This is a continuation of the question posed to me by a minister during one of my speaking engagements. This scripture was under the Old Testament Exodus 22v18. The word “witch” can only be found in 3 places in the entire KJV Bible, and other allied faulty translations. The word is rendered “sorceress” in better translations. God abhorred sorcery among the people of Israel, by men or women.
Even then it wasn’t that when people saw an old woman looking haggard, the next thing to do was to lynch her. No! Such suspect had to be brought before the Elders of the city, just as was done for the stubborn and rebellious son (Deuteronomy 21: 18-21 ). It was the Elders who would examine her, and if found guilty, will then officially order the stoning.
Now a witch or sorceress is someone operating under demonic influence. Apart from witches, sorcerers or sorceresses, there are people in this present age, even religious people who perform activities under demonic influence and nobody stones them. If one stone or kills anyone, even a sorceress, in this dispensation outside the jurisdiction of the law, it is murder.
What God commands believers to do for such sorcerer is to cast out the demons (Mark 16: 17). In Acts 8: 9, Philip did not suspend his preaching to organise the brethren to stone Simon the sorcerer. Rather, the gospel preached by him made a believer of Simon and he was baptized [ Acts 8: 13 ]. In like manner, Paul did not slide back to Mosaic Law to cite Leviticus 20: 27, then declare “fall and die” on the girl with the spirit of divination. Rather be delivered her.
I need to make some clarifications. We should also not sneer at witches or sorcerers, or give them holier-than-thou look, because according to Revelation 21: 8, those well-dressed ones in the churches who are cowardly, i.e fearful and timid, unbelieving believers, immoral people ( fornicators), liars, idolaters are classmates of sorcerers (witches and wizards).
In case, there is still no clarity about who are idolaters; these are people who consider the riches of this world of greater value than their faith in God, those who have let their thoughts to sway from God because they focus on those things that are of the world.
Does that not sound like the average man in today’s church and outside the Church? It may even be pastors as the Bible suggests, “Remember that some men, EVEN PASTORS, lead sinful lives and everyone knows it”-I Timothy 5: 24a [ Living Bible ]. May God show mercy!
