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Some people are manipulators and controllers. They use various techniques of deceit and intimation to get others to do what they want them to do. Some of them claim to be prophets. They pretend to give "words" from God, but that word is simply their own directions coming from their own motivation to manipulate and control. What they do is a very bad thing, and God will hold them accountable as false prophets. But this is not what we are talking about in this lesson. We are talking about when a demon gives false words to manipulate or control other people.
The devil and some of his demons like to deceive, manipulate and control. I am not an expert on demons, but from my limited experience, it seems like many of them specialize in a given area. For instance, some are called "spirits of infirmity" and they specialize in making people sick. Some are called "spirits of rage" and they specialize in making people angry and acting inappropriately from that anger. Some are called "spirits of offense" and they specialize in stirring up contention between people.
There also seem to be some demons whose specialty is to use false prophesy in an attempt to manipulate and control people. They work through one person who acts as a "prophet" -- only the prophecies that person gives come from the demon instead of from God. We have a Bible example of a demon operating this way in 1 Kings and 2 Kings.
The demon operated through a lady named Jezebel. She was a Sidonian princess and she married Ahab, king of Israel (1 Kings 16:31). This put her in a position of great power and authority, making her an ideal candidate for this demon to work through. The first/second Kings account of Jezebel makes a great case study of someone who was controlled by a prophetic and manipulating demon. In fact, she was such a famous example of this that many people now refer to this type of demon as a "spirit of Jezebel." This manipulative and controlling demon seeks to destroy the true prophetic and replace it with it's own perverted counterfeit.
You can see characteristics of this demon from the life of original Jezebel in 1 Kings 16 to 2 Kings 9. Here are some of Jezebel's characteristics:
If someone has a Spirit of Jezebel today, you would see some of these same traits operating in their life. In general, they manipulate and control a lot, using whatever technique works for the moment. At times they will be flattering and sweet and seem wonderful, so you just want to please them. At other times they will threaten and bully and apply overt pressure. At yet other times, they will try to make you dependent on them and then withdraw their friendship/approval if you don't do what they want you to do. They will often tell you that they are looking out for your own good or your own spiritual growth as they control and manipulate you.
They often act like it is very important for you to trust them, and at times they will tell you that if you are not trusting them, then you really are not trusting God because they are acting as God's representative. They will tell you that God is displeased with you when they are really the one who is displeased with you. They will do what they can to get you to enter into a co-dependent relationship with them, where they are the leader. After they do get you dependent, they will threaten to "go away" if you don't listen to them and do what they want you to do.
People with a spirit of Jezebel will often wrangle for authority. They will do what they can to climb higher and higher in position and authority in whatever circle they operate in. Some make it pretty high in the authority-chain and others don't. Those who don't get their own position of power will work hard to manipulate someone who is in a legitimate authority position, and try to control things through that person. That position and control is very important to them, it is one of their primary goals.
When the spirit of Jezebel starts to loose control in a given environment and they realize that they can't manipulate any longer, they usually sever all ties and leave quickly. They tend to cut off most or all existing relationships in that group and simply disappear or "go away."
People controlled by a spirit of Jezebel often desire to mentor those who move in the prophetic. They want to try to convince that prophetic person that they are not capable of hearing God clearly or moving in their destiny without the mentor's help. Some will even try to convince the prophetic person that they aren't moving in their own prophetic anointing, but under their mentor's anointing.
At first the mentor will seem wonderful. They will speak all sorts of encouraging things into the person's life and tell them "secrets" that help them in move more accurately the prophetic. The mentor seems like a best friend. But that doesn't last. The relationship soon changes. The mentor begins to make demands contradict what God is saying directly to the person. They tell them how to run their lives, their ministry, their finances and their own personal devotions.
The mentor begins to "punish" their "mentee" for very minor offenses. Some mentors give their prophetic mentee all sorts of tricky tests that are hard or impossible to "pass." When the mentee can't pass it, then they have to do something for the mentor to get back in their good graces. The mentor will work hard to convince the person they are mentoring that that they really can't hear God without their help. They do what they can to make the prophetic person dependent on them, then they use that dependency to manipulate them.
It is a surprisingly common tactic and there seem to be a lot of spirits of Jezebel running around practicing it. In fact, the internet has become a popular hunting ground for these spirits to pick up young prophets to "mentor" (e.g., to manipulate and control). The person controlled by this demon hangs out in prophetic chatrooms and in prophetic bulletin boards. They don't speak much into the main room, but they watch and look for perspective targets. When they find someone who looks like a likely candidate, they speak to that person in private chat. At first they prophesy all sorts of encouraging things to them, telling them how special and how gifted they are. Then they begin to offer advice to the person and after that they offer to mentor them.
[Of course, spirits of Jezebel are not limited to the internet. They hang out in churches as well, looking for vulnerable prey to take under their wing. Once they have their person, they try to get that one to become dependent on them, so they manipulate and control him/her. If your church has a prophetic ministry team, individuals with the spirit of Jezebel will often be drawn to it--but they won't be content just to serve on the team, they will want to lead it, to be in control of it. They will usually start to have conflicts with the one already leading the team. They will sometimes try to con another leader in the church into challenging that person so they can move in and take over that position of leadership. Or they might target leading another ministry in the church, but they will want to be in some form of leadership and they will try to manipulate their way into it.]
Let's look a bit more at the mentor scenario, because so many with the spirit of Jezebel want to mentor someone. Most of them will try to get those with a legitimate prophetic gift to look to them for mentoring. At first, they will seem loving and caring, concerned only for the good and growth of the one they are mentoring. For a short while, they act like they want nothing in return. But soon they begin to make subtle demands on the person who they mentor. Perhaps they request the person to misuse their authority on their mentor's behalf. Or perhaps they ask for a financial favor. Or perhaps they ask the mentee to begin promoting their mentor to others.
If the person caves to the initial demand (and most will), then later they begin making stronger and stronger demands, pushing the person more and more under their control until they are overtly manipulating them.
If the mentee resists the initial subtle attempts at manipulation, the mentor will do their best to convince them that the request comes from God and not from them. They begin to equate disobeying them to disobeying God. If they can't manipulate the person they are mentoring after exerting a certain amount of pressure, then they drop that person and go look for a different victim.
They spirit of Jezebel is drawn towards the true prophetic, and they want to manipulate and control it, twisting it for their own evil purposes. Sometimes this demon inhabits a very talented individual, who becomes an effective con-artist under the demon's auspices. Other times they go for the overtly wounded. That person lacks the interpersonal skills to be well grounded, but they do manage to do a lot of damage before they either leave or are kicked out.
Sometimes people with a spirit of Jezebel will operate in "power," but that power comes from the devil instead of God; it is a form of witchcraft.