False Prophet / ψευδοπροφήτης - pseudoprophētēs - one who, acting the part of a divinely inspired prophet, utters falsehoods under the name of divine prophecies. a false prophet.
Know (them) / ἐπιγινώσκω - epiginōskō - to become thoroughly acquainted with, to know thoroughly.
Matthew 7:15-20 NKJV
15 "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. 16 You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? 17 Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Therefore by their fruits you will know them.
Matthew Henry on this:
15 Beware of false prophets, which come to you
in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.
16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of
thorns, or figs of thistles? 17 Even so every good tree
bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil
fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither
can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. 19 Every
tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into
the fire. 20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know
them.
We have here a caution against false
prophets, to take heed that we be not deceived and imposed upon
by them. Prophets are properly such as foretel things to
come; there are some mentioned in the Old Testament, who pretended
to that without warrant, and the event disproved their pretensions,
as Zedekiah, 1 Kings xxii.
11, and another Zedekiah, Jer. xxix. 21. But prophets did also
teach the people their duty, so that false prophets here are
false teachers. Christ being a Prophet and a Teacher come from
God, and designing to send abroad teachers under him, gives
warning to all to take heed of counterfeits, who, instead of
healing souls with wholesome doctrine, as they pretend, would
poison them.
They are false teachers and false
prophets, 1. Who produce false commissions, who pretend to have
immediate warrant and direction from God to set up for
prophets, and to be divinely inspired, when they are not so.
Though their doctrine may be true, we are to beware of them
as false prophets. False apostles are those who say they
are apostles, and are not (Rev. ii.
2); such are false prophets. "Take heed of those
who pretend to revelation, and admit them not without sufficient
proof, lest that one absurdity being admitted, a thousand follow."
2. Who preach false doctrine in those things that are essential to
religion; who teach that which is contrary to the truth as it is
in Jesus, to the truth which is accordingly to
godliness. The former seems to be the proper notion of
pseudo-propheta, a false or pretending
prophet, but commonly the latter falls in with it; for who
would hang out false colours, but with design, under pretence of
them, the more successfully to attack the truth. "Well, beware of
them, suspect them, try them, and when you have discovered their
falsehood, avoid them, have nothing to do with them. Stand upon
your guard against this temptation, which commonly attends the days
of reformation, and the breakings out of divine light in more than
ordinary strength and splendour." When God's work is revived, Satan
and his agents are most busy.
Here is,
I. A good reason for this caution,
Beware of them, for they are wolves in sheep's
clothing, v.
15.
1. We have need to be very cautious,
because their pretences are very fair and plausible, and such as
will deceive us, if we be not upon our guard. They come in
sheep's clothing, in the habit of prophets, which was
plain and coarse, and unwrought; they wear a rough garment to
deceive, Zech. xiii. 4.
Elijah's mantle the Septuagint calls he melote—a
sheep-skin mantle. We must take heed of being imposed upon by
men's dress and garb, as by that of the scribes, who desire to
walk in long robes, Luke xx.
46. Or it may be taken figuratively; they pretend to be
sheep, and outwardly appear so innocent, harmless, meek, useful,
and all that is good, as to be excelled by none; they feign
themselves to be just men, and for the sake of their clothing are
admitted among the sheep, which gives them an opportunity of doing
them a mischief ere they are aware. They and their errors are
gilded with the specious pretences of sanctity and devotion. Satan
turns himself into an angel of light, 2 Cor. xi. 13, 14. The enemy has horns
like a lamb (Rev. xiii.
11); faces of men, Rev. ix. 7, 8. Seducers in language and
carriage are soft as wool, Rom. xvi. 18; Isa. xxx. 10.
2. Because under these pretensions their
designs are very malicious and mischievous; inwardly they are
ravening wolves. Every hypocrite is a goat in
sheep's clothing; not only not a sheep, but the worst enemy the
sheep has, that comes not but to tear and devour, to scatter the
sheep (John x. 12), to
drive them from God, and from one another, into crooked paths.
Those that would cheat us of any truth, and possess us with error,
whatever they pretend, design mischief to our souls. Paul calls
them grievous wolves, Acts xx.
29. They raven for themselves, serve their own
belly (Rom. xvi. 18),
make a prey of you, make a gain of you. Now since it is so easy a
thing, and withal so dangerous, to be cheated, Beware of false
prophets.
II. Here is a good rule to go by in this
caution; we must prove all things (1 Thess. v. 21), try the spirits
(1 John iv. 1), and here we
have a touchstone; ye shall know them by their fruits,
v. 16-20.
Observe,
1. The illustration of this comparison, of
the fruit's being the discovery of the tree. You cannot always
distinguish them by their bark and leaves, nor by the spreading of
their boughs, but by their fruits ye shall know them. The
fruit is according to the tree. Men may, in their professions, put
a force upon their nature, and contradict their inward principles,
but the stream and bent of their practices will agree with them.
Christ insists upon this, the agreeableness between the fruit and
the tree, which is such as that, (1.) If you know what the tree is,
you may know what fruit to expect. Never look to gather grapes
from thorns, nor figs from thistles; it is not in their nature
to produce such fruits. An apple may be stuck, or a bunch of grapes
may hang, upon a thorn; so may a good truth, a good word or action,
be found in a bad man, but you may be sure it never grew there.
Note, [1.] Corrupt, vicious, unsanctified hearts are like thorns
and thistles, which came in with sin, are worthless, vexing, and
for the fire at last. [2.] Good works are good fruit, like
grapes and figs, pleasing to God and profitable to men. [3.] This
good fruit is never to be expected from bad men, and more
than a clean thing out of an unclean: they want an
influencing acceptable principle. Out of an evil
treasure will be brought forth evil things. (2.) On the
other hand, if you know what the fruit is, you may, by that,
perceive what the tree is. A good tree cannot bring forth evil
fruit; and a corrupt tree cannot bring forth good fruit,
nay, it cannot but bring forth evil fruit. But then that
must be reckoned the fruit of the tree which it brings forth
naturally and which is its genuine product—which it brings forth
plentifully and constantly and which is its usual product. Men are
known, not by particular acts, but by the course and tenour of
their conversation, and by the more frequent acts, especially those
that appear to be free, and most their own, and least under the
influence of external motives and inducements.
2. The application of this to the false
prophets.
(1.) By way of terror and threatening
(v. 19); Every
tree that brings not forth good fruit is hewn down. This very
saying John the Baptist had used, ch. iii. 10. Christ could have spoken
the same sense in other words; could have altered it, or given it a
new turn; but he thought it no disparagement to him to say the same
that John had said before him; let not ministers be ambitious of
coining new expressions, nor people's ears itch for novelties; to
write and speak the same things must not be grievous, for it is
safe. Here is, [1.] The description of barren trees; they are trees
that do not bring forth good fruit; though there be fruit,
if it be not good fruit (though that be done, which for the
matter of it is good, if it be not done well, in a right manner,
and for a right end), the tree is accounted barren. [2.] The doom
of barren trees; they are, that is, certainly they shall be,
hewn down, and cast into the fire; God will deal with them
as men use to deal with dry trees that cumber the ground: he will
mark them by some signal tokens of his displeasure, he will bark
them by stripping them of their parts and gifts, and will cut them
down by death, and cast them into the fire of
hell, a fire blown with the bellows of God's wrath, and fed with
the wood of barren trees. Compare this with Ezek. xxxi. 12, 13; Dan. iv. 14;
John xv. 6.
(2.) By way of trial; By their fruits ye
shall know them.
[1.] By the fruits of their persons,
their words and actions, and the course of their conversation. If
you would know whether they be right or not, observe how they live;
their works will testify for them or against them. The scribes and
Pharisees sat in Moses's chair, and taught the law, but they were
proud, and covetous, and false, and oppressive, and therefore
Christ warned him disciples to beware of them and of their
leaven, Mark xii.
38. If men pretend to be prophets and are immoral, that
disproves their pretensions; those are no true friends to the
cross of Christ, whatever they profess, whose God is their
belly, and whose mind earthly things, Phil. iii. 18, 19. Those are not taught
nor sent of the holy God, whose lives evidence that they are led by
the unclean spirit. God puts the treasure into earthen vessels, but
not into such corrupt vessels: they may declare God's statutes, but
what have they to do to declare them?
[2.] By the fruits of their
doctrine; their fruits as prophets: not that this is the only way,
but it is one way, of trying doctrines, whether they be of
God or not. What do they tend to do? What affections and
practices will they lead those into, that embrace them? If the
doctrine be of God, it will tend to promote serious piety,
humility, charity, holiness, and love, with other Christian graces;
but if, on the contrary, the doctrines these prophets preach have a
manifest tendency to make people proud, worldly, and contentious,
to make them loose and careless in their conversations, unjust or
uncharitable, factious or disturbers of the public peace; if it
indulge carnal liberty, and take people off from governing
themselves and their families by the strict rules of the narrow
way, we may conclude, that this persuasion comes not of him
that calleth us, Gal. v.
8. This wisdom is from above, James iii. 15. Faith and a good
conscience are held together, 1 Tim. i. 19; iii. 9. Note, Doctrines
of doubtful disputation must be tried by graces and duties of
confessed certainty: those opinions come not from God that lead to
sin: but if we cannot know them by their fruits, we must
have recourse to the great touchstone, to the law, and to the
testimony; do they speak according to that rule?
John MacArthur on this:
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