Witchcraft/Psychics

In the Old Testament God has a lot to say about Witchcraft and people who practice divination (Fortune telling/Psychics). All of it is bad, in the Old Testament times when these Scriptures were written, God tells his people the Israelites that they were to have nothing to do with these people and if they even caught them among them that they were to kill them. Now we know that God does not want us to do this today, that is, kill anyone. For the sixth commandment is do not murder. But we are still to use the same kind of practice of not having anything to do with these kind of people, for all of this practice is demonic. It tells us in Leviticus if we do go to these people that we will be defiled by them. It also tells us that if we do these things that we are an object of horror and disgusting to the LORD. One thing that you will notice is that these people are detestable to the LORD and that He does not approve of their behavior, that He takes away from these people and that they are not people to be feared. They have absolutely no power against a child of God. They do have a certain amount of power given to them by the Devil, but it is limited only to be used on unbelievers. I believe God allows these things to get people’s attention that there is actually a spiritual realm. Now a lot of people believe in superstitions and fear the unknown, but what I have come to find out throughout the years, is that all of the answers for all of the questions that I have are in the Word of God (The Holy Bible). In this study you will see what God thinks about these kinds of practices, how God deals with these people and the judgments that come upon these people for doing what they do. I do not know if you or anyone you know is into any kind of black magic, white magic, fortune telling , tarot cards, witchcraft, or any other occultic practice, but if you are I suggest that you repent, that is, turn the other way and get away from it. Before God Himself judges you!!! Remember, if it is someone that you love that is involved in these practices, go to your church and speak with the elders about what to do. These people are involved with demonic activity and according to the Book of Acts, the demons only listen to the Spirit of God, not people who pretend to have the Spirit. In the Book of Acts there is a story of some Jews that decided that they could go cast out demons in the name of Jesus, but what they quickly found out was that they were overpowered by the demon. For they were just men, not children of God, and they did not have authority over the demon. And according to a story in the book of Matthew, some demons only come out through prayer and fasting. So if you have these kind of issues in your life, seek wise counsel, spiritual counsel. I hope that this study gives you some insight of how God views these evil practices and how to deal with them and that you stay far from these practices. May God Bless You!!!

Leviticus 19:26

“Never eat meat that has not been drained of its blood. “Do not practice fortune telling or witchcraft.

Leviticus 19:31

“Do not rely on mediums and psychics, for you will be defiled by them. I, the LORD, am your God.

Deuteronomy 18:9-14

“When you arrive in the land the LORD your God is giving you, be very careful not to imitate the detestable customs of the nations living there. For example, never sacrifice your son or daughter as a burnt offering. And do not let your people practice fortune-telling or sorcery, or allow them to interpret omens, or engage in witchcraft, or cast spells, or call forth the spirits of the dead. Anyone who does these things is an object of horror and disgust to the LORD. It is because the other nations have done these things that the LORD your God will drive them out ahead of you. You must be blameless before the LORD your God. The people you are about to displace consult with sorcerers and fortune-tellers, but the LORD your God forbids you to do such things.

Exodus 22:18

You shall not permit a sorceress to live.

1 Samuel 15:10-23

Then the LORD said to Samuel, “I am sorry that I ever made Saul king, for he has not been loyal to me and has again refused to obey me.” Samuel was so deeply moved when he heard this that he cried out to the LORD all night.

Early the next morning Samuel went to find Saul. Someone told him, “Saul went to Carmel to set up a monument to himself; then he went on to Gilgal.”

When Samuel finally found him, Saul greeted him cheerfully. “May the LORD bless you,” he said. “I have carried out the LORD’s command!”

“Then what is all the bleating of sheep and lowing of cattle I hear?” Samuel demanded.

“It’s true that the army spared the best of the sheep and cattle,” Saul admitted. “But they are going to sacrifice them to the LORD your God. We have destroyed everything else.”

Then Samuel said to Saul, “Stop! Listen to what the LORD told me last night!”

“What was it?” Saul asked.

And Samuel told him, “Although you may think little of yourself, are you not the leader of the tribes of Israel? The LORD has anointed you king of Israel. And the LORD sent you on a mission and told you, ‘Go and completely destroy the sinners, the Amalekites, until they are all dead.’ Why haven’t you obeyed the LORD? Why did you rush for the plunder and do exactly what the LORD said not to do?”

“But I did obey the LORD,” Saul insisted. “I carried out the mission he gave me. I brought back King Agag, but I destroyed everyone else. Then my troops brought in the best of the sheep and cattle and plunder to sacrifice to the LORD your God in Gilgal.”

But Samuel replied, “What is more pleasing to the LORD: your burnt offerings and sacrifices or your obedience to his voice? Obedience is far better than sacrifice. Listening to him is much better than offering the fat of rams. Rebellion is as bad as worshiping idols. So because you have rejected the word of the LORD, he has rejected you from being king.”

1 Samuel 28:1-25

About the time the Philistines mustered their armies for another war with Israel. King Achish told David, “You and your men will be expected to join me in battle.”

“Very well!” David agreed. “Now you will see for yourself what we can do.”

Then Achish told David, “I will make you my personal bodyguard for life.”

Meanwhile, Samuel had died, and all Israel had mourned for him. He was buried in Ramah, his hometown. And Saul had banned all mediums and psychics from the land of Israel.

Then the Philistines set up their camp at Shunem, and Saul and the armies of Israel camped at Gilboa. When Saul saw the vast Philistine army, he became frantic with fear. He asked the LORD what he should do, but the LORD refused to answer him, either by dreams or by sacred lots or by the prophets. Saul then said to his advisers, “Find a woman who is a medium, so I can go and ask her what to do.”

His advisers replied, “There is a medium at Endor.”

So Saul disguised himself by wearing ordinary clothing instead of his royal robes. Then he went to the woman’s home at night, accompanied by two of his men.

“I have to talk to a man who has died,” he said. “Will you call up his spirit for me?”

            “Are you trying to get me killed?” the woman demanded. “You know that Saul has expelled all the mediums and psychics from the land. Why are you setting a trap for me?”

But Saul took an oath in the name of the LORD and promised, “As surely as the LORD lives, nothing bad will happen to you for doing this.”

Finally, the woman said, “Well, whose spirit do you want me to call up?”

“Call up Samuel,” Saul replied.

When the woman saw Samuel, she screamed, “You’ve deceived me! You are Saul!”

“Don’t be afraid!” the king told her. “What do you see?”

“I see a god coming up out of the earth,” she said.

“What does he look like?” Saul asked.

“He is an old man wrapped in a robe,” she replied. Saul realized that it was Samuel, and he fell to the ground before him.

“Why have you disturbed me by calling me back?” Samuel asked.

“Because I am in deep trouble,” Saul replied. “The Philistines are at war with us, and God has left me and won’t reply by prophets or dreams. So I have called for you to tell me what to do.”

But Samuel replied, “Why ask me if the LORD has left you and has become your enemy? The LORD has done just as he said he would. He has taken the kingdom from you and given it to your rival, David. The LORD has done this because you did not obey his instructions concerning the Amalekites. What’s more, the LORD will hand you and the army of Israel over to the Philistines tomorrow, and you and your sons will be here with me. The LORD will bring the entire army of Israel down in defeat.”

Saul fell full length on the ground, paralyzed with fright because of Samuel’s words. He was also faint with hunger, for he had eaten nothing all day and all night. When the woman saw how distraught he was, she said, “Sir, I obeyed your command at the risk of my life. Now do what I say, and let me give you something to eat so you can regain your strength for the trip back.”

But Saul refused. The men who were with him also urged him to eat, so he finally yielded and got up from the ground and sat on the couch. The woman had been fattening a calf, so she hurried out and killed it. She kneaded dough and baked unleavened bread. She brought the meal to Saul and his men, and they ate it. Then they went out into the night.

2 Chronicles 33:1-6

Manasseh was twelve years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem fifty-five years. He did what was evil in the LORD’s sight, imitating the detestable practices of the pagan nations whom the LORD had driven from the land ahead of the Israelites. He rebuilt the pagan shrines his father Hezekiah had destroyed. He constructed altars for the images of Baal and set up Asherah poles. He also bowed before all the stars of heaven and worshiped them. He even built pagan altars in the Temple of the LORD, the place where the LORD had said his name should be honored forever. He put these altars for the stars of heaven in both courtyards of the LORD’s Temple. Manasseh even sacrificed his own sons in the fire in the valley of the son of Hinnom. He practiced sorcery, divination, and witchcraft, and he consulted with mediums and psychics. He did much that was evil in the LORD’s sight, arousing his anger.

Galatians 5:19-21

When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, your lives will produce these evil results: sexual immorality, impure thoughts, eagerness for lustful pleasure, idolatry, participation in demonic activities, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, divisions, the feeling that everyone is wrong except those in your own little group, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other kinds of sin. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God.

Micah 5:7-15     Side Note: This is future prophecy to be fulfilled in the end times.

Then the few left in Israel will go out among the nations. They will be like the dew sent by the LORD or like rain falling on the grass, which no one can hold back. The remnant of Israel will go out among the nations and be as strong as a lion. And the other nations will be like helpless sheep, with no one to rescue them. The people of Israel will stand up to their foes, and all their enemies will be wiped out.

“At that same time,” says the LORD, “I will destroy all your weapons – your horses and chariots. I will tear down your walls and demolish the defenses of your cities. I will put an end to all witchcraft; there will be no more fortune-tellers to consult. I will destroy all your idols and sacred pillars, so you will never again worship the work of your own hands. I will abolish your pagan shrines with their Asherah poles and destroy the cities where your idol temples stand. I will pour out my vengeance on all the nations that refuse to obey me.”

Acts 8:9-24  Side Note: This man was a sorcerer who came to Christ.

A man named Simon had been a sorcerer there for many years, claiming to be someone great. The Samaritan people, from the least to the greatest, often spoke of him as “the Great One – the Power of God.” He was very influential because of the magic he performed. But now the people believed Philip’s message of the Good News concerning the Kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ. As a result, many men and women were baptized. Then Simon himself believed and was baptized. He began following Philip wherever he went, and he was amazed by the great miracles and signs Philip performed.

When the apostles back in Jerusalem heard that the people of Samaria had accepted God’s message, they sent Peter and John there. As soon as they arrived, they prayed for these new Christians to receive the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit had not yet come upon any of them, for they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then Peter and John laid their hands upon these believers, and they received the Holy Spirit.

When Simon saw that the Holy Spirit was given when the apostles placed their hands upon people’s heads, he offered money to buy this power. “Let me have this power, too,” he exclaimed, “so that when I lay my hands on people, they will receive the Holy Spirit!”

But Peter replied, “May your money perish with you for thinking God’s gift can be bought! You can have no part in this, for your heart is not right before God. Turn from your wickedness and pray to the Lord. Perhaps he will forgive your evil thoughts, for I can see that you are full of bitterness and held captive by sin.”

“Pray to the Lord for me,” Simon exclaimed, “that these terrible things won’t happen to me!”

Acts 13:6-12

Afterward they preached from town to town across the entire island until finally they reached Paphos, where they met a Jewish sorcerer, a false prophet named Bar-Jesus. He had attached himself to the governor, Sergius Paulus, a man of considerable insight and understanding. The governor invited Barnabas and Saul to visit him, for he wanted to hear the word of God. But Elymas, the sorcerer (as his name means in Greek), interfered and urged the governor to pay no attention to what Saul and Barnabas said. He was trying to turn the governor away from the Christian faith.

Then Saul, also known as Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked the sorcerer in the eye and said, “You son of the Devil, full of every sort of trickery and villainy, enemy of all that is good, will you never stop perverting the true ways of the Lord? And now the Lord has laid his hand of punishment upon you, and you will be stricken awhile with blindness.” Instantly mist and darkness fell upon him, and he began wandering around begging for someone to take his hand and lead him. When the governor saw what had happened, he believed and was astonished at what he learned about the Lord.

Jeremiah 27:1-22

This message came to Jeremiah from the LORD early in the reign of Zedekiah son of Josiah, king of Judah.

The LORD said to me, “ Make a yoke, and fasten it on your neck with leather thongs. Then send messages to the kings of Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre, and Sidon through their ambassadors to King Zedekiah in Jerusalem. Give them this message for their masters: ‘This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: By my great power I have made the earth and all its people and every animal. I can give these things of mine to anyone I choose. Now I will give your countries to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, who is my servant. I have put everything, even the wild animals, under his control. All the nations will serve him and his son and his grandson until his time is up. But then many nations and great kings will conquer and rule over Babylon. So you must submit to Babylon’s king and serve him; put your neck under Babylon’s yoke! I will punish any nation that refuses to be his slave, says the LORD. I will send war, famine, and disease upon that nation until Babylon has conquered it.

“ ‘Do not listen to your false prophets, fortune-tellers, interpreters of dreams, mediums, and sorcerers who say, “The king of Babylon will not conquer you.” They are all liars, and I will drive you from your land and send you far away to die. But the people of any nation that submits to the king of Babylon will be allowed to stay in their own country to farm the land as usual. I, the LORD, have spoken!’”

Then I repeated this same message to King Zedekiah of Judah. “If you want to live, submit to the king of Babylon and his people,” I said. “Why do you insist on dying – you and your people? Why should you choose war, famine, and disease, which the LORD will bring against every nation that refuses to submit to Babylon’s king? Do not listen to the false prophets who keep telling you, ‘The king of Babylon will not conquer you.’ They are liars. This is what the LORD says: I have not sent these prophets! They are telling you lies in my name, so I will drive you from this land. You will all die – you and all these prophets, too.”

Then I spoke to the priests and the people and said, “This is what the LORD says: Do not listen to your prophets who claim that soon the gold utensils taken from my Temple will be returned from Babylon. It is all a lie! Do not listen to them. Surrender to the king of Babylon, and you will live. Why should this whole city be destroyed? If they really are the LORD’S prophets, let them pray to the LORD Almighty about the gold utensils that are still left in the LORD’S Temple and in the king’s palace and in the palaces of Jerusalem. Let them pray that these remaining articles will not be carried away with you to Babylon!

“For this is what the LORD Almighty says about the bronze pillars in front of the Temple, the bronze Sea in the Temple courtyard, the bronze water carts, and all the other ceremonial articles. King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon left them here when he exiled Jehoiachin son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, to Babylon, along with all the other important people of Judah and Jerusalem. Yes, this is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says about the precious things kept in the Temple and in the palace of Judah’s king: They will all be carried away to Babylon and will stay there until I send for them, says the LORD. But someday I will bring them back to Jerusalem again.”

Daniel 2:1-49

One night during the second year of his reign, Nebuchadnezzar had a dream that disturbed him so much that he couldn’t sleep. He called in his magicians, enchanters, sorcerers, and astrologers, and he demanded that they tell him what he had dreamed. As they stood before the king, he said, “I have had a dream that troubles me. Tell me what I dreamed, for I must know what it means.”

Then the astrologers answered the king in Aramaic, “Long live the king! Tell us the dream, and we will tell you what it means.”

But the king said to the astrologers, “I am serious about this. If you don’t tell me what my dream was and what it means, you will be torn limb from limb, and your houses will be demolished into heaps of rubble! But if you tell me what I dreamed and what the dream means, I will give you many wonderful gifts and honors. Just tell me the dream and what it means!”

They said again, “Please, Your Majesty. Tell us the dream, and we will tell you what it means!”

The king replied, “I can see through your trick! You are trying to stall for time because you know I am serious about what I said. If you don’t tell me the dream, you will be condemned. You have conspired to tell me lies in hopes that something will change. But tell me the dream, and then I will know that you can tell me what it means.”

The astrologers replied to the king, “There isn’t a man alive who can tell Your Majesty his dream! And no king, however great and powerful, has ever asked such a thing of any magician, enchanter, or astrologer! This is an impossible thing the king requires. No one except the gods can tell you your dream, and they do not live among people.”

The king was furious when he heard this, and he sent out orders to execute all the wise men of Babylon. And because of the king’s decree, men were sent to find and kill Daniel and his friends. When Arioch, the commander of the king’s guard, came to kill them, Daniel handled the situation with wisdom and discretion. He asked Arioch, “Why has the king issued such a harsh decree?” So Arioch told him all that had happened. Daniel went at once to see the king and requested more time so he could tell the king what the dream meant.

Then Daniel went home and told his friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah what had happened. He urged them to ask the God of heaven to show them his mercy by telling them the secret, so they would not be executed along with the other wise men of Babylon. That night the secret was revealed to Daniel in a vision. Then Daniel praised the God of heaven, saying,

“Praise the name of God forever and ever,

for he alone has all wisdom and power.

He determines the course of world events;

he removes kings and sets others on the throne.

He gives wisdom to the wise

and knowledge to the scholars.

He reveals deep and mysterious things

and knows what lies hidden in darkness,

though he himself is surrounded by light,

I thank and praise you, God of my ancestors,

for you have given me wisdom and strength.

You have told me what we asked of you

and revealed to us what the king demanded.”

Then Daniel went in to see Arioch, who had been ordered to execute the wise men of Babylon. Daniel said to him, “Don’t kill the wise men. Take me to the king, and I will tell him the meaning of his dream.”

Then Arioch quickly took Daniel to the king and said, “I have found one of the captives from Judah who will tell Your Majesty the meaning of your dream!”

The king said to Daniel (also known as Belteshazzar), “Is this true? Can you tell me what my dream was and what it means?”

Daniel replied, “There are no wise men, enchanters, magicians, or fortune-tellers who can tell the king such things. But there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets, and he has shown King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in the future. Now I will tell you your dream and the visions you saw as you lay on your bed.

“While Your Majesty was sleeping, you dreamed about coming events. The revealer of mysteries has shown you what is going to happen. And it is not because I am wiser than any living person that I know the secret of your dream, but because God wanted you to understand what you were thinking about.

“Your Majesty, in your vision you saw in front of you a huge and powerful statue of a man, shining brilliantly, frightening and awesome. The head of the statue was made of fine gold, its chest and arms were of silver, its belly and thighs were of bronze, its legs were of iron, and its feet were a combination of iron and clay. But as you watched, a rock was cut from a mountain by supernatural means. It struck the feet of iron and clay, smashing them to bits. The whole statue collapsed into a heap of iron, clay, bronze, silver, and gold. The pieces were crushed as small as chaff on a threshing floor, and the wind blew them all away without a trace. But the rock that knocked the statue down became a great mountain that covered the whole earth.

“That was the dream; now I will tell Your Majesty what it means. Your Majesty, you are a king over many kings. The God of heaven has given you sovereignty, power, strength, and honor. He has made you the ruler over all the inhabited world and has put even the animals and birds under your control. You are the head of gold.

“But after your kingdom comes to an end, another great kingdom, inferior to yours, will rise to take your place. After that kingdom has fallen, yet a third great kingdom, represented by the bronze belly and thighs, will rise to rule the world. Following that kingdom, there will be a fourth great kingdom, as strong as iron. That kingdom will smash and crush all previous empires, just as iron smashes and crushes everything it strikes. The feet and toes you saw that were a combination of iron and clay show that this kingdom will be divided. Some parts of it will be as strong as iron, and others as weak as clay. This mixture of iron and clay also shows that these kingdoms will try to strengthen themselves by forming alliances with each other through intermarriage. But this will not succeed, just as iron and clay do not mix.

“During the reigns of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed; no one will ever conquer it. It will shatter all these kingdoms into nothingness, but it will stand forever. That is the meaning of the rock cut from the mountain by supernatural means, crushing to dust the statue of iron, bronze, clay, silver, and gold.

“The great God has shown Your Majesty what will happen in the future. The dream is true, and its meaning is certain.”

Then King Nebuchadnezzar bowed to the ground before Daniel and worshiped him, and he commanded his people to offer sacrifices and burn sweet incense before him. The king said to Daniel, “Truly, your God is the God of gods, the Lord over kings, a revealer of mysteries, for you have been able to reveal this secret.”

Then the king appointed Daniel to a high position and gave him many valuable gifts. He made Daniel ruler over the whole province of Babylon, as well as chief over all his wise men. At Daniel’s request, the appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to be in charge of all the affairs of the province of Babylon, while Daniel remained in the king’s court.

 

 

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