Amono;the Arabs, money was paid for divination, and sacrifices (as of a camel) preceded or accom- panied the divinin" ceremony. In these respects we find close parallels in the Balaam narrative, to which allusion has already been made. Accord- ingly, in this episode we do not fail to note that the deputations were provided with money pay- ment for the soothsaving (called D-ipfi? Nu 22'), a feature in the story wliich reminds us of 2 K 5'.
As the ancient Hebrews in early times called the soothsayer nx-i or ' seer,' so the primitive Arabs called him a 'gazer.' When 'gazing' he would veil his face. Hence the epithet, dhul chimar, or ' the (man) with the veil,' applied to several seers.t We naturally revert to the veil of the prophet Moses (Ex 34'"'-). Under the influence of the super- natural spirit or demon a series of short sentences would be uttered, of which four to six would be united together in a strophe by rhyme. This
is called in Arabic Saj' , comp. the Heb. yji'lj applied to a prophet (2 K 9"). "This wild ecstatic condition often characterized the primitive Hebrew propliet in pre -exilic times (IS 10""}, and thi« became contagious, and allected those who wit- nessed it (1 S 19" ■••»•■■", cf. 18'"). What the OT ascribed to possession by the spirit of God (Jehovah) the Arab in primitive times ascribed to the spirit
• So Moore, art. * Ephod ' in Kncye. Biblica. t The root of the word for ' seer' in Arabic corresponds to th« Heb. .Iinl
SOOTiiSAYKll, SOOTllSAYIXG
SOOTHSAYER, SOOTHSAYi:\G 599
01 demon that dwelt in liim. Amon^ the Moslems a dLiuon vas called a shaiti'in (see under Satan).
The connexion betwein t\\a jinn in early Arabia (and in later times the sluiit&n) and serpents throws iiybl upon the serpent of Gn 3 as well as the '■p,^ of Is C-. Theytn» were con^^idered to reside in ser- pents, and the name shaitdn is applied to a serpent.* They/nn were not necessarily evil. Some might be well disposed to truth (JJoran, 46'''''), like the great male serpent which met Mohammed on the way to Tabiik (cf. Baudissin, Studicn zur semit. licligions- gesrli. i. p. 279 11'. ).
Tliose illustrations from ancient Arabic belief enable us to understand the use of the Heb. tfrt} for ' divine ' (from c'rij ' serpent ') and rnj for ' divina- tion ' (2 K 17" 21», Dt 18'», Lv 19-», Gn 30-'' 44'"). This association of the art of divination with the Berpent arose from a variety of causes. This reptile springs mysteriously from holes in the eartli with the hissing or whispering sound char- acteristic of incantations (see MAGIC, vol. iii. p. 210'' and footnote), and with a fascinating power of the ej-e which made it inevitable that a serpent should be regarded as the embodiment of a demon. Hence cunning and wisdom were ascribed to ser-
Sents (Gn 3', Mt 10'"). Thus it w as natural that the enora. Piel wnj came to bo emploj'ed of the sooth- sayer, who was considered to be demon-possessed (like the sorcerer or necromancer, 'ji'T and z\« Si';). Both in Arabia and in ancient Assyiia the desire to know the course of future events in their bear- ing upon the interests of the inquirer, more espe- cially with respect to the success or non-success of some enterprise, impelled him to find clues of information in the moxements of nature, more especiallv of animals, ^ince these were held to be possessed by demons. The Arabs believed that tlie animal is mu'inur, i.e. is subject to some higher behest, and has open eyes to see (like Balaam's ass) when human eyes are without vision. Tiie wolf, the dog, the hare, and the fox were omen- giving animals. Comiii" from the right hand, one of these animals would be hailed as portending good ; from the left, bad (Wellh. p. 201 f.). Birds were especially considered to convey omens, viz. the raven, goose, starling, and hoopoe. The raven was the bird which heralded misfortune, especially the separation of friends from loved ones.
The cuneiform records exhibit the wide preva- lence of a jrreat mass of similar beliefs ana prac- tices in Bftlji/lunia, but with this ditlerence, that the omen-tablets mark the distinctions in special cases with a wearisome excess of detail which we do not find in the simpler civilization of the Western Semitic lands, Palestine and Arabia. The omens may be divided into difierent classes :
(1) tliose concerned with da3'8 and heavenly bodies ;
(2) those concerned with the features of human childbirth and also with those of birth-giving by animals ; (3) omens concerned with movements of animals. — These will be found fullj' treated in Morris Jastrow's instructive work, Edigion of Jifihylonia and Assyria, chs. xix. and xx. The following is a good example of (1) —
* Sun and moon arc Bccn apart (t.0. at differeot ttmes) ; The kini,' of the country will numifest wifldom. On tile fourteenth day Mun and mooD ore seen together ; Tliere will be loyalty in the l.ind, The gods of Babylonia are favourably inclined, The soldiuo' will be in accord with tlic kind's denlrv, The cattle of Babylonia will pasture in safety.
On the fifteenth day the Bun and moon are seen tojjether ; A powerful enemy raises his weapons affainst the land. The enemy will uiiatter the great gate of the city.'