Many have tried to solve the identity of these ‘wolves in sheep’s clothing.’ This has been the great “mystery of iniquity” to be revealed at the time of the end! To find out the answer, let’s pay close attention to what Jesus/Y’hoshua said, in context, and then think deeply about what he said. He also said he would reveal things that have been kept secret from the foundation of the world to those who will seek for it, and at the end, ‘the weeds will become plainly visible.’
Beware! of False Prophets
Jesus said, “Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. You shall know them by their fruits/character. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree brings forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree brings forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Every tree that does not bring forth good fruit is hewn down and cast into the fire. Wherefore by their fruits you shall know them.
Not every one that says to me, ‘Lord!, Lord!’, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that does the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, haven’t we prophesied in your name? and in your name have cast out demons? and in your name done many wonderful works? Then it will be said to them, ‘I never knew you: depart from me, you that work iniquity’.”
Matthew 7:15-23
Clues to Help Solve the Mystery
These two paragraphs give us a wealth of clues! And a list of suspects:
- false prophets/teachers; those who come in the name/authority of Christ (‘the Lamb of God’) and deceive the majority; false witnesses that speak lies; false apostles (Prov 6:16-19; Mal 3:5; Matt 24:4-13; 2 Cor 11:13-15; 2 Tim 3; 2 Pet 2; 1 John 4; Rev 19:20)
- wolves in sheep’s clothing (Ezek 22:24-31; Zephaniah 3:1-5; Matt 10:14-22)
- thorns and thistles (Gen 3:17-18; Mat 13:24-30, 36-43)
- evil fruit from a corrupt tree (Gen 2:15-17, 3:17-18; Matt 3:7-12; Gal 5:19-23)
- those who call him ‘Lord’ (Christians), cast out demons, and do ‘wonderful works’ in his name (Deu 18:20-22; Luke 6:46; Rev 17 & 18)
- the workers of iniquity; them that work iniquity (Psalms 5:4-6, 37:1-2; Isaiah 32:6; Matt 13:40-43)
The False Prophets
“My people have been Lost Sheep: their shepherds have caused them to go astray…”
Jeremiah 50:6-8
“Woe unto the wicked; it shall be ill with him… As for My people, children/infantile mentality are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O My people, they which lead you cause you to err, and destroy the way of your paths.”
Isaiah 3:11-12
The wicked shepherds feed themselves of the flock, but they don’t feed the flock!
“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you take tithe of mint and anise and cumin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the Law, judgment, mercy, and faith/truth: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone…”
Jesus to the priests – Mat 23:23-24
The Wolves
In the Book of Enoch there is “The parable of animals.” In prophecy, he identifies the sheep as the children of Israel and the wolves as the ancient Egyptians who oppressed, enslaved and killed the children of Israel. They took all that they could produce. They also taught their heathen ways of idolatry and false religion to Israel, which God told them not to do like them. (Enoch 88:18-37; Lev 18:3-5) All the plagues were put on the Egyptians, but Israel came out from among them and was delivered to safety by Moses. The wolves who chased after them were drowned in the Red Sea.
The Wicked Shepherds
In Ezekiel, chapter 34, we have the perfect picture of these shepherds who feed and clothe themselves of the flock.
“And the word of the LORD came to me, saying, Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and say to them, ‘Thus saith the Lord GOD unto the shepherds;
Woe be to the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! should not the shepherds feed the flocks? You eat the fat, and you clothe yourselves with the wool, you kill them that are fed: but you don’t feed the flock. The diseased you have not strengthened, neither have you healed that which was sick, neither have you bound up that which was broken, neither have you brought again that which was driven away, neither have you sought that which was lost; but with force and with cruelty you have ruled them.
And they were scattered, because there is no shepherd: and they became meat/food to all the beasts of the field, when they were scattered. My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and upon every high hill: yes, My flock was scattered upon all the face of the earth, and none did search or seek after them.’
Hear the Word of the LORD!
Therefore, you shepherds, hear the Word of the LORD: ‘As I live, saith the Lord GOD, surely because My flock became a prey, and My flock became meat to every beast of the field, because there was no shepherd, neither did the shepherds search for My flock, but the shepherds fed themselves and did not feed My flock.
Therefore, O you shepherds, hear the Word of the LORD: ‘Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require My flock at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock; neither shall the shepherds feed themselves any more; for I will deliver My flock from their mouth, that they may not be meat for them.’
For thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I, even I, will both search My sheep, and seek them out. As a shepherd seeks out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered; so will I seek out My sheep, and will deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day. And I will bring them out from the people, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them to their own land, and feed them upon the mountains of Israel by the rivers…
I will feed My flock, and I will cause them to lie down,’ saith the Lord GOD. ‘I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick: but I will destroy the fat and the strong; I will feed them with judgment. (Psalm 23)
God will save His Flock
And as for you, O My flock, thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I judge between cattle and cattle, between the rams and the he goats.
Does it seem a small thing to you to have eaten up the good pasture, but must you tread down with your feet the residue of your pastures? and to have drunk of the deep waters, but must you foul the residue with your feet? And as for My flock, they eat that which you have trodden with your feet; and they drink that which you have fouled with your feet.
Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD unto them; Behold, I, even I, will judge between the fat cattle and between the lean cattle. Because you have thrust with side and with shoulder, and pushed all the diseased with your horns, till you have scattered them abroad; Therefore will I save My flock, and they shall no more be a prey; and I will judge between cattle and cattle. (Matthew 25:31-46)
Deliverance Promised
And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even My servant of David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd. And I the LORD will be their God, and My servant of David a prince among them; I the LORD have spoken it. And I will make a Covenant of peace with them… And I will make them and the places round about My Mountain a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down in his season; there shall be showers of blessing.
And the tree of the field shall yield her fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase, and they shall be safe in their land, and shall know that I am the LORD, when I have broken the bands of their yoke, and delivered them out of the hand of those that served themselves of them. And they shall no more be a prey to the heathen, neither shall the beast of the land devour them; but they shall dwell safely, and none shall make them afraid.
And I will raise up for them a plant of renown, and they shall be no more consumed with hunger in the land, neither bear the shame of the heathen any more. Thus shall they know that I the LORD their God am with them, and that they, even the House of Israel, are My people, saith the Lord GOD. And you My flock, the flock of My pasture, are people, and I am your God, saith the Lord GOD.’”
Ezekiel 34
“I am not sent but unto the Lost Sheep of the House of Israel.”
Jesus – Matthew 15:24
Cain was of that Wicked One
“Whosoever is born of God does not commit sin; for his seed remains in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God. In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever does not do righteousness is not of God, neither he that does not love his brother. For this is the message that you heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his brother. And why did he slay him? Because his own works were evil, and his brother’s righteous.”
1 John 3:7-16
Cain and Abel
“Cain approached his brother Abel in anger and said to him, what is there between me and you that you come to dwell and bring your flock to feed in my land? Abel answered his brother Cain and said to him, what is there between me and you, that you shall eat the flesh of my flock and clothe yourself with their wool? Now therefore, put off the wool of my sheep with which you have clothed yourself, and recompense me for their fruit and flesh which you have eaten, and when you shall have done this, I will then go from your land as you have said…
Now, if you should slay me here, surely God knows your secret views, and will judge you for the evil which you did declare to do to me this day. And when Cain heard the words which Abel his brother had spoken, behold the anger of Cain was kindled against his brother Abel for declaring this thing.
Then Cain hastened and rose up, and took the iron part of his plowing instrument, with which he suddenly smote his brother and he slew him, and Cain spilt the blood of his brother Abel upon the earth, and the blood of Abel streamed upon the earth before the flock.” The Book of Jasher 1:18-25
The Spirit of Abel cries out
“Then I inquired of Raphael, an angel who was with me, and said, Whose spirit is that, the voice of which reaches to heaven and accuses? He answered, saying, This is the spirit of Abel, who was slain by Cain his brother; and who will accuse that brother, until his seed is destroyed from the face of the earth; Until his seed perish from the seed of the human race.”
The Book of Enoch 22:6-8
The Fifth Seal of Revelation
“When he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the Word of God, and for the testimony which they held: And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, do you not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said to them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellow-servants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.”
The Book of Revelation 6:9-11
“Behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and of them you shall kill and crucify; and of them you shall scourge in your assemblies, and persecute them from city to city: That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar. Truly I say to you, all these things shall come upon this generation.”
Jesus said to the priests – Matthew 23:34-36
The Great Whore of Babylon, Mother of Harlots
“And there came one of the seven angels… and talked with me, saying, Come here; I will show unto you the judgment of the great whore that sits upon many waters: With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication. …And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH. And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration…”
The Book of Revelation 17:1-6
“…And the light of a candle shall shine no more at all in you; and the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in you: for your merchants were the great men of the earth; for by your sorceries/pharmacia were all nations deceived. And in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth.”
The Book of Revelation 18:23-24
History reveals this entity is the Roman Catholic Church who has killed many millions in its many Crusades, Inquisitions and concentration camps. All of her worship practices stem back to ancient Babylon, Nimrod and Cush. In fact, Nimrod sentenced Abraham to death by fire. But God saved him and delivered him to safety.
The Good Shepherd
Jesus said, “I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine. As the Father knows me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep. And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.”
John 10:7-16
The Explanation
Herein is the explanation through God’s Word of those “wolves in sheep’s clothing.” Here they are traced all the way back to the beginning when Cain, who was of that Wicked One, killed his brother, Abel. From the very beginning to the very end they have the same traits and character. It’s the ‘mark’ of Cain.
They are the wicked shepherds who have ruled over the flock of God with cruelty and oppression, who serve themselves of the flock but don’t feed nor care for the flock. Therefore, the sheep have been led astray from their God. The wicked are as the tares that will be bound up and burned in the fiery judgment and wrath of God, while the Righteous are as the wheat gathered into God’s Kingdom.
Come out of her, My People
“And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that you are not partakers of her sins and that you receive not of her plagues. For her sins have reached unto heaven and God has remembered her iniquities.”
The Book of Revelation 18:4-5
KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS
“I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he does judge and make war… he shall rule them with a rod of iron and he treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he has on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.”
The Book of Revelation 19:11-16
“…Behold the Lord comes with ten thousands of his saints; To execute judgment upon all and to convict all that are ungodly among them…”
Jude :14-21, Enoch 2
Wolf in the Flock Playlist:
Stalkin’ the Flock, Becky Bishop
Wolf in the Fold, Babylon Mystery Orchestra
He that dwells in Heaven (Psalms 2:4)
Thou shalt break them, (Psalms 2:9)
He shall feed his sheep, Shandi Patti & Steven Curtis Chapman
All we like sheep
My Shepherd, (Psalms 23), Michael Card
HalleluJah! The Messiah