[Biblical Notes Quarterly. Vol. 6, No. 1. January-March 2002, 4-5.] Sorcery — the word conjures (no pun intended) numerous images that fire our imaginations: spells cast in unknown tongues by gray bearded wizards, malevolent witches, otherworldly forces, runes read by candlelight, eerie chants, powerful talismans, mysterious potions, voodoo dolls, magic amulets, hexes, flying broomsticks, dark nights, mist shrouded cemeteries, full moons, ghosts, cauldrons bubbling in the shadows, eye of newt, wing of bat and all of that. No doubt, we owe much of our perception to Hollywood, but from early times, sorcery has been a real evil to be reckoned with. It was a bane of the Canaanites, and God, in no uncertain terms, forbade Israel to have anything to do with it. There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. For all who do these things are an abomination to the LORD, and because of these abominations the LORD your God drives them out from before you. (Deuteronomy 18:10-12 NKJV) In fact, under Moses’ law, sorcery was a capital crime, carrying the death penalty (Exodus 22:18). To his credit, King Saul took action to remove witches from Israel (though one wonders why they were not summarily executed, as per the law). Not to his