Deut. 18. 20, 21, 22.
1. We shall pass by what may be thought of the strange feats the Magicians of Pharaoh, or Simon Magus did perform, as fully examined and concluded before, and shall give those Texts of Scripture that mention the signs and wonders that Antichrist and false prophets, that are Satans Instruments, can or do work, and they are these. If there arise among you a Prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign, or a wonder: And the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods (which thou hast not known) and let us serve them: Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that Prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the Lord your God proveth you, to know whether you love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul. And that Prophet, or dreamer of dreams, shall be put to death, because he hath spoken to turn you away from the Lord your God.—Another place is this: But the Prophet which shall presume to speak a word in my name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, even that Prophet shall die. And if thou say in thine heart, How shall we know the word which the Lord hath not spoken? When a Prophet speaketh in the name of the Lord, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the Lord hath not spoken, but the Prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him. From whence we may take these Observations.
Observ. 1.
Jonah 3. 4.
Orig. Sacr. l. 2. c. 6. p. 193.
1. That we may know he is a false Prophet, that speaketh a thing in the name of the Lord, if the thing do not come to pass: But yet this must be understood with limitation, where God sendeth a Message by a true Prophet, where the thing is spoken positively, but the condition is concealed, and not expressed, as in the Message of Jonah to Nineveh: yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown: which was intended if they repented not, but implicitely was understood (as the event shewed) if they did repent, the Lord would spare them: of which Learned Dr Stillingfleet hath this Proposition: “Comminations of judgments to come do not in themselves speak the absolute futurity of the event, but do only declare what the persons to whom they are made are to expect, and what shall certainly come to pass, unless God by his mercy interpose between the threatning and the event. So that Comminations do speak only the debitum pœnæ, and the necessary obligation to punishment; but therein God doth not bind up himself as he doth in absolute promises; the reason is, because Comminations confer no right to any, which absolute promises do, and therefore God is not bound to necessary performance of what he threatens.”
Observ. 2.
2. That there are those that do foretel, or shew signs and wonders, that do come to pass, and yet those that foretel them are false Prophets, because sometimes God sendeth false Prophets with power to work signs and wonders, thereby to try his people, whether or no they will cleave unto him with all their hearts and souls, or turn to other strange gods, or Idols; and this is ordered by the Providence of God for the trial of the faithful, as was in the Case of Job. But though these may be great signs and wonders to amaze and amuse men, and likewise come to pass, yet are they no true miracles, but are distinguished in this, that true miracles are alwayes for the establishing and confirmation of the true Doctrine and Worship of Christ, but the other are lying wonders, wrought only to try the godly, or for the deluding and punishing of those that received not the knowledge of the truth. And though there are, and may be signs and wonders that are wrought by Antichrist and false Prophets, by and in the power of Satan, yet these are all ordered by the Wisdom and Providence of the Almighty, and Satan is no more but an organ and instrument in the performance of them.
Matth. 24. 24.
2 Thess. 2. 9, 10, 11, 12.