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‘When they say to you, “Consult the mediums and the spiritists who whisper and mutter,” should a people not consult their God? Should they consult the dead on behalf of the living? To the Law and to the testimony! If they do not speak in accordance with this word, it is because they have no dawn. They will pass through the land dejected and hungry, and it will turn out that when they are hungry, they will become enraged and curse their king and their God as they face upward. Then they will look to the earth, and behold, distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish; and they will be driven away into darkness.’ – Isaiah 8: 19-22

The Israelites had the unspeakable privilege of being entrusted with the oracles of God. This separated them from the neighbouring nations and served, or was supposed to serve, as a guide for all their endeavours as individuals and as a nation. The Psalmist said, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105). Even though they had the word of God as a guide, the temptation to seek direction from other entities in the day of trouble still existed. Two prominent examples come to mind. 

Firstly, King Saul, who said to his servants, “Find for me a woman who is a medium, so that I may go to her and inquire of her.” They told him, “There is a woman who is a medium at En-dor” (1 Samuel 28:7-8). He went to consult her. 

Secondly, King Ahaziah, whose story reads: “And Ahaziah fell through the window lattice in his upper chamber which was in Samaria, and became ill. So he sent messengers and said to them, “Go, inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I will recover from this sickness” (1 Kings 1:2).

In the theme text above, the Prophet said, ‘When they say to you, “Consult the mediums and the spiritists who whisper and mutter,” should a people not consult their God?’ He was saying, it is a principle of religion that a people are supposed to consult their God (Micah 4:5) and since the Almighty is their God, it is him they were to consult and not mediums or spiritists. A living dog is better than a dead lion (Ecclesiastes 9:4) so why should they consult the dead on behalf of the living?

You would think that this kind of thing should not even be mentioned among God’s people, but it happened in their midst. Is it possible that someone is reading these lines who is also passing through a period of distress and it feels like God is not responding to you as quickly as you’d like him to and you’re tempted to consult mediums or are already doing so? Don’t do it. Repent of it if you have gone down that road already. 

Is it possible that someone is reading these lines who is also passing through a period of distress and it feels like God is not responding to you as quickly as you’d like him to and you’re tempted to consult mediums or are already doing so? Don’t do it.

Beware of Sinful Curiosity

I see variations of this spiritism around that even Christians consider to be harmless and sinless, especially among millennials and Generation Z. Professing Christians believe in astrology, the so-called zodiac sign, that is determined by when they were born. They believe that one’s personality is determined by the zodiac sign that the sun was in at one’s birth. Where is the place of all things becoming new when a person is in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17) or of the transformation that comes from a renewed mind (Romans 12:2) in all of these? On social media, I see people indulge in so-called games that predict what they will be in say, a year, what child they will have, etc. The danger in this lies in its benign appearance but it goes back to this sinful curiosity of trying to know the things that God has not revealed but kept hidden and divinely purposes to have them remain so. The Bible says, “The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our sons forever, so that we may follow all the words of this Law” (Deuteronomy 29:29). 

I see variations of this spiritism around that even Christians consider to be harmless and sinless, especially among millennials and Generation Z.

Curiosity in itself is good as it enables us to make discoveries that positively impact our spiritual life as well as human existence generally. Curiosity is what enables scientific discoveries to be made, new medicines to fight stubborn viruses to be discovered, and many other life-enhancing innovations. But as with all things human, there is also sinful curiosity that the sinful nature stirs up and pushes people to cross boundaries that God in his boundless wisdom has set for our good. Be content with what God has revealed and let his secrets remain secrets.

The Primacy of the Written Word

The main focus of these meditations is the direction that the Israelites were pointed to as the way to go: To the Law and to the testimony! What does that mean? Here’s how Eugene Peterson paraphrases it in The Message: 

When people tell you, “Try out the fortunetellers.
    Consult the spiritualists.
Why not tap into the spirit world,
    get in touch with the dead?”
Tell them, “No, we’re going to study the Scriptures.”

To the law and to the testimony is a deliberate decision to refer to the written word, the scriptures, as the source of direction for all things in life, as opposed to other sources, worse of all mediums and spiritists. The Israelites were told to reply to any invitation to consult another source other than God’s word with a firm “No, we’re going to study the Scriptures.”

What is God’s chief means for correcting errors and giving guidance? God’s established primal means of giving direction is his word. Whenever or wherever the written word is neglected, error abounds. Jesus told the Sadducees: “You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures” (Matthew 22:29). The Prophet considered the written word as being sufficient for direction in all matters of life and godliness. To him, no matter was too simple or too complex the written word of God was not sufficient to provide direction for. I like you to note the emphasis on the written word. This was in the dispensation of the prophets, whose word became scripture, that the people were told to prioritize not a word of mouth from a man of God but the written scriptures. If it was so in their time, it is even more expedient in our time, that we place proper emphasis on the written word. Permit a personal question: what is the compass that guides your life? Where do you turn to for direction? When you are faced with knotty issues, whose word is final and sufficient for you?

Permit a personal question: what is the compass that guides your life? Where do you turn to for direction? When you are faced with knotty issues, whose word is final and sufficient for you?

Useful for All Things in All Seasons

The written word is not useful only for direction in certain areas of life but in all. You will never be drawn to consult necromancers, mediums, or spiritists if you know how to make good use of your Bible. If you follow the counsel of Isaiah and go to the law and to the testimony (the scriptures), you will find what is good and what the Lord requires of you. You will have less need of some of the directions that you depend on people, even men of God, for. If as a Pastor you direct your members to the law and to the testimony, you will have fewer hours of stressful counseling or resolution of disciplinary issues; the written word will do its work. If as a parent you direct your children to the law and to the testimony, you will have fewer headaches and as scripture says, when they are old, they will not depart from it (Proverbs 22:6).

This written word that we have around us everywhere today but don’t treasure, may I remind you that some persons paid the supreme price to get it to us. There was a time when it was a crime, punishable by death, to translate the Holy Scriptures into a language other than the original languages. But today we have it in various languages and versions that can be carried about in a pocket. We have no excuse for not being guided by Scripture.

The scriptures must be made the standard of all you do; your life should conform to it; you should take counsel and advice from it. Everything you do must be determined and overruled by the written word. Your beliefs and your conduct; whom to marry; how your marriage is run; how your children are brought up; how your ministry or business or vocation is run; how your resources are expended; how your talents and gifts are put to use; everything must be determined and overruled by the written word. That is how it is meant to be. 

The scriptures must be made the standard of all you do; your life should conform to it; you should take counsel and advice from it. Everything you do must be determined and overruled by the written word.

If You Don’t 

This is a not a take it or leave it instruction with no bite for contraventions. Here’s Peterson again: 

“People who try the other ways get nowhere—a dead end!
Frustrated and famished,
    they try one thing after another.
When nothing works out they get angry,
    cursing first this god and then that one,
Looking this way and that,
    up, down, and sideways—and seeing nothing,
A blank wall, an empty hole.
    They end up in the dark with nothing.” – Isaiah 8: 21-22, MSG

If you will not be overruled by the written word, you will be ruled by something else and it will not be palatable. The prophet says people who try other ways meet a dead end; frustration, famishment, and anger will be their lot. The woman who says I will not obey the word and submit to my husband as the church submits to Christ will have a turbulent home if she still has one. The man who refuses to heed scripture’s warnings on alcohol will have many bruises – health-wise, money-wise, family-wise, etc. The person who turns away from scripture to consult mediums will draw the wrath of God and meet a dead end. Such a person will come upon a “blank wall, an empty hole” and “end up in the dark with nothing.”

Thankfully

Thankfully, we have been redeemed by Christ and have been given the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, as Christ promised, will guide you into all truth (John 16:13). Even he will not speak of his own but will speak of what he hears. He will take of what is Christ’s and disclose it to you. All he says will be in accord with what is in the written word. The word is enough for all matters of life and godliness; even God restricts himself to the word. Let the word be enough for you too. Let all that concerns you be determined and overruled by the written word. Whenever you have a choice to make in all matters small or large, in every moment of each day, command yourself to go to the law and to the testimony.