A Presbyterian Outlook guest blog by Thomas Hobson
“I have heard what the prophets have said who prophesy lies in my name, saying, ‘I have dreamed, I have dreamed!’…See, I am against those who prophesy lying dreams, says the Lord, and who tell them, and who lead my people astray by their lies and their recklessness, when I did not send them or appoint them.” – Jeremiah 23:25, 32 (NRSV)
“But in the prophets of Jerusalem I have seen a more shocking thing: they commit adultery and walk in lies; they strengthen the hands of evildoers, so that no one turns from wickedness; all of them have become like Sodom to me.” – Jeremiah 23:14 (NRSV)
“Because you have uttered falsehood and envisioned lies, I am against you, says the Lord…because they have misled my people, saying ‘Peace,’ when there is no peace; and because, when the people build a wall, these prophets smear whitewash on it…When the wall falls, will it not be said to you, ‘Where is the whitewash that you smeared on it?’”
– Ezekiel 13:8, 10, 12 (NRSV)
The issue of false prophecy comes into sharp focus in the very last days of the Judean monarchy, in the converging independent prophecies of Jeremiah and Ezekiel. The issue was foreshadowed, of course, in Deuteronomy (provided that we date it earlier, and not as a product of the same age as Jeremiah and Ezekiel – otherwise, it becomes a third contemporary witness to the issue). It also is foreshadowed in the case of Micaiah ben-Imlah versus the prophets of Ahab (1 Kgs 22), where Ahab’s prophets are proved to be sorely wrong.
False prophecy seems to have been directly confronted as an issue only in ancient Israel. The prophets of ancient Mari (mid-second-millennium BCE) and Assyria (first-millennium BCE) function as royal cheerleaders who give both divine pep-talks and warnings to their rulers, but they record no disputes between competing prophetic claims, nor do they prescribe what to do if such competing claims should arise.
Judah cannot avoid the issue. There are orthodox prophets who lash out against Judah’s pluralist, syncretist theology, sexual freedom, and disastrous government policy. And there are other prophets who claim to have received dreams and oracles from God that lead to very different conclusions on faith and practice.
Jeremiah and Ezekiel both declare these visions to be false – dangerously false. These prophets strengthen the hands of evildoers, so that no one turns from their wickedness. They profess visions from God, visions that will lead their listeners to trust in lies. And they respond to disastrous government policy by covering up with whitewash walls that are set to collapse.
The issue of what would be wise government policy for ancient Judah, whether it would be wiser to back Egypt or Babylon, would not be obvious to a 21st-century AD observer. The issue of which nation could give better protection against the other is offset by the fact that God can protect Judah no matter what the military strength of the enemy might be. But it is clear that God holds Judah responsible for any treaty made in God’s name, and it is even clearer that God will pull the rug out from under any nation who thinks that God will protect them no matter how grievously they may sin.
Fast forward to today’s church and world. Like Judah, we hear church leaders speak glowingly of an inclusive theology, but most of it is just a whitewashed, modernized version of the pluralist, syncretist theology that was being promoted by the false ancient prophets at whom Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Deuteronomy were taking aim.
In modern society, we may also observe that our news media occupies the position of the prophets of the ancient world. They are the ones who proclaim an authoritative spin on reality in our culture. Like the prophets of old, today’s news media, no matter what their ideology may be, are in a prime position to influence our take on reality, either by uncovering and articulating the truth, or by covering a crumbling wall with whitewash.
Countless voices in church and society seek to put their spin on reality. We hear the claim that everyone deserves their place at the table. Perhaps that is true in the court of public opinion, but at some point, the court must decide. Not every voice comes from God. As Bernard Adeney writes, “False narratives give rise to unjust social institutions.” Democracy, shariah law, and survival of the fittest are not all equally valid. Some dreams, some narratives, some claims, lead to disaster.
“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.” (1 John 4:1)
TOM HOBSON of Belleville, Ill., a PC(USA) pastor for 29 years, is adjunct professor at Morthland College, West Frankfort, IL. He is author of What’s on God’s Sin List for Today? (Wipf and Stock, 2011).
