For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform signs and wonders that would deceive even the elect, if that were possible.
Parallel translations
- WEB For there will arise false christs and false prophets, and will show signs and wonders, that they may lead astray, if possible, even the chosen ones.
- KJV For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect.
- NKJV For false christs and false prophets will rise and show signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.
- NASB for false christs and false prophets will arise, and will provide signs and wonders, in order to mislead, if possible, the elect.
- NLT For false messiahs and false prophets will rise up and perform signs and wonders so as to deceive, if possible, even God’s chosen ones.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
False christs and false prophets will perform signs to deceive, even targeting God's chosen. Counterfeit miracles cannot prevail against the elect.
Overview
Deceivers may display genuine-looking wonders, so signs alone are no proof of truth (Deuteronomy 13:1-3). Their aim is to mislead even believers, yet the implied promise is that the elect cannot finally be deceived, for God preserves his own. This calls Christians to discernment grounded in Scripture rather than wonder at spectacular displays.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- Matt 24:24For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders that would deceive even the elect, if that were possible.
- 2 Th 2:8–14And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will slay with the breath of His mouth and annihilate by the majesty of His arrival.
- Mark 13:6Many will come in My name, claiming, ‘I am He,’ and will deceive many.
- 1 Jn 2:26I have written these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you.
- Matt 7:15Beware of false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.
- John 10:27–28My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow Me.
- Rev 17:8The beast that you saw—it was, and now is no more, but is about to come up out of the Abyss and go to its destruction. And those who dwell on the earth whose names were not written in the Book of Life from the foundation of the world will marvel when they see the beast that was, and is not, and yet will be.
- Rev 13:13–14And the second beast performed great signs to cause even fire from heaven to come down to earth in the presence of the people.
- John 4:48Jesus said to him, “Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will never believe.”
- 1 Jn 2:19They went out from us, but they did not belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us. But their departure made it clear that none of them belonged to us.
- Rev 13:8And all who dwell on the earth will worship the beast—all whose names have not been written from the foundation of the world in the Book of Life belonging to the Lamb who was slain.
- 2 Tim 2:19Nevertheless, God’s firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord must turn away from iniquity.”
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Christ at the center
Mark drives urgently to the cross, showing Jesus the Son of God as the suffering Servant who 'came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.'
How Mark 13:22 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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