INTRODUCTION:
When I was growing up, no one took witches and magic seriously. If people dressed as a witch for Halloween, everyone treated it as a joke. Anyone who claimed to seriously believe in the occult was considered a mental case. Today it is different:
Books & magazines - nearly every bookstore will have a major section of books on the occult.
Magazines and tabloids such as National Enquirer, sold next to almost every grocery store check-out counter, promote psychics and all kinds of occult practices.
Games - Most stores with toy or game sections sell occult games such as Ouija boards, Dungeons and Dragons and similar "fantasy games." These involve witches, sorcerers, demons, and occult powers of all kinds. Sometimes they are presented as being good forces. In many games, players role-play or pretend they are these occult characters.
Television and movies - Many programs and movies have major occult themes. This began a number of years ago with "Rosemary's Baby," "The Exorcist," "Night Gallery," "One Step Beyond," "Dark Shadows," etc. But these are tame compared to current versions. Many children's cartoons now feature occult powers, with witches, sorcerers, demons, etc. Often these forces are pictured as "white magic" - magic used for wholesome and acceptable purposes.
Music - Many modern popular recording artists have songs about various aspects of the occult. Record jackets often portray occult and even Satanist symbols, or people dressed as occult characters. Many recording artists are personally involved in sorcery, witchcraft, and Satanism in their personal lives.
Education - Many colleges and universities teach courses or parts of courses discussing occult practices. Many texts in high school and elementary schools contain references to witchcraft, and occult practices, in ways that arouse students' curiosity.
The New Age movement is advocated by people many of whom are deeply involved in occult practices. This movement brings together many people involved in the occult and oriental religions.
Satanism - News often mentions crimes which police suspect are the result of rituals of Satan worship.
The purpose of this study is to example what the Bible says about these occult practices. Just as many are surprised to learn how serious a problem this is in our society, many more are surprised (even shocked) to learn how much the Bible has to say about it. (All Scripture quotations are from the New King James Version unless otherwise indicated.)
We will consider two areas of occult activities.
Many terms overlap in meaning or are used by different people in different ways. We will use terms as follows:
"Witchcraft" = sorcery, the attempt to exercise supernatural powers by means of magic rituals or techniques (incantations, spells, drugs, potions, curses, charms, etc.).
"Magic" = efforts to exercise supernatural powers or to appeal to spirit beings (other than God) to produce some event considered not attainable by natural means.
Note that we are talking throughout about attempts to appeal to supernatural and spirit powers to influence the course of events on earth - powers which are above and beyond the laws of nature and natural course of events.
In the minds of those involved, there may be different forces they believe they appeal to :
* Satan and demons - some people knowingly attempt to appeal to demonic forces to work in their lives.
* Spirit of some dead human being ("ghost" or "spirit").
* Pagan or heathen deities.
* Many people do not think about who or what the power is. They have simply learned certain rituals, incantations, spells, etc., which they believe summon spirit forces to produce some desired event. They do not care who the force is as long as they believe it may work.
Regardless of who or what force people believe they are appealing to, whenever people appeal to any spirit or supernatural power other than God to work in their lives, that is the occult.
If one attempts to do some event, even something amazing and difficult to understand, yet it is understood to be done by the power of natural law, not by some appeal to spirit or supernatural forces, that is not the occult.
* "Magic" as sleight of hand tricks done for social entertainment is not the magic we are referring to. This is done by some technique completely within the realm of natural law, if we only understood the trick. Those who practice such know (and usually let the audience know) this is simply an amazing, but natural, skill they have developed by practice (like playing a musical instrument or swinging on a trapeze). They are not appealing to supernatural spirit beings. (If they seriously pretend to do so, then that false pretense is dangerous.)
* Medical doctors may use drugs to produce a healing effect. This functions by natural laws to benefit the body (whether or not we understand the law). There is no appeal to supernatural spirit forces.
Some people think a "witch" is an ugly hag who rides a broomstick on Halloween with a black cat, casting spells, pronouncing curses, or sticking pins in voodoo dolls. That is witchcraft, but there is much more.
In ancient societies and primitive times, witches were men or women, pretty or ugly. Often they were consulted to obtain some favorable or desired goal, not just to pronounce some curse on someone. For example, witches would be appealed to produce rain, find some lost object, bring success in war or business, find a marriage companion, produce a good crop, or other good fortune.
So today, witches distinguish "white magic" from "black magic." Black magic means spells, incantations, curses, etc., intended to bring harm to someone. This is viewed as bad, even by some witches. White magic uses spells, etc., to try to bring good fortune. This is viewed as good.
Some would tell us magic and sorcery are not inherently wrong. It is only wrong if used to harm people. We will see, however, that all sorcery and occult practices are wrong, regardless of the intended goal, because they come from the wrong source. The source of the power is what makes them inherently evil, regardless of how they are used.
Deuteronomy 18:9-14 - Every aspect of the occult is here mentioned specifically. It is all an "abomination" and is forbidden. Specifically forbidden are: one who practices "witchcraft" and a "sorcerer" and "one who conjures spells" and a "spiritist."
Leviticus 19:31 - Give no regard to mediums and familiar spirits; do not seek after them, to be defiled by them: I am the Lord your God.
Leviticus 20:6 - And the person who turns after mediums and familiar spirits, to prostitute himself with them, I will set My face against that person and cut him off from his people.
Leviticus 20:27 - A man or a woman who is a medium, or who has familiar spirits, shall surely be put to death; they shall stone them with stones. Their blood shall be upon them.
Revelation 21:8 - But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.
Revelation 22:15 - But outside [heaven] are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie.
Acts 13:8-10 - Paul rebuked Elymas the sorcerer who was trying to keep Sergius Paulus from accepting the truth. He said to him: "O full of all deceit and all fraud, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease perverting the straight ways of the Lord?"
Hence, the Bible does not distinguish whether the witchcraft is intended to achieve a goal which is good or one which does harm. It is all inherently wrong because it is an appeal to a forbidden source of power.
[2 Chron. 33:6; 2 Kings 9:22; Ex. 22:18; 1 Sam. 15:23; Mic. 5:12; Nah. 3:4; Jer. 27:9; Mal. 3:5; Isa. 2:6; 2 Kings. 21:6; 23:24; Isa. 19:3]
Exodus 7:11,22; 8:7 - When Moses & Aaron brought plagues on Egypt, Pharaoh's magicians attempted to duplicate the miracles by their "enchantments." "Enchantments" refers to the ceremonies and rituals used by sorcerers and magicians to accomplish their ends - incantations, spells, and magic words ("hocus-pocus"), wearing of charms (amulets).
Deuteronomy 18:10 mentions various of these "enchantments" as part of that which is forbidden.
Isaiah 8:19,20 - And when they say to you, "Seek those who are mediums and wizards, who whisper and mutter," should not a people seek their God? Should they seek the dead on behalf of the living? To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, {it is} because there is no light in them.
"Whisper and mutter" refers to the incantations and spells of magicians. These words are supposed to give the user control over the spirit beings that work the result desired. If you know the words, you control the spirit to do your bidding.
Galatians 5:20,21 - Those who will not inherit the kingdom of God includes those who practice "sorcery" ("witchcraft" - KJV). This includes the occult in general, but refers esp. to the use of drugs and potions brewed by witches in their cauldrons, etc. (Movies and books often refer to the witches' book of spells, and recipes for potions, etc.)
God condemns, not just the whole practice of the occult, but also the specific methods, rituals, and mumbo-jumbo words used.
[Lev. 19:26; 2 Kings 17:17; Isa. 47:9,12; Jer. 27:9; 2 Kings 21:6; 2 Chron. 33:6; Isa. 3:20; Rev. 9:21]
The Bible often warns about the danger of being deceived by lying wonders [2 Thess. 2:9; Matt. 24:24; Deut. 13:1-5]. The examples given in Scripture often involved confrontations between those who did true miracles from God and those who practiced forms of sorcery or magic:
Exodus 7-9; read 8:18,19 - Pharaoh's magicians and sorcerers tried to duplicate the signs and plagues God caused through Moses and Aaron (7:11,22; 8:7,8,18; 9:11). For awhile they seemed to succeed to a limited extent. But soon they failed and admitted Moses had the power of GOD.
Daniel 1:20 - And in all matters of wisdom and understanding about which the king examined them, he found them [Daniel and his friends] ten times better than all the magicians {and} astrologers who {were} in all his realm.
Daniel 2:1-13,27,28 - The king of Babylon sought magicians to tell him his dream and interpret it. None could. But by the power of God, Daniel interpreted the dream accurately [cf. 4:7,9]. Later he likewise interpreted the handwriting on the wall which predicted the downfall of Belshazzar (5:7,11). [Cf. Gen. 41:8,24]
Acts 8:9-13 - Simon used sorcery to amaze the Samaritans. They believed he had the great power of God. But when Philip preached Jesus and did true miracles by the power of God, not only the people but also Simon himself believed [cf. v5-7].
Acts 13:6-11 - Elymas was a sorcerer, but he was powerless to resist the superior power God worked through Paul.
I do not know whether the power of sorcerers can be explained through trickery, which pretends supernatural power but can really be explained naturally, or whether Satan really does possess some supernatural power. But what is sure is that Satan can never duplicate God's true miracles. By comparing modern sorcery to the miracles of the Bible, we have proof witchcraft is inferior, so we should not put our faith in it.
Witchcraft, magic, etc., is the occult substitute for Bible miracles. Where God has done miracles for His people, believers in the occult seek their supernatural works by means of spells, incantations, etc. that appeal to their spirit powers. God forbids all such because it is an appeal to powers other than His power. God will never allow that which is false to duplicate the works of that which is true.
[Isa. 47:9,12-14; 1 Kings 18; Acts 16:16; 19:13ff]
One form of witchcraft and sorcery is "divination." Divination is an attempt to obtain, by supernatural means, information which cannot be obtained by natural processes of study and investigation. It appeals to spirit, supernatural powers to give information not obtainable by natural law. Especially, it seeks to foretell the future.
Just as magic is the occult substitute for God's miracles, so divination is the occult substitute for God's prophecy.
Note the Bible teaching regarding various forms of divination:
Deuteronomy 18:10,14 - "Divination" (ASV, KJV; "soothsayer" - NKJV) and "diviners" are specifically listed among those aspects of the occult which were an abomination and were forbidden among God's people. A soothsayer is a fortune-teller - one who attempts to predict the future by occult methods. These things were practiced by the evil nations that God cast out of Canaan.
2 Kings 17:17,18 - God drove Israel into captivity because they practiced sins including "divination" (ASV, KJV) or "soothsaying" (NKJV).
These terms are not familiar to many of us because such has been so little practiced in our lives. But it was well-known in Bible times and is becoming more so today. The Bible plainly condemns it.
Deuteronomy 18:10,14 - Listed among the occult practices that are an abomination to God is "one who interprets omens."
This involved the belief that the activities of the gods could be predicted by observing events in nature (weather, animals, movement of stars), or by chance ritual ceremonies (casting lots, tossing arrows, etc.). Astrology is augury by observing the stars. By observing such events, people attempted to predict the future.
2 Kings 21:6 - King Manasseh of Israel practiced such and did evil before God ("soothsaying" - NKJV; "augury" - ASV). [2 Chron. 33:6]
This includes all those who attempt to predict the future by supernatural, spirit powers: fortune-tellers, crystal ball readers, palm readers, mind readers, reading tarot cards, reading tea leaves, or Ouija board.
The Bible says:
1 Corinthians 2:11 - For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God.
John 2:25 - Jesus had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man.
1 Kings 8:39 - Only God knows the hearts of man [Jer. 17:10].
Psychics and mind readers pretend to read men's minds, but only God has this power, and He no longer gives it to men (see 1 Cor. 13 below). For men to claim supernatural power to read the mind is a form of witchcraft and divination, condemned in the passages above.
James 4:14 - You do not know what will happen tomorrow.
Proverbs 27:1 - Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth. Hence, natural law will not allow us to know the future. Any effort to predict the future must be based on supernatural powers.
Isaiah 41:21-23; 42:8,9 - God challenged the idols to prove they are gods by predicting the future. He rests His claim to Deity on His ability to predict the future. He clearly affirms that no one but the true God can predict the future.
Hence, God says no power but His can really predict the future. Men who claim to be able to do it, are claiming the power of God (regardless of their intent).
1 Corinthians 13:8-10 - God did miracles in the age when His written word was not complete. By God's supernatural power, men revealed His will and confirmed by miracles that it was His word (Mk. 16:20; Acts 14:3; Heb. 2:3,4). Since the written word (that which is perfect - Jas. 1:25) has come, God no longer gives men the power of prophecy.
Hence, no one today can predict the future by the power of God. Anyone who claims to do it, is not doing it by God's power. If he claims to do it by some supernatural, spirit force, that power must not be God's power. It must be a form of occult divination, condemned by God. [Cf. Acts 8:14ff; 1:22; Jude 3; etc.]
Deuteronomy 18:20-22 - After rebuking all forms of the occult (v9-14), God predicted the coming of the true prophet (Jesus) in whom people should trust (v15-19). Then He explained how people could recognize the false prophet. A prophet is not from God if he claims to speak in the name of some other god or if his predictions of the future do not come true. Some examples:
Jean Dixon:
She became famous by predicting the death of Kennedy. But one rarely hears about her predictions that failed. These include:
* World War III would begin in 1958. (Did it?)
* Russia would put the first man on the moon. (A good guess since they led the space race. But America was first; Russia still has not done it.)
* Lyndon Johnson would be democratic candidate for president in 1968. (As president, he would be the logical choice. But he refused to run.)
* President Ford would resign and Rockefeller would replace him. (Ford never resigned; Rockefeller was never president.)
* Reagan would be the Republican candidate for president in 1976. (Ford won the nomination instead).
National Enquirer psychics:
* 22 false predictions in 1975 (R. Harris, Contender, 1/76)
* 14 misses in second half of 1977 (O'Neal, Searching the Scriptures, 6/78).
* Of 58 predictions, only two were right, and these were easy guesses (Bob Craig, Gospel Anchor, 5/79).
The track records of the psychics proves they are false teachers. We should not be afraid of them.
Necromancy is the alleged power to communicate with the spirits of dead people ("ghosts"). In some translations of the Bible, this is called having a "familiar spirit."
Today, they are called "spiritists,", "spiritualists," or "mediums." There are millions of people in South America who claim this power, hundreds of thousands in the US, many of whom are members of the hundreds of spiritualist or spiritists churches.
Many "Christians" claim this is approved of God. What does the Bible say?
Deuteronomy 18:11 - The occult practices which are an abomination to God includes mediums, spiritists and those who call up the dead.
Leviticus 19:31; 20:6,27 - God's people must not seek out mediums or familiar spirits. If they do, they should be cut off. Those who are mediums or have a familiar spirit should be stoned.
Ecclesiastes 9:6 - Those who are dead have no more portion in anything done under the son forever.
Luke 16:27-31 - Abraham refused to let Lazarus go back from the dead to warn the rich man's brothers. Why? Because they already had sufficient evidence of what they should do revealed in the Scriptures.
1 Samuel 28:3-14 - Saul consulted a woman from Endor who had a familiar spirit, to get her to call up Samuel. Some think this proves the practice is valid. But v12 - When the woman saw Samuel she cried out with a loud voice. Why? She had agreed to call him up. If she had expected him to come, why be surprised when he came?
1 Chronicles 10:13,14 - Saul died because he was unfaithful and because he consulted with this familiar spirit.
[2 Kings 21:6; 2 Chron. 33:6; Isa. 8:19,20; 2 Kings 23:24; Isa. 19:3; 29:4]
Witchcraft and every aspect of the occult are plainly condemned by God. But why is God so opposed to it? Because it is a counterfeit substitute for the power of God.
If people needed supernatural power in their lives, they should turn to God.
* God has done great miracles to prove His power. Magic is the occult substitute for miracles. It is an attempt to achieve supernatural events by spirit powers other than that of God.
* God has revealed His will and predicted the future in prophecy. Divination is the occult substitute for prophecy. It is an attempt to obtain supernatural knowledge by spirit powers other than the power of God.
Colossians 2:8-10 - Now that the Scriptures are complete, we are complete in Christ. We have all the knowledge from God which we need and all He will give in the Scriptures. We have the record of miracles to confirm that message. God meets our daily needs in answer to prayer. To turn to the occult is to belittle our completeness in Christ and to seek supernatural help somewhere other than in God.
Acts 19:18-20 - When God's word prevails in the lives of people today, they renounce their involvement in magic. They remove and destroy all aspects of it in their lives.
The occult and the gospel of Christ cannot coexist in our lives. Either the occult will drive out our faithfulness to Christ, to our eternal condemnation, or else the gospel will drive out the occult to our salvation. Have you removed the occult from your life?
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