False prophet

The term false prophet originates and appears in the Bible in many places, a.o. the Gospels and the Book of Revelation, in context of the challenges Mankind will face in the future.

Christ-Jesus predicted the future appearance of false Christs and false prophets who would perform great signs and miracles and lead many astray.

Rudolf Steiner describes false prophets and messiahs in lectures of early 1910 (see references below) as in context of the announcement of Christ in the etheric in the period of the next 2500 years (that is: upto approx 4400).

Under the strong ahrimanic influences due to the 'spirits of darkness', the contemporary materialistic worldview and dampened consciousness of the masses will be a much more fruitful ground for such false prophets than in the past.

The theme of the false prophet applies specifically to the Ahrimanic challenge in the Current Postatlantean epoch (1917-11-18-GA178), strengthened by the soratic impulse and arising of the asuras or rakshasas (the third type of evil) in this epoch ("the Asuras intervene only now in the fifth epoch" (1906-11-01-GA266)) from the current fifth cultural age onwards ("the Asuras will creep into the consciousness soul in the current age" (1909-03-22-GA107)).

Positioning

1/ That this 'false' prophet fits the bill as accompanying the Ahrimanic second beast is clear from these excerpts when put in context of a general understanding of the nature of Ahrimanic influences, eg

1909-03-22-GA107: "in the intellectual soul .. the transformed part of the ether-body .. Ahriman established his footing. From there he lures man to false conceptions and judgments of material things, leads him to error, to sin, to lying .. in every illusion that matter is the sole reality, we must perceive the whispered promptings of Ahriman."
1909-07-05-GA112: "the Ahrimanic beings distorted Man's view of the world .. had the Ahrimanic or Satanic beings not intervened .. Man would know and would have known that there is a spiritual part behind every object of sense. And he would see through the surface of the outer sense world to the spiritual world beyond. But Ahriman has clouded his perception with something like a dark veil of smoke, through which Man cannot pierce to the spiritual world. Through Ahriman man is enmeshed in falsehood and entangled in a web of Maya or illusion. "

The false prophet is described as the herald or proclaimer of the [editor/interpretation: second] beast (1924-09-15-GA346).

2/ From these quotes it becomes clear how Ahriman is a 'strategic partner' for Sorat who is most aggressively countering everything that is spiritual.

A first illustration of this alliance is the description of Sorat-possessed people that "will .. not only ridicule spiritual things .. they will fight it in the most terrible way and they will want to thrust it down". (1924-09-12-GA346).

A second illustration to see how both streams are linked, now from 1907-10-21-GA101 in context of black magic:

What then must the black magician say to his pupils? Very simply:
Revere only intellect and science
Man's highest force
Let yourself become strengthened through the false spirit

Only in works of illusion and magic

Aspects

the influence of the ahrimanic spirits of darkness (pushing the materialistic mineral worldview) are described as "rocking people to sleep so that they do not see the reality" (1917-10-28-GA177). This is describing the world we are living today, more on: Contemporary worldview war
examples of historical false prophets (1910-02-08-GA116, 1910-03-06-GA118)
- Shabbathoi Zewi or Zevi
  - short extract from the wikipedia topic page on Zevi
    Along with general messianic beliefs, there was another computation, based on a passage in the Zohar .. that Israel would be redeemed by the long-awaited Jewish Messiah in 1648. In 1648, Sabbatai announced to his followers in Smyrna that he was the anticipated messianic redeemer. To prove this, he started to pronounce the Tetragrammaton, an act which Judaism prohibited to all but the High Priest of Israel in the Temple in Jerusalem on Yom Kippur. For scholars acquainted with rabbinical and Kabbalistic literature, this act was therefore highly symbolic. ... Sabbatai became the leader of the community and used his power to crush any opposition. ... His fame began to extend far and wide. Italy, Germany, and the Netherlands were already centres of his messianic movement, and the Jews of Hamburg and Amsterdam learned of the events in Smyrna from trustworthy Christians. Sabbatai's followers soon included many prominent rabbis

Illustrations

Schema FMC00.426 provides an overview of the three beasts that appears in the Book of Revelation, corresponding to the three faces of Evil.

Lecture coverage and references

Gospels

Matthew 7:15–20

as part of the Sermon on the Mount, Christ-Jesus warns:

Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles? So, every sound tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears evil fruit. A sound tree cannot bear evil fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will know them by their fruits.

Mark 13:5–7, 13:21–23

as part of the discourse given on the Mount of Olives:

And Jesus began to say to them, “Take heed that no one leads you astray. Many will come in my name, saying, I am he! and they will lead many astray. And when you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed; this must take place, but the end is not yet.
[...]
And then if any one says to you, Look, here is the Christ! or Look, there he is! do not believe it. False Christs and false prophets will arise and show signs and wonders, to lead astray, if possible, the elect.

But take heed; I have told you all things beforehand

Matthew 24:4–5, 24:11, 24:23–26)

Take heed that no one leads you astray. For many will come in my name, saying, I am the Christ, and they will lead many astray.
[...]
And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray.
[...]
Then if any one says to you, Lo, here is the Christ! or There he is!, do not believe it. For false Christs and false prophets will arise and show great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. Lo, I have told you beforehand. So, if they say to you, Lo, he is in the wilderness, do not go out; if they say, Lo, he is in the inner rooms, do not believe it.

Book of Revelation

Rev 16:13

And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out ... of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.

Rev 19:20

And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet who wrought miracles in his presence, by which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire, burning with brimstone.

Rev 20:10

And the devil who had deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are; and they shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.

Rudolf Steiner

Below follow excerpts to gain an understanding of the false prophets and messiahs as a characteristic of the ahrimanic evil.

1909-05-31-GA109

in this lecture is described how in the ancient Persian cultural age, Zarathustra's teachings introduced Ahriman as the dark opponent of the sun god Ahura Mazdao (Christ) .. the term 'teacher of falsehoods' is used as the key characterization

Zarathustra taught his disciples to see Ahura Mazdao in the physical sun and not to be led astray by Ahriman.
Ahriman has lived in the physical world since the last third of the Atlantean epoch and attacks the human soul through sense perception, that is to say from the outside. By contrast, Lucifer attacks the soul from within. Zarathustra had to kindle in the hearts of humans the love for the great Sun Spirit, and he did this in powerful words that cannot be adequately rendered in our modern languages. All the magnificent words that you find in the Vedas and Gathas, no matter how beautiful, are but a feeble superficial expression of the great and lofty words originally uttered by Zarathustra. In our language, they can be approximated by the following:

“I wish to speak, now hearken and listen to me, you from near and from afar, who are filled with longing for these words. I want to speak about that which is the highest truth to me in this world and what was revealed to me by the great and mighty Ahura Mazdao. Hearken and listen to me now and mark my words carefully: No longer shall the teacher of falsehoods, the evil one whose lips bore witness to an evil faith, lead you astray for He — the mighty Ahura Mazdao—has manifested himself! Those who do not want to listen to the words as I say them and to the meaning that I give to them will experience evil things when the course of time reaches its end.”

1910-01-25-GA118

Materialistic thinking will conceive of this event as a descent of Christ in the flesh, as an incarnation in the flesh. A number of persons in their boundless arrogance will turn this to their own advantage and announce themselves to men as the reincarnated Christ.
The near future may therefore bring false Christs, but anthroposophists should be so fully prepared for the spiritual life that they will not confuse the return of Christ in a spiritual body, perceptible only to higher vision, with a return in a physical body of flesh.
This will be one of the most terrible temptations besetting mankind and to lead men past this temptation will be the task of those who learn through spiritual science to rise in the true sense to an understanding of the Spirit, who try not to drag spirit down into matter but to ascend into the spiritual world themselves.
Thus we may speak of the return of Christ and of the fact that we rise to Christ in the spiritual world through acquiring the faculty of etheric vision.

1910-01-27-GA118

.. modern materialism will continue to be so powerful that even such a truth will be interpreted in a materialistic way. This materialistic interpretation will transform itself into reality. This truth will be interpreted as a return of Christ in the flesh.
False Christs, false messiahs, will walk about on the earth in the not too distant future, persons who will claim to be the returning Christ.
..
This will be repeated again and again in the near future; at the same time, it must also be stated repeatedly that the false prophets would be able to prevent the good and the great were they to succeed in spreading the opinion that Christ would appear again in the flesh.
If anthroposophists were to fail to grasp this, it would be possible for them to fall prey to that illusion that would enable false messiahs to arise. These false messiahs will appear; they will count on souls that are so weakened by materialism that they cannot imagine anything but that when Christ appears again, He must necessarily appear in material substance, in the flesh.
This misinterpretation of the prophecy is an evil thing, and it will appear in the form of a dangerous temptation for humanity. It is the task of anthroposophy to protect human beings from this temptation. This cannot be emphasized too strongly for all who have ears to hear.

other translation

It must also be stated repeatedly that the false prophets would be able to prevent the good and the great were they to succeed in spreading the opinion that Christ would appear again in the flesh. If anthroposophists were to fail to grasp this, it would be possible for them to fall prey to that illusion that would enable false messiahs to arise.
These false messiahs will appear; they will count on souls that are so weakened by materialism that they cannot imagine anything but that when Christ appears again, He must necessarily appear in material substance, in the flesh. This misinterpretation of the prophecy is an evil thing, and it will appear in the form of a dangerous temptation for humanity.

It is the task of anthroposophy to protect human beings from this temptation. This cannot be emphasized too strongly for all who have ears to hear. We can see by this, moreover, that anthroposophy has important things to say; we do not merely “pursue” anthroposophy because we are curious to know all kinds of truths but because we know that these truths must be used for the salvation and gradual perfecting of humanity.

1910-02-08-GA116

In bygone centuries it was, comparatively speaking, not harmful for men continually to return to the materialistic conception of the so-called return of Christ. Particularly at the small times of transition, when that which has now reached its climax in a materialistic sense was being prepared for, as,
for instance, in France in 1137, when a Messiah was expected, and was awaited by many in wide circles. A Messiah did actually appear then, but he led the people astray, because the belief in him had arisen through their materialistic ideas, for it was believed the Messiah would come in the flesh.

Thirty years before, another Messiah appeared in Spain; there, too, it had been foretold that a Messiah would come in the flesh.

At about the same time another new Messiah appeared in North Africa; there, too, it had been prophesied that one would come from the East, and appear in the flesh.

Throughout the whole time during which the materialistic mind was being prepared, in that the highest things were being grasped by it, there appeared such prophets whose coming was foretold.

Such phenomena are well known to those who understand the times, and they continued into the 17th century, when the approaching appearance of a sort of Christ, a Messiah, was proclaimed far and wide. This again found acceptance by the materialistically religious minds of men.

Based on these prophecies, a false Messiah was thus able to arise in Smyrna, in 1667, bearing the name of Shabbathoi Zewi.
He wrote letters and epistles at that time from Smyrna, which, although they contained nothing but false matter, being written in a materialistic sense, shook the world as greatly as had once the Epistles of St. Paul. In the 17th century there went forth from Smyrna the proclamation that in that city there dwelt a Messiah in the flesh! And Shabbathoi Zewi, the ‘just man of God’ was so considered, that it was said the whole world-reckoning would now take on another form. ‘He will pass through the world with his faithful disciples and all must believe in him who are willing to see the truth, who wish to see Christ in the flesh!’

It was preached to the people that his birthday must be held as the greatest Festival on Earth! Whole hosts of people undertook pilgrimages there — not only from Asia and Africa, but also from Poland, Russia, Spain, France, and so on; great numbers of persons traveled as pilgrims to Smyrna to see Shabbathoi Zewi, who was supposed to be Christ in the flesh, until the thing grew beyond all limits and he was arrested by order of the Sultan! This, said the people, was but the fulfilment of the prophesy, for it was foretold he would be in prison for nine months! The Sultan could think of no other method than to have him brought forth and stripped, saying: ‘We will see whether thou be a Messiah, a Christ; I shall have thee shot!’ And so it was finally proved that Shabbathoi Zewi was only an ordinary Ba Rabbi after all!

Such impersonations are the result of the materialistic thinking of our times, and there will be more of the kind, for the materialistic mind will make use of men.
What I am now saying will often and often be said during the next few decades: that the capacities of man will develop up to seeing the etheric vision of Christ, in the reality of which they can then believe, just as firmly as did St. Paul himself! This is the immediate future of Man, and this it is for which spiritual science must prepare him. But on account of the materialistic thoughts of men the time will also come when strong temptations will arise; false Messiahs will appear in the flesh.
It will then be proved whether anthroposophists have rightly understood anthroposophy. Those who have not will be so adversely affected by the materialistic mind that they will succumb to the temptation. Although they believe in Christ they will believe in an incarnated Christ. But those who have gained understanding of true spiritual life will realise that the ‘second Coming of Christ’ in our century, that greatest of events, signifies that He comes to Man in the spirit, because mankind in the course of its development will have developed up to the spiritual, will have evolved up towards Christ! Therefore in our century, the Sermon on the Mount undergoes a complete modification. It must be entirely re-modeled, so to speak. Those persons will be God-filled (or blessed) who, through having been beggars for the spirit in their past incarnations, have now advanced so far as to be able to ascend to that part of the kingdom of Heaven where Christ will appear before their spiritual sight!

1910-03-06-GA118

[False Messiahs]
What has been said now will be said again and again in the next decades. There will be human beings who will misunderstand this, however, and they will say, “The Christ is to come again!” Since they will carry into this idea the belief that it is a physical return, they will supply nourishment to all those who will appear as false messiahs. There will be many such persons in the middle of the twentieth century who will use the materialistic beliefs of human beings, who will use the materialistic thinking and feeling of human beings to pass themselves off as the Christ. There have always been false messiahs.

There was, for instance, the age before the Crusades when a false messiah appeared in the south of France, in whom his followers saw something like a Christ incarnated in a physical body.

Before that, a false messiah had appeared in Spain and found many followers.

In North Africa one who presented himself as the Christ created a great sensation.

In the seventeenth century a man appeared as Christ in Smyrna and gained a huge following. He was called Shabattai Tzevi. People from Poland, Hungary, Austria, Spain, Germany, France — from the whole of Europe and from a large part of Africa and Asia — made pilgrimages to see him.

In the past centuries this was not so terrible, because the demand had not yet been made of humanity to distinguish the true from the false. Only now have we come to the age when it could be disastrous if human beings should fail to pass the spiritual test. Those will pass it who know that human faculties go through a further evolution; that those faculties for seeing Christ in the physical were limited to seeing Him thus only to the time of the founding of Christianity but that humanity would not advance if it did not find the Christ again in our century in a higher form.

Those who strive after spiritual science will have to prove themselves to be the ones who can distinguish the false messiahs from the one Messiah, Who will appear, not in the flesh but as a spiritual being for the newly awakened faculties.

1910-04-18-GA118

Those who understand anthroposophy in the right way will say to these false messiahs of the twentieth century: you have announced the appearance of Christ on the physical plane, but we know that Christ will manifest Himself only in an etheric form. True anthroposophists will await Christ's appearance to the higher senses.

1917-10-28-GA177

The spirits of darkness find it easiest to achieve their aims if people are asleep to what goes on in the spirit. They can then easily gain power over what that they cannot achieve if people enter consciously into the spiritual impulses that are active in evolution. Much of the mendacity which exists in the world today serves the purpose of rocking people to sleep so that they do not see the reality, are deflected from reality, and the spirits of darkness have it all their own way with the human race. All kinds of things are falsely presented to people to deflect them from truths they could experience if they were awake and, indeed, ought to experience, if human evolution is to proceed in a fruitful way. This is the age when human beings must take affairs into their own hands.

1917-11-18-GA178

Indeed, the aim of those brotherhoods I have spoken of, who wish to confine human souls in the material realm, is that the Christ should pass by unobserved in the twentieth century; that His coming as an etheric individuality should not be noticed by men. And this endeavour takes shape under the influence of a quite definite idea and a quite definite purpose. These brotherhoods want to take over the Christ's sphere of influence, which should spread out more and more widely during the twentieth century, for another being (of whom we will later speak more precisely). There are Western brotherhoods who want to dispute the impulse of the Christ and to set in His place another individuality who has never appeared in the flesh — an etheric individuality, but a strongly Ahrimanic one.
All these methods I have told you about, this working with the dead and so on, have finally one single purpose — to lead people away from the Christ who has passed through the Mystery of Golgotha, and to assign to another being dominion over the earth.
This is a very real battle, not an affair of abstract concepts; a real battle which is concerned with setting another being in place of the Christ-Being for the rest of the fifth post-Atlantean cultural age, for the sixth and for the seventh.
[editor note: the original transcript was checked, the sixth and seventh here clearly do not refer to epochs, the sentence reads as an extension of the fifth age with the sixth and sevent]
One of the tasks of healthy, honest spiritual development will be to destroy and make away with such endeavours, which are anti-Christian in the highest degree. For this other being, whom these brotherhoods want to set up as a ruler, will be called “Christ” by them; yes, they will really call him “Christ!” And it will be essential for people to learn to distinguish between the true Christ, who will not this time appear in the flesh, and this other being who is marked off by the fact that he has never been embodied on the earth. It is this etheric being whom these brotherhoods want to set in the place of Christ, so that the Christ may pass by unobserved.
Here is one side of the battle, which is concerned with falsifying the appearance of Christ during the twentieth century. Anyone who looks only at the surface of life, and pays heed to all the external discussions about Christ and the Jesus-question, and so on, knows nothing of the deeper facts. All these discussions serve only to hide the real issues and to lead people away from them. When the theologians discuss “Christ” in this way, a spiritual influence from somewhere is always at work, and these learned men are in fact furthering aims and purposes quite different from those they are aware of.
This is the danger of the idea of the unconscious: it leads to unclear thinking about all such connections. While the evil brotherhoods pursue their aims very consciously, these aims never enter the consciousness of the people who engage in all sorts of superficial discussions. We lose the truth of these things by talking of the “unconscious,” for this so-called unconscious is merely beyond the threshold of ordinary consciousness, and is the very sphere in which someone who knows about these things can manipulate them. Here we have one side of the situation: a number of brotherhoods actually do wish to substitute for the working of Christ the working of another being and are ready to use any means to bring this about.

Discussion

Related pages

References and further reading

wikipedia on false prophet
more links, ao link A, link B