¹⁴ Then the Lord said to me, “The ^(A)prophets are prophesying falsehood in My name. ^(B)I have neither sent them nor commanded them, nor spoken to them; they are prophesying to you a ^(C)false vision, divination, futility, and the deception of their own ^[a]minds.

¹⁴ For the gate is narrow and the way is constricted that leads to life, and there are few who find it.

A Tree and Its Fruit

¹⁵ “Beware of the ^(A)false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ^(B)ravenous wolves. ¹⁶ You will ^[a](C)know them by their fruits. ^[b]Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes, nor figs from thistles, are they?

Testing the Spirits

4 ^(A)Beloved, do not believe every ^(B)spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because ^(C)many false prophets have gone out into the world. ² By this you know the Spirit of God: ^(D)every spirit that ^(E)confesses that ^(F)Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God; ³ and every spirit that ^(G)does not confess Jesus is not from God; this is the spirit of the ^(H)antichrist, which you have heard is coming, and ^(I)now it is already in the world.