Nine Biblical Principles for Judging ProphecySample

All true prophecy comes from the Holy Spirit, who is the Author of the Word of God. Therefore, all prophecy will agree in fact and spirit with the Word of God. Any utterance that does not agree with the Word of God is a false prophecy.

Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 1:17–20 that the Word of God is yea and nay. It’s clear! It’s yes and no. It’s so simple that a fool cannot err therein. You are wheat or tares; you are light or darkness; you are sheep or goats; you are saved or lost; you are living in truth or in deception. Isaiah 8:20 says, “To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them” (KJV).

Prophecy is for believers only! In the Old Testament, prophecy was for non-believers, but in the New Testament, prophecy is for believers. Paul said, “…but prophesying serveth not for them that believe not, but for them which believe” (1 Corinthians 14:22, KJV).

False prophets are in the darkness. A prophecy must agree with the Word of God to be acceptable as truth. Anything else is deception disguised as a “new thing” the Holy Spirit is doing. If the prophecy is not in keeping with the Word of God, it is not inspired by the Holy Spirit.

Jeremiah gave a prophecy that said, “See, I have this day set you over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out and to pull down, to destroy and to throw down, to build and to plant” (1:10, NKJV). The words root out, pull down, destroy, and throw down, tell you what needs to be done.

Then the Holy Spirit gives you a positive solution: “to build and to plant.” Compare 2 Corinthians 10:8 and 13:10 with Jeremiah 1:10 and discover from Scripture that the end purpose of all true prophecy is to edify.