3 Types of Counterfeit Dreams & How to Discern the Difference

Jesus warned that the last days would be marked by counterfeit christs, false prophets, and lying signs and wonders (Matthew 24:24; Mark 13:22).

One way the enemy deceives is through counterfeit dreams and visions.

Defining the Counterfeit Dream

In her book Dreams and Visions: Understanding and Interpreting God’s Messages to You, Jane Hamon describes the essence of the false dream:

“A false dream or vision is one that attempts to establish ungodly principles or deception concerning biblical truth in the mind of the dreamer or in those to whom the dreamer tells the dream.”

In essence, the false dream has the same purpose as the false prophet. The end result is to lead people away from God and toward the enemy.

Examples of Counterfeit Dreams

1. Nightmares

What about nightmares? Let me first say that not every nightmare is from the enemy. God can also use an unpleasant dream to get our attention. As mentioned earlier, King Abimelech had a scary dream from the Lord that he was a “dead man” for taking the wife of Abraham into his harem (Genesis 20:3). Pilate’s wife also had a nightmare about Jesus, claiming that she had “suffered many things” about Jesus in her dream (Matthew 27:19). Sometimes prophetic dreams and visions may resemble nightmares. The prophet Daniel also experienced this kind of terror as he was resting on his bed in Babylon when he saw four great beasts coming out of the sea (Daniel 7:1-8). Daniel admitted that he was actually grieved in his spirit by the night visions and that he was actually troubled by them similar to Pilate’s wife concerning Jesus. Daniel’s “nightmares” actually turned out to be prophetic insights about future kingdoms that would arise on earth (see Daniel 7:1-28).

For instance, many Christians testify to having dreams of being chased by someone and being terrified. Dreams like these are not always demonically inspired. The Lord could be giving you the dream to expose fear in your life. It could be a dream about your own condition. For example, a dream could be given to show dreamers that they are running away from their responsibilities. I have had dreams like this and have actually “turned the tables” on the person pursuing me by chasing my pursuer. God wants us to get to the point where we as believers never back down—rather, we are led by His Spirit.

Nightmares can also serve as a signal that the dreamer is carrying around unresolved issues in their soul (mind, will, and emotions). Or the Lord may be allowing us to dream about a traumatic experience buried deeply in our subconscious. If as a believer you are having constant nightmares, please see a Christian, Spirit-filled counselor or deliverance minister. We are called as believers to bear one another’s burdens. Never be ashamed to ask for help.

If satan can give false visions to people and start world religions, then he has no problem manipulating what we see in our sleep at night or deceiving us or filling us with fear. The devil was able to show Jesus all the kingdoms of the world and their glory (Matthew 4:8). Most Bible scholars believe that the devil showed Jesus these kingdoms in a supernatural vision.

Some nightmares occur because we have actually allowed the enemy to gain a foothold through our physical senses. For instance, some believers love to watch explicit films loaded with violence, fear, and sexuality. They don’t realize, however, that these “entertaining” films attract demonic spirits to them. Viewing a violent scene in a movie that shows a person being murdered by a psychopath is not a good idea just before bedtime. You may attract spirits of hate, murder, and fear leading to a demonically-inspired nightmare where you dream of some evil person attacking you with a machete.

2. Deceptive Dreams

When people think of the devil, images sometimes come to mind of a red guy with horns, a bifurcated tail, and a pitchfork. This, however, is not how the Bible describes satan. The Bible describes him as an “angel of light” (2 Corinthians 11:14). He comes to deceive us as someone that seems harmless. In the past, the enemy will give dreams and visions from “angels” to give counterfeit revelation to people, like Muhammad and Joseph Smith.

An interesting example of satan’s treacherous nature is found in the book of Jeremiah where the prophet writes a letter to the exiles, informing them that they were to prepare to be in Babylon for seventy years. Jeremiah’s prophecy contradicted the false prophets who were preparing the Jews for a short stay in Babylon and a quick return to their homeland in Jerusalem. Spend time to read Jeremiah 29:4-9.

An important aspect of Jeremiah’s prophecy is the warning he gave in verse 8: “Do not let your prophets and your diviners deceive you, nor listen to your dreams which you cause to be dreamed.” In essence, the perversity and disobedience of the people of Judah caused the false prophets to have false dreams. Because their hearts were not right before God, the people’s own sinful ways brought more deception. The result was tragic, especially for those who prophesied falsely and for the people who were led into deeper deception (Jeremiah 28:15-17; 29:15-32). Though his name was not mentioned in the story of Jeremiah, satan was the cause of the false dreams and lies from the false prophets.

3. Dark, Discouraging Dreams

I have debated myself as to what to label dreams from the enemy that make us wake up feeling like we have no hope. Some people label these dreams as dark or discouraging dreams. In his book Decoding Your Spiritual Dreams: Keys for Christian Dream Interpretation, Bryan Carraway provides helpful insights on satan’s purpose for dark dreams and also teaches dreamers how to discern a dark dream from a God-inspired spiritual dream:

Satan has many purposes for dark dreams. He sends them primarily to torment, confuse, and deceive. The forces of the dark kingdom can send dreams to both Christians and non-Christians…. Dreams from the enemy are always dark or deceptive in some way. Many people report that dreams from the enemy come in darker, muted colors, or entirely in black and white. Dark dreams usually leave one with no hope, no way of escape, and amidst the depressing themes, there seems to be no positive aspect at all—no offer of redemption. Dreams from the Lord don’t have that quality. Spiritual dreams can sometimes deal with very dark themes (spiritual warfare, the tactics of the enemy, divine judgment, etc.) but, in spiritual dreams, there is a redeeming message or some avenue of hope portrayed in the dream. God is a God of mercy, and even in harsh spiritual dreams, we see His divine attributes of grace, mercy, or love contained somewhere within.

Closing Advice About the Counterfeit

Some people in the Body of Christ spend most of their time focusing on the counterfeit. Unfortunately, in their efforts to discern the false prophets, false words, or false dreams, they have not spent enough time familiarizing themselves with the genuine. Like tellers at banks, we can discern the fake if we spend most of our time with the genuine. Jesus said, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me” (John 10:27 NKJV). If we spend enough time in the presence of God and in His Word, we will get to know the nature of God better. We will also be able to hear His voice in our dreams and have our senses developed to the point where we can discern good from evil (Hebrews 5:14).