As in all ages God has had His agents for the teaching of truth, so in all ages Satan has sent forth his agents to teach error and to deceive. As there have been true prophets, so there have been false prophets. As God has used the true gift of prophecy, so Satan has imitated it and used a false gift of prophecy. GoPH 97.1
Satan has a religion of his own. Sacrifice is a part of it. GoPH 97.2
“They shall no more offer their sacrifices unto devils.” Leviticus 17:7. GoPH 97.3
“The things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God: and I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils.” l Cor. 10:20. GoPH 97.4
Satan has a system of worship, a body of teaching, a priesthood, or ministry. He has a spirit by which he controls his agents, working miracles, giving dreams and revelations, in imitation of the divine gift of prophecy. GoPH 97.5
“Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience.” Ephesians 2:2. GoPH 97.6
“They are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.” Revelation 16:14. GoPH 98.1
The agents of Satan on earth in his work of deception, that is, his prophets, are called diviners, dreamers, enchanters, sorcerers, witches, charmers, astrologers, magicians, spirit-mediums, wizards, and necromancers. GoPH 98.2
“There shall not be found among you anyone that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord.” Deuteronomy 18:10-12. GoPH 98.3
Here is a list of eight different classes of those who dealt in occult and forbidden mysteries. GoPH 98.4
First there is the diviner, or one who sought a knowledge of future events and hidden things by means of arrows or rods, by images, and by inspecting the entrails of freshly killed animals. (Ezekiel 21:21.) GoPH 98.5
The observer of times is literally, as the Vulgate has its, an observer of dreams and omens. This is soothsaying, by which information was obtained by relying on dreams and revelations. It was common in Assyria, Egypt, Philistia, and apostate Israel. (2 Kings 21:6; 2 Chronicles 33:6; Isaiah 2:6; Mich 5: 12.) GoPH 99.1
Enchanting covered serpent-charming and, as was the custom of the Roman augurs, the observance of omens and signs and the singing and flight of birds, in an effort thus to find out the secrets of the occult and mysterious. GoPH 99.2
A witch or sorcerer was one who practiced divination by prayers to demons, and by administering drugs, such as love and hatred philters, as well as obtaining information by means of a familiar spirit. GoPH 99.3
A charmer was one who by the use of song, amulets, magnetism, charms, hypnotism, and demoniacal powers bound evil spells upon men, and thus sought to obtain desired objects and information. GoPH 99.4
A consul ter with familiar spirits was one who had made a compact with an invisible intelligence, pretending to be the spirit of a dead person, and who called up these spirits and consulted them in order to obtain oracular answers. Today they are called spirit mediums. GoPH 99.5
A wizard was a wise man, a magician, one who by his own mental power, and with the aid of occult art, pained information from secret sources and thus obtained the name of possessing supernatural wisdom. GoPH 100.1
The necromancer was also one who consulted with spirits, who claimed to evoke the spirits of the dead and obtain from them answers to such queries as he put to them. GoPH 100.2
Other agents of Satan in deceiving mankind are mentioned in Isaiah 47:13 by the names of “astrologers,” “stargazers,” and “monthly prognosticators.” GoPH 100.3
The occult practices covered in these passages were accompanied by the basest and vilest immoralities and licentiousness, as well as by cruelty and barbarism. It is because of their connection with Satan, their inspiration by Satan, and their unspeakable vileness and cruelty, that “all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord.” GoPH 100.4
And all who engage in them today are equally abominable in His sight. GoPH 100.5
Satan even goes so far as to imitate the method by which God imparts instruction through the genuine gift of prophecy, that is, visions and dreams. GoPH 100.6
“They have seen vanity and lying divination. . . . Have ye not seen a vain vision, and have ye not spoken a lying divination.” Ezekiel 13:6, 7. GoPH 100.7
“Her prophets have daubed them with un-tempered mortar, seeing vanity, and divining lies unto them.” Ezekiel 22:28. GoPH 101.1
“I have heard what the prophets said, that prophesy lies in My name, saying, I have dreamed, I have dreamed. . . . Which think to cause My people to forget My name by their dreams. . . . Behold I am against them that prophesy false dreams, saith the Lord, and do tell them, and cause My people to err by their lies, and by their lightness; yet I sent them not nor commanded them.” Jeremiah 23:25, 27, 32. GoPH 101.2
Satanic spirits, pretending to be the spirits of the dead, are the agents who convey in-formation to these false prophets. Deuteronomy 18: 1012; 1 Samuel 28:8-16; Revelation 16:13, 14. GoPH 101.3
This Satanic, miracle-working power, manifesting itself through false prophets, is to be a special sign in these last days, just before the second coming of our Lord. Cod’s people are especially warned against these false prophets. GoPH 101.4
“There shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. Behold I have told you before.” Matthew 24:24, 25. GoPH 101.5
It is certain that God will manifest the true gift of prophecy in connection with the final movement of the gospel, and make it the possession of His remnant church. GoPH 102.1
It is also certain that Satan will, with mighty power and signs, manifest the false gifts of prophecy and send false prophets into the world. GoPH 102.2
The Bible bids us to “despise not prophesyings.” It also warns us to beware of false prophets. (1 Thessalonians 5:20; Matthew 7:15.) GoPH 102.3
These admonitions and warnings would be of no particular service to us if there were no way to determine the true from the false, and detect the counterfeit. GoPH 102.4
It is plain, therefore, that there must be some method disclosed in God’s work by which the gift of prophecy may be tested, and the true established, and the false exposed. GoPH 102.5
We must now study what these tests are. GoPH 102.6