When God tells Abram to leave his father’s house and go to a land “I will show you,” He is not just changing Abram’s address; He is calling him out of a world of household idols and tribal gods into the worship of the one true God. That moment is the seed of what will later be written into stone as the first and second commandments: no other gods, and no carved images competing with the true God.
Ancient idolatry meant trusting carved figures and the gods behind them for rain, crops, fertility, safety. Today’s occult reaches for the same thing—guidance, power, protection—through astrology, spells, spirit guides, and “hidden knowledge.” In both cases, the heart move is the same: turning away from the living God to place faith in other spiritual powers. In that sense, the "occult" is modern idol worship dressed in clothes.
I often hear New Testament believers talk about “spiritual attacks.” The expression seems to be used quite freely. Not every disappointment, delay, sickness, conflict, or hardship can simply be filed under “Satan did it,” as though every painful thing in life has one obvious cause and one immediate prayer formula. Yet, scripture presents dark and satantic forces as a real enemy.
Some hardships are simply consequences of our actions, but a spiritual attack is a demonic assault aimed at destruction. Whereas Godly correction, often using natural consequences, is a call for repentance and to turn us back, a spiritual attack calls for resistance.
As the book of Job teaches us, not every trial in life is a consequence of sin. Job’s friends thought that way, and the book of Job exposes how wrong and small that theology can become. To my mind, that kind of thinking trivializes God and makes Him seem reactive and thin‑skinned. The biblical witness suggests something far deeper, more mysterious.The Bible does not shy away from the reality of a spiritual battle, or from the existence of a real enemy who hates what God loves.
In the Beginning
Spiritual darkness is there from the beginning. Genesis opens with “darkness over the face of the deep.” That describes a world void of life. The "Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters." Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good."
God’s first act is to speak light and separate light from darkness." We know this light and darkness, is not that of the sun or the moon, which are not created yet. But the text does not immediately define the darkness. It is simply there: a background, a realm, with a boundary, a separation. God tells us that the light is good, but He never calls the darkness good. All we know, is it this darkness doesn't proceed God and therefore it is part of His creation.
As the story unfolds, that darkness slowly takes on a more personal edge. Isaiah 5:20 says, “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter.”
Immediately the conversation turns to knowledge and the threat of death. The knowledge God had reserved for Himself and explicitly prohibited is suddenly put on the table as a shortcut to wisdom and status. A pattern emerges in the bible—There is a realm of hidden knowledge and hidden power that God does not deny but does forbid.
Some knowledge belongs to God to be revealed by God—through His word, His prophets, and the Ruach HaKodesh; perhaps in a dream or a vision, a still small voice, or an answer to prayer.
When we reach for “hidden knowledge” in off‑limits ways, we step into the shadows with an enemy who is more than happy to deceive us.
Why a Tree of Forbidden Knowledge?
The tree of the knowledge of good and evil stood in a garden that God Himself had planted. God had claimed the knowledge associated with that tree as His domain and had sealed it off by a clear command: “You shall not eat of it.” The serpent’s temptation was not just, “Taste this fruit.” The temptation was, “Take what God has withheld. Bypass His timing. Step into His role. You can know what He knows, on your own terms.”
That, to me, is the heart of hidden knowledge. It is not that God wants to keep people ignorant. It is that there are things that God reveals in relationship, over time, under His authority, and in dependence on Him. When we reach for those things through disobedience, or through rival spiritual channels, we are not just learning. We are changing sides.
Warfare language in the New Testament focuses less on hunting demons and more on resisting deception with truth and steadfast faith. One well-known teacher argues that Satan’s principal weapon is not raw power but deception, which means the heart of spiritual warfare is “truth encounters” rather than just “power encounters.”
The bible is not an anti‑curiosity book. God is not trying to shut down every question. But He does draw a hard line around certain means of getting answers.
Deuteronomy 18:10-12 states:
"There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. For all who do these things are an abomination to the Lord, and because of these abominations the Lord your God drives them out from before you."
Note that the reason those things are placed under a ban is not because they are fake. Rather it is “because they are an abomination to the Lord.” God is warning is warning us in strong terms that such spiritual channels for knowledge do not lead to Him.
God reveals deep and secret understanding to prophets such Joseph, Daniel and Ezekiel.
Innocent Fun or Hidden Authority?
The enemy is deceitful and cunning. It works to his advantage to remain completely undetected. Things like horoscopes, palm readings, or a casual visit to a psychic can feel so harmless—just for entertainment. A horoscope may not carry the same weight as witchcraft ritual, but the deeper question is always the same: where am I quietly placing my trust and looking for guidance?
When we give authority to a voice that does not belong to God, we are opening doors to places we shouldn't be. We are eating from a forbidden tree.
This becomes harder to shrug off when occult language grows into organized spiritual action like self‑described witches casting spells or “bindings” on the president of the United States. This is a deliberate attempt to move events through forbidden spiritual channels.
Old Testament’s Warnings in Story Form
Some of the most sobering warnings about hidden knowledge appear in bible.
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| Young David playing to soothe King Saul |
Israel's first King, King Saul is one example. Earlier in his reign he had driven out mediums and spiritists from the land in obedience to God’s law. Later, when God refuses to answer him through prophets, dreams, or the Urim, Saul panics. Instead of repenting and waiting, he disguises himself and goes to the very thing he once banned: a medium at Endor. Saul asks her to call up Samuel from the dead. Whatever exactly happens in that strange night scene, the point is clear enough. In his desperation, Saul crosses a line. He leaves the place of legitimate guidance and steps into forbidden territory, looking for comfort and clarity from the other side. That decision does not rescue him; it seals his doom.
Jezebel’s influence blends seduction, intimidation, and false spirituality into one package. It is not hard to see echoes of that pattern in the way witchcraft and occult movements sometimes wrap their promises in sensuality and empowerment today.
Hidden knowledge is not neutral. The question is not simply “does it work?” The question is “who is behind it?”
Jesus Steps into the Battle
When Jesus arrives on the scene, He does not treat demons as metaphors for ancient superstition. He recognizes them, addresses them, and drives them out. He does not run away from the dark. He calls it what it is.
His ministry announces that the kingdom of God is not just a new ethical idea; it is an invasion into a territory long occupied by hostile powers.
The New Testament says plainly that this was part of Yeshua’s mission. “The reason the Son of God appeared,” John writes, “was to destroy the works of the devil.” Paul says that at the cross Jesus “disarmed the rulers and authorities” and “made a public spectacle of them.” The very moment that looked like Satan’s greatest triumph, the crucifixion of the Son of God, becomes the battlefield where the enemy’s legal weapons are stripped away.
If that is God’s will in Yeshua—to overthrow the enemy and destroy his works—then it cannot be enough for believers to treat spiritual warfare as a cliché. We cannot reduce it to “Satan made me late for work” or “I’m under attack because I have a flat tire.” There is a larger, more serious conflict in view.
Naming the Real Enemy
The Apostle Paul says that "our struggle is not against flesh and blood but against rulers, authorities, and powers of this dark world, against spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms." That is a staggering claim. It says that the ultimate enemy is not the people on the other side of the argument, the other party, the neighbor, the family member, or the rival believer. Beneath it all, there is a coordinated pattern of deception, accusation, and destruction.
If we do not recognize that, we end up misdirecting our energy. We attack one another. We look for scapegoats. We spend our strength fighting visible enemies while the real enemy works just fine in the background, whispering lies, sowing division, inflaming lust, and dressing rebellion up as enlightenment.
Knowing the enemy, as I see it, means at least this: learning to discern when a thought, a promise, a spiritual practice, or a cultural wave carries that same scent as the serpent in the garden.
Hidden Knowledge and Modern “Comforts”
Most people today are not bowing at physical altars to Baal. Many do not believe in God at all. But human hearts have not changed.
We live in a confusing and frightening world. We may feel small and vulnerable in the face of illness, loss, and uncertainty.
In that space, things like astrology, tarot, fortune telling, crystals, and modern witchcraft step in. For a growing number, particularly Gen Z, the appeal of the dark arts is increasingly appealing. Estimates suggest 1-2 million people in the U.S. identify as Wiccan or Pagan. Witchcraft and various forms of modern neopaganism are experiencing a notable resurgence in popularity across Europe.
The pattern is the same. Guidance, comfort, and a sense of being known are being sought from sources that are not God. The appetite is understandable. The channel is not. The more a person shapes their identity and choices around what the cards say, what the stars suggest, or what a spirit supposedly whispers through a medium, the more they entrust their life to powers Scripture has warned them about.
Jezebel is not just a historical queen; she is a recurring pattern of spiritual seduction dressed in charm and confidence.
Prayer, Comfort, and the Real War
Prayer is often focused on healing, protection, provision, promotion, and the removal of discomfort. None of those requests are wrong. But we must also ask, do our prayers bring the fight to the enemy?
The serpent is a thief who comes only to steal and destroy our relationship with God. Forgiveness does not take us off the battlefield. In some ways, it puts us squarely on the front line.
The Gospels don't end with vague hints about a serpent. It ends with the serpent unmasked as the dragon, with beasts that represent corrupt powers and false religion, in a world intoxicated by lies and signs. Revelation is God’s way of turning all the lights on. The dragon is named. The machinery of deception is described. The persecution in full view. Everything that was operating in the dark is dragged into the light.
Knowing and Confronting the Enemy
Where does that leave me? It doesn't leave me obsessing over demons or blaming them for every bad day. But I do recognizing a pattern that runs from Genesis to Revelation:
That pattern is at work in the occult. It is at work in false religion. It is at work in seductive ideologies and spiritualities that present themselves as enlightened alternatives to “narrow” faith. It can even be at work inside the church.
To confront the enemy, as I understand it, is first to refuse that pattern. To submit to God. To walk in the light. To call out lies for what and where they are.
Hidden knowledge is dangerous, not because God is afraid of people knowing too much, but because behind certain doors there is someone waiting who does not mean us well. Scripture does offer clues. Those clues expose an enemy who would love to keep operating in the dark. My sense is that part of our calling in this moment is to turn on the light and to call out the enemy.
A Nation Under Pressure
It is not hard to imagine that a nation itself can come under spiritual pressure, and that its leaders may feel that strain whether or not they use that language.
That question feels even less abstract now. In the present moment, people close to the Trump Administration have openly spoken of “spiritual warfare” surrounding Donald Trump, including in connection with the 2024 campaign and the attempt on his life. Whether one accepts that language fully or not, it presses a real question: if Scripture says that principalities and powers work not only through individuals but through rulers, nations, and systems, why would it be unthinkable that America itself could be under attack? And if that is conceivable, then it is also conceivable that presidents themselves may stand at a point where visible conflict and invisible hostility meet.
When a Nation Hears 2 Chronicles 7:14
In April 2026, nearly 500 leaders and believers gathered for “America Reads the Bible,” a week‑long public reading of Scripture from Genesis to Revelation hosted at the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C.. This was the largest Bible reading event in American history.
President Trump chose to participate from the Oval Office, reading 2 Chronicles 7:11–22, including that familiar verse many of us can quote by heart:
"If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land."
This passage that has been invoked for decades on the National Day of Prayer, and organizers openly said they had set it aside specifically for the president to read as a call to national repentance and healing.
The National Day of Prayer was officially implemented by the United States Congress through a joint resolution signed into law by President Harry S. Truman on April 17, 1952.
This year, on April 25, 2026, just as the bible reading was concluding, on that very evening, at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, an assassination attempt was made on President Trump. One in a bloody line of attempts on his life.
Starting in early 2017, numerous self-proclaimed witches and practitioners of magic engaged in organized, mass spells aimed at Donald Trump, often using social media to coordinate rituals. In the lead up to the 2024 election thousands of witches around the country and even the world have been attempting to cast spells of destruction on Donald Trump. Interestingly, there are multiple reports by the witches themselves that their spells won't work on him because there are so many people praying for his protection.
I'm reminded of a famous story related to America's providence as a Judeo-Christian nation.
An Indigenous sachem (chief) famously prophesied that George Washington was protected by the Great Spirit and could not die in battle. During French Indian wars, in 1755 at the Battle of the Monongahela, the chief allegedly fired at Washington 17 times without hitting him. This legendary account and additional detailed stories highlight Washington's survival despite four bullet holes in his coat and two horses shot from under him.
The chief, in a later meeting, told Washington he had ordered his men to stop shooting because he believed the young officer was under divine protection and "could never die in battle." The chief predicted Washington would become "the chief of nations" and founder of a "mighty empire". The story was famously recounted by Dr. James Craik, a close friend of Washington and a witness to his survival.
Conclusion
When someone feels helpless, the promise of a spell, a horoscope, a spirit guide, or a ritual that can bend reality becomes attractive. But the enemy’s purposes always run contrary to God’s; where God seeks to free and restore, the occult offers “secret” insight and power that slowly bind, deceive, and redirect the heart toward a different master.
God, our nation and the world are under spiritual attack. Believers must come together and fight the enemy.
