How can prophets make mistakes

Of course, when authority is delegated, it does not mean that the agent will always do precisely what is intended by the one delegating authority.

This is obvious in the context of human interactions. However, we sometimes may hope and expect that when God delegates authority to a prophet, that the human in this scenario will somehow rise to the level of perfection inhabited by the one who has delegated the authority; that if one is acting for God, one will act like God. However, the scriptures do not give us this assurance.

In fact, the scriptures provide plenty of examples of prophets making mistakes and acting in ways that could be considered ungodly. Numbers Nathan told David that the Lord approved of his desire to build a temple, and that he should commence the project.

The Lord later told Nathan that such was not His desire, and that he was to tell David that the temple would be built by another. And Jonah felt some personal prejudices against Assyrians, to the point of expecting the Lord to give them fewer blessings than to Jews. Jonah 4. So prophets can guide us and direct us, but they can also test our faith, not just in calling us to live on a higher plane, but also in demonstrating that they do not always reach a higher plane themselves.

In light of this, the Givenses note:. It may seem that if the president of the Church makes a statement that we later learn to be untrue, or enacts a policy that seems to have been mistaken, we can find comfort in the notion that the man may not have been acting on behalf of God on those occasions. This becomes more difficult, however, when a statement is made, or a policy announced, in General Conference, or on Church letterhead along with the signatures or other members of the First Presidency.

But perhaps in thinking this, we have misunderstood the principle of delegation of authority. Behold, I am God and have spoken it; these commandments are of me, and were given unto my servants in their weakness , after the manner of their language, that they might come to understanding. A nd inasmuch as they erred it might be made known ; And inasmuch as they sought wisdom they might be instructed; And inasmuch as they sinned they might be chastened , that they might repent; And inasmuch as they were humble they might be made strong, and blessed from on high, and receive knowledge from time to time.

Another commonly quoted statement in support of the concept of prophetic inerrancy is that of Wilford Woodruff, when, speaking of abandoning the practice of polygamy, he said:. The Lord will never permit me or any other man who stands as President of this Church to lead you astray. It is not in the programme. It is not in the mind of God.

If I were to attempt that, the Lord would remove me out of my place, and so He will any other man who attempts to lead the children of men astray from the oracles of God and from their duty.

However, in addition to the aforementioned reasons to doubt that this statement supports the view that prophets cannot make mistakes, Elders Packer and Uchtdorf have given us additional reasons to doubt this conclusion. God will not allow His Church to drift from its appointed course or fail to fulfill its divine destiny.

Human nature may express itself on occasion, but not to the permanent injury of the work. So when God says that the prophet is His agent on Earth, perhaps He is not saying that, when acting as the prophet, the man will always do exactly what God wants any more than by giving Joseph his ring, Pharaoh was assuring the people of Egypt that Joseph would always do exactly what Pharaoh would have done in his place.

Of course, this principle is not limited to the delegation of authority to a prophet. The story is told of a Church official who returned from installing a new stake presidency. It is also possible that the reply reveals the only understanding of delegation that is viable. And it would render the principle of delegation inoperative. He gave Joseph his ring…. Devote all thy service in Zion; and. Authority can make law to be law; authority cannot make facts to be facts. But to call Peter infallible in this connection is to misplace an epithet.

To carry the metaphor of agency and delegation further, we can consider the legal realm. What recourse exists against a principle when the agent causes some harm? Under the doctrine of agency law, if a person is injured by an agent who is acting under the authority of the principle, the principle will be liable for the harm and is required to set things right. Of course, while all wrongs and injustices have not yet been set right in this imperfect world, Christ has already paid the price for such wrongs.

Indeed, even those things that can cause fear, doubt and pain can be made to benefit us in the end:. One comfort is to be found in a God whose power is in His magnanimity as well as His wisdom. These two traits mean that His divine energies are spent not in precluding chaos but in reordering it, not in preventing suffering but in alchemizing it, not in disallowing error but in transmuting it into goodness. So should we. An audio version was published on FairMormon Blog. How does one differentiate between a false prophet and a true prophet who is just making mistakes?

Treadmillfan: Great question. This question was addressed in General Conference last weekend by Elders Nelson and Anderson and perhaps others as well. As you may know, Elder Nelson spoke about the prophetic call of President Monson.

Along the lines of what the Givenses have written about delegation of authority, Elder Nelson noted that one way in which we know that President Monson is the prophet is by virtue of the fact that he has been ordained as such through the process that has been established for ordaining a modern prophet:.

Elder Anderson spoke about Joseph Smith and provided a number of ways in which we can gain confidence in his calling as a true prophet. First, he noted that there are many character witnesses of Joseph Smith, as well as witnesses of angels and plates. He also explained that we can know that Joseph Smith was a prophet by virtue of the fruits that have come from his work. Nevertheless, these kinds of evidences should not stand alone.

Elder Anderson said:. However, it quickly became evident that many of the more popular prophetic voices fell short in their prophetic declarations. Because of the magnitude of the challenges faced in , their lack of accuracy was magnified for all to see. For example, many prophets missed it when they prophesied that COVID would suddenly dissipate right after Passover. As a result, their followers have raised questions about the legitimacy of their prophetic leaders.

Now, in light of the election debacle, the prophets who declared that President Donald J. Trump was going to win a second term a couple of them even added that He would win by a landslide , are being seen in a negative light. Those who prophesied a landslide win missed it big time. As such, they should be held accountable.

Similarly, those who prophesied a Trump victory should own up to their mistakes now that he has lost. As a shepherd and a leader in the body of Christ, my heart is not to condemn or criticize those who have missed it prophetically, but my desire is for the church to be unified. Given the prophetic mistakes that have occurred, I'm concerned about the potential division and confusion within the body. Some of the repercussions of inaccurate prophecies are that some people may end up giving up on the gifts of the Spirit, stop attending charismatic churches or worse yet, completely backslide.

In the New Testament, Paul admonishes believers to judge and test prophetic words. This implies that there is room for error and leniency 1 Thess. Furthermore, Romans teaches that mature sons of God are led by the Spirit of God since the Holy Spirit is within each believer Rom. In contrast, the Old Testament prophets were given direct dreams or visions from the Lord, leaving them with no room for error.

Thus, quoting 2 Chronicles when believing in the prophets was equal to believing in God is not applicable in the post-Resurrection New Testament in the same comprehensive way it was during the pre-Pentecostal Old Testament. One can read Hebrews for the fundamental difference between Old Testament and New Testament prophets. Hence, the church is not to be led only by prophets who were once the only ones who heard from God , but are to discern both individually and corporately what the Spirit is saying Rev.

Jeremiah 23 is key to understanding the nature of true and false prophetic words. Essentially, God said that many prophets speak out of their human spirit instead of God's heart and mind God is not saying all words that are prophetic inaccuracies are the result of a demonic spirit. These prophets did not distinguish between their souls and spirits. Instead, they spoke out of their own emotions or biases Jer.

First Kings 22 shows us that God sometimes allows corporate lying spirits to speak through prophetic people. This is to test people to see whether they will take heed to mature prophetic voices who are grounded in the word of God or whether people will instead choose to listen to those who merely prophesy to appease the masses. To be fair, in this passage, the lying spirits were likely put into the mouth of false prophets who did not follow Yahweh.

First Kings 22 also illustrates how prophetic voices can sometimes get caught up in crowd-pleasing and playing to their base. For example, traveling prophets can sometimes fall into the temptation of flattering the senior pastor with glowing prophetic words. They are not true prophets and prophetesses. Do the true prophets of God make false prophesies occasionally? The answer is no! Did Huldah prophesy falsely? That is, true prophets and prophetesses of God do not make mistakes when prophesying for God.

Does God know everything? Does God lie? God never makes mistakes and those who truly speak for Him do not either. Otherwise, they are not His prophet or prophetess. Barton Payne. Regency Reference Library. Jeremiah Do prophets of God make mistakes sometimes? What about Huldah? Bible Question: Do prophets of God sometimes make mistakes? Bible Answer: Some individuals claim to be prophets of God. Did Huldah the Prophetess Falsely Prophesy?

Conclusion: Do the true prophets of God make false prophesies occasionally?