The False Prophet

13 “If a prophet or someone who has dreams arises among you and proclaims a sign or wonder to you, ² and that sign or wonder he has promised you comes about, but he says, ‘Let us follow other gods,’ which you have not known, ‘and let us worship them,’ ³ do not listen to that prophet’s words or to that dreamer. For the Lord your God is testing you to know whether you love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul. ⁴ You must follow the Lord your God and fear Him. You must keep His commands and listen to His voice; you must worship Him and remain faithful^[a] to Him.^{(A) 5} That prophet or dreamer must be put to death, because he has urged rebellion against the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt and redeemed you from the place of slavery,^(B) to turn you from the way the Lord your God has commanded you to walk. You must purge the evil from you.

David in Saul’s Court

¹⁴ Now the Spirit of the Lord had left Saul,^(A) and an evil spirit sent from the Lord began to torment him,

⁹ But as for you, do not listen to your prophets, diviners,^(A) dreamers, fortune-tellers,^(B) or sorcerers^(C) who say to you, ‘Don’t serve the king of Babylon!’ ¹⁰ for they prophesy a lie to you so that you will be removed from your land. I will banish you, and you will perish.

⁹ “But if the prophet is deceived and speaks a message, it was I, Yahweh, who deceived that prophet.^(A) I will stretch out My hand against him and destroy him from among My people Israel.^(B)

⁹ The coming of the lawless one is based on Satan’s working, with all kinds of false miracles, signs, and wonders,^{(A) 10} and with every unrighteous deception among those who are perishing. They perish because they did not accept the love of the truth in order to be saved.^{(B) 11} For this reason God sends them a strong delusion so that they will believe what is false, ¹² so that all will be condemned^(C)—those who did not believe^(D) the truth but enjoyed unrighteousness.