Judaism and Christianity have always taught that the world would be filled with false prophets. Both religions gave criteria for determining what prophecy is true and what is not. The Torah gives two different principles:

1) Deuteronomy 18:19-22: мIf anyone does not listen to my words that the prophet speaks in my name, I myself will call him to account. But a prophet who presumes to speak on my name anything I have not commanded him to say, or a prophet who speaks in the name of other gods, must be put to death. You may say to yourselves, лHow can be know when a message has not been spoken by the Lord?н If what a prophet proclaims in the name of the Lord does not take place or come true, that is a message the Lord has not spoken. That prophet has spoken presumptuously. Do not be afraid of him.о

2) Deuteronomy 13:1-3,5: мIf a prophet or one who foretells by dreams appears among you and announces to you a miraculous sign or wonder, and if the sign or wonder of which he has spoken takes place, and he says, лLet us follow other godsн (gods you have not known) лand let us worship them,н you must not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer. . . . That prophet or dreamer must be put to death, because he preached rebellion against the Lord your God.о

The first rule is the most basic: if the prophecies donнt come true, that prophet is a false prophet and should be put to death. The second rule applies when a prophecy has come true or the prophet performs a mirculous sign: if his doctrine contradicts that already revealed, he is a liar and must be put to death. One important falsification of a prophet is if he practices divination, which we will call Rule #2a. Another common-sense corollary of Rule #2 is that a true progressive revelation will not contradict itself; we will call this Rule #2b.

Are these simple, straightfoward principles adequate? The Old Testament gives several more considerations:

3) Isaiah 44:24-25: мI am the Lord . . . who foils the signs of false prophets and makes fools of diviners.о Ezekiel 33:33 teaches a version of this rule: мWhen all this comes true-and it surely will-then they will know that a prophet has been among them.о

4) Jeremiah 23: The message of this passage is that false prophets speak out in Godнs name to give an appealing message to those predisposed not to listen. At this time, Jeremiah was preaching judgment and a seventy-year exile. The false prophets мkeep saying to those who despise me: лThe Lord says: You will have peace . . . No harm will come to youíî (23:17). The false prophet Hananiah prophesied that the exile would only be two years long (28:3). The New Testament explains this principle, too: мmen will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hearо (2 Timothy 4:3).

The third rule teaches that God will work to discredit false prophets so that people will not need to be confused about them. How will he discredit them? Presumably, by leading them to violate one of the first two rules. The fourth rule teaches that one sure indication of a false prophets is that they tell sinners what they want to hear. In Jeremiahнs day, false prophets won popularity by preaching prosperity and peace while the nation was sinking into ever-deepening moral depravity. Jeremiah preached repentence and judgment, and was very unpopular. The fourth rule is really a corrolary of the second rule, for false prophets gain popularity by appealing to those predisposed to disbelieve truth, i.e. already revealed doctrine. According to the fifth rule, it may take much time for a prophetнs crudentials to become clear, but in time they will (either clearly true, if the prophecies happen, or clearly untrue, if the prophecies do not).

How were these rules applied in Old Testament times? There are few references to specific false prophets in the Old Testament, though diviners and sorcerers and those teaching the worship of other gods are mentioned; and these are all false prophets according to Deuteronomy. They were, of course, very easy to identify. Other false prophets, i.e. who spoke in Godнs name and did not utilize occult practices, were probably harder to identify. Jeremiah makes mention of one specific prophet Hananiah, whose prophecy (see above) was falsified within a short period of time. Hananiah died under Godнs curse (28:16) before he could be executed by the Israelites (though they, in their disobedience, very well might have let him live). Jeremiah also mentions many false prophets (chapter 23), so there clearly were many. In contrast to the numerous false prophets that must have set themselves up in Old Testament times, there are only a handful of prophets who were canonized, a formal recognition of a prophetнs validity much later in time.

The New Testament adds three rules:

5) 2 Corinthians 12:12: мThe things that mark an apostle-signs, wonders, and miracles-were done among you with great perseveranceо (Paul). True prophecy after the time of Christ was to be authenticated by signs, wonders, and miracles. This is not really a new rule, for most of the Old Testament prophets were authenticated by God with miraculous signs (but the Old Testament never specifically offered it as a rule).

6) Matthew 7:15: мWatch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheepнs clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them.о This is a key principle, also implicit throughout the Old Testament, but here made explicit.

7) John 5:31: мIf I testify about myself, my testimony is not validо (Jesus). Multiple attestation is required to certify a prophetнs testimony. This, too, is not really a new rule, for multiple attestation in matters of grave importance was an Old Testament law: мno one is to be put to death on the testimony of only one witnessо (Numbers 35:30). While this verse is not about prophets, it establishes a principle: if God deemed it necessary for humans to have cooraborative evidence for deciding murder cases, surely he would not leave them without cooraborative evidence in deciding the case for the legitimacy of his revelation! Legion are the individuals throughout history who have claimed to have had a private revelation normative for other people; they are assuredly false prophets. (This rule is related to Rule #3, for it stipulates a concrete way God discredits false prophecy.)

But isnнt it conceivable that these rules might not be adequate? Consider these hypotheticals:

A) A prophet orthodox in doctrine and perhaps certified by signs and fulfilled short-term prophecy who is teaching falsehoods about the distant future.

A.1: where these falsehoods are irrelevant to present life.

A.2: where these falsehoods which have implications for present life.

B) A prophet orthodox in doctrine and perhaps certified by signs and fulfilled short-term prophecy who is teaching false doctrine as further revelation.

First, it should be noted that rule #3 leads us to suspect that such occassions will not arise. A thoughtful consideration of the hypotheticals suggests that this is indeed the case.

In case A.1, the false prophecies have no relevancy to present life, in which case it is unnecessary to bother asking the question whether or not they are legitimate. In actuality, it is unlikely that a false prophet would have any motive to proclaim irrelevant prophecy.

In case A.2, the false prophecies do have relevancy, so one must judge. Here, an example will be instructive: a false prophet predicts that a meteor will destroy the earth in one hundred years, so people alive today should engage in vigorous space travel research. Most religious doctrine provides a philosophy of history which gives an account of the future inasmuch as that future should be determinative of action and lifestyle in the present. For example, Judaism taught that God would bring about a Messianic age on earth, a reign of peace and justice. Christianity teaches that Christ will return to establish this reign. Islam teaches that God will bring an end to history and judge people then. In Hinduism and Buddhism, reincarnation will keep all life going eternally. In other words, all these religions are equipped with philosophies of history that would reject our hypothetical case A.2 prophecy on the basis on rule #2 (false doctrine).

In case B, the false prophet is teaching doctrine, not make predctions of future events; and he is not contradicting existing doctrine, but proclaiming new doctrine on the basis of purported further revelation. However, most religions have sufficiently developed doctrine that not much else could be added that would not be either trivial (i.e. irrelevant) or else contradictory to an existing doctrine. Also, many religions stipulate that no future revelation will be given, so they can easily avoid case B problems (for example, Muslims hold that Mohammed was the мseal of the prophetsо). For these reasons, we would not expect a case B objection to arise very often. And should a case B problem in fact arise, we would expect that if God has some substantive further revelation to make, he will make it abundantly clear that the further revelation is valid, perhaps through fulfilled prophecy (on the basis of rule #3).

Judaism has a notion of progressive revelation which makes this kind of false prophecy possible. The crucial question for Judaism, of course, is whether Christianity is a further revelation of its God or the religion of a false prophet. To answer the question, we must ask: 1) Does Christianity violate Hebrew doctrine?, 2) Has Christianity made unfulfilled prophecies? Assuming Christianity passes these criteria, the final question is: 3) Does Christianity fulfill Old Testament prophecy otherwise left unfulfilled (this is really just a version of the first question)? If it passes these three criteria, it is perfectly valid to accept Christianity as the entension of Judiasm without fear of mistake. According to rule #3, if Christianity were false, Jews should expect God to discredit it clearly.

Christ, too, left some room for further revelation. Jesus told his disciples that he would send the Holy Spirit to мguide [them] into all truth,о for he had мmore to tell [them] than [they] could [then] bearо (John 16:12-13). However, Jesus gave this message to his apostles and those who could be apostolically authenticated. The Christian canon was closed with the writings of these people. The last book of the New Testament ends with a warning to those who would add to, or take away from, anything written in the book (Revelation 22:12-19). This, too, suggests that no future prophets were to come. In fact, the entire New Testament makes no allowance for any future prophets beyond the apostles, while it is full of warnings against false prophets. Here are four examples:

a. Matthew 7:15: мWatch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheepнs clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.о

b. Matthew 24:5,24: мFor many will come in my name claiming, лI am the Christ,н and will deceive many. . . . For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect-if that were possible.íî

c. 1 John 2:18,22; 4:1-3: мeven now many antichrists have come. . . . Who is the liar? It is the man who denies that Jesus is the Christ. . . . Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets ahve gone out into the world. This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.о (Notice that this is a version of Rule #2; we will call it Rule #2c.)

d. 2 Peter 2:1,9: мBut there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who brought them-bringing swift destruction on themselves. . . . the Lord knows how to rescue godly men from trials and to hold the unrighteous for a day of judgment.о (Notice this is a version of Rule #3.)

Therefore, in view of these warnings and the total absense of predictions of forthcoming true prophets, and a promise of further revelation through the Holy Spirit to the apostles only, it is a sound point that Christianity has closed the book of future revelation, just as Islam did. However, even if this is not granted, the six rules presented above are adequate to refute any possible harmful false prophecy. Review the Biblical rules are then consider the following examples:

1. Look to testable prophesies to see whether or not they falsify a prophet.

2. Look to a prophetнs doctrine to see if it is falsified by contradicting former revelation.

2a. See if a prophet practices divination; if so, he is a false prophet speaking by demons.

2b. See if a prophet has contradicted himself; if so, he is a false prophet.

2c. See if the prophet denies that Jesus is the Christ; if so, he is a false prophet.

3. Expect that God will make clear (by 1 and 2) if a prophecy is indeed from him. If it is not clear, the prophet is a false prophet.

4. See if a prophetнs claims are suspect because he taught what was convenient and expedient.

5. Look to see if a prophet is authenticated by signs, wonders, and miracles. If not, he is definately a false prophet.

6. Look to a prophetнs life; if he was immoral, he was a false prophet.

7. Look for multiple attestation; if a prophet lacks it, he is a false prophet.

I. Mohammed/Islam

- Rule #1: Mohammed made no testable prophecies.

- Rule #2: Mohammed contradicted Jewish and Christian doctrine on many points, such as the sinlessness of prophets, the unknowability and unaccessibility of God, the conditions of Paradise, the conditions of marriage, justification by works, etc.

- Rule #2b: The Qurнan contains internal contradictions which are supposedly to be interpreted by the doctrine of abrogation: earlier passages are modified by later passages.

- Rule #2c: Mohammed denied that Jesus was the Christ.

- Rule #3: We expect that if Mohammed presented true further revelation, God would have made it clear. But this is not the case: Mohammed fuflilled no prophecies, he offered no miraculous signs as testimony of the divine origin of his revelation, and he made no prophecies that could be tested. Instead, he claimed that the perfection of the Qurнan was all the miracle provided, and all the miracle required. This is not the clarity we expect; it appears to be deliberate avoidance of possible falsification.

- Rule #4: Historically, Mohammed appears to have been telling people what they wanted to hear, for example that they could have four wives.

- Rule #5: Mohammed performed no miracles except the transmission of the Qurнan, purportedly a miracle because of its beauty and his lack of education. However, much of the Qurнan is clearly the result of copying of apocryphal Christian gospels and letters such as the Infancy Gospel of Thomas (see The Sources of Islam, banned in Muslim countries, for more details); by all indicators, the Qurнan is not a heavenly book.

- Rule #6: Mohammed in his age married a seven-year-old and had sexual relations with her when she was nine. This is not the moral fruit we expect from a true prophet.

- Rule #7: Mohammed alone saw the angel Gabriel, heard the voice in the cave, and received the revelation of the Qurнan. There was no cooraborative testimony.

II. Joseph Smith/Mormonism

- Rule #1: Smith made testable claims that failed, e.g. that Christ would return before the death of his generation, that мZionо could never be moved, etc.

- Rule #2 He taught doctrine which contradicted Jewish and Christian doctrine on many points, such as eternal marriage, the future transformation of good Mormons into gods, justification by works, Christ the product of intercourse between God and Mary, etc.

- Rule #2a: Smith practiced divination, e.g. he wore мJupiter talismanо around his neck and he translated the Book of Mormon with a stone in a hat over his face.

- Rule #2b: The Mormon Church has changed its doctrine, e.g. about Blacks, polygamy, and the Adam-God teaching.

- Rule #2c: Smith denied that Jesus was the Christ, i.e. the unique God-Man.

- Rule #3: We would expect that God would make it clear whether or not Smithнs supposed revelation was legitimate. He did, and it is clearly illegitimate.

-Rule #4: Smithнs message was well-suited to the eschatological frenzy of 1930нs New England. The Book of Mormon states that Blacks are evil, which is what people wanted to hear at that time.

- Rule #5: Smith performed no miracles.

- Rule #6: Smith was no moral paragon. People who knew him called him мthe greatest egotist I ever met.о He was a liar, for he translated an Egyptian papyri into the мBook of Abrahamо; after the Rosetta stone, the papyri was found to be a common burial scroll.

- Rule #7: Smith recorded the names of twelve people who supposedly saw the golden plates inscribed with the Book of Mormon. However, at least one later denied his testimony.

III. Bahaнuнllah/ Bahai Faith

- Rule #1: At the end of the nineteenth century, Bahaнuнlah prophesied that an age of peace was finally dawning on the world (Esslemont, BahaнUнllah, 144).

- Rule #2: Contradict Christian teaching by denying salvation only through Christ, denying atonement, etc.

- Rule #2a: Abdul-Baha (infallible interpreter) encouraged contact with departed spirits (Esslemont, BahaнUнllah, 197).

- Rule #2b: Contradict Christian teaching by denying that Jesus was the Christ, i.e. the unique God-Man.

- Rule #4: Bahai teaching of truth in all religions was well-suited for a syncretistic, pluralistic age. This renders Bahai at least suspect.

IV. Jehovahнs Witnesses

- Rule #2: Deny the pre-existence of Christ, claiming that he was created by the angel Michael.

- Rule #2c: Deny that Jesus was the Christ.

V. Jeane Dixon

- Rule #1: Uttered many falsified prophecies.

- Rule #2a: Dixon practiced divination and consulted a crystal ball.

VI. Peopleнs Temple/ Jim Jones

- Rule #2: Jones contradicted Christian teaching by saying that he (not Christ) had authority over peopleнs lives.

- Rule #5: Jones performed no miracles/

- Rule #6: Jones kept people in Guyana against their will and instructed them to commit suicide.

VII. Branch Davidians/ David Koresh

- Rule #2: Claimed to be Christ, but did not come as the King and Judge of the world.

- Rule #6: Koreshнs sexual practices were not in keeping with Biblical morality.

- Rule #7: Koresh appealed to no cooraborative testimony in addition to his own.

VIII. Heavenнs Gate Cult

- Rule #2c: Deny that Jesus was the Christ.

IX. Typical Charismatic/ TV Evangelist

- Rule #1: Often make healing prophesies that do not come true; often make world- ending prophecies that do not come true. The healings and prophies they make that do come true are not convincing/objective.

- Rule #2: Usually teach poor doctrine, such as instant sanctication, the second grace, claims of new revelation, and Keswickism.

- Rule #2b: Often contradict themselves.

- Rule #3: Their ministries are often clearly false. They are sometimes marginal, but they are never clearly true, which is enough to falsify them.

- Rule #4: Charismatics teach what people want to here: health and prosperity theology; emotionally-oriented, feel-good theology; God takes away your free will and accountability

- Rule #5: Their signs and wonders are dubious at best. Jesus healed instantly whomever came to him for healing. Charismatic healings usually happen over time and they only heal selectively. When the healings fail, they say, мSorry, you must not have had enough faith.о Also, the types of healings are marginal/nonobjective.

- Rule #6: Charismatics often live morally irresponsible lives (especially TV evangelists), and ironically broadcast their Christian identity the loudest, profaning Godнs name

- Rule #7: Charismaticsн revelation claims almost always lack coolaborative testimony.

Now consider Christianity in light of Judaism:

- Rule #1: Christ prophesied his own death and resurreciton after three days, and the imminent destruction of the temple (both very precise, falsifiable prophecies), and the worldwide proclamation of the gospel by his disciples (which is nearly accomplished), and the signs of the end of the age (difficult to test with certainty).

- Rule #2: Christнs doctrine was consistent with that of the Old Testament (for an defense of this claim, see my мWhat is the Meaning of the Bible?о)..

- Rule #2a: Christ did not practice divination and preached against it.

- Rule #2b: Christ did not contradict himself.

- Rule #2c: Christ taught that he was the Christ.

- Rule #3: We expect that if Christ presented true further revelation, God would have made it clear. He did in all the ways here listed, but especially by fulflilled prophecy (for an analysis of fulfilled prophecy, see my мWhat is the Meaning of the Bible?о).

- Rule #4: Historically, Jesus was so unpopular that he was executed; he told people what they didn't want to hear about forgiving offenders, about loving oneнs enemies, about monogamous marriage, about his possession of exclusive truth, about the hypocrisy of the Pharisees, etc. Christianity was so ill-suited for the world that it endured intense persecution in the first few centuries of its existence.

- Rule #5: Christнs ministry was authenticated by objective-quality miracles, including his resurrection from the dead (for a defense of the resurrection, see my мWhat is the Meaning of the Bible?о).

- Rule #6: Christ was the moral paragon par excellance. The New Testament teaches that he was sinless, and indeed no fault has yet been found.

- Rule #7: Christ appealed to cooraborative testimony, acknowledging that his testimony alone was inadequate (John 5:31-40). He appealed to the testimony of the prophet John the Baptist, of his work (miracles), of the Father, and of the Scriptures (the testimony of the Old Testament prophets). Moreover, his Resurrection was attested to by over 500 eyewitnesses (1 Corinthians 15:6), assuming the New Testament history is accurate.

In conclusion, the Bible provides adequate rules for the determination of the legitimacy of purported prophecy and miracles. This adequacy is easily demonstrable by applying the Biblical rules to other religions which claim continuity with Judaism and Christianity, and also individuals and belief systems that do not claim such continuity. Christianity passes these criteria while all other religions of purported continuity with Judaism fail to do so. While it may seem circular to argue that Christianity fulfills Biblical criteria of determination of legimate prophecy, I believe the rules found in the Bible are intuitive, could be deduced without the aid of the Bible, and would be accepted by almost everyone who saw them listed. Taking them out of the Bible rather than first deducing them independently of it demonstrates that the Bible has adequate internal tools to support this intuitive judgment and to avoid the pitfalls of false prophecy.