It would probably be wrong to
take these criteria as rules to be applied rigidly every time a prophet opened
his mouth. When a prophet announced God’s coming judgment and called for
repentance, it would clearly be pointless to wait first to see if the judgment
actually came to pass, and then to repent (too late!). Rather the criteria
represent the means by which a prophet gained his reputation as a true prophet
and spokesman of the Lord. Over the course of a prophet’s ministry, in matters
important and less significant, the character of a prophet as a true spokesman
of God would begin to emerge clearly. And equally, false prophets would be
discredited and then dealt with under the law. (Peter C. Craigie, The
Book of Deuteronomy [The New International Commentary on the Old Testament;
Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1976], 263)