expendables

In fact, personally, I have come to suspect that the Devil himself is behind this mischievous scheme to discredit us. In other words, as I explain in the Harold Camping series, I can't help but wonder if Satan purposely sets up these false prophets through his deceptions, and then he humiliates them when their misguided, false predictions fail to materialize. Such people are Satan's expendables. He uses them, abuses them, and then he just throws them away once they have been discredited by the world. But Satan doesn't care, because he has accomplished his purpose, which is to sow more seeds of doubt in the Word of God, and in His true messengers.

War of Thoughts and Words and Battle of the Mind

As I explain in other articles, it is indeed a war of words, and of ideas and beliefs, and our mind is the battleground. That is why God's Word instructs us to gird up the loins of our mind, to put on the helmet of Salvation, to bring every thought into captivity, and in fact to be renewed in our minds, as we can determine by the following verses

"Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;"


"And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:"


"Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;"


"And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God."


In my view, Scott clearly did not do this. He allowed Satan to come into his thoughts, and fill him with all kinds of astronomical data, and mythological nonsense, which he then endeavored to mix together with God's Word and his own ideas, motivated by his personal desire for Christ's soon Return. The end result of such sloppy exegesis -- or interpretation of God's Word -- is that we not only have a growing list of end-of-the-world false prophets who have appeared on the world stage since our faith was born two millennia ago, but we also have an increasing number of scoffers and mockers as well, who feel totally justified in their rigid position.

Confusion for God's Sheep

Also of concern to me is how these false predictions and misguided interpretations of God's Word can affect weaker Christian brethren. In writing about the Gifts of Tongues and the Interpretation of Tongues, in his first Epistle to the Corinthians, the Apostle Paul wrote the following:

"For if the trumpet give an uncertain sound, who shall prepare himself to the battle?"


In other words, these false predictions concerning Elenin -- or any other false prophecy for that matter -- can result in uncertainty and confusion for God's sheep. Why? Because they don't know who or what to believe, due to all of the nonsense that is being published and promoted on the Internet by these wayward and misguided prophets. In writing about the Gift of Prophecy in the very same chapter, the Apostle Paul wrote the following:

"For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints."


Well, tell me something. If our Heavenly Father is not the author of confusion, then who is? To reiterate, these people who make these wild claims regarding Comet Elenin, Nibiru, 2012 and the Mayan long calendar, and other such nonsense, are not just making an uncertain sound as the Apostle Paul writes in the previous verse. Rather, they are making false sounds, and sounds which can only result in confusion and uncertainty amongst God's sheep.

Expose False Prophets and Rebuke Them

Considering how serious of an issue false prophecy really is -- please note that false prophets in the Old Testament were stoned to death -- when our brethren in the Lord make these kinds of serious mistakes, it is very important that we don't seek to justify or cover up their errors; particularly when they can result in so much long-term damage to our faith. We need to expose and rebuke them publicly, in the hope that they will come to their senses and repent. Consider what we read in the following verses:

"Open rebuke is better than secret love."


"Them that sin rebuke before all, that others also may fear."


"Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him; Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins."

Jesus Rebukes Apostles Due to Errors

Even Jesus did not hesitate to rebuke His own Disciples when they were in error. Such was the case when He had to rebuke Peter, because Peter did not want the Lord to die. There was also the occasion where the Apostles wanted to call fire down from the sky, because the people of a certain village did not want to receive Christ into their midst. Recall also the time that the Disciples tried to prevent the children from coming near to Jesus. Jesus was again irked and rebuked them, as we see by the following verses:

"From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day. Then Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee. But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men."


"And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders, and of the chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. And he spake that saying openly. And Peter took him, and began to rebuke him. But when he had turned about and looked on his disciples, he rebuked Peter, saying, Get thee behind me, Satan: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but the things that be of men."


"And it came to pass, when the time was come that he should be received up, he stedfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem, And sent messengers before his face: and they went, and entered into a village of the Samaritans, to make ready for him. And they did not receive him, because his face was as though he would go to Jerusalem. And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did? But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of. For the Son of man is not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them. And they went to another village."


"Then were there brought unto him little children, that he should put his hands on them, and pray: and the disciples rebuked them. But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven. And he laid his hands on them, and departed thence."


"And they brought young children to him, that he should touch them: and his disciples rebuked those that brought them. But when Jesus saw it, he was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein. And he took them up in his arms, put his hands upon them, and blessed them."


"And they brought unto him also infants, that he would touch them: but when his disciples saw it, they rebuked them. But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein."


Not only that, but as we saw earlier, Jesus did not hesitate to expose the false prophets either. The Lord and the Apostle Paul both referred to them as ravening wolves. As such, we should not be afraid to do the same thing today either when it becomes necessary. In my opinion, it does become necessary when their errors can have such a profound negative effect on the overall perception of our Christian faith.

No Malicious Intent But Deceived by Pride

As I noted earlier, in most cases, the people who make these mistakes are probably sincere, dedicated Christians. They are not trying to mislead people on purpose. I don't believe that there is malicious intent on their part. As we have seen, the problem is that they have become deceived, quite possibly as a result of their own pride and ego; although to be fair, this is not always the case. Thus, they become convinced in their heart that the Lord has revealed certain things to them, when maybe He really hasn't. Let's not forget that Satan knows the Scriptures. He can quote verses to us, exactly as he did with the Lord in Matthew chapter four. That is a rather unsettling thought, isn't it?

Satan is a Deceiver and False Angel of Light

So you see, that is one reason why misguided false prophets become convinced that they are preaching the truth. Satan is so crafty that he can even deceive the most well-meaning and dedicated Christian; if we are not extremely careful, and remain very close to the Lord. If there is one thing that I hope that you learn from this series, it is that we all need to be very careful regarding saying "Thus saith the Lord", or "The Lord told me", or "The Lord showed me", because maybe it wasn't really the Lord at all. Maybe it was really the Prince of Darkness -- Satan himself -- posing as an angel of light. As we read earlier:

"And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light."

Be Slow to Speak and Make Predictions

For those of my readers who may feel the urge to proclaim yourselves Prophets and Apostles, I urge you to carefully consider the wisdom that is contained in the following group of verses:

"In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin: but he that refraineth his lips is wise."


"Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let thy words be few."


"A fool uttereth all his mind: but a wise man keepeth it in till afterwards."


"For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned."


"Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?"


"Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:"


In a word, if you really want to spare yourself from some unnecessary future embarrassment, then simply follow the wise advice that is contained in the previous verses, and keep your mouth shut, unless you are absolutely certain that a prophecy or prediction is of the Lord, and not just from your own mind, ego, vanity or even from Satan the deceiver and the Father of Lies himself. Please remember that once you publish something on the Internet, whether it happens to be a video, or a blog entry, or a full-length article, or a photograph, if enough people like it, it will spread rapidly like wildfire all over the place. As a result, you won't be able to retrieve every instance of it, no matter how hard you try, and no matter for how long you try. If you decide later that you got something wrong and were in error, and other people discover your error, you may just have to live with the embarrassing consequences of your original action when you first published it. You have been warned.

Closing Remarks

With these thoughts, I will bring this article to a close. It is my hope that you have found it informative, enlightening, and I pray that it has been a blessing in your life as well. If you have an account with Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr or with any other social network, I would really appreciate if you'd take the time to click or tap on the corresponding link that is found on this page. Thanks so much, and may God bless you abundantly!

For additional information and further study, you may want to refer to the list of reading resources below which were either mentioned in this article, or which contain topics which are related to this article. All of these articles are likewise located on the Bill's Bible Basics web server. To read these articles, simply click or tap on any link you see below.

For additional information and further study, you may want to refer to the list of reading resources below which were also mentioned in this series, or which are related to this series, and which are likewise located on this very same Bill's Bible Basics website.

2012 : New Age Deception and Psychobabble
Age of Deception, Age of Delusion
Alien Life, Extrasolar Planets And Universal Atonement
Biblical Cafeteria, or the Whole Course?
Elijah: Where Are the True Prophets of God?
Humility in Our Understanding of God's Word
Modern False Prophets and Worldly Ecumenism
Sorry . . . Jesus is Not Coming at Any Moment!
The Office of Prophets and Teachers
The Misguided End of the World Predictions of Harold Camping
The Nibiru, Planet X, Wormwood Controversy

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Please avail yourself of other areas of the Bill's Bible Basics website. There are many treasures for you to discover.