Their motives set false prophets apart from the true prophets of God in the Bible. False prophets were frequently more interested in gaining popularity than telling the truth. To achieve admiration, false prophets told people whatever they wanted to hear rather than the reality they needed to hear (Jeremiah 6:14; Ezekiel 13:16).
False prophets were usually motivated by self-interest, greed, and personal or financial gain (Micah 3:11; Titus 1:11; 1 Timothy 6:5; 2 Peter 2:3).
The Bible encourages believers to examine every spirit:
“Dear friends, do not believe everyone who claims to speak by the Spirit. You must test them to see if the spirit they have comes from God. For there are many false prophets in the world.” (1 John 4:1, NLT)
Fortunately, the Bible also provides several tests for determining whether a prophet is a true prophet of God or a false one.
they are prophesying to you a false vision, divination, futility and the deception of their own minds.