NOTES for Deu 18:1-22
Israel is called God's people not only because God created it or led it out of slavery, but above all because this people must listen to the Lord's will and live by His word. Consulting soothsayers and fortune-tellers therefore becomes a betrayal of its own calling to be God's people.
We are heirs of the word given to ancient Israel. We once agreed to follow the promised Prophet (Acts 3:22) and to hear God's will through Him. If an unwillingness to hear a prophet who knew God's will only in part already leads the people away from their calling to holiness, what should we call it when we turn away from Christ and go to a “temple of fate” to listen to “psychics, fortune-tellers, and healers”? Is this not a betrayal of the Spirit of Christ, who should dwell in us too if we truly belong to God?