Witch

Witch in the Old Testament translates the Hebrew mekhashshepheh (feminine) or mekhashsheph (masculine), from the root kashaph, meaning to practice sorcery or use magical arts. The Mosaic law pronounced the death penalty on anyone who practiced sorcery: "Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live" (Exodus 22:18). Deuteronomy 18:10 lists similar prohibitions: "There shall not be found among you... one who practices witchcraft." The broader context makes clear that such practices were associated with the religions of Canaan and represented a form of seeking guidance and power from sources other than the LORD. Saul's desperate consultation of the medium of Endor (1 Samuel 28:7–25) — condemned as a witch-like consultation — illustrates the trajectory of one who has turned from God. The prohibition of witchcraft was grounded not merely in social harm but in theological principle: all hidden knowledge and occult power belongs to God, and seeking it through other channels is a rejection of his sovereignty and a form of idolatry.