Leviticus 20:27

A man also or woman that hath a familiar spirit, or that is a wizard, shall surely be put to death: they shall stone them with stones: their blood shall be upon them.

Leviticus 20:27 (KJV)

Context

Leviticus is part of the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Bible, traditionally attributed to Moses. This book records the laws God gave to Israel for worship, daily life, and moral conduct. Leviticus 20:27 belongs to the Holiness Code, a section that calls God’s people to be set apart from the practices of surrounding nations. These laws were given through Moses as part of the covenant between God and Israel.

Meaning

The verse forbids having a familiar spirit or being a wizard. A familiar spirit was a spirit of divination or necromancy, consulted for hidden knowledge. A wizard practiced sorcery or fortune-telling. Both involve seeking supernatural guidance from sources other than God. The punishment was death by stoning, and the phrase “their blood shall be upon them” shows that the offender bore personal responsibility for the crime.

The severity of the penalty reflects how seriously God viewed such practices. They were not minor errors but acts of rebellion against His exclusive claim on Israel’s worship and trust. Turning to spirits or sorcerers denied God’s sufficiency and opened the door to deception and demonic influence. The death penalty was part of the theocratic civil law of Israel, not a mandate for the church today.

Biblical connections

This command echoes Leviticus 19:31, which warns against turning to familiar spirits and wizards. The New Testament continues the warning: Galatians 5:20 lists witchcraft as a work of the flesh, and Acts 16:16 shows a woman with a spirit of divination in the early church era. These passages confirm that the principle against occult practices remains consistent throughout Scripture.

Application

Christians are not under the Old Testament civil law, so the death penalty is not a mandate for the church today. However, the moral principle stands: believers must reject all forms of occult involvement, including witchcraft, sorcery, fortune-telling, and consulting spirits. Instead, they should seek God through prayer, His Word, and the Holy Spirit’s guidance.

This teaching should never be used to justify harm, discrimination, or violence against people involved in such practices. Christians are called to love their neighbors and share the gospel with compassion, while firmly rejecting the practices themselves. The underlying principle of exclusive devotion to God remains.

Reflection

God’s people are to trust Him alone for wisdom and direction. The verse challenges us to examine our own hearts for any reliance on sources other than God, whether obvious occult practices or subtler forms of seeking control or hidden knowledge. True devotion means turning away from every counterfeit and resting in God’s faithful care.