Deuteronomy 13:1-3

13:1 Suppose a prophet or one who foretells by dreams ¹  should appear among you and show you a sign or wonder, ²  13:2 and the sign or wonder should come to pass concerning what he said to you, namely, “Let us follow other gods” – gods whom you have not previously known – “and let us serve them.” 13:3 You must not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer, ³  for the Lord your God will be testing you to see if you love him ⁴  with all your mind and being. ⁵ 

Matthew 24:5

24:5 For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ ⁶  and they will mislead many.

Matthew 24:23-25

24:23 Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ ⁷  or ‘There he is!’ do not believe him. 24:24 For false messiahs ⁸  and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. 24:25 Remember, ⁹  I have told you ahead of time.

Luke 17:23-24

17:23 Then people ¹⁰  will say to you, ‘Look, there he is!’ ¹¹  or ‘Look, here he is!’ Do not go out or chase after them. ¹²  17:24 For just like the lightning flashes ¹³  and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day. ¹⁴ 

Luke 21:8

21:8 He ¹⁵  said, “Watch out ¹⁶  that you are not misled. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am he,’ ¹⁷  and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not follow them!

John 5:43

5:43 I have come in my Father’s name, and you do not accept ¹⁸  me. If someone else comes in his own name, you will accept ¹⁹  him.

¹ tn Heb “or a dreamer of dreams” (so KJV, ASV, NASB). The difference between a prophet (נָבִיא, navi’) and one who foretells by dreams (חֹלֵם אוֹ, ’o kholem) was not so much one of office – for both received revelation by dreams (cf. Num 12:6) – as it was of function or emphasis. The prophet was more a proclaimer and interpreter of revelation whereas the one who foretold by dreams was a receiver of revelation. In later times the role of the one who foretold by dreams was abused and thus denigrated as compared to that of the prophet (cf. Jer 23:28).

² tn The expression אוֹת אוֹ מוֹפֵת (’ot ’o mofet) became a formulaic way of speaking of ways of authenticating prophetic messages or other works of God (cf. Deut 28:46; Isa 20:3). The NT equivalent is the Greek term σημεῖον (shmeion), a sign performed (used frequently in the Gospel of John, cf. 2:11, 18; 20:30-31). They could, however, be counterfeited or (as here) permitted to false prophets by the Lord as a means of testing his people.

³ tn Heb “or dreamer of dreams.” See note on this expression in v. 1.

⁴ tn Heb “the Lord your God.” The pronoun has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons to avoid redundancy.

⁵ tn Heb “all your heart and soul” (so NRSV, CEV, NLT); or “heart and being” (NCV “your whole being”). See note on the word “being” in Deut 6:5.

⁶ tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

⁷ tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

⁸ tn Or “false christs”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

⁹ tn Or “Pay attention!” Grk “Behold.”

¹⁰ tn Grk “And they will say.” The plural in Greek is indefinite, referring to people in general. Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

¹¹ tn The words “he is” here and in the following clause are understood and have been supplied from the context.

¹² sn Do not go out or chase after them. There will be no need to search for the Son of Man at his coming, though many will falsely claim its arrival.

¹³ sn The Son of Man’s coming in power will be sudden and obvious like lightning. No one will need to point it out.

¹⁴ tc Some very important mss (Ì⁷⁵ B D it sa) lack the words ἐν τῇ ἡμέρα αὐτοῦ (en th Jhmera autou, “in his day”), but the words are included in א A L W Θ Ψ Ë^1,13 Ï lat sy bo. On the one hand, the shorter reading is impressive because it has some of the best Alexandrian and Western witnesses in support; on the other hand, the expression ἐν τῇ ἡμέρα αὐτοῦ is unusual (found nowhere else in the NT), and may be considered the harder reading. A decision is difficult, but it is probably best to retain the words. NA²⁷ rightly has the words in brackets, expressing doubt as to their authenticity.

¹⁵ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

¹⁶ tn Or “Be on guard.”

¹⁷ tn That is, “I am the Messiah.”

¹⁸ tn Or “you do not receive.”

¹⁹ tn Or “you will receive.”