“Do not touch My anointed ones, And do My prophets no harm.” Psalm 105:15, 1 Chronicles 16:22 NASB

We live in a day and time when information can be found at the click of a button, where videos and moments can go viral for good or bad reasons. We live in a time when sound Biblical teaching can be accessed on demand and where false teaching finds viral inroads through wireless connections. With the rise of digital technology, this spiritual gangrene spreads more quickly and fiercely, particularly to those who are unsuspecting of its threat as it is presented in appealing packages with charisma and Christianese. Because of the propensity of false teaching, there are those who have voiced concerns regarding teachings and doctrines popularized, and they are bringing some pushback to the growing threat of false doctrine and aberrant practices drawing many away from Jesus Christ and God’s written Word.

As of late, accusations have been launched at those who would vocally express their disagreement and concern with such teachings and practices, stating that those who would oppose specific individuals wish for those in question to not even exist. Such statements have been made recently after a cascade of events involving online discussions and a disturbing event transpiring at the home of a well-known and controversial pastor. After the aforementioned event, one pastor took to his social media platform and called for a “Davidic moment” in the body of Christ, referring to the account of David and Saul in the Old Testament where David refused to harm Saul while honoring him as the anointed king of Israel. He went on to say that those who would speak against him and others were guilty of weaponizing the small percentage of the mentally ill, making such content creators accomplices to the crime at another pastor’s home. This leader believes that people who speak against him and others are guilty of “digital assassination” or “digital lynching” and that they are “sons and daughters of the devil”. It is my humble opinion that this is the old teaching, “Touch not the Lord’s anointed” with a modern technological twist. While such acts of violence are to be condemned, it is equally important not to condone Scripture twisting and the denial of proper Biblical discernment and critical thinking. Let’s consider an example provided to us in Scripture.

When addressing the super apostles that were coming against Paul’s ministry to the Corinthian church and soliciting them for notoriety and greed, Paul counters their boasting by providing an account of his sufferings as an Apostle of Christ, saying, “Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one- I am talking like a madman- with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; on frequent journey, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches…if I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness.” (2 Corinthians 11:23-28,30) He goes on later to say, “For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” (2 Corinthians 12:30)

Paul demonstrated both confidence in the Lord Jesus Christ and humility. He demonstrated boldness in His call from Christ while exhibiting brokenness before the Lord, rejoicing in trials and tribulations. When we look at the history of the early church and the lives of the Apostles of Christ, eleven of the twelve were martyred. They counted the cost of their lives as worthy for the sake of the gospel of Jesus Christ. What strikes me in these passages is that Paul did not revile those nor did he instruct them not to touch him due to the anointing on him from God. He was bold in his speech towards them as they were false apostles who were deceiving the Corinthian church, undermining what Paul had taught them and calling Paul’s apostleship into question, which had been granted by Christ Jesus Himself. He never said to them, “Touch not the anointed and do God’s prophets no harm.”

I hope that this helps you today because you may have heard this said to you or others at some point, or maybe you have said it. I heard this passage used out of context for years, but I did not realize it was out of context. This particular Bible verse is misappropriated at times when calling teaching into question against Scripture, and it should encourage us to understand this passage in context because despite its use to potentially deter critical reasoning, this passage does not mean what we may think it means.

The verse in question is in reference to the kings and the prophets in the time of Israel. David sang this song after he entered Jerusalem with the ark of the covenant. He was giving thanks to God, recalling God’s promises and protection over the people of Israel, which were the anointed ones, particularly the kings. This is the reason why David says in 1 Samuel 24:6 that he would not ever lift his hand against Saul since he was the Lord’s anointed. Notice the word touch as well from the passage featured. When you study this in its context, this means to do physical harm. This in no way means to verbally test questionable teaching.

Despite the verse stating to “do prophets no harm”, the prophets were harmed and killed. This statement was directed at kings encountering Israel as they wandered from nation to nation. However, the prophets were harmed by their own people since these men carried words of repentance and judgment due to Israel’s continuous idolatry and spiritual infidelity and rebellion to God.  After taking a look at this passage, we can see how unfruitful it is to misappropriate Scripture. We can also appreciate the fact that each individual is responsible for his/her own actions and demonizing a group of individuals because of the sinful action of one individual whose motives and identity are yet to be known, is error at best and abusive at worst.

Though there are indeed individuals who relish calling out false teachers without the desire to see them reconciled to God and to be granted repentance, which is error in itself, addressing false teaching is Biblical. We must examine our hearts and our motives in the process when we do such things. We should not be afraid to call things into question when someone contradicts Scripture because we are fearful of touching the Lord’s anointed. Calling someone to repentance is a loving act; it demonstrates our love for God and our love for that individual. It is sad and concerning when leaders teach multitudes old doctrines in new packages such as “digital lynching” because it is essentially removing critical thinking and the questioning of that leader while demonizing those in the process who would dare to question, or challenge taught doctrines and practices. Calling an individual to repentance or questioning doctrine does not equate to issuing a death threat, and those who would launch such claims in a generalized fashion are bearing false witness about their opponents.

One final note: I would like to encourage you further with the Word of God today. 1 John 2:20 helps us as believers to know that there are no haves and have nots when it comes to God’s anointing. The anointing is given to all believers. John 14:16 says that believers in Christ are given the gift of the Holy Spirit. 2 Corinthians 1:21-22 states that believers have been anointed by Christ. There is no mention of a particular class of believers being more anointed than the other. Let this truth comfort you, and above all, focus on Christ Jesus, our Lord and Savior. Be a good Berean and conduct yourself in a manner worthy of the gospel of Jesus Christ when addressing concerning teaching and practices. The Word of God brings truth to light, and there is freedom in knowing the truth in accordance with Scripture, and the Holy Spirit leads us into all truth.

Listen to this episode regarding this topic: Digital Lynching- Touch Not Go – The Lovesick Scribe Podcast – Apple Podcasts