Editing Necromancy (section)

=== Prohibited among Israelites ===

There are also several references to necromancers – called "bone-conjurers" among Jews of the later [[Hellenistic period]]<ref>Luck, p. 57.</ref> – in the [[Bible]]. The [[Book of Deuteronomy]] ([[s:Bible (King James)/Deuteronomy#18:9|18:9–12]]<ref>{{abbr|cf.|compare with}} [[s:Tanakh/Torah/Devarim#Devarim 18|''Tanakh, Torah, Devarim'' 18:9–12]].</ref>) explicitly warns the [[Israelites]] against engaging in the [[Canaan#Hebrew Bible|Canaanite]] practice of divination from the dead: {{Blockquote|<sup>9</sup>When thou art come into the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not learn to do according to the abominations of those nations. <sup>10</sup>There shall not be found among you any one who maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or who useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, <sup>11</sup>or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. <sup>12</sup>For all who do these things are an abomination unto the LORD, and because of these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee ([[Authorized King James Version|KJV]]).}} Though Mosaic Law prescribed the [[List of capital crimes in the Torah|death penalty]] to practitioners of necromancy ([[s:Bible (King James)/Leviticus#20:27|Leviticus 20:27]]<ref>{{abbr|cf.|compare with}} [[s:Tanakh/Torah/Vayikra#Vayikra 20|''Tanakh, Torah, Vayikra'' 20:27]].</ref>), this warning was not always heeded. One of the foremost examples is when King [[Saul]] had the [[Witch of Endor]] invoke the spirit of [[Samuel (Bible)|Samuel]], a [[Biblical judges|judge]] and [[prophet]], from [[Sheol]] to divine the outcome of a coming battle ([[s:Bible (King James)/1 Samuel#28:3|1 Samuel 28:3–25]]<ref>{{abbr|cf.|compare with}} [http://www.mechon-mamre.org/p/pt/pt08a28.htm#3 ''Tanakh, Nevi'im, Shmu'el Aleph'' 28:3–25] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120509225206/http://www.mechon-mamre.org/p/pt/pt08a28.htm#3 |date=2012-05-09 }}.</ref>). However, the so-called witch was shocked at the presence of a familiar spirit in the image of Samuel for in I Sam 28:7 states "Behold, there is a woman that hath a familiar spirit at Endor" and in I Sam 28:12 says, "when the woman saw Samuel, she cried out in a loud voice", and the familiar spirit questioned his reawakening, asking as if he were Samuel the Prophet, "Why hast thou disquieted me?"<ref>{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/livesnecromance04godwgoog|title=Lives of the Necromancers|author=William Godwin|year=1876|page=[https://archive.org/details/livesnecromance04godwgoog/page/n41 18]}}</ref> Saul died the next day in combat, with Chronicles 10:13 implying this was due to the prohibition against necromancy.