Reference: Magic, Divination, and Sorcery
Hastings
Magic, divination, sorcery, and witchcraft are all connected with belief in superhuman powers, and are methods whereby men endeavour to obtain from these powers knowledge of the future, or assistance in the affairs of life. Belief in magic and divination is most prevalent in the lower stages of civilization and religion. The arts of the magician and the diviner were founded upon the same logical processes as have issued in the development of modern science; but the limits within which deduction would be valid were disregarded, and the data were frequently imperfect. Accidental coincidence was often confused with causal sequence. (See Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible, art. 'Divination'). Magic and divination were derived from attempts at reasoning which were very often erroneous; but from such crude beginnings science has slowly grown.
In their beginning these arts were associated with religion; and diviners and magicians were those thought to be most intimately connected with the Deity, and, owing to their superior knowledge of Him and His ways, best able to learn His secrets or secure His aid. Among the Arabs the priest was originally also the soothsayer; the Heb. k
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But just as this thought occurred to him, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, and said, "Joseph, descendant of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for it is through the influence of the Holy Spirit that she has become an expectant mother.
Now when Jesus was born at Bethlehem in Judea in the days of King Herod, stargazers came from the East to Jerusalem
Then, as they had been divinely warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they set out to their own country by another route.
And whenever you pray, you must not keep on repeating set phrases, as the heathen do, for they suppose that they will be heard in accordance with the length of their prayers,
And if I am driving out demons by the help of Beelzebub, by whose help are your sons driving them out? So they must be your judges.
Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered Him as follows: "Teacher, we would like to see a spectacular sign given by you."
The Pharisees and the Sadducees came up, and to test Him asked Him to show them a spectacular sign from heaven.
They do what they do to attract people's attention. They wear on their coats Scripture texts in big letters, and they wear large tassels,
Now while he was on the bench, his wife sent him this word, "Do not have anything to do with that righteous man, for I have this morning suffered excruciating pain in a dream caused by Him."
But others, to test Him, were demanding from Him a spectacular sign from heaven.
So He came back to Cana in Galilee where He had turned the water into wine. Now there was at Capernaum an officer of the king's court whose son was sick.
There was a man named Simon in the city, who had kept the Samaritan people thrilled by practicing magic there and by claiming to be a great man.
But Elymas the magician -- for this is the meaning of his name -- continued to oppose them by trying to keep the governor from accepting the faith.
Once as we were on our way to the place of prayer, a slave girl met us who had the gift of magical fortune-telling, and continued to make great profits for her owners by fortune-telling.
But some wandering Jews who claimed to be driving out the evil spirits tried to use the name of the Lord Jesus on those who had evil spirits in them, saying, "I command you by that Jesus whom Paul preaches!"
Many people who had practiced magic brought their books together and burned them up before the public gaze. They estimated the price of them and found it to be ten thousand dollars.
idolatry, sorcery, enmity, quarreling, jealousy, anger, intrigues, dissensions, party-spirit,
by His death in His human body, so as to present you consecrated, faultless, and blameless in His presence,
But bad men and imposters will go on from bad to worse, misleading others and misled themselves.
and they never did repent of their murders, their practices in magic, their immorality, or their thefts.
Then I heard a loud voice from the throne say: "See! God's dwelling place is with men, and He will live with them,