What are Divinations? Divination is the [ancient] practice of seeing into the future or discovering hidden knowledge. Divination meaning according to the greek word “manteía” which means power to prophesy. Demons of this class are called divination spirits.
A Divination spirit is an entity behind the act of foreseeing or foretelling of future events or the discovery of hidden knowledge usually by manipulative forces.
Besides seeking to manipulate the future, divination is also prone to using lies and false beliefs in an attempt to control it. People are given false prophecies, which when believed and acted upon, will make their lives come true. The use of divination by those who want to attack the kingdom of God in this world leads them to partner with the devil in working against His righteousness and against the kingdom of God.
In this article, we will consider what the spirit of divination is with some biblical reference to this.
An English Definition of Divination?
Divination Definition: According to Merriam-Webster dictionary, divination is defined as “the art or practice of using omens or the aid of supernatural powers to foresee or foretell future events or discover hidden knowledge usually by the interpretation of omens or by the aid of supernatural powers.”
Origin of Divination
In the Latin language, divinare means “to foresee, predict, prophesy,” and divinus means “to be inspired by God.” It is an attempt to attain insight into a question or situation by using an occult, standardized process, or ritual, which is related to divinus, divine, or “to be inspired by a god.” Essentially, divination is the process by which mysterious knowledge is revealed by the use of supernatural means. In comparison with the occult, soothsaying, or fortune-telling, as it was once known, is a practice that is correlated with the occult.
Bible Meaning of Divination
In Deuteronomy 18:10, God describes how divination must be judged: “There shall not be found among you anyone who burns his son or his daughter as an offering, anyone who practices divination or tells fortunes or interprets omens, or anyone who is a sorcerer.” Furthermore, 1 Samuel 15:23 likens rebellion to the “sin of divination” by saying, “For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and presumption is like iniquity and idolatry.” 1 Samuel 15:23 ESV For rebellion is as the sin of divination, and presumption is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, he has also rejected you from being king.”.”
Divination is Forbidden by God
By direct practice or receiving words from divination [spirits], God forbids His people from having fellowship with divination. The words spoken to them by someone who ‘prophesies’ by divination open up their lives to other demon spirits. Once a demon spirit has a foothold in a life or a place, it usually opens the door for other spirits. As well as showing us how to deal with divination, the Bible shows us not to accommodate it.
‘As we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners much gain by fortune-telling.’ – Acts 16:16 ESV
Provoking God to Anger
Manasseh, a king in Judah who used divination and practiced other diabolical abominations which God warned His people against, brought trouble upon himself and his entire kingdom.
‘And he burned his sons as an offering in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, and used fortune-telling and omens and sorcery, and dealt with mediums and with necromancers. He did much evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking him to anger.’ – 2 Chronicles 33:6 ESV
When God is provoked, he wins!”
Identifying the Spirit
It has been said that the spirit [of divination] is very subtle and can only be identified by a deep level of discernment.
A young girl was being controlled by this spirit as Paul and his team were on their way to pray when they encountered her. As amazing as it might seem, only Paul was able to discover the true nature of the spirit and its source (despite the fact that it still took him some days to do so).
‘She followed Paul and us, crying out, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation.” – Acts 16:17 ESV
It would be easy to believe that she was speaking in accordance with the Holy Spirit just because she mentioned God, but a true spirit of prophecy would have added that Jesus is the Son of God as well! As you can see, this [subtle spirit of] divination carefully avoided calling the powerful name of Jesus in any way!
‘And this she kept doing for many days. Paul, having become greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And it came out that very hour.’ – Acts 16:18 ESV
It was at that point that Paul discerned the spirit and cast it out, and the spirit came out at that very moment.
Weapons of Deliverance and Victory at Your Disposal
i. The mighty name of Jesus:
There is no evil power that can resist the power of this mighty weapon. Because of the immense power that resides in the name of the Lord, demons must obey when Christians command them.
‘And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues;’ – Mark 16:17 ESV.
ii. Discernment. In order to successfully deal with the spirit of divination [and many other kinds of demonic spirits], this is an important ingredient. It is possible to obtain this in God’s shopping mall, which is described in 1 Cor. 12:10, and the cost is prayer. ‘…
You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask.’. – James 4:2 ESV
Wisdom Keys to Effectively Rid Yourself of Unclean Spirits
i. Repentance
If you have been involved with the spirit of divination in the past and you know that you are still (or are willing to be) free, one of the most important things you can do right now is to go down on your knees and repent to God if you have previously been involved with such a spirit. Let Jesus’ precious blood wash you clean when you ask Him for mercy and forgiveness and let Him wash your sins away.
‘If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.’ – 1 John 1:9 NKJV.
ii. Use your divine authority
In order to be able to deal with every kind of demon spirit that there is, Jesus gave the Church authority. As a result of Jesus Christ’s sacrifice for you, once you have been washed by His blood, you should use the authority he has given you and cast out the spirit of divination everywhere (even in your own life) and whenever you feel it coming upon you. When Paul finally discerned the spirit, he followed exactly the same actions he took when he finally opened his eyes.
‘But as many, as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name.’ – John 1:12 NKJV.
iii. Avoid the devil’s “prophets”
You can distinguish not only demons but also humans who work with them to combat them using your discernment under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. This means that channellers, mediums, sorcerers, warlocks, etc. are members of the psychic community. There are many people who pretend to be prophets in order to deceive and exploit the people who believe in them. This type of ministry should be avoided as they do not serve Jesus and His righteous kingdom in a righteous manner.z
They have seen false visions and lying divinations. They say, ‘Declares the Lord,’ when the Lord has not sent them, and yet they expect him to fulfill their word. Ezekiel 13:6 ESV
Biblical Encounters
Divination and Israel’s Exile
Practicing divination is noted as one of the reasons for Israel’s exile as
2 Kings 17:16–17: 16 They forsook all the commands of the Lordtheir God and made for themselves two idols cast in the shape of calves, and an Asherah pole. They bowed down to all the starry hosts, and they worshiped Baal. 17 They sacrificed their sons and daughters in the fire.”
Jeremiah 14:14 spoke of the false prophets of the time, saying, “And the LORD said to me: “The prophets are prophesying lies in my name. I did not send them, nor did I command them or speak to them.
The Slave Girl that Was Possessed by A Spirit of Divination
In the book of Acts there is an example of a person practicing divination in the Bible. When Luke was traveling with Paul and Silas in the city of Philippi, he recorded an encounter with a sorceress during the journey:
“16 As we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners much gain by fortune-telling. 17 She followed Paul and us, crying out, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation.” 18 And this she kept doing for many days. Paul, having become greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And it came out that very hour.
19 But when her owners saw that their hope of gain was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace before the rulers. 20 And when they had brought them to the magistrates, they said, “These men are Jews, and they are disturbing our city. 21 They advocate customs that are not lawful for us as Romans to accept or practice.” 22 The crowd joined in attacking them, and the magistrates tore the garments off them and gave orders to beat them with rods. 23 And when they had inflicted many blows upon them, they threw them into prison, ordering the jailer to keep them safely. 24 Having received this order, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.” Acts 16:16-24 ESV
Final Words
Seek Wisdom from only God
The act of divination in any form is a sin, since it is corrupted seeking of spiritual knowledge in the form of divination. When you practice divination, you are going to be deceived and separated from God’s wisdom as you are going to be deceived. As Christians, we should avoid all forms of divination, including fortune-telling, astrology, witchcraft, tarot cards, and spell-casting, which are all related to divination. There is a spirit realm that exists, but it is not harmless in any way. The Bible teaches that any spirit that is not the Holy Spirit or that is not an angelic being is a malevolent spirit, according to the passage.
As Christians, we do not need to dread the spirits connected with divination, nor should we avert our eyes from their knowledge. In James 1:5 it says, “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to everyone without reproach, and he will give it to him.” As true, benevolent wisdom only comes from God, as stated in James 1:5.