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Thaddeus M. Maharaj: The Theology of False Prophecy in the Old Testament
Sometimes from our perspective today, having a completed canon of scripture and
looking back, it may strike us as strange that there were false prophets in Israel or that it was
a point of concern on how to discern them. Looking back on the prophets, they seem to be
larger than life, imposing figures endowed with extraordinary powers of prediction and
miracle working. We do not as readily understand why their contemporaries did not pay
attention, or wonder why they ever disobeyed or disbelieved for a counterfeit. However, the
blindness of people then surprises us, but our own is often just as great, and although the
obstacles to belief today may be different, it is the same quality in us that makes them
obstacles. It appears that God’s revelation does not carry conviction apart from moral
qualities in the mind as there will always be some ground on which the evidence may be
evaded.1
This article will explore some of the ANE context of prophecy and the etymology of
certain word groups surrounding it, looking at the roles they described. Next, the traditions
of prophetism and some of the distinguishing marks of a prophet will be considered. The
marks of a true and false prophet will then be explored, looking at where the locus of
authenticity lays. Various means and criteria of legitimation for a prophet’s message will be
observed along with the difficulties they present. Lastly, the debate within scholarship on
this topic will be briefly considered before moving to final conclusions.
1 Davidson, Old Testament Prophecy, 287-289.
Thaddeus M. Maharaj: The Theology of False Prophecy in the Old Testament
Prophecy in the Ancient Near Eastern Context
Prophecy was not something unique to Israel and there were several forms in the
Ancient Near East (ANE) which affected the context of OT
prophecy. These could take the form of soul possession—where
the god took over the psyche of the medium—or ‘soul
migration,’—a sort of outer body experience.2 Novitiates in
divination spent many years learning their trade; including
many forms of divination from memorizing incantations, to
how to interpret the flights of birds, hepatoscopy, exispicy, the
lay of arrows or stones cast out of a container, astrology,
lecanomancy, libanomancy and the significance of dreams and
signs (see footnotes for definitions of these terms).3 At Mari in
the middle Euphrates valley, twenty-eight letters from the third millennium to 1762 BCE
were found mentioning a prophet called ‘apilu’ of the gods Adad or Dagon. Egypt also had
many prophet/priests and the oldest reference to prophets in Canaan is from about 1100
BCE.
Such texts show that the context in which Israel emerged was one where diverse
persons claimed to know the divine will of the gods, but Israel’s prophets differed in that
they proclaimed monotheism and a morality that was issued from the very nature of God.4
The ancient religions of surrounding nations were bent on influencing the will of the gods
and their prophets may call frantically upon them, fasting or even cutting themselves (1 Kgs
18:28) to try to manipulate them and evoke divine pity. Sacrifices were understood as a
means to please the gods. By contrast, the OT prophets, with the exceptions of Elijah and
perhaps Elisha, are rarely involved in sacrificial worship.5 The concern of OT prophets was
rather to proclaim the will of God rather than manipulate it.
Word Groups Related to Prophecy
There are certain word groups associated with prophetism in the OT. Balaam was a
diviner (Heb. ָקַסם [qasam], Josh. 13:22), and though he functioned as a prophet in the end by
speaking the words God put in his mouth (Num. 22:35, 38; 23:5, 16, 26), this was a
supernatural change from his usual methods which were probably similar to the diviners the
Philistines used in 1 Samuel 6:2f. Israel’s false prophets were sometimes classified as
2 Redditt, Introduction to the Prophets, 1-2. 3 Orlinksy, Oriens Antiquus, 164. Interpretation of the formation of livers (hepatoscopy), entrails (extispicy), smoke
or liquid emanating from a container (lecanomancy and libanomancy). 4 Redditt, Introduction to the Prophets, 2-4. See also Davies, The Old Testament World, 167. For more in depth
discussion of ANE context of prophecy, see Day, Prophecy and Prophets in Ancient Israel, 3-56. 5 Lundbom, The Hebrew Prophets, 29-30.
Thaddeus M. Maharaj: The Theology of False Prophecy in the Old Testament
“diviners” (Jer. 27:9; 29:8; Ezk. 13:6-9, 23; Mic. 3:6f; Zec. 10:2) who prophesied lies in God’s
name (Jer. 29:8f) and gave messages the inquirer wanted to hear (Jer. 28:9; Ezk. 13:9f) using
magical methods. Other related word groups include “astrologers” (ָאַשף [ashaph], Dan. 2:27;
4:7; 5:7, 11), “soothsayers” (ָעַנן [anan], Isa. 2:6; Mic. 5:12), and sorcerers (ָכַשף [kashaph], Ex.
7:11; 22:18; Deut. 18:10; Dan. 2:2; Isa. 47:9, 12; 2 Chr. 33:6; Mic. 5:12; Mal. 3:5).6
Main Word Groups
However, there are three main words used
by the OT to designate Israel’s prophets. The
Hebrew ֹרֶאה “ro’eh” derives from a verb
meaning “to see” and is generally translated
“seer” or “diviner.” It describes one who could
discover hidden things.7 The other term, ֹחֶזה
[hozeh] similarly derives from a word meaning
“to see” and is usually used in connection to things a prophet saw, including visions, audible
messages or in reference to an entire revelation received (cf. Ezek. 13:16, 23; Num. 24:4;
Amos 7:1-9).8 Peter Southwell comments:
“A general conclusion from all this would be that a seer was by and large someone to
whom people would go. He would be available at certain times and places for exercising
his divine gifts in God’s name. He was not, other than in exceptional circumstances,
someone who on his own initiative went to the people with messages from God. He was
more like a resident chaplain than a roving evangelist, and was called out only rarely
for specific functions.”9
There is no distinguishable difference between the words hozeh and ro’eh, both
translated “seer” in the OT. In 1 Samuel 9:9, it states that ָנִביא—nabi’ (prophet)—was
formerly called ro’eh—so it seems that the two were understood as exercising a common
function of seeing and apprehending what was not accessible to others, and speaking forth
what was seen.10 It may also be suggested that the term “man of God” was common in the
6 Smith, Prophet, 988. 7 Redditt, Introduction to the Prophets, 4-5. For example, Samuel in 1 Samuel 9-10, is described as a ro’eh and he
sees that Saul is coming and that the lost donkeys had already returned home. The means of divination included
interpretation of dreams (Jer. 23:25-32, Dan. 2, 4, Joel 2:28), casting lots (Jonah 1:7), inspecting livers (Ezek. 21:21
– a common practice in the ancient Middle East), necromancy (1 Sm. 28:8-25 – though condemned in the OT) and
reading the stars (Ezek. 32:7, Joel 2:10). 8 Redditt, Introduction to the Prophets, 5. It is used in reference to the entire revelation the prophet received in the
openings of Isaiah, Amos, Micah and Habakkuk. 9 Southwell, Prophecy, 24. 10 Napier, Prophets in Perspective, 17-19. Also see Southwell, Prophecy, 21-36 for a more in depth discussion of
prophets in ancient Israel. The Septuagint translation seems to presuppose a slightly different text which conveys
that the term “seer” was simply a common popular name for a prophet in the past. See also Napier, Prophets in
Thaddeus M. Maharaj: The Theology of False Prophecy in the Old Testament
period between the “seers” and the era of the preaching prophets, before the change of
nomenclature referred to in 1 Samuel 9:9 had fully taken place.11 The prophetic movement
began with Samuel who was the last of the judges who wore both the hats of judge and seer.12
The Meaning of Nabi’
Determining the original meaning of the
root for the main term used in the OT (nabi’) is a
bit difficult.13 The word is used more than three
hundred times in the OT pertaining to a wide
variety of characters.14 There are some who
recognize its root meaning as “bubble, boil or
seethe,”—indicating ecstatic frenzy.15 However,
it is a good guess that the lost Hebrew root may
be related to an Acadian and Arabic cognate
word meaning “to call” or “announce.”16
Etymology alone cannot resolve this though, partially because of the differences of
interpretation on either side, but also because there is much more we can learn from a study
of the prophets in the OT that illuminates the semantic range of nabi’.17 For example, when
Moses refused to speak to Pharaoh, God appointed Aaron to be Moses’ nabi’ (Ex. 6:28-7:2).
Moses is also called a nabi’ because God spoke through him. So, a nabi’, when used of a
prophet of God, is a messenger who speaks the words that God puts in their mouth (Deut.
18:18-22). They often used the common introductory phrase, “Thus says the Lord” (Jgs. 6:8;
1 Kgs. 11:29-31; 20:13; 2 Kgs. 20:1; 2 Chr. 12:5; 21:12; 34:23; 2 Sam. 24:11f.) for their
message. God is said to have spoken his word to most of the prophets, but some had dreams
Perspective, 15. Furthermore, Redditt suggests that perhaps ro’eh may have come to take on a negative connotation,
so nabi’ became preferred. However, even nabi’ can be applied to a false prophet (1 Kgs 22:22). For more, see also
Westermann, Basic Forms of Prophetic Speech, 98-128. 11 Southwell, Prophecy, 24. “The phrase is used especially of Elijah and Elisha at precisely that stage, and Elijah is a
classic example of a seer who began to exercise the ministry of a prophet.” 12 Lundbom, The Hebrew Prophets, 10. 13 Napier, Prophets in Perspective, 15-16. See also Merrill, Everlasting Dominion, 86-87. 14 Napier, Prophets in Perspective, 14-15. The term is used of Aaron (Ex. 7:1), to Elijah (1 Kg. 17-19, 21), to true
and false prophets (1 Kg 22), primitive prophets (1 Sam. 10) to more sophisticated (Isaiah), highly visionary (Ezek.
1-2) and concretely ethical (Amos, Nathan, etc.). 15 Southwell, Peter. Prophecy. London. Hodder and Stoughton: 1982., 21. 16 According to Smith, Prophet, 987; various other theories have been proposed including connecting it with naba’
(bubble forth), a passive participle of a word meaning ‘enter’—describing one who was entered by a spirit, an
Arabic root meaning ‘announce,’ an Akkadian root meaning ‘speaking or proclaiming’ or a passive interpretation
‘the one who is called by God.” See also discussion by Johnson. The Cultic Prophet in Ancient Israel, 24f. 17 Southwell, Prophecy, 21.
Thaddeus M. Maharaj: The Theology of False Prophecy in the Old Testament
and visions (cf. Num. 12:6; Deut. 13:1-5 [MT 2-6]; Ezek. 1; Jer. 23:25: Dan. 7:1f.) and some
used drama to make their message understood.18
Two Traditions
There were two major prophetic traditions; the Ephraimite and Judean Traditions.
The Ephraimite theological tradition considered Mosaic prophets more accurate that others
(cf. Num. 12:6-8).19 The prophets related to the Ephraimite tradition used stereotypical
speech patterns, using a distinctive vocabulary and exhibited certain standard patterns of
behaviour which were modelled on the Mosaic prophet. The Ephraimite prophets were
earlier in the history—such as Abraham, Moses and Samuel—and had cultic functions that
weren’t clearly distinguished from their prophetic functions. However, after the rise of the
monarchy, they began to function on the periphery of society and came to a close at the fall
of Jerusalem. After the exile, a different form of prophecy emerged than what had existed in
the pre-exilic period.20
Marks of a Prophet
Prophets were like foreign ambassadors, or to use insurance terminology, people
with ‘power of agency,’—prophets are
simply messengers. “The power they
exert always stands behind them; it is
never their own. So it is with the prophet.
By his word people become ill or are
healed, live or die; whole nations rise or
fall. Yet behind each momentous word
stands Yahweh. The prophet is simply
the messenger, nothing more.”21
Lundbom notes that, “In Israel, the real
prophet was typically called to critique
kings and governmental policy, which led, as one might expect, to frequent tensions between
the prophet and the royal house.”22 According to Lundbom, some of the marks in the OT that
18 Smith, Prophet, 988. Also, Lester L. Grabbe defines a prophet generally as, “a mediator who claims to receive
messages directly from a divinity, by various means, and communicates those messages to recipients.” 19 Wilson, Prophecy and Society in Ancient Israel, 163-165, 250. For a fuller discussion of the distinctive features of
prophets from the Ephraimite Tradition and Judean Tradition see chapters 4 and 5 in Wilson, Prophecy and Society
in Ancient Israel. 20 Wilson, Prophecy and Society in Ancient Israel, 251-252. 21 Lundbom, The Hebrew Prophets, 20. Lundbom goes on to say, “[Prophets] have the capacity to perceive things
ordinary people cannot perceive. They see that the times are out of joint, that human life before God is far from what
it should be, that judgment is forthcoming, and that after judgment they are the first to anticipate Yahweh’s
salvation.” 22 Lundbom, The Hebrew Prophets, 10.
Thaddeus M. Maharaj: The Theology of False Prophecy in the Old Testament
a person was a true prophet of Yahweh were that they had received a divine call, spoke the
divine word, were possessed with divine vision, were able to perform mighty works, were
filled with the divine spirit and was someone who prayed. However, not every prophet
possessed the whole range of marks or prophetic gifts, but these were generally what was
seen to distinguish and define them.23 Deuteronomy gives two major criteria for judging if a
prophet is legitimate. The first is if the prophet speaks in the name of YHWH (Deut 18:20).
In their context, there were many other gods of other nations, but for Israel, only YHWH
mattered. So only the prophet who spoke in the name of YHWH was to be heeded. Secondly
is whether their predictions come true.24
False Prophets in the OT
A.B. Davidson defines a false prophet as a
“Spokesman, herald, or messenger falsely speaking for, or
on behalf of, someone else. The false prophet was often
motivated not by loyalty to God, but by a desire for
popularity.”25 The message of the false prophet was
usually spurred by self-interest and given to please the
people. It was not necessarily his intention to speak
falsely, yet when spoken with wrong motivation, his
message was often in error. This sometimes means that
even a true prophet could become false and occasionally a
false prophet could be used of God for the right purpose.26
1 Kings 22:19-23 is a most perplexing text in this regard,
as it seems to portray YHWH as leading prophets astray.
Ahab’s prophets give a favorable word to the kings about
going to war, however Micaiah instead predicts the downfall of Ahab. God is seen to hold a
council about how to defeat Ahab, and there a spirit volunteers to be a ‘lying spirit’ in the
mouth of all of Ahab’s prophets (v. 22).27 So this brings up some questions about where the
locus of authenticity lies.
23 Lundbom, The Hebrew Prophets, 7-31. 24 Redditt, Introduction to the Prophets, 6. See also Deere, “Deuteronomy,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary,
297. 25 Elwell, Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible, 1780. 26 Elwell, Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible, 1780. For example, Moses acted as a false prophet by striking the rock
twice at the waters of Meribah (Nm 20:11, 12), while Balaam, a non-Israelite—whom God entrusted with a vision—
found himself in the difficult position of having to please Balak, who had hired him, and the God of Israel, who
spoke to him (Nm 22, 23). 27 Redditt, Introduction to the Prophets,8-9. However, even here there is a last twist, since it was Jehoshaphat who
was killed in battle and not Ahab. This text warrants further exploration, which for the sake of time will not be
explored here.
Thaddeus M. Maharaj: The Theology of False Prophecy in the Old Testament
Locus of Authenticity for the Prophet
Lundbom notes that the locus of authenticity was not in the prophet’s being, instead,
he was true by virtue of an authentic act, and each word or deed had to be judged true or
false based on its divine inspiration or lack thereof. So, it is perhaps no accident that the term
‘false prophet’ does not occur in the Hebrew Bible—only in the LXX. Instead, it is said that
the prophet speaks ‘falsely’ but never that a prophet is fundamentally defined as a false
prophet. It was focused more on the act of false prophesy than the person.28 Furthermore, in
the OT context, the prophetic message is attached to a context at a particular time and place.
Although the same message can be authentic at more than one occasion, situation or
audience—each proclamation must be judged as true or false in a specific context—they
don’t automatically translate into immutable truths which are applicable to every situation
at any time. The authentic message of the past can become inauthentic at a later time, like
for example, what happened with Isaiah’s dynamic message about the inviolability of
Jerusalem in 2 Kings 19:32-24. It was true then for that context, but by the time of Jeremiah,
it had now expired because Yahweh had something else to say—that the temple would be
destroyed (Jer. 7:1-15).29 However, even with this consideration, there are still individuals
in the OT who seem to be regarded as ‘false prophets.’
Classes of ‘False Prophets’
Davidson identifies two basic classes of ‘false
prophets’—namely, those who were not prophets of YHWH,
but rather prophets of Baal or other pagan gods, and
secondly, those who were prophets of YHWH and though
their objective religious opinions may have agreed, gave
erroneous words.30 Three of the factors he identifies which
influence the corruption of true prophecy are: a.) prophetic
ecstasy—which confused the clearness of revelation—b.)
the nature of prophetic inspiration as a subjective
illumination and c.) the tendency for prophecy to become a
profession with the lure of monetary gain.31 However, the
process of legitimizing or exposing a false prophet or
prophecy was not as simple as one maybe would expect.
28 Lundbom, The Hebrew Prophets, 140. See also Davidson, “The False Prophets.” in The Expositor, 1-17. 29 Lundbom, The Hebrew Prophets, 142-143. 30 Davidson, Old Testament Prophecy, 296-298. 31 Davidson, Old Testament Prophecy, 299-300. See also Johnson, The Cultic Prophet in Ancient Israel, 30. For
further reading see also Overholt, Thomas W. The Threat of Falsehood: A Study in the Theology of the Book of
Jeremiah. Studies in Biblical Theology, n.s., 16. Naperville, IL: Alec R. Allenson, 1970.
Thaddeus M. Maharaj: The Theology of False Prophecy in the Old Testament
Prophetic Legitimation
In terms of legitimation, visions or miracles sometimes were given as a divine support
of the prophet’s message (for example Isaiah 7:14).32 The miraculous confirmations of Moses
over Korah (Num. 16) and Elijah over the prophets of Baal (1 Kings 18) illustrate this point.33
However, this was not always the case. The miracle does not necessarily automatically
authenticate the prophet. In Deuteronomy 13, it says the false prophet may work a miracle,
but here it serves to test if the people’s heart truly loves YHWH. “The true prophet is the one
who speaks for Yahweh and leads people in Yahweh’s way. One should note, however, that the
test is put negatively. Its stated aim is not to authenticate the true prophet, but to discredit the
false one. Israel’s problem was with inauthentic prophets.”34 The passage withdraws attention
from external signs and concentrates it on the true test which was the first article of Israel’s
faith—that YHWH alone was God of Israel. Add to this the fact that from Amos downwards,
miracles play little role in the history of prophecy.35 Lundbom notes that “Only three Hebrew
prophets—four if we include Aaron (cf. Exod. 7:1)—were so gifted” to perform mighty works.36
It would seem that miracle working, though a part of OT prophetism, does not play as big a
role in its legitimation as some might speculate.
Tests of Prophecy
Elwell and Beitzel note that God often tests his people with adversity in order to
establish their hearts (Deut. 8:2-3), and their
privilege of hearing the Word of God through the
prophets was not exempt to testing (Deut. 13:3-4) in
order to see if they truly loved His truth. So, the
major test of prophecy was doctrinal—the false
prophet tries to draw away the people from the One
True God—and so, even if his message was
supported by signs and wonders, it was to be
refused because it contradicted the revelation of the
Lord at the exodus (Deut. 13:5, 10). The next test
was more practical, and required patience. God’s word always comes to pass (Deut. 18:21-
22)—should there be any doubt about whether a prophetic word was true, the people were
to wait for a confirmatory turn of events.
32 Lundbom, The Hebrew Prophets, 145. 33 Geisler, Miracles and the Modern Mind, 95. 34 Lundbom, The Hebrew Prophets, 145-146. See also Merrill, Everlasting Dominion, 88-89. 35 Davidson, Old Testament Prophecy, 293; see also Day, Prophecy and Prophets in Ancient Israel, 392-393. 36 Lundbom, The Hebrew Prophets, 24.
Thaddeus M. Maharaj: The Theology of False Prophecy in the Old Testament
The last test was moral—false prophets will be found out as men of unholy life (Jer.
23:11, 13, 14) who do not rebuke the people morally but rather encourage men in their sins
(Jer. 23:16-17, 21-22).37 The Bible describes false prophets
as adulterous (Jer. 23:14), treacherous (Zeph. 3:4),
working for money (Mic. 3:11), drunkards (Isa. 28:7),
wicked (Jer. 23:11), liars (Jer. 14:14, 23:14) and associated
with divination and witchcraft (Jer. 14:14; Ezek. 22:28;
Acts 13:6).38 So clearly the moral integrity of a true
prophet was important. An evil mind and immoral
behaviour could not be integrated with a sound message,
since the true prophet was raised up to restore people to
Yahweh, making them faithful to the covenant and to obey
His commands. This is why Israel’s prophets criticize other
prophets most harshly, since if they fail in these things
themselves, they are part of the problem, not the
solution.39
Criteria of Fulfillment
Deuteronomy 18:20-22 lays out the criterion of fulfilment of YHWH’s word and
assumes Deuteronomy 13:1-5 as the test of authenticity. The words “you need not be afraid
of him” imply that the test pertains to prophecies of judgment—however Jeremiah expands
this to include prophecies of peace as well in Jeremiah 28:9.40 However, the question of how
long one should wait for a prophecy to be fulfilled inevitably comes to mind. Ezekiel tried to
answer this worry in Ezekiel 12:21-28. However, there are some prophecies like Isaiah 7:14,
which were given messianic interpretation of fulfilment hundreds of years later.
It seems that most often, prophesies of peace and salvation were allowed to go
unfulfilled for some time and prophesies of a hopeful nature were retained in scripture
despite them not being immediately fulfilled. Furthermore, the NT church realized that some
prophesies in scripture were being fulfilled in their time after a long period of waiting.41 For
prophecies of judgment though, it seems like they may also not be fulfilled if repentance
happens. We see examples of this in Jonah’s prophecy of judgment on Ninevah and Micah’s
judgment on Jerusalem. However, both of these withholdings of judgment may be considered
only temporary, since both Ninevah and Jerusalem eventually were destroyed in judgment
37 Elwell, Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible, 1782. See also Geisler, Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics, 32. 38 Werse, “False Prophecy,” in The Lexham Bible Dictionary, no pages—LOGOS resource. 39 Lundbom, The Hebrew Prophets, 152-153. See also for more discussion of the morality of false prophets
Davidson, Old Testament Prophecy, 305-308. 40 Lundbom, The Hebrew Prophets, 149-150. See also Crenshaw, Prophetic Conflict, 53. 41 Lundbom, The Hebrew Prophets, 151.
Thaddeus M. Maharaj: The Theology of False Prophecy in the Old Testament
at a later time. “According to this view, Yahweh’s word, once spoken, will sooner or later
come to pass. If there is a cancellation, for example, because of repentance, it may be only
temporary.”42
However, the criterion of fulfillment provides little
help in the meantime as the people wait. We see an
example of this in the confrontation between Hananiah
and Jeremiah in Jeremiah 28. At first, Jeremiah is unsure
of the truth of Hananiah’s favorable prophecy and reacts
positively (28:6). However, later when he receives a
specific vision from the Lord contradicting Hananiah’s
prophecy, then he accuses Hananiah of prophesying
falsely (28:15). So in this case, it seems that to detect a
false prophet before awaiting fulfillment of the prophecy
requires another, true prophet.43 However, this was not always a readily available solution
to say the least.
Two Ways to Solve the Problem of Recognizing False Prophecy
The Rabbis and Sectarians solved this problem of recognizing false prophets in two
different ways. For the Rabbis, they treated prophets as sages, and the criterion for
determining if a prophet’s words were true was whether if they concurred with halakhah—
which is the totality of laws and ordinances which regulate religious observances, daily life
and conduct of the Jewish people.44 In the Mishnah (Sanhedrin 11:5), Hananiah is identified
as one of the two types of false prophet, and it is further explained in the Talmud (Sanhedrin
11:7; b. Sanhedrin 90a) that he didn’t invent his prophecy but rather extrapolated it
incorrectly. Several Rabbis put forward various theories including that he was a plagiarist
misunderstanding Jeremiah’s true prophecy, or that the sign given to a prophet from
Deuteronomy 13 is not necessarily in the present but could relate to past deeds, so the
prophet uses his past credibility to deliver a present false message. Therefore, for the Rabbis,
to know if the prophet’s message is true or not lies in the content of the prophecy tested
against the law.45
42 Lundbom, The Hebrew Prophet, 151-152. 43 Shemesh, Halakha in the Making, 49-50. 44 Shemesh, Halakha in the Making, 50-51. Halakhah definition from Encyclopaedia Britannica Online:
http://www.britannica.com/topic/Halakhah, “Quite distinct from the Law of the Pentateuch (the first five books of
the Bible), Halakhah purports to preserve and represent oral traditions stemming from the revelation on Mount Sinai
or evolved on the basis of it. The legalistic nature of Halakhah also sets it apart from those parts of rabbinic, or
Talmudic,literature that include history, fables, and ethical teachings (Haggadah).” 45 Shemesh, Halakha in the Making, 50-52.
Thaddeus M. Maharaj: The Theology of False Prophecy in the Old Testament
The sectarian method of the Qumranites was quite different from the Rabbis, as seen
in 4Q375 (apocrMoses). There when faced with the dilemma of discerning a false prophecy,
it is prescribed that the two parties are to go before the priest who performs the sacrifice in
order to enter the Holy of Holies, where
the hidden things will be revealed to him.
This ritual seems to interpret
Deuteronomy 17:10 as taking ‘that place’
to mean the heart of the sanctuary. So, the
Qumranites take the opposite track to the
Rabbis—a false prophet is determined
through divine revelation. For the Rabbis the false prophet was determined in court, and for
the Qumranites, it was the Temple—it was divine decision rather than human. It must be
noted though, the different time frames these groups existed in. The Rabbis were from a time
that believed prophecy had already ceased for many years and the Qumranites were
anticipating the resumption of prophecy in their present.46
The Prophetic Call
Another important factor of the prophet’s legitimacy is the prophetic call. No two calls
are alike and similarly, the responses to the call also vary, with some who accept it willingly
and others who give resistance which YHWH overcomes.47 “Even reluctant prophets knew
that in the end they must obey the divine call. Moses knew it, and so did Jeremiah. Jonah, the
most reluctant prophet of all, obeyed in the end, and went to speak Yahweh’s word to the people
of Nineveh.”48 It also seemed to be a very private affair which was only made public later or
upon being driven to legitimate their ministry. All the prophets seem to think of themselves
as sent by YHWH, and so their message originates in God and not themselves.
Jeremiah’s credentials as a prophet of YHWH is presented in his call narrative in the
book.49 He at first objects to the call, but in the end is depicted as having no say in the matter
as God is responsible for both the speaker and the message.50 “The denial both of personal
desire and of responsibility for the message affirms that the prophet had no personal benefit
46 Shemesh, Halakha in the Making, 53-55. 47 Lundbom, The Hebrew Prophets, 16. See also Berquist, Prophetic Legitimation in Jeremiah, 136. Similarly,
Jonah didn’t get to prophesy the message he wanted to. 48 Lundbom, The Hebrew Prophets, 18. 49 There is a close similarity between Jeremiah and Deuteronomy, and some scholars believe that Jeremiah may
have even had a close part in the final production of Deuteronomy. See Hyatt, Jeremiah and Deuteronomy, 156-164. 50 Berquist, Prophetic Legitimation in Jeremiah, 130. The call narrative form as a means of legitimation “may have
originated in the setting of ambassadors presenting their credentials before their audience, telling how the
ambassador was commissioned to present this particular message.”; See also N. Habel, The Form and Significance
of the Call Narratives., ZAW 77 (1965), 322.
Thaddeus M. Maharaj: The Theology of False Prophecy in the Old Testament
from the message. The motive is purely the service of Yahweh, rather than any personal gain.”51
In fact, the initiative for the call is so much so from YHWH that it is not Jeremiah’s search for
a message, but rather it comes before even his own birth—all responsibility falls on YHWH.52
To add to this, Jeremiah is instructed to remain celibate his whole life and could not attend
weddings or funerals as a sign that there will be no happiness in Israel. The false prophets’
messages were to their benefit, however, when the message given is at great cost to the
prophet himself, his motives are less questionable. This type of personal sacrifice which
serves to help legitimate a prophet is not uncommon (Isa. 8:1-4; Jer. 33; Ezek. 4-5; Hos. 1-
3).53
Ecstatic Experience—dem prophets be cray cray!
Another element which has to be mentioned is that of the question of ecstatic
experience by prophets in the OT and ANE. “Excitation was, however, no essential element in
true prophecy. It was not mentioned in
connection either with Moses or Samuel…
so common a phenomenon as ecstasy could
be no test of true prophecy.”54 This mark is
actually down played in the OT, probably
due to the widespread phenomenon of
ecstatic prophecy in surrounding pagan
cultures. Prophets showing hyper
spirituality were often discredited.55 Peter
Southwell comments,
“The use of the term ecstasy is common in literature about the prophets, but is
misleading. Nowadays it carries connotations of exquisite pleasure, and in origin it
conveyed the sense that the subject was, quite literally, beside himself, out of his mind,
or had taken leave of his senses. Neither of these ideas is explicitly conveyed by the
biblical texts, and it is best to avoid too precise psychological terms at a distance of so
many centuries, and with so little evidence to go on.”56
51 Berquist, Prophetic Legitimation in Jeremiah, 131. 52 Berquist, Prophetic Legitimation in Jeremiah, 131-133. 53 Berquist, Prophetic Legitimation in Jeremiah, 134. 54 Davidson, Old Testament Prophecy, 291-292. 55 Lundbom, The Hebrew Prophets, 26. “Micah claimed that insensitive people in his audience would rather sit and
listen to ‘windy’ preachers, who push ‘liquid spirits’ on people, than to his cry against social injustice (Mic. 2:11).
Jeremiah played on the double meaning of ‘spirit,’ saying that some prophets he knows will become what they
already are: ‘bags of wind.’” For further reading see also Lindblom, J. Prophecy in Ancient Israel. Philadelphia:
Fortress Press, 1965. 56 Southwell, Prophecy, 25.
Thaddeus M. Maharaj: The Theology of False Prophecy in the Old Testament
Some scholars argue that only false prophets described in the prophetic literature in
Israel were ecstatics.57 However, this view
overlooks that there is no good biblical evidence
that all the ‘false prophets’ were ecstatics and
underestimates the real problems in discerning
prophets in Israel. Others such as Gunkel
suggested that the true prophet’s oracles were
produced after their ecstatic experience had
ended, and thus the product of a rational mind.
However, this is based on little evidence, and
there is evidence which seems to point to the
contrary. Jeremiah in particular, in Jeremiah 4:19
exclaims in anguish, in 29:26 his speech is said to
be described as that of a madman, and in 23:9 he
describes himself shaking like a drunk man
because of Yahweh’s words.58 A third approach
admits that the prophets may have had
infrequent ecstatic experiences, however, the
content of their prophecy must be distinguished from the ecstatic means by which those
words were received.59
A Brief Overview of Scholarship on False Prophecy
With this in consideration, let us finally look at some of the views of scholarship on
the topic. Some modern scholars have suggested that the criteria for determining a false
prophet changed between different time periods in the Bible. Gerhard von Rad proposed that
the false nature of the message is what distinguished a prophet as true or false, recognizing
that the message was not the only qualifier identified in the Bible (Von Rad, “Die falschen
Propheten,” 109–120; Von Rad, Old Testament Theology, 2:209–210). Sigmund Mowinckel
proposed that true pre-exilic prophets were marked by dependence on the word of Yahweh
57 Wilson, Prophecy and Society in Ancient Israel, 7. See also H.T. Obbink, “The Forms of Prophetism,” HUCA 14
(1939), 25-28; S. Mowinckel, “‘The Spirit’ and the ‘Word’ in the Pre-exilic Reforming Prophets,” JBL 53 (1934),
199-227. 58 Wilson, Prophecy and Society in Ancient Israel, 7-8. See also Lundbom, The Hebrew Prophets, 29 who said,
“The prophets also came and went, as with the wind, as seen in the discourse between Elijah and Obadiah—who
was worried Elijah would disappear and he wouldn’t be able to find him (1 Kgs 18:12). They were mobile
messengers of Yahweh, which was different to priests who resided in the sanctuary. You could go see a priest,
because you knew where to find him. The prophet was not like that, but might come to see you when you least
expected it. “The importance of mobility for the prophet persisted even in to the late first century C.E., when, in the
early church, the false prophet was one who stayed with his host more than two days (Didache 11:5).” 59 Wilson, Prophecy and Society in Ancient Israel, 8. See also Rowley, “Old Testament Prophecy,” 128-131 and
Mowinckel, “Ecstatic Experience,” 279-280. For discussions of ecstasy and cult see Eissfeldt, The Old Testament
and Modern Study, 119-126, 134-145 and Clements, One Hundred Years of Old Testament Interpretation, 51-75.
Thaddeus M. Maharaj: The Theology of False Prophecy in the Old Testament
(Mowinckel, “The ‘Spirit’ and the ‘Word,’” 199–227). Buber and van der Woude suggest that
correct interpretation of events is what defines a true or false prophet, and that false
prophets relied upon conceptions of covenant and Zion theology to proclaim ultimate victory
for Jerusalem (Buber, “Falsche Propheten,” 277–83; see also Sanders, “Hermeneutics of True
and False Prophecy,” 24–41; and Overholt, “Jeremiah 27–29,” 241–49; van der Woude, “Micah
in Dispute,” 244–60). H.J. Kraus concluded that a true prophet had access to the divine
council and false prophets relied on alternative forms of divination (Kraus, Prophetie in der
Krisis, 105–15; Kraus, Prophetie und Politik, 41).
However, all of these definitions fell short in one way or
another of being comprehensive to the diversity seen in biblical
descriptions of false prophets. Therefore, scholarship moved
towards using clearly defined objective boundaries instead.
Some of these were that prophets identified true and false
prophecy by guidance of an inner spirit (Quell, Wahre und
falsche Propheten, 105–15), or that only true prophetic
utterance from God could correctly identify false utterances
(Childs, Old Testament Theology, 136), or that the line between
true and false prophecy was variable which mean that prophets
could slip from one to the other (Jacob, “Quelques remarques sur
les faux prophetes,” 479–86), and Brueggemann’s proposal that
prophecy was only able to be judged true or false retrospectively (Brueggemann, Theology
of the Old Testament, 631; Birch et al., A Theological Introduction to the Old Testament, 271–
72).60
Concluding Thoughts
In conclusion, the discerning of true and false prophecy was a legitimate concern in
the OT, although the focus was primarily on the legitimacy of the message itself. However,
the character of the prophet themselves was not unimportant, as the word of a godly prophet
of good standing would naturally carry more weight than one of ill repute. False prophecy
was a very serious matter, as seen in Deuteronomy 18, death is declared for false prophets.
However, no prescription of execution is detailed, but rather it seemed that the penalty was
to be overseen by YHWH himself. “It is written that Yahweh himself will ‘require it of him’ (v.
19). We are immediately reminded of the fate of the prophet Hananiah, whose imminent death
60 Werse, “False Prophecy,” in The Lexham Bible Dictionary, no pages. See also Von Rad, Old Testament Theology
and Overholt, Journal of the American Academy of Religion 35, 241–249 and Brueggemann, Theology of the Old
Testament.
Thaddeus M. Maharaj: The Theology of False Prophecy in the Old Testament
is announced in an oracle by Jeremiah (Jer. 28:16) and who, we are told, ‘died the same year in
the seventh month.’”61
There were several marks of legitimation such as confirming miracles, fulfilment, true
doctrine, the prophet’s call narrative and ecstatic experience which would be considered, but
none of them could singularly give the answer. Instead, a more comprehensive look at the
prophet and his message needed to be
taken into account, looking also at
whether the prophet encouraged the
people to repentance, relationship and
the worship of the One True God. We
can see links to this understanding of
prophets and prophecy carried over
into the NT times, where others were
to weigh what was said (1 Cor. 14:29).
Also, there are doctrinal admonitions
to test everything and hold fast to
what is true (1 Thess. 5:20-21; 1 John 4:1-6). It is assumed that there will continue to be
struggle for God’s people with discerning false prophets (Matt. 7:15, 24:24; 2 Cor. 11:13-15;
2 Pet. 2:1-22) and it is to be taken no less seriously than it was in the OT.
So this issue of discerning false prophets is still relevant to us today with so many
speaking “in the Name of the Lord.” This is no light claim, and often some modern prophecy
advocates have taken the idea of ‘fallible’ prophecy far too nonchalantly. Lastly, we must
consider also—how does this affect the belief in the sufficiency of scripture? We live in a time
of a completed canon. So, if the Bible is sufficient, and God has given us “everything we need
pertaining to life and godliness,” (2 Pet. 1:3) why do we need contemporary prophecy? Is it
even right to call the modern phenomenon prophecy or is it something totally different? And
how authoritative are these prophetic utterances? How does God speak to His people today?
We must always go back to scripture as our grounding in doctrine, practice and theology.
However, this issue of modern prophecy would be one that would need to be addressed
perhaps in a subsequent article.
61 Day, Prophecy and Prophets in Ancient Israel, 156.
Thaddeus M. Maharaj: The Theology of False Prophecy in the Old Testament
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