What is a medium?

Verse 11 adds to this the evil of conjuring spells, that is, hypnotism, and also the wickedness of one acting as a medium, which means one who is a go-between, bringing messages from an evil spirit to another person. A spiritist is similar, that is, one having contact with evil spirits. One who calls up the dead is one who claims to actually bring a dead person in contact with a living person.

The word is ob, which means 'a leather bottle or skin,' and is thought to suggest that the people referred to were claimed to be inflated with a spirit. It occurs sixteen times and is translated as above in every place. As an example of the meaning of this word we have the woman at Endor whom Saul consulted: she is said to have had a familiar spirit.

Are these the spirits of the human dead? Surely not. They are evil spirits, which, as the Bible shows us, desire to possess human bodies... And the spirits that possess the bodies of mediums today, and speak at these sessions are spirits of the same order; spirits in rebellion against God. For their own purposes they may veil their malice and even appear as ministers of righteousness, for Satan, their chief leader, transforms himself — when it suits him — into an angel of light (2 Cor. 11:14-15).

Overruling her objections, he told her to bring up Samuel. Notice carefully what happened. Before she could begin her incantations, Samuel appeared. She was not permitted to get in touch with her usual demon that night. The Lord intervened for reasons of His own. The woman was terrified at the appearance of Samuel, for she had never had such an experience before. God sent the prophet to the abandoned king; the woman had nothing whatever to do with the matter.

The essential idea of a witch was dealings with spirits, which finds its counterpart in the spiritualism of the present day... This is the very thing that spiritualists claim to do — to bring the inquirer into communion with departed spirits. Like Saul, unable to get communications from God, they seek information about things unknown and unseen through the agency of spirits. It is in fact a turning from God to Satan.

From the above we see in the Old Testament, that Spiritualism is sternly forbidden by God... It is defiling. Its followers God would destroy. Its mediums the people were commanded to stone to death. It is no new thing... It is not an advance on Christianity, as some claim, but a backward movement to the worst features of heathenism.

We ask, in reply, Are there any Christians who are in the habit of going to the performances of wizards, magicians and necromancers? Are there any who take part in table-turning, spirit-rapping, mesmerism, or clairvoyance? If so, the passage which we have just quoted bears very pointedly and solemnly on all such... We are thoroughly persuaded that when people give themselves to the dreadful business of bringing up, in any way, the spirits of the departed, they are simply putting themselves into the hands of the devil to be deceived and deluded by his lies.

If people will not hear the word of God, if they will not believe its clear and solemn statements about themselves, their present condition, their future destiny, neither will they be persuaded though a thousand departed souls were to come back and tell them what they saw, and heard, and felt in heaven above or in hell beneath... The heart that will not bow to Scripture will not be convinced by anything; and as to the true believer, he has in Scripture all he can possibly want.

In due order then we find not only all this curious dabbling with evil firmly set aside and superseded... but the great prophet — Christ Himself... "The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet from among you, of your brothers, like me; to him you shall listen."