This is not surprising really as any religion in and of itself must contain a degree of superstition. The definition of superstition according to Webster is as follows.
1 a : a belief or practice resulting from ignorance, fear of the unknown, trust in magic or chance, or a false conception of causation b : an irrational abject attitude of mind toward the supernatural, nature, or God resulting from superstition2 : a notion maintained despite evidence to the contrary
A belief in God, the spiritual realm, and the influences that these spiritual forces can and do have on the natural world, inevitably lead to the use of magic and incantation in an attempt to control these forces (in Christianity, it is used to control the evil forces in the world. I have argued elsewhere that prayer, in some cases, is a form of trying to control the force of good that is God) Thus, any religion which acknowledges the spiritual realm and its influence on the world around us will have an element of magic to control that spiritual realm. Christianity is no different.
Let’s start by examining some incantations from Mesopotamian literature. When I use the term incantation, I mean it in the following sense: a use of spells or verbal charms spoken or sung as a part of a ritual of magic; a written or recited formula of words designed to produce a particular effect (Webster’s Dictionary). The incantations that we will be looking at fit this particular definition. The Mesopotamians loved magic and incantations. Countless cuneiform tablets have been discovered which display various aspects of what incantations were used for. They had incantations against demons, an adversary in a lawsuit, an angry man, bile, the evil eye, eye disease, fever, flatulence (yes that’s right, you could say a little diddy and get rid of your excess gas), headache, infertility, nurses harmful to children, phantoms, scorpions, toothache, witchcraft, and it goes on like this. What follows is an incantation against Lamashtu, a demon known for snatching babies and causing miscarriages and still-born children.
She is furious, she is fierce, she is uncanny, she has an awful glamour, and she is a she-wolf, the daughter of Anu!
Her feet are those of Anzu, her hands are unclean, the face of a ravening lion is her face. She came up from the reed bed, her hair askew, her loincloth torn away. She stalks the cattle’s tracks, she dogs the sheep’s tracks, her hands are gory with flesh and blood. She comes in the window, slithering like a serpent, She enters a house, she leaves a house. “Bring me your sons that I may suckle them, and your daughters, that I may nurse them, Let me put my breast in your daughters’ mouths!”
Ea his father heard her, “O daughter of Anu, instead of trying to be the nursemaid of humankind, Instead of your hands being gory with flesh and blood, Instead of entering a house, leaving a house, accept from the traveling merchant a cloak and provisions, accept from the smith bracelets as befit your hands and feet, accept from the jeweller an earring as befits your ears, accept from the gem cutter a carnelian as befits your neck, accept from the woodworker a comb, a distaff, and your garment pin.”
I conjure you by Anu your father, Antu your mother. I conjure you by Ea, who created your name!
Here the demon Lamashtu is controlled via this incantation. She is tempted away from the house of the expectant mother with the idea of varied material goods. The heart of the incantation comes at the end where the performer of this ritual controls Lamashtu by mentioning the names of higher gods in the pantheon, namely Anu, Antu, and Ea, whom Lamashtu is presumed to respect and have to obey.
The Israelite religion displays a similar, although different, form of magic against a force not unlike Lamashtu during the epic of the plagues of Egypt. It occurs as protection against the destroyer which Yahweh allows to go throughout Egypt and kill all first-born children.
Exodus 11: 21-23
Then Moses called all the elders of Israel and said to them, “Go, select lambs for your families, and slaughter the Passover lamb. Take a bunch of hyssop, dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and touch the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood in the basin. None of you shall go outside the door of your house until morning. For the Lord will pass through to strike down the Egyptians; when he sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over that door and will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses to strike you down.
Now presumably, if God was indeed all knowing, he should have had the wherewithal to know who his chosen people were and who the Egyptians were without this bloody mess all over the door-posts. Yet, this was required for some reason in order to repel the destroyer from coming in to the house. This is a form of magic, resulting from superstition. This passage, like the Mesopotamian incantation against Lamashtu, demonstrates the use of magic to control those spiritual forces which cannot be seen and are not of this natural world. Why they thought that putting blood on the door posts would help, or that certain specific words recited in a particular way would be able to control those evil forces may never be understood fully to the modern reader, yet what is certain is that they felt certain that performing these rituals would ensure the control of the malevolent force. In the case of the Israelites, there is not really a theology of angels and demons per se until they came into contact with Babylonian religion during the exile where it may be argued that the idea of angels and demons was assimilated into Israelite religion. Therefore, it is difficult to find with any certainty magic or incantations against demons or evil gods specifically. However, there is another instance where magic is used against a sickness or ailment. It is in Numbers 21 where we first encounter the bronze serpent.
4 They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea,to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way; 5 they spoke against God and against Moses, and said, "Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the desert? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!"
6 Then the LORD sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. 7 The people came to Moses and said, "We sinned when we spoke against the LORD and against you. Pray that the LORD will take the snakes away from us." So Moses prayed for the people.
8 The LORD said to Moses, "Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live." 9 So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, he lived.
Karen Joins interprets this use of the bronze snake as “sympathetic magic”.
“the restoration of life, the most prominent element in the tradition of Moses and the bronze serpent seems to be that of sympathetic magic- the belief that the fate of an object or person can be governed by the manipulation of its exact image. Thereby a representation of a noxious creature could best drive off that creature, and an adversary could most effectively be controlled by the manipulation of his exact image.”
As such, it is not necessarily by the power of God alone that the Israelites could be healed, but through this bronze serpent, a source of magic that can repel the snakes. The Mesopotamians also had incantations against various dangerous animals, including snakes and scorpions, which could be used to repel the animals in question.
I seize the mouth of all snakes, even the viper, Serpent that cannot be conjured:
The alabaster burrower, the fish-snake with rainbow eyes
The eel, the hissing snake, The hisser, the snake at the window.
It came in by a crevice, It went out by a drain. It struck the gazelle while it slept, It secreted itself in a withered oak.
The snake lurks in a roof beam, The serpent lurks in wool.
The serpent has six mouths, seven tongues, Seven are the poisonous vapors of its heart.
It is bushy of hair, horrible of feature, Its eyes are frightful.
Bubbles ooze from its maw, Its spittle cleaves stone.
Here, “seized the mouth” is interpreted as “capture by spell”. In the Mesopotamian view, control of the mouth expresses absolute control. Thus, in similar ways, both Israelite and Mesopotamian religion demonstrate an example of magic used to control a malevolent animal, in this case the snake. The Israelites used an image of the snake as sympathetic magic, and the Mesopotamians used an incantation which may have been used alongside some kind of ritual.
What follows here is another Mesopotamian example of an incantation. This particular one is a conjuring against evil spirits, specifically, “The Seven”, which is a group of demons which eludes our specific knowledge.
They are seven, they are seven,
They are seven in the springs of the depths,
They are seven, adorned in heaven.
They grew up in the springs of the depths, in the cella.
They are not male, they are not female,
They are drifting phantoms,
They take no wife, they beget no son.
They know neither sparing of life nor mercy,
They heed neither prayers nor entreaties.
They are steeds that grew up in the mountains,
They are the evil ones of Ea,
They are the prefects of the gods.
They loiter in the side streets to make trouble on the highway.
They are evil, they are evil!
They are seven, they are seven, they are twice seven!
Be conjured by heaven, be conjured by the netherworld!
In this incantation, the evil spirits are in some way connected with Ea, one of the highest ranking gods in the Mesopotamian pantheon. In a way, they are very reminiscent of the fallen angels of Christianity in that they are connected with heaven, yet are now evil. The number seven likely does not refer to a specific number of these evil spirits, but rather is a number representing completion, or in other words, a large group. This incantation is meant as a conjuring of these evil spirits in order to protect the person speaking it. Compare this to Psalm 91.
Psalm 91
Security of the One Who Trusts in the LORD.
1He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
Will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
2I will say to the LORD, "My refuge and my fortress,
My God, in whom I trust!"
3For it is He who delivers you from the snare of the trapper
And from the deadly pestilence.
4He will cover you with His pinions,
And under His wings you may seek refuge;
His faithfulness is a shield and bulwark.
You will not be afraid of the terror by night,
Or of the arrow that flies by day;
6Of the pestilence that stalks in darkness,
Or of the destruction that lays waste at noon.
7A thousand may fall at your side
And ten thousand at your right hand,
But it shall not approach you.
8You will only look on with your eyes
And see the recompense of the wicked.
9For you have made the LORD, my refuge,
Even the Most High, your dwelling place.
10No evil will befall you,
Nor will any plague come near your tent.
11For He will give His angels charge concerning you,
To guard you in all your ways.
12They will bear you up in their hands,
That you do not strike your foot against a stone.
13You will tread upon the lion and cobra,
The young lion and the serpent you will trample down.
14"Because he has loved Me, therefore I will deliver him;
I will set him securely on high, because he has known My name.
15"He will call upon Me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble;
I will rescue him and honor him.
16"With a long life I will satisfy him
And let him see My salvation."
It has been argued that the thousand referred to in verse 7 refer to evil spirits comparable to the ones mentioned in the Mesopotamian incantation. It has also been argued by scholars that some of the psalms, such as Psalm 91, may have been used within the context of an incantation ritual. Given the ritualistic form and structure of many of the Psalms, and the evasive context in which they were recited, it is not entirely unlikely that they could have been used in this context. However, the evidence is interpreted almost exclusively upon opinion and this cannot be proven with any certainty but I would not exclude the possibility. It may be argued that perhaps some were used in a magical sense, but certainly not all.
In Genesis 30 we find a rather curious instance with Jacob who uses some sort of magic in order to create striped, speckled, and spotted sheep. The method involved peeling the bark from rods of poplar and almond trees to make them appear striped. He then placed by and in the troughs where the sheep drank. If the sheep mated there, they produced striped, speckled and spotted offspring.
Genesis 30
37Then Jacob took fresh rods of poplar and almond and plane trees, and peeled white stripes in them, exposing the white which was in the rods.
38He set the rods which he had peeled in front of the flocks in the gutters, even in the watering troughs, where the flocks came to drink; and they mated when they came to drink.
39So the flocks mated by the rods, and the flocks brought forth striped, speckled, and spotted.
40Jacob separated the lambs, and made the flocks face toward the striped and all the black in the flock of Laban; and he put his own herds apart, and did not put them with Laban's flock.
41Moreover, whenever the stronger of the flock were mating, Jacob would place the rods in the sight of the flock in the gutters, so that they might mate by the rods;
42but when the flock was feeble, he did not put them in; so the feebler were Laban's and the stronger Jacob's.
43So the man became exceedingly prosperous, and had large flocks and female and male servants and camels and donkeys.
There is no mention of God being the aider in this instance, and it is clearly ridiculous to try and prove scientifically that this method will produce striped and spotted animals. As such, the last option is that this was some form of magical ritual apparently common enough to be recognized within this literary work by the reader.
We will now be taking a look at a couple of examples of magic and incantation that are not in the Bible, but are of extreme value in understanding the practice of the Israelites. Magic and incantation was not unfamiliar to the Israelites. Below is drawing of an amulet from the 7th century BCE.
On the reverse side is a Hebrew inscription containing an incantation against demons
The text above was discovered in Northern Syria. The symbols on the front of the amulet are very common to Israelite tradition including the Cherub (winged lion). What is interesting is that the inscription itself is in pure Biblical Hebrew. This is an incantation against Night demons, or as some other scholars have suggested, against demons who would snatch away a child from the womb or during child birth (compare to the role of Lamashtu and the Mesopotamian incantation cited above). With evidence of this incantation being written in Hebrew, it can be deduced that such things were not uncommon to Israelite thought. Although this incantation is in the name of Baal, it does demonstrate a knowledge of magic and incantation amongst the Israelites.This next example is from the Qumran texts (Dead sea scrolls) and dates between 150BCE and 70 AD. The text, labelled 4Q560, is an incantation against a demon, named Beelzebub, utilizing the form of conjuring by invoking the name of the deity, in this case Yahweh.
Column i
1. ...Beel]zebub, you/to you[...
2. ...]the midwife, the punishment of childbearers, an evil visitant, a de[mon . . .
3. ... I adjure you all who en]ter into the body, the male Wasting-demon and the female Wasting-demon
4. ... I adjure you by the name of YHWH, "He who re]moves iniquity and transgression,' O Fever and Chills and Chest Pain
5. ...and forbidden to disturb by night in dreams or by da]y in sleep, the male Shrine-spirit and the female Shrine-spirit, breacher-demons (?) of
6. ...w]icked...[ ]..[ ]l[ ]
7. ...]...[
8....
Column ii
1....
2. before h[im...
3. and...
4. before him and... [
5. And I, O spirit, adjure [you that you...
6. I adjure you, O spirit, [that you...
7. On the earth, in clouds [...
8....
This text is important for several reasons, one of which is that this is among the earliest examples of a Hebrew text which uses a personal name for a demon, in this case Beelzebub. Once again the demon in question in this text bears a remarkable resemblance to that of Lamashtu, the demon goddess who snatches away children. However, in this text, instead of conjuring the demon in the name of Anu, it is Yahweh’s name which is used to control the demon. This text also has an element of magical healing involved as well with mention of fever, chills, and chest pains. It is through the use of incantation that the user of this spell believed the recipient would be kept from, or healed from, these illnesses. This text demonstrates that at least the Qumran community had a use of magic and incantations within the context of their religion of Yahweh. It is likely that the text above, written on a scroll, was a master copy of a spell that was copied onto magical amulets or plaques which had a superstitious apotropaic function, such as the plaques which we will be studying next.
Before we move on to the next artifact, it is important to take a look at Numbers 6:22-27 which contains the famous words of the priestly blessing as dictated to Moses by Yahweh to in order to bless the Israelites.
22 The LORD said to Moses, 23 "Tell Aaron and his sons, 'This is how you are to bless the Israelites. Say to them:
24 " ' "The LORD bless you and keep you;
25 the LORD make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you;
26 the LORD turn his face toward you and give you peace." '
27 "So they will put my name on the Israelites, and I will bless them."
At first glance, if we see these verses through the eyes of our current Christian understanding, this is simply a blessing as we have come to utilize it. However, I have recently wondered to myself, what does it mean exactly when we ask God to bless him or her, or bless me? Are we asking for material goods? Are we asking for God to give some sort of emotional satisfaction or stability to the person we are asking him to bless? Does God blessing us mean that our lives will be all good and no harm will come to us? I think the whole asking for a blessing from God has become a quick way of putting something in a prayer that makes one sound holy or spiritual when in fact we don’t really even know the implications of what we are asking for or what we truly mean. I would argue that the priestly blessing, as seen in the chapter above, was used as an incantation of sorts in an apotropaic fashion (as a way to ward off evil). In the least, regardless of the original intention of the blessing, I will attempt to demonstrate that there were Israelites in the 7th century BCE who understood this blessing as an incantation.
On a side note (although intricately related), it is important to understand that whenever one takes the Bible as a proof for anything (in this case I have used it to demonstrate the use of magic in Israelite culture), that the Bible is only the literary representation of the religious practices and rites of the Israelites. It is becoming more apparent to scholars (at least those concerned with studying accurate history as much as is possible) that there must be an interdisciplinary effort between the textual and archaeological resources available to us in order to reconstruct an accurate model of Israelite religion. Ron Tappy, in his review of “Sacred Time, Sacred Place: Archaeology and the Religion of Israel”, puts it as follows:
“After opening his contribution by noting that the last fifteen years have witnessed "the beginning of the interdisciplinary dialogue that... is crucial," W. G. Dever contends that "the pursuit has been largely in vain" (p. 11). He then offers a sharp critique of past philo- logical and theological approaches to Israelite religion. While its stress on empirical data and comparative method gave philology an objective, academic edge over other reasons for studying Israelite religion (orthodox belief, personal piety, etc.), the discipline's "fundamental flaw" lay in its "positivist presuppositions." The burgeoning discipline assumed that the biblical texts preserved an accurate portrait of early Israelite religion and that philology would lead us to a correct reading and understanding of the texts. Yet "literature is not life but, rather, the product of the intellectual and literary imagination of a creative few" (p. 13). Working from texts alone, then, scholars recover only a Sitz im Literatur, not a reliable Sitz im Leben for Israelite religious thought and practice.
“For Dever, the biblical theology movement has devalued the history and religion of an- cient Israel by remaining confessional in character, seeking only to establish a foundation for modern belief, stressing typology, and misappropriating the texts "as simply the starting point of a Vergegenwtirtigung." That is, in proclaiming a salvation-history, the "story" re- ceives more stress than the facts, and the desire to know what really happened in antiquity is displaced by an acceptance of the biblical writers' interpretations, which become the basis for our own confessional recitals. Theology, Dever says, falls victim to its own need to locate ideological unity within the texts and to identify a "normative" religion.”
That being said, I would like to make some sort of concerted effort to utilize material remains as well as textual evidence to support my views. We will look at two plaques, or amulets that were discovered in 1979 that contained the priestly blessing and which scholars have come to the conclusion were intended as magical implements to ward of evil. The amulets themselves were discovered at Kitef Hinom, a site in Jerusalem.
The amulets were found inside a burial chamber in a repository amongst other artefacts deposited there. The plaques are silver with the letters scratched onto the surface. They are also relatively small (Ketef Hinnom I=27x97mm, Ketef Hinnom II= 11x39.2mm). The script is very difficult to read as it is scratched into the surface, not written with ink on a paper. The script itself is rather cursive in nature, as though it was written quickly. “Moreover, they are executed in a flowing cursive script that might best be described as casual even to the point of being ‘negligent’ (Barkay 1992: 169). In all likelihood, this is because the inscriptions were never meant to be seen again; that is, like the inscriptions in mezuzot and tefillin, once written and rolled up, they no longer really act as the components of documents intended to be read. Rather, their function is apotropaic and/or sanctifying; the inscriptions in these plaques exist as amulets to give their wearers protection against evil in the presence of holiness.” (Basor 334, pg.46) Below is a drawing of Ketef Hinnom I followed by a translation.
"1 ...]YHW...
3the grea[t... who keeps]
4the covenant and
5[G]raciousness toward those who love [him] and (alt: those who love [hi]m;)
6those who keep [his commandments...
...].
8the Eternal? [...].
9[the?] blessing more than any
10[sna]re and more than Evil. "
11For redemption is in him.
12For YHWH
13is our restorer [and]
14rock. May YHWH bles[s]
15you and 16[may he] keep you.
17[May] YHWH make
18[his face] shine.... "
Below is a drawing of Ketef Hinnom II followed by the translation.
1[For PN, (the son/daughter of) xxxx]lh/hu. May h[e]/
2sh[e] be blessed by Yahweh,
3the warrior [or: helper] and
4and the rebuker of
5[E]vil: May Yahweh bless you,
6keep you.
7May Yahweh make
8his face shine
9upon you and
10grant you p[ea]ce.
The phrase in Ketef Hinnom II which states Yahweh as the rebuker of evil, is indicative of the use of these amulets in an apotropaic manner. That combined with the location being within a burial repository (which may or may not be connected with a cult of the dead), and the cursive script which no one was really meant to read, has led to a consensus amongst scholars who have studied these plaques, that they were indeed meant to be used as a magical implement, or incantation to ward off evil. With the presence of the priestly blessing on these amulets, it is safe to assume that the famous passage from Numbers and elsewhere in the Old Testament had a function indicative of an incantation, or protective charm/spell.
It is safe to say then, from the preceding evidence, that the Israelites, before the coming of Christ, had a history of magic, superstition, and incantation. But what of the time after Christ came? Is there any indication there that such superstitions carried on into the Christian era? It is almost even more obvious and easier to see in the textual evidence in the gospels than it is in the Old Testament, if one has the eyes to recognize it. The primary focus which I would like to use for a comparative example is the formulaic invocation of a name (of the deity, in this case Jesus, or sometimes Beelzebub) to perform the miracle, in these cases, the exorcism. Jesus of course needs not invoke his own name to perform miracles, as he is God, but those who follow him, must use the formula, which bears striking resemblance to the incantations we saw earlier, by using Jesus name.
Matthew 7:22
22"Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?'
Matthew 9:34
34But the Pharisees were saying, "He casts out the demons by the ruler of the demons."
Matthew 12:27
27"If I by Beelzebul cast out demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? For this reason they will be your judges.
2sh[e] be blessed by Yahweh,
3the warrior [or: helper] and
4and the rebuker of
5[E]vil: May Yahweh bless you,
6keep you.
7May Yahweh make
8his face shine
9upon you and
10grant you p[ea]ce.
The phrase in Ketef Hinnom II which states Yahweh as the rebuker of evil, is indicative of the use of these amulets in an apotropaic manner. That combined with the location being within a burial repository (which may or may not be connected with a cult of the dead), and the cursive script which no one was really meant to read, has led to a consensus amongst scholars who have studied these plaques, that they were indeed meant to be used as a magical implement, or incantation to ward off evil. With the presence of the priestly blessing on these amulets, it is safe to assume that the famous passage from Numbers and elsewhere in the Old Testament had a function indicative of an incantation, or protective charm/spell.
It is safe to say then, from the preceding evidence, that the Israelites, before the coming of Christ, had a history of magic, superstition, and incantation. But what of the time after Christ came? Is there any indication there that such superstitions carried on into the Christian era? It is almost even more obvious and easier to see in the textual evidence in the gospels than it is in the Old Testament, if one has the eyes to recognize it. The primary focus which I would like to use for a comparative example is the formulaic invocation of a name (of the deity, in this case Jesus, or sometimes Beelzebub) to perform the miracle, in these cases, the exorcism. Jesus of course needs not invoke his own name to perform miracles, as he is God, but those who follow him, must use the formula, which bears striking resemblance to the incantations we saw earlier, by using Jesus name.
Matthew 7:22
22"Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?'
Matthew 9:34
34But the Pharisees were saying, "He casts out the demons by the ruler of the demons."
Matthew 12:27
27"If I by Beelzebul cast out demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? For this reason they will be your judges.
Mark 9:38
38John said to Him, "Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name, and we tried to prevent him because he was not following us."
38John said to Him, "Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name, and we tried to prevent him because he was not following us."
Acts 4:10
let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead--by this name this man stands here before you in good health.
Acts 4: 29-30
29"And now, Lord, take note of their threats, and grant that Your bond-servants may speak Your word with all confidence,
30while You extend Your hand to heal, and signs and wonders take place through the name of Your holy servant Jesus."
let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead--by this name this man stands here before you in good health.
Acts 4: 29-30
29"And now, Lord, take note of their threats, and grant that Your bond-servants may speak Your word with all confidence,
30while You extend Your hand to heal, and signs and wonders take place through the name of Your holy servant Jesus."
Acts 16:18
She continued doing this for many days. But Paul was greatly annoyed, and turned and said to the spirit, "I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her!" And it came out at that very moment.
Acts 19
11God was performing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul,
12so that handkerchiefs or aprons were even carried from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out.
13But also some of the Jewish exorcists, who went from place to place, attempted to name over those who had the evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus, saying, "I adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preaches."
11God was performing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul,
12so that handkerchiefs or aprons were even carried from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out.
13But also some of the Jewish exorcists, who went from place to place, attempted to name over those who had the evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus, saying, "I adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preaches."
As mentioned before, in order for those who are not Jesus to command the demons, or to perform healing, it was necessary to do so using a type of formulaic command utilizing the name of Jesus. Although as Christians, we don’t normally classify these statements as incantations, they are, by comparison to other forms of commanding demons from the ‘pagan’ world, incantations. As well, there is textual evidence that an incantation was required in some instances for healing (Acts 4:10).
There is physical evidence that magic and incantations evolved into a well-developed system from the inception of Christianity to the 7th century A.D. What we see in the New Testament is but a twinkle of the notion of incantations; the starting point for Christian ‘magic’. By the 7th century, there are examples of formulaic conjurations utilizing the Christian formula placed onto material goods which formed an apotropaic function alike to the plaques mentioned above.
The Aramaic magical incantation bowls first began to be unearthed and published for study in 1853. These bowls, dating from 400 to 700 A.D. were produced mainly by Jewish ‘magicians’. They contained circular writing of various incantations against all sorts of varying evils such as demons, disease, sorcery, those who would bear someone ill will, etc. They were crafted by the magician, who then sold it to various clients who needed ‘protection’. Below is a picture of one such bowl.
There are many varying theories as to why the inscriptions were placed on bowls such as: they were meant to trap the evil spirit or demon in the bowl; one was meant to put water in the bowl, mix it with the ink and drink the concoction which would protect the user; they were to be used as amulets; they were used in some sort of divination using water (hydromancy). However, none of these theories can be proven directly as the texts themselves vary enough that each could be true for a given bowl, but not all of them. What is certain is that these bowls were made to ward off evil via the incantation placed on the bowl.The incantations themselves have many general statements in them designed to insure the client protection from all angles of attack. “Notice, for example, the incantation against "Aramean black- arts, Jewish black-arts, Arabic black- arts, Persian black-arts, Indian black-arts, Greek black-arts, black- arts of the Romans, black-arts which are practiced in the seventy languages, either by woman or by man" (Text 49.9-10). This eclectic magician was making sure that no one harmed his client, not Christians (Arameans = Syrian Christians), Jews, Arabs (nomads here, not a religious designation), Zoroastrians (Persians), Indians, Greeks, or Romans. The ‘seventy languages’ represent all the languages known anywhere in the world, while ‘woman or man’ is clearly a merismus depicting totality, i.e., to include every person in the universe.” (Isbell, pg. 10) Those who bought these bowls were clearly superstitious and the producers of the bowls (who were great entrepreneurs) fulfilled this need to feel protected against the evil forces of the world. It was a form of ‘white magic’ to counter the evil, and black magic in the world.
Many of these texts quote Hebrew scripture within the incantation. There is one text which is made up only of quotes from the Hebrew Bible loosely connected and thrown together. “The most frequently quoted verse in the AMIB texts is Zech 3:2, which appears five times. ‘And YHWH said to Satan: May YHWH rebuke you, Satan, may YHWH who chose Jerusalem rebuke you. Is not this a fire-brand snatched from the fire?’” (Isbell, pg. 14) It is thought by some that there are references to the New Testament as well, although this is not certain. Below are some examples of the incantations found on these bowls.
Text 2
Again I am coming, I, Pabak the son of Kupitai, in the power of my own self, polished armor of iron on my body, my head of iron, my stature of [pure]1 fire. (2) I am clothed with the garment of Hermes, Dabya, and Mamlala2 and my power comes from the One who created heaven and earth. I have come and I have confronted (3) the evil haters and the potent adversaries. I have said to them: If you sin at all against 'Abuna the son of Geribta and 'Ibba the son of Zawita, I will enchant you with the spell (4) of the sea and the spell of Leviathan the sea-monster. If you sin at all against 'Abuna the son of Geribta, or against his wife and sons, I will bend the bow against you, (5) and I will stretch the bow-string against you. Again,
In this text Pabak, the author, is claiming the power himself to deal with these potential evils. However, he does allude to acts done by Yahweh (the defeat of Leviathan, Sodom and Gomorrah). Below is an example of an incantation done in the name of Yahweh.
A "Sealing" Text (Text 50)
Sealed and dou[bly-se]aled is the house of Zidin Sabor the son of 'EliSeba, with seventy knots, (2) with seventy bonds, with seventy seals, with the twisted chain, with ZWZMRY, with the signet-ring of Yokabarziwa the son of Rabbe, with the signet-ring (3) of Kasdi'el the mighty angel, the Prince of the Chaldeans, with the signet-ring of Michael the mighty angel, the Prince of the Law, with the signet-ring of Gabriel (4) the mighty angel, the Prince of Fire, with the signet-ring of 'Aspanadas-Diwa, the jinnee of King Solomon the son of David, and with the signet-ring of King Solomon the son of David, (5) (and with the signet-ring of King Solomon the Son of David), with the g[re]at seal of the Lord of the Universe whose knot cannot be untied and whose seal cannot be broken. Blessed art Thou, YHWH, God of Israel. Amen. Amen. Selah. (6) Again, sealed and doubly-sealed is the house of Zidin Sabor the son of 'EliSeba, with seventy knots, with seventy bonds, with seventy seals, with the twisted chain, with ZWZMRY, with the signet-ring of Yokabarziwa the son of Rabbe, (7) with the signet-ring [of] Kasdi['e]l [the mighty angel, the Prin]ce of the Chaldeans, with the sig[net]-ring of Michael the mighty angel, the Prince of the Law, with the signet-ring of Gabriel the mighty angel, the Prince of Fire, with the signet-ring (8) of 'Aspanadas-Diwa, the jinnee of King Solomon the so[n of D]avid, with the sig[net-ring] of King Solomon the son of David, and with the great seal [of] the Lord of the Uni- verse whose knot cannot be untied and whose seal cannot be broken. Blessed art Thou, YHWH, God of Israel. Amen. Amen. Selah.
Text 50 above mentions a variety of benevolent angels by name such as Kasdi’el, Michael, Gabriel, Aspanadas-Diwa. Angels, as the servants of Yahweh, also had the power to protect and as such, they were invoked via incantations. The incantation is repeated in the second half of the text as a way of “doubly sealing” the house of Zidin Sabor against evil.
The following text (text 9) is an incantation done in the name of Yahweh alone. It is also interesting as it mentions several demons by name and then ends with a catch all phrase to make sure that all demons will be conjured by the incantation. It is apparent that not only were there angels called by name, but the idea of demons with names and personalities was also very prevalent.
A Text in the Name of Yahweh (Text 9)
I am acting in Your name, YHWH the Great God. May this bowl be for the sealing of Hormizduk the daughter of Maduk. I adjure ........ (2) [e]vil, in the name of the Holy Agrabis, in the name of Yah Yah,' in the name of SP SP YHWH YHWH2 who removed His chariot to the Red Sea.. ... (3) David the Psalm of the Red Sea. Again, I adjure you by the One who caused His Shekinah to dwell in the temple of light and hail and His throne. .... (4) the exalted King. Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Depart! Depart! May he be removed even in the name of3 Michael and Gabriel the one who ..... (5) in the name of Sariel, in the name of Seraphiel, Suriel, and Sarsamiel and Gadriel, Peniel, Nahriel. And all blast-demons (6) and evil harmers whose names are recorded in this bowl and whose names I have not recorded in this bowl. Oh! (7) Oh! Depart! Sit there! And you will be cast down while sitting inside the fiery flames and the flame of fire. (8) Amen. Amen. Amen. Selah.
What I find interesting about the next incantation bowl, is the Christian formula used at the end which we, as modern Christians, are so familiar with.
Syriac Incantation
"Appointed is this (charm?), 'press,' and bond and besealment and warding of my house, of me Nuri daughter of Giloi, of her house, her husband and her sons and her daughters. And this is an equipment against every demon and devil, which are lodged in the house; the Strangler and the pains of childbirth, that they may flee whoever are in the house of Nuri d. of G. Amen, Amen, Selah. "In the name of these angels-faithful are they-Michael the angel, and Ruphael the angel-warders are they: Yohabiel and Barakiel the angel. The house-do you angels by your stroke protect my house, of me N. d. of G. Amen, Amen, Selah. In the name of Oran . In the name of the Father, in the name of the Son ........ [and] in [the holy Spirit]. This is the besealment."
This last text, text 33, is an incantation not against demons, but against people who would perform black magic. This ‘white magic’ was intended to counteract the curses of Apila, who apparently was trying to curse the client. As well there is a quote from the Hebrew Bible (Isaiah 6:3) which can be recognized at the end of the incantation.
An "Overturned" Text (Text 33)
Overturned, overturned is the earth. Overturned is the earth which is/was established. Overturned are all vows, curses, spells, cursing black-arts, (2) and evil knocking black-arts which are dwelling among these people - 'Apila the son of Mahlapta, his wife, his sons, and everything that he has. In the name of Hapki'el,' the angel (3) that overturns the curses, spells, and evil black-arts which they have worked against him. Do not prevail against the household of 'Apila the son of Mahlapta - and do not prevail against Hindu the daughter of (4) 'Ahata, from this day and this hour and forever. In the name of Hapki'el, Rahmi'el,2 Aqri'el,3 and Yazi'el4 shall you removes the judgment, the curse, and the knocking from 'Apila (5) the son of Mahlapta and Hindu the daughter of 'Ahata. In [the name of h]oly, holy, holy YHWH of Hosts. All the earth is filled with His glory.6 Amen. Amen. Selah. Hallelujah! I am acting for Your name.
That all being said and studied, we can determine that throughout the history of the religion of the Israelites, magic, incantation, and superstition has been a part of the belief system. There is textual evidence of magic being used in the Old Testament and the New Testament comparable to other Ancient Near Eastern religious uses of magic. As well, there is physical evidence that the Israelites utilized protective charms or amulets inscribed with various incantations used in an apotropaic function. Also, after the time of Christ, between 400-700 A.D., we see that there were Israelite ‘magicians’ who created and sold the magical incantation bowls utilizing aspects of Israelite religion, as well as Christian formulas (likely depending on the client) to create protective charms in the form of the bowls. It is my belief that the use of white magic and incantations has not ceased to be used within Christianity even up to the present day. I would like to now venture into an examination of our current Christian climate and see if there is any evidence of this magic within the current Christian sub-culture. As a preliminary note, I will be using examples that are not general to all Christians or applicable to all forms of Christianity. However, it is apparent through these rather specific examples, that there is a form of magic and incantation being used by Christians today, even if they themselves do not recognize it as such, or would classify it as something else.
One fairly obvious example of where one could say incantations are being used in the church is through varying healing ministries. There seems to always be some sort of popular healing ministry going on at any given point. When I was in high school, Dr. Neil Anderson and his Bondage Breaker books were all the rage. Today, it seems this has been reincarnated in the ELEL ministries. I don’t want to say that these ministries don’t help people, or that they are not useful or that God doesn’t use them, but what I do want to point out is the blatant use of formulaic incantations, and the superstition that is encouraged. The casting out of demons in the name of Jesus hearkens back to the New Testament formula used by the disciples which in turn is the same as the incantations used in the Ancient Near East.
As well, these ministries are very concerned with demons and evil being allowed a ‘foot-hold’ in one’s life which can result in bondage and general unhappiness. As a result, there is a great deal of demon hunting which occurs, and like the incantation bowls which try to bar all demons and evil using general statements, it seems that these ministries try to stop all demons and evil by not participating in anything that does not originate from Christianity. This is one area where I am particularly opinionated. It almost seems (and this is a very general statement) that anything that is not Christian, or is not understood, is feared, and not to be ‘dabbled in’. For example, any Chinese medicine should be avoided as it did not originate in a Christian country but has ‘roots’ in another religion. To me this just seems like alarmist fear mongering. To say that western medicine is okay because it originated in a Christian country is preposterous. The main argument that I’ve heard about Chinese medicine is that its power doesn’t come from God. Well, I hate to break it to people, but western medicine’s power doesn’t come from God either. Another concern I’ve heard about eastern medicine is their belief in life energy, or Qi. However, I fail to see how the existence of Qi undermines God’s power (who very well could have created it). As an interesting note, if you are interested in learning more about Qi and how they have done a scientific study to detect qi, see the following link to the Copper Wall Experiment. http://www.healthy.net/scr/interview.asp?Id=199
Another example is the idea that a demon could enter your house through some object. This object could really be anything. I remember wondering if I had anything in my house that had its origins in something non-Christian that was causing evil to enter my life. Again, this represents a belief in magic which was so common amongst other Ancient Near Eastern and pagan cultures.
Another example, which I hesitate to mention, but which I believe demonstrates the qualities of an incantation, is the sinner’s prayer. Here is an example of the sinner’s prayer.
“Heavenly Father, I know that I have sinned against you and that my sins separate me from you. I am truly sorry. I now want to turn away from my sinful past and turn to you for forgiveness. Please forgive me, and help me avoid sinning again. I believe that your Son, Jesus Christ, died for my sins, that He was raised from the dead, is alive, and hears my prayer. I invite Jesus to become my Savior and the Lord of my life, to rule and reign in my heart from this day forward. Please send your Holy Spirit to help me obey You and to convict me when I sin. I pledge to grow in grace and knowledge of you. My greatest purpose in life is to follow your example and do Your will for the rest of my life. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen.”
I realize that this is an oversimplification of salvation which I am about to portray, but please bear with that for the sake of the conversation. In order for a person to be saved, one must only say this prayer utilizing the right formula (confession, turning away, confession of belief, invitation to the Holy Spirit, all said in the name of Jesus). This type of formulaic prayer designed to obtain a specific result (in this case salvation) is, by definition, an incantation.
There also exists within the Abrahamic faiths the belief in the supernatural presence of God specific to locales which have an important role in the history of the religion. For example, it could be argued that in Christianity, Jerusalem holds a special place in the hearts of believers, and specifically locations in and around there such as Calvary, and Bethlehem. Although Christians do not confess specifically to the special presence of God at these places, it would be difficult for a Christian to perform a pilgrimage to these locations and not have a feeling of the special presence of God. The Jews have the ‘wailing wall, the Muslims have the temple on the mount. Catholicism is replete with pilgrimage locations in which the power of God is said to have a special presence (such as St. Joseph’s Oratory in Montreal where many go to seek healing). This idea of the special presence of God in holy places throughout the world is a practice that goes back to the Ancient Near Eastern idea of the deity having a special presence or power in the temple or statue.
Of course, this idea is not limited only to the Ancient Near East, but is a commonality in nearly all world religions. Joseph Campbell in his book, ‘The Hero With A Thousand Faces’ describes a phenomena amongst world mythologies which he describes as the world naval. It is the source through which the power of the universe is bestowed upon humanity. It could be a place, a person, or a thing. For Christianity it is Jesus, specifically his crucifixion and resurrection. As such, those places where these things occurred hold a special place in the hearts of believers.
The last thing example (and there are more and I’m sure these examples may have triggered other examples in your head that you will recognize as a form of magic, superstition, or incantation) is that of infant baptism or baby dedication (baby dedication being the Protestant way of doing the baptism without actually doing it so as not to anger God by being like those other guys). Both infant baptism and baby dedication essentially serve the same psychosomatic function. Again, this is an oversimplification, but infant baptism and dedication is a ritual essentially performed by the parents on behalf of the child who is not yet cognizant enough to beseech the favor of God. The parents, on behalf of the child, bring the child to God and dedicate the child to him. Having done so, it gives the parents a feeling of ease knowing that they have done what they can do, and commit in the future to bring the child up for God. And, at some level in the conscious or sub-conscious mind, the parent feels that if the child were to die before making the conscious decision to follow God, that the infant baptism or dedication will somehow influence God’s decision on their eternal fate. This could also be classified as a form of ritual, or magic, designed to invoke God’s protection upon the child, not only in this life, but in the life here-after.
Now comes the crux. It is obvious that magic, superstition, and incantation have been, and are a part of what we know as Christianity. Now, what does this matter for us? Is this a bad thing? Should all forms of white magic and superstition be banned from Christianity as we know it? I don’t think so. It really depends on what you believe about these issues, whether or not they are truly effective and whether or not you believe God requires their use in order to act? I think in some ways, these things can be harmful. I have already expressed my opinion on the alarmist fear mongering that goes on in some healing ministries which I feel is not healthy mentally. In other ways, these things can be very helpful. I for one really like liturgy, which can also be interpreted as a form of incantation in some respects. Prayer as well is necessary for Christians to feel connected with God and to ban prayer on account of it being incantation would be harmful. The various rituals which we utilize such as infant baptism and communion/Eucharist, are all effective ways of connecting with the divine. However, that being said, I also believe that it is important to study the history of these practices, to not be ignorant of the fact that they can be seen as magic or superstition even if we as Christians would not classify them that way. For unbelievers who look at us from the outside, it is no wonder they see a lot of hokus pokus going on comparable to many other ‘pagan’ religions. It is not surprising that many see Christianity as ‘just the same’ as all the other religions of the world. I personally see nothing wrong with utilizing these practices if it helps us to worship and come closer to God, but I do not want us to be delusional in thinking that just because something is “Christian”, it is unique and not unlike the magic, superstitions, and incantations of the pagan religions.
Sources:
The Bronze Serpent in the Israelite Cult Author(s): Karen Randolp Joines Source: Journal of Biblical Literature, Vol. 87, No. 3 (Sep., 1968), pp. 245-256 Published by: The Society of Biblical Literature
The Story of the Aramaic Magical Incantation Bowls Author(s): Charles D. Isbell Source: The Biblical Archaeologist, Vol. 41, No. 1 (Mar., 1978), pp. 5-16 Published by: The American Schools of Oriental Research
Two Ugaritic Serpent Charms Author(s): Michael C. Astour Source: Journal of Near Eastern Studies, Vol. 27, No. 1 (Jan., 1968), pp. 13-36 Published by: The University of Chicago Press
Magical Terms in the Old Testament Author(s): Alfred Guillaume Source: Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, No. 2 (Apr., 1942), pp. 111-131 Published by: Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland
Dingir. s̆a. dib. ba Incantations Author(s): W. G. Lambert Source: Journal of Near Eastern Studies, Vol. 33, No. 3 (Jul., 1974), pp. 267-322 Published by: The University of Chicago Press
By the Power of Beelzebub: An Aramaic Incantation Formula from Qumran (4Q560) Author(s): Douglas L. Penney and Michael O. Wise Source: Journal of Biblical Literature, Vol. 113, No. 4 (Winter, 1994), pp. 627-650 Published by: The Society of Biblical Literature
An Aramaean Magical Text in Hebrew from the Seventh Century B. C. Author(s): W. F. Albright Source: Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, No. 76 (Dec., 1939), pp. 5-11 Published by: The American Schools of Oriental Research
A Syriac Incantation Bowl with Christian Formula Author(s): James A. Montgomery Source: The American Journal of Semitic Languages and Literatures, Vol. 34, No. 2 (Jan., 1918), pp. 137-139 Published by: The University of Chicago Press
Aramaic Magic Bowls Author(s): Edwin M. Yamauchi Source: Journal of the American Oriental Society, Vol. 85, No. 4 (Oct. - Dec., 1965), pp. 511- 523 Published by: American Oriental Society
The Amulets from Ketef Hinnom: A New Edition and Evaluation Author(s): Gabriel Barkay, Marilyn J. Lundberg, Andrew G. Vaughn, Bruce Zuckerman Source: Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, No. 334 (May, 2004), pp. 41-71 Published by: The American Schools of Oriental Research
Panel Discussion: "Magic in the Ancient World" by Fritz Graf Author(s): Sarah Iles Johnston, John G. Gager, Martha Himmelfarb, Marvin Meyer, Brian Schmidt, David Frankfurter, Fritz Graf Source: Numen, Vol. 46, No. 3 (1999), pp. 291-325 Published by: BRILL
An Angelic "Curse": Exodus 14:20 Author(s): E. A. Speiser Source: Journal of the American Oriental Society, Vol. 80, No. 3 (Jul. - Sep., 1960), pp. 198- 200 Published by: American Oriental Society
A Hebrew Incantation against Night-Demons from Biblical Times Author(s): H. Torczyner Source: Journal of Near Eastern Studies, Vol. 6, No. 1 (Jan., 1947), pp. 18-29 Published by: The University of Chicago Press
The Hero With A Thousand Faces; Joseph Campbell, New World Library, Novato, California, 2008
Before the Muses: an Anthology of Akkadian Literature, Benjamin R. Foster, CDL Press, Bethesda, Maryland, 2005
Column 3 8I approached Ekron and slew the governors and nobles 9who had rebelled, and 10hung their bodies on stakes around the city. The inhabitants 11who rebelled and treated (Assyria) lightly I counted as spoil. 12The rest of them, who were not guilty of rebellion 13and contempt, for whom there was no punishment, 14I declared their pardon. Padi, their king, 15I brought out to Jerusalem, 16set him on the royal throne over them, and 17imposed upon him my royal tribute. 
