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9
basic expectations or ,,conditions.
14
They are not to learn to do the things that are abhorrent,
to`avah, to Yahweh. This is not an exhaustive list of abhorrent things. The references to worship
of the heavenly bodies (4:19; 17:3) or the worship of idols (7:25; 12:31) are also to`avah. The
list here is unique in that its focus is on communication with the divine in order to receive divine
guidance and/or to access divine power.
15

The command that Israel is not to learn to do these abhorrent practices is ethical. McConville
observes:
. . . here, as well as elsewhere, the whole ethic of Deuteronomy is put in relational terms: the right
way is a commitment of the whole self to Yahweh; the wrong way is the opposite commitment, to the
ways of the nations and their gods.
16

On a first reading one may get the idea that the Israelites are soon to be confronted with magic
practices which they have not learned. But at least some of the practices would be familiar to
them from their time in Egypt (Gen 44:15). Israel was not exactly exemplary in its adherence to
orthodoxy. Also the list is quite comprehensive.
17
At some level the Israelites are familiar with
the practices and the list seems intended to cover all the various divination and magic practices
known at that time. Let us take a closer look at the items in the list.

The first phrase in the list of forbidden practices in vv. 10-11 is mubyr bnw wbtw bav, or one
who passes his son or his daughter through the fire. It cannot be stated with certainty what the
context of this practice is but there are good reasons for seeing it have some connection to Molek
worship (12:30-31). The connection that this practice has in this particular context of guidance
and power is probably to be found in 2 Kgs 3:26-27. McConville points out that in this passage:
The king of Moab, losing ground in battle against Israel, made a burnt offering of his son and heir, to
try to persuade the deity by the act of self-sacrifice itself, or to discern how to turn the tide of
events.
18

In the scenario portrayed by McConville the King of Moabs sacrifice was an act to access either
the power or the guidance of the deity.

The next phrase is the qosem qesamim. Qosem is usually translated diviner, and qesem is
normally translated divination. I will use the transliterated Hebrew phrase qesem as a technical
term because it has a broader range of meaning than does the English word ,,divination. The
word divination in the English usage is normally limited to mantic activity, discerning the future
or interpreting the meaning of omens and signs. Qesem in the Hebrew Bible encompasses this
but also includes manipulative practices normally categorized as magic or occult. A good
14
McConville rightly uses the term ,,condition as a proper response to Yahwehs gift of grace. He also expresses
well the fact that Israel must settle the land ,,worthily (McConville, Deuteronomy, 299-300).
15
McConville, Deuteronomy, 300.
16
McConville, Deuteronomy, 300.
17
Wright, Deuteronomy, 216.
18
McConville, Deuteronomy, 300-1.