Human Credulity

"The first one to plead his cause seems right, until his neighbor comes and examines him."

Proverbs 18:17

This verse enforces the fact people can make judgments and decisions about what is true with partial information.  Hearing one side of the story is not the whole story, and even when we have heard both sides we continue to operate with partial knowledge of what has happened.  We cannot ever completely know the motivation of people for saying what they did or what they chose to conveniently forget and omit.  The most godly among us can be led astray by lies, be manipulated to believe falsehoods and disobey the truth.  A situation that occurred in 1 Kings 13 demonstrates this well.

A prophet of God was called out of Judah to speak against the idolatrous practices of king Jeroboam in Bethel.  He boldly cried out against the altar in Bethel and the word of the LORD was fulfilled when the altar was split and the ashes poured out.  At the same time the hand of king Jeroboam stretched out against the man of God was withered and he was unable to draw it back to himself.  At the king's request the prophet prayed to God Who restored the hand of Jeroboam to health.  1 Kings 13:7-10 reads, "Then the king said to the man of God, "Come home with me and refresh yourself, and I will give you a reward." ⁸ But the man of God said to the king, "If you were to give me half your house, I would not go in with you; nor would I eat bread nor drink water in this place. ⁹ For so it was commanded me by the word of the LORD, saying, 'You shall not eat bread, nor drink water, nor return by the same way you came.'" ¹⁰ So he went another way and did not return by the way he came to Bethel."

As the prophet returned home a different way according to the word of God, an old prophet met him as he sat under an oak on the way.  After the prophet of Judah reiterated God's command, the old prophet said in 1 Kings 13:18-19:  "I too am a prophet as you are, and an angel spoke to me by the word of the LORD, saying, 'Bring him back with you to your house, that he may eat bread and drink water.' " (He was lying to him.) ¹⁹ So he went back with him, and ate bread in his house, and drank water."  Now this is a remarkable thing.  The prophet of Judah would not eat bread or drink water with king Jeroboam by the word of the LORD who did miraculous signs.  Yet because of lies spoken by a fellow prophet who said "an angel spoke to me by the word of the LORD," the prophet of Judah disobeyed the word of God he knew was true.  I don't know what is more difficult to reconcile:  that the old prophet would lie with intent to deceive or the one who knew the word of the LORD would be tricked by an alleged angel.

How needful it is for believers to follow the word of the LORD and not be swayed from the truth of the Gospel by pastor, prophet or angel from heaven!  Paul wrote to wavering believers in Galatians 1:6-9:  "I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, ⁷ which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. ⁸ But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. ⁹ As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed."  The secret things belong to God, but what He has plainly revealed is for us to believe and follow.  The Gospel has been clearly established in the scripture for us, and we ought not turn from it due to supposed angelic or prophetic revelations.  The prophet of Judah was mauled to death by a lion after he departed from eating and drinking with the old prophet, and to depart from the truth of the Gospel will be our ruin.

If the prophet from Judah can be swayed by the older prophet who lied, we too can fall prey to deception when we depart from the word of the LORD plainly revealed to us in the scripture.  Our ears test words like our taste buds do food, and it is the word of God discerned by the Holy Spirit which provides guidance if a doctrine is worthy of being swallowed or spat out.  We do not want to be deceived or a deceiver who leads people to disobey, so the Bible is vital as God's established ruler by which all other claims are measured--even those of prophets and angels.  We may never hear or understand the whole story, but the LORD is faithful to reveal enough for us to follow Him in obedience.