Do Not Listen to False Prophets
November 8, 2021
Commentary
Moses warns the people of three ways in which temptation to idolatry may come:
1. Through a false prophet. (v.v. 1-5)
2. Through friends and relatives. (v.v. 6-11)
3. Through a multitude of people. (v.v. 12-18)
The key phrase in Deuteronomy 13 is, “Let us go after other gods” (vv. 2,6,13). The Israelites were warned not to listen to false prophets or to anyone else who tried to get them to worship other gods (vv. 2-11). Loved ones and friends can be especially persuasive. But love for relatives should not take precedence over devotion to God.
If a person has committed wickedness, the fact that hundreds of people approve of it doesn’t change the fact it is sin. God instructs us as to how we should deal with it (vv. 12-16). A city that completely rejected God was to be destroyed so as not to lead the rest of the nation astray. But Israel was not to act against a city if it was just a rumor and had not been proven true. However, there are times, of course, when God wants us to act and rebuke a wayward friend or group, but we must first make sure we have all the facts straight. “He that answers a matter before he hears it, it is folly and shame unto him” (Prov. 18:13).
Application
If I hear of friends or groups who have wandered from the Lord I should check the facts, to find out the truth, before doing or saying anything that could be harmful.
Deuteronomy 13:1– 18 (NET)
1 Suppose a prophet or one who foretells by dreams should appear among you and show you a sign or wonder, 2 and the sign or wonder should come to pass concerning what he said to you, namely, “Let us follow other gods”—gods whom you have not previously known—“and let us serve them.” 3 You must not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer, for the Lord your God will be testing you to see if you love him with all your mind and being. 4 You must follow the Lord your God and revere only him; and you must observe his commandments, obey him, serve him, and remain loyal to him. 5 As for that prophet or dreamer, he must be executed because he encouraged rebellion against the Lord your God who brought you from the land of Egypt, redeeming you from that place of slavery, and because he has tried to entice you from the way the Lord your God has commanded you to go. In this way you must purge evil from among you.
6 Suppose your own full brother, your son, your daughter, your beloved wife, or your closest friend should seduce you secretly and encourage you to go and serve other gods that neither you nor your ancestors have previously known, 7 the gods of the surrounding people (whether near you or far from you, from one end of the earth to the other). 8 You must not give in to him or even listen to him; do not feel sympathy for him or spare him or cover up for him. 9 Instead, you must kill him without fail! Your own hand must be the first to strike him, and then the hands of the whole community. 10 You must stone him to death because he tried to entice you away from the Lord your God, who delivered you from the land of Egypt, that place of slavery. 11 Thus all Israel will hear and be afraid; no longer will they continue to do evil like this among you.
12 Suppose you should hear in one of your cities, which the Lord your God is giving you as a place to live, that 13 some evil people have departed from among you to entice the inhabitants of their cities, saying, “Let’s go and serve other gods” (whom you have not known before). 14 You must investigate thoroughly and inquire carefully. If it is indeed true that such a disgraceful thing is being done among you, 15 you must by all means slaughter the inhabitants of that city with the sword; annihilate with the sword everyone in it, as well as the livestock. 16 You must gather all of its plunder into the middle of the plaza and burn the city and all its plunder as a whole burnt offering to the Lord your God. It will be an abandoned ruin forever—it must never be rebuilt again. 17 You must not take for yourself anything that has been placed under judgment. Then the Lord will relent from his intense anger, show you compassion, have mercy on you, and multiply you as he promised your ancestors. 18 Thus you must obey the Lord your God, keeping all his commandments that I am giving you today and doing what is right before him.