Charmer
“To whisper (as in incantations)”
Summary
One who practices enchantment through whispered incantations or spells, particularly associated with serpent-charming, a practice explicitly prohibited by Mosaic law.
☩Definition and Practice
The Hebrew word lachash means 'to whisper,' describing the low murmuring characteristic of enchanters. Charms are magical formulas chanted or recited with a view to producing certain desired effects. They may be written (as phylacteries or inscribed formulas) or spoken. The practice of charming serpents was common throughout antiquity, with the most famous serpent-charmers being the Psylli of Cyrenaica. Travelers throughout the Levant have frequently observed the charming of serpents, with practitioners rendering even venomous reptiles tame through certain sounds.
☩Biblical Prohibition
Charming was explicitly prohibited under Mosaic law and associated with the broader category of forbidden occult practices. The Deuteronomic prohibition lists 'a charmer' among those abominations that Israel must not imitate from the nations. Isaiah associates charmers with idolatry and sorcerers who carry on their incantations with low mutterings. The binding force of the uttered word was believed throughout the ancient world to have power of self-realization, which is why such practices were considered spiritually dangerous.
☩Serpent-Charming Imagery
Scripture uses serpent-charming as imagery for moral instruction. The psalmist describes the wicked as being 'like the deaf adder that stoppeth her ear, which will not hearken to the voice of charmers, charming never so wisely.' This portrays stubborn sinners who refuse to respond even to the most skillful persuasion. Jeremiah uses similar imagery when God declares He will send serpents among His disobedient people 'which will not be charmed'—judgment that cannot be averted by any human skill.
References
- 1.John McClintock and James Strong, "Charm," in Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, vol. II (Harper & Brothers, 1867–1887).
- 2.James Orr (ed.), "Charm; Serpent-Charming," in International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, vol. I (Howard-Severance Company, 1915).
- 3.George Morrish, "Charmer," in Morrish's Concise Bible Dictionary (George Morrish, 1898).
- 4.American Tract Society, "Charmers," in American Tract Society Bible Dictionary (American Tract Society, 1859).