Occult Practices

⁹ When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you, do not learn to imitate^(A) the detestable ways^(B) of the nations there. ¹⁰ Let no one be found among you who sacrifices their son or daughter in the fire,^(C) who practices divination^(D) or sorcery,^(E) interprets omens, engages in witchcraft,^{(F) 11} or casts spells,^(G) or who is a medium or spiritist^(H) or who consults the dead. ¹² Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord; because of these same detestable practices the Lord your God will drive out those nations before you.^{(I) 13} You must be blameless^(J) before the Lord your God.^(K)

The Prophet

¹⁴ The nations you will dispossess listen to those who practice sorcery or divination.^(L) But as for you, the Lord your God has not permitted you to do so.

Paul and the False Apostles

11 I hope you will put up with^(A) me in a little foolishness.^(B) Yes, please put up with me! ² I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. I promised you to one husband,^(C) to Christ, so that I might present you^(D) as a pure virgin to him. ³ But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning,^(E) your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ. ⁴ For if someone comes to you and preaches a Jesus other than the Jesus we preached,^(F) or if you receive a different spirit^(G) from the Spirit you received, or a different gospel^(H) from the one you accepted, you put up with it^(I) easily enough.

⁵ I do not think I am in the least inferior to those “super-apostles.”^{[a](J) 6} I may indeed be untrained as a speaker,^(K) but I do have knowledge.^(L) We have made this perfectly clear to you in every way.

¹³ For such people are false apostles,^(A) deceitful^(B) workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ.^{(C) 14} And no wonder, for Satan^(D) himself masquerades as an angel of light. ¹⁵ It is not surprising, then, if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve.^(E)

⁷ Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil,^(A) and he will flee from you.