Deadly Ploys

False Prophecy

Giving a false prophecy does not simply mean speaking an untrue word. It may mean that a false, lying, and unclean spirit is speaking through a person who is giving a prophetic word.

Instead of Holy Spirit-given revelation, the Jezebel spirit uses a spirit of divination, which in the Greek is literally called python. Much like the woman and Acts 16:16, Jezebel’s theology may contain accurate insight, but and unclean spirit operates through the person.

Usually, it takes great discernment to discover which spirit is speaking -- the Holy Spirit or the unholy spirit. An immature or unsuspecting hearer may not be able to discern the difference. A mature prophet can discern a Jezebel spirit, thus “separating the holy from the profane” (1 Corinthians 14:29; Ezekiel 44:23). Remember, the hallmark of the Holy Spirit is always purity, truth, and sincere love.

Eagerness to Impart

For I love to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift, so that you may be established ~ Romans 1:11

Counterfeiting the doctrine of the laying-on-of-hands (Hebrews 6:1-2), a Jezebel spirit likes to impart its anointing through the laying-on-of-hands. However, the Jezebelite’s touch carries a curse. Ask yourself: If it is not the touch of God, what spirit is touching you? When a Jezebel spirit is imparted, a dark spirit is deposited into its victims. Obviously, an individual with a Jezebel spirit is not someone that you want to have ministering to people in a prayer line! Even if such people are unaware of the Jezebel spirit operating through them, they are still capable of passing on this demonic spirit to others.

Such impartation may result in what appears as a healing, as demons of affliction are shifted from organ to organ. Or, the Jezebelite may want to pass on a “higher” level of spiritual anointing. They may claim their higher anointing can break through walls or chains that have held back an individual or a pastor. They usually claim that God has told them to do this.

Such individuals are always presumptuous if they thing they have this level of authority. In essence, they are declaring to be greater than their pastor. Imagine trying to impart something you have to your pastor in order to increase his greatness! Such thinking is twisted. According to Scripture, it is always the greater who blesses the lesser (Hebrews 7:7).

An individual’s motive distinguishes godly prayer from soulish, manipulative, and carnal prayer. The hidden motive behind such prayer is to increase recognition and elevation for the Jezebelite. Praying for your pastor is necessary and should be practiced on a regular basis. In fact, forming a prayer shield around a pastor is essential to win today’s Kingdom battles. Once again, I recommend the book, Intercessors and Pastors: The Emerging Partnership of Watchmen and Gatekeepers that offers suggestions for appropriate boundaries between intercessors and pastors.

Appearing Religious

Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them ~ Matthew 6:1a.

Individuals with a Jezebel spirit will almost always exhibit a religious spirit. They may appear to be the most spiritual individuals that you have every known. They may portray having deep and intimate relationships with the Holy Spirit. However, a closer inspection will reveal that their actions are based on what they think you need to see, to convince you of their spirituality. Perhaps such people will be the first to cry, wail, or mourn, claiming a burden from God.  But this behavior will simply be a ruse, meant to promote them in the eyes of others. Often, they will let others know the many hours spent in prayer or in fasting or the faith they have in giving all their money away. The “righteous” deeds of Jezebelites are always done for everyone  to see. These actions only serve to promote and to enlarge the kingdom of self.

Believing they are “special instruments” of God, such individuals often isolate themselves from others and take separate paths, feeding their independent spirit. A religious spirit blinds them to the sober knowledge of the deception they have bought into.

Like a tidal wave, deception floods the mind, deepened by the continual need for sensual -- even sexual -- stimulation. Some will begin to view communion with God as a sensual thing. In ignorance, they may begin to commune with evil spirits, and eventually claim that God has entered their body as in a sexual union. They will privately tell others they have actually become the “bride” of Christ. They will even begin to experience physical sensations of a sexual nature, thinking they are giving themselves to the Holy Spirit, just as Mary did. Among women, that is actually the work of an incubus spirit. In men, a succubus demon seduces them.

Now before I continue, I would like to define incubus and succubus, as I didn’t have a clue what either meant when reading this.

Incubus ~ 1. An evil spirit that lies on persons in their sleep; esp.: one that has sexual intercourse with women while they are sleeping. 2. Nightmare. 3. One that oppresses or burdens like a nightmare.

Succubus ~ a demon assuming female form to have sexual intercourse with men in their sleep.

Experiences are Dramatized

It is common for people with a Jezebel spirit to entertain a strange mixture of Christianity, New Age, and eastern religions. Their religious actions are meant  to convey many mystical experiences and impress others sufficiently so that they will be accepted in the way they deeply desire. A Jezebelite’s actions normally will be overly exaggerated. Their vocabulary and orations will become unnecessarily dramatized. As this spirit matures its grip on a person, his or her voice may change when giving a prophetic word. Sometimes an unnatural voice will be manifested, as though the vocal inflection would prove that God was with them. This is no different than channeling. A spirit -- not the Holy Spirit -- is using the individual’s vocal chords.

Although every man or woman of God has a sense of destiny and purpose, this divine purpose should not be confused with a Jezebel spirit’s false spirituality. God’s purposes in our lives lead to humility, but Satan’s purposes in our lives cultivate self-promotion. The intent of the heart is always the dividing line between the two.

Family Life in Disorder

Scripture says that before we can be in any type of leadership, our family must be in order, our children in good standing, and our mate in one accord with us (1 Timothy 3:1-4). How can you manifest a prophetic spirit to restore families (Malachi 4:6), if your own family is destroyed or in disarray? You cannot impart what you do not have! Furthermore, you have no authority to impart that which you have not been able to build in your own life.

Instability often exists in the family life of someone plagued by a Jezebel spirit. This spirit will breed negative attitudes, behavior, and individuals. Families can be destroyed by this spirit.

Individuals who operate in this spirit can be single or married. If a Jezebelite is married, that one’s mate will be spiritually weak, miserable, or unsaved. They often become lazy, sluggish, and repressed.

If the spouse is male, he will allow his wife to dominate and control him, but secretly he despises and hates her for it. As she becomes more aggressive, he becomes more reclusive. Sexual intimacy between them takes a back seat to her spiritual needs. He quietly begins to search for other means of meeting his needs.

Because of his anger, he may turn to flirtatious acts, pornography, cybersex, voyeurism, or other ways to alleviate his relational pain and make himself feel good and in control. A Jezebelite will often maintain control over her husband through the marriage bed. She rewards his obedience with sexual gratification. If her husband rebels, she withholds sexual intimacy.

Often, the husband of a woman who operates with a Jezebel spirit is not able to stand as the priest of his household because a Jezebel spirit destroys the family priesthood, just as Jezebel destroyed Jehovah’s priesthood and emasculated King Ahab. If he is a believer, this spirit will cause him to forsake his priestly, God-given responsibilities as the spiritual leader of his home.

In some cases, the husband may offer some spiritual nourishment. He may even lead family devotions. Such actions are allowed by the Jezebelite to make her look good, so that others -- or even himself or herself -- are unable to recognize her veiled control. In reality, she continues to hold the real authority in their home. Aware of the biblical teaching on divine order in marriage, she may decide not to demonstrate her power openly when friends visit. However, she will instantly reinstate her power and position when she is alone with her husband.

In some cases, both husbands and wives will operate in a Jezebel spirit. When this happens, it becomes formidable as their demonic spirits work in unison. However, much like a Queen Bee, the woman will continue to retain the upper hand. The husband, even if he appears to be strong, will be her slave. His duty in looking strong is to make her look even better.

Looking To Other Men

A woman who operates with a Jezebel spirit may claim that she wants her husband to assume the spiritual leadership of their family and that if he did, she would submit to him. But, if the earlier scripting has been etched on the husband’s soul, nothing will change.

Her husband’s weaknesses may cause the Jezebelite to be drawn to and spend time with other men who demonstrate spiritual hardship, thus attempting to fill the void in her marriage.

Eventually, her husband will become so demoralized that he will cease going to church, preferring to stay home watching television or engaging in other substitutes for his wife’s affection. Especially he may retreat into his vocation, where he can feel manly, in control, and powerful. He ceases to listen with respect to his pastor -- after all, how can he listen to a pastor who can’t see through his wife’s spiritual façade.

She may coerce the pastor to intervene and act as the head of their household. However, if she is not submissive to her husband, she will not be submissive to the pastor, any other leader -- or to God. It’s just a matter of time before the pastor also feels the sting of her emasculating jabs.

Castrating Her Husband

A Jezebel spirit will influence a woman to criticize and belittle her husband, telling him he’s not spiritual enough, bold enough, making enough money, or that he’s holding her back from the ministry God has awaiting her. She may apply subtle, manipulative pressure on him by simply sighing and commenting how nice it would be to have this or that, knowing they can’t afford it. She may also imply that if he really loved her, he would work harder to provide for all her needs and desires.

Such manipulative ploys put incredible pressure on a man and increase his resentment. It may also cause him to flee into the arms of another woman who is more sensitive to his needs and who makes him feel appreciated and successful as a husband.

In God’s order, the authority over the wife is the husband, the authority over the husband is Christ, and the authority over Christ is God the Father (1 Corinthians 11:3). A person with a Jezebel spirit may talk about submission and obedience to her husband, but both her husband and children know that it’s all talk. It is not reality.

Children who grow up in a family environment in which a parent operates with a Jezebel spirit will be profoundly affected as adults, in ways many do not realize. While I am not a psychologist or an expert on childhood issues, I have noticed through hundreds of encounters, interviews, and testimonies that the following results are most often encountered.

Implications for Daughters

Daughters reared by a domineering mother may manifest masculine or overtly aggressive behavior. Becoming like their mother, they may repress their true femininity, regarding it as a detriment. Seeds of rebellion, manipulation, and control have been sowed into their hearts by a domineering mother and in turn, they may begin to operate with a Jezebel spirit.

Blind to the true source of their pain, some will embrace the women’s rights movement or a goddess movement like Wicca. Sadly, even if a young woman longs for a man to fill the void left by her father, she may find it difficult to trust men, as well as God the Father.

Implications for Sons

Whenever parents are not fulfilling their rightful roles in marriage, their sons will become confused about their masculinity or become sexuality aggressive and seek to subdue women by force. Young men may also respond to their mother’s browbeating by becoming overbearing tyrants, and thereby seek to dominate their wives and children. Male subjugation of women is often motivated by resentments against a domineering mother figure.

Some young men may express their resentments toward women and overreact by running from them. Or they may respond to their unfulfilled needs for a father’s affection and authority by being attracted to the same sex, if a particular man eroticizes the masculine void in his life.

When Warren was 18 years old, he had prophetic gifts that were being touted as extraordinary by nationally known leaders. Even as a young man, Warren had been taken to the Third Heaven. He could tell you with amazing accuracy when you would be visited by an angel or give you a date something would happen and it would come to pass. However, Warren had a secret obsession. Although many women found him attractive, Warren was deeply attracted to men. This attraction began when Warren was 9 years old.

His mother pastored a Pentecostal church. His father, who was cold and distant, took little interest in the church, family, or in Warren. When an evangelist came to town to hold his yearly meetings in their church, Warren noticed his mother’s attraction to this man. The evangelist, who recognized Warren’s prophetic abilities even at this young age, approached Warren’s mother about the possibilies of  the young boy’s traveling with him during the summer months. He said that he wanted to train Warren. She was thrilled. During this time, however, Warren was sexually molested by this man.

When Warren told his mother, she refused to believe him. Warren always suspected that his mother’s inability to believe him stemmed from his belief that his mother was having an affair with this evangelist. A strong and domineering woman, she dismissed Warren’s pain and accused her son of lying. Tragically, Warren never recovered from this incident or his mother’s anger toward him.

Since Warren’s father was emotionally distant and unavailable, the visiting evangelist began to fill the masculine role model in Warren’s life. Although Warren fought his homosexual tendencies, he was always looking for a man to replace his father. His anger toward his mother further fueled his attraction to men.

As Warren’s prophetic gift was recognized, he would have periodic sexual liaisons followed by long periods of anguished repentance and abstinence. Each time, the Lord would return the anointing to Warren. Then while ministering in a foreign country, Warren became ill and was unable to recover. He was sent home and was later diagnosed with AIDS. Warren died at age 32.