Skip to main content
Meaning in Mitzvot -
Lesson 76

Prohibition on Divination

21.09.2014
Text file

 

The Torah is very explicit in its condemnation of divination: "When you come to the land which HaShem your God gives you, don't accustom yourself to practice the abominations of those nations.  There should not be among you one who passes his son or daughter through the fire, a conjurer, or diviner, or a sorcerer; or a charmer or one who consults a familiar spirit, or a necromancer.  For one who does these is an abomination before God, and because of these abominations HaShem your God drives them (the other nations) out before you.  Be wholehearted with HaShem, your God" (Devarim 18:9-13.)

 

These magical practices are largely associated with pagan worship, which is the very antithesis of Judaism.  "Anyone who denies pagan worship is called a Jew" (Megilla 13a.)  Like an idolater, the diviner is preoccupied with the spiritual influences of base and material objects.  So these prohibitions are hardly surprising.

 

Yet regarding these customs we find some remarkable leniencies.  For instance, even though remarking "Slaughter that chicken because it crowed like a rooster" is a forbidden superstition, it is permissible to slaughter it if the reason is not mentioned (SA YD 179:1 in Rema.)  And in the case of danger to life conjuring is permitted (SA YD 179:7), although all prohibitions relating to idolatry are forbidden even on pain of death (SA YD 159:7.)  The Shulchan Arukh even mentions one opinion that consulting demons is permissible in order to locate a stolen object! (SA YD 159:16.)

 

DIVINE SOVEREIGNTY AND DIVINE PROVIDENCE

 

The key to understanding the subtle difference between conjuring and idolatry is in the continuation of the Biblical passage: "Be wholehearted with HaShem."  The Torah doesn't tell us merely to believe in God, but rather to rely on Him with all our hearts.

 

The essence of idolatry is the denial of God's sovereignty.  The idolater may believe in God, and indeed our Sages tell us that the pagans called God "the God of gods" (Menachot 110a.)  What they deny is His absolute sovereignty.  They may recognize His might, but believe that other, lesser forces also have independent power and influence which need to be recognized and served. 

 

However, belief solely in God's sovereignty is far from perfect faith.  Imagine someone who believes in one God, Who rules over the earth and over all the nations, and Who is in control of our destinies – but doesn't believe that this Supreme Being loves and provides for us.  This person would certainly be a monotheist, but his faith is very far from our own.

 

Jewish faith is intimately tied up with the idea of Divine PROVIDENCE – the idea that God loves us, seeks our good, and provides for us.  "For HaShem your God He is the God of gods and the Lord of lords, the great, mighty and awesome Ruler, who shows no partiality and takes no bribes" (Devarim 10:17) – this expresses His sovereignty.  Yet the very next verse continues: "He does justice to the orphan and the widow, and loves the stranger, giving him food and clothing."  This verse adds the crucial element of His loving providence.

 

It is this element which is contradicted by divining and the like.  If we believe that a chicken that crows like a rooster is an auger of bad fortune, or if a particular spirit knows where a stolen object is, this doesn't contradict God's sovereignty.  We are not worshipping or serving the chicken or the spirit, merely taking advantage of the knowledge they provide us.  Most early authorities believed the forces that are the subject of these laws to be genuine influences and not empty superstitions.

 

However, giving excessive attention to these signs and omens does clash with belief in His sovereignty.  God does want us to make our way in the world taking advantage of our knowledge and intuition, but ultimately He wants us to place our trust in Him.  It is forbidden to rely on miracles and forego earthly pursuits like making a living or keeping ourselves from danger, but neither are we supposed to go to the opposite extreme and go out of our way to try and predict the future and discern every possible eventuality.  The future will forever remain uncertain; the only thing we know for sure is that God is watching over us and continues to provide our every need.

 

Therefore, the practices forbidden in this chapter can be relaxed if there are extenuating circumstances.  When a person is in dire straits, means that are normally considered excessive worry become instead ordinary prudence.  If an ordinary, healthy person were to undergo an extensive, expensive and burdensome battery of medical tests just to confirm he does not have some rare disease, we would consider him neurotic.  But if a very weak and sickly person did so after finding no satisfactory diagnosis for his condition, we would consider him to be rational and prudent.

 

This example is more than just an illustration.  Every generation has its own variation on divination for people who desire guarantees of what the future holds; any time a person's natural wonder about the future turns into an excessive desire to be prepared for any possible eventuality, there is a lack of trust in God's providence.  For instance, the outstanding Halachik authority Rabbi Moshe Feinstein ruled that undergoing medical tests without any particular indication may indeed contravene the obligation to be whole-hearted with God (Igrot Moshe EHE IV:10.)

 

This explanation particularly explains why this commandment is conditioned on our coming into the Land of Israel.  As we have explained before, particularly the Land of Israel expresses God's providence to the world as a whole, as well as His special providence towards the Jewish people. 

"A land which HaShem your God looks after constantly; the eyes of HaShem your God are on it from the beginning of the year to the end of the year" (Devarim 11:12.)

 

WHICH FUTURE?

 

A related idea is hinted at in the contrast the Torah presents between the diviner and the prophet.  Immediately after the above passage the Torah tells us,

"HaShem your God will raise up for you a prophet from your midst, of your brothers, like me; listen to him" (Devarim 18:15.)

 

The prophet, not unlike the diviner, has knowledge of the future and the unknown.  Occasionally people would consult prophets for their hidden knowledge of mundane affairs, as when King Shaul consulted Shmuel to help him find his lost donkeys (I Shmuel chapter 9.)  However, our prophetic books contain almost no information of this kind.  When our prophets recorded their visions of the future, these did not primarily regard which king would be victorious in battle or how to make money in commodities, but rather on the moral future of the world and the circumstances of the final redemption.  This type of vision and insight does not oppose trust in God but rather exemplifies it.  The prophets are constantly exhorting us to conduct ourselves in a humane way, and promising us that God will console us from our travails and lead us in the ways of righteousness.

 

This website is constantly being improved. We would appreciate hearing from you. Questions and comments on the classes are welcome, as is help in tagging, categorizing, and creating brief summaries of the classes. Thank you for being part of the Torat Har Etzion community!