Destructive Doctrines

2 But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be ^(A)false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction.

⁴ For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord ^[a]God and our Lord Jesus Christ.

You Will Know Them by Their Fruits^(A)

^15 (B)“Beware of false prophets, ^(C)who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.

Punishment of Apostates

13 “If there arises among you a prophet or a ^(A)dreamer of dreams, ^(B)and he gives you a sign or a wonder, ² and ^(C)the sign or the wonder comes to pass, of which he spoke to you, saying, ‘Let us go after other gods’—which you have not known—‘and let us serve them,’ ³ you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams, for the Lord your God ^(D)is testing you to know whether you love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.

³ By covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words; for a long time their judgment has not been idle, and their destruction ^[a]does not slumber.

¹¹ Then ^(A)many false prophets will rise up and ^(B)deceive many.

^3 (A)For the time will come when they will not endure ^(B)sound doctrine, ^(C)but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers;

⁴ And this occurred because of ^(A)false brethren secretly brought in (who came in by stealth to spy out our ^(B)liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, ^(C)that they might bring us into bondage),

¹⁹ For ^(A)there must also be factions among you, ^(B)that those who are approved may be ^[a]recognized among you.

Love for God and One Another