What Does the Bible Say About Tarot Cards?
The fascination with tarot cards has grown in recent years, often presented as harmless fun, a spiritual hobby, or a tool for personal insight. Yet the Bible gives strong warnings about practices like divination, fortune-telling, and seeking supernatural knowledge outside of God’s revealed Word.
At its core, the biblical issue with tarot cards is not just about the cards themselves but about the spiritual authority to which a person turns for guidance. The Bible consistently calls God’s people to seek Him alone, rejecting sources of insight that come from practices condemned in Scripture.
1. Tarot Cards and Their Spiritual Claims
Tarot cards are a form of divination—an attempt to gain knowledge of the future or hidden realities through supernatural means. Each card has symbolic imagery that is interpreted to provide supposed insight into a person’s life.
From a biblical standpoint, these claims are spiritually dangerous because they invite people to trust in sources of guidance apart from God. The problem is not only that such methods are unreliable but that they can open a person to influences that Scripture associates with spiritual darkness.
2. The Bible’s Prohibition of Divination
The Bible is explicit in forbidding any form of divination, including practices that might seem harmless or “just for fun.”
Deuteronomy 18:10–12 prohibits divination, fortune-telling, sorcery, and necromancy, calling them “an abomination to the LORD.”
Leviticus 19:31 warns against turning to mediums or necromancers, stating that such practices make a person unclean.
These commands are not arbitrary. They protect God’s people from deception and from seeking truth in places where only lies and spiritual harm are found.
3. Why the Bible Warns Against Tarot Cards
The biblical rejection of tarot cards is not simply about avoiding superstition—it’s about loyalty to God. When a person consults tarot cards for answers, they are bypassing God’s appointed means of guidance: His Word, His Spirit, and His people.
This is more than a theological technicality. The Bible describes divination as “trusting in what is futile and false” (Isaiah 8:19–20; Jeremiah 10:2–3). Seeking spiritual guidance through tarot cards shifts trust away from the Creator and toward the created—whether that be an object, a person, or a spiritual power opposed to God.
4. False Light vs. True Light
Some defend tarot cards as simply “tools” that reflect human intuition or psychology. But the Bible teaches that spiritual deception often masquerades as light (2 Corinthians 11:14). The imagery, symbolism, and rituals of tarot can seem harmless or even uplifting, yet they draw people into a worldview where God is no longer the central source of truth.
In contrast, the Bible presents Jesus as “the light of the world” (John 8:12). In Him, we find not only guidance for the future but also the hope of eternal life. The contrast could not be sharper—false light distracts and deceives, while true light saves and transforms.
5. Examples from Scripture: Counterfeit Power vs. God’s Power
Throughout the Bible, there are moments when supernatural acts are performed outside of God’s will. In Exodus, Pharaoh’s magicians could mimic some of Moses’ miracles, but their power was limited and ultimately exposed as counterfeit (Exodus 7–8).
This pattern reminds us that not all supernatural insight or manifestation comes from God. The fact that something “works” or seems to reveal truth does not mean it is from the Lord. The source matters. The Bible repeatedly emphasizes that God alone is the safe and faithful source of truth.
6. The Gospel Connection: Trusting God’s Voice
The bigger story of the Bible is about God’s people living under His reign, trusting His voice over all others. In the garden of Eden, humanity’s first sin began with listening to a deceptive voice instead of God’s command. Tarot cards fit into that same spiritual pattern—they offer another voice to trust, one that cannot bring life.
In the gospel, Jesus restores the broken relationship between God and humanity, giving His people direct access to the Father through Him. This makes divination not only forbidden but unnecessary. Believers have the Holy Spirit as their Counselor (John 14:26) and the Scriptures as their guide (Psalm 119:105).
To turn to tarot cards is to say, in effect, that God’s guidance is insufficient—a statement that runs contrary to the heart of faith.
7. The End-Times Dimension
The Bible teaches that as history moves toward its conclusion, deception will increase. Jesus warned that false prophets and false signs would arise to mislead even the elect if possible (Matthew 24:24). While tarot cards may seem small compared to global false religions, they are part of the same category of spiritual deception that draws people away from the truth.
Believers are called to discernment, to test every spirit, and to hold fast to what is good (1 Thessalonians 5:21). This is not fear-based living but faith-based living—anchoring our hope in the One who will return to make all things new.
8. Living in the True Light
Rejecting tarot cards is not simply about avoiding the wrong; it’s about embracing the right. The Bible calls believers to set their minds on things above (Colossians 3:2) and to meditate on God’s promises day and night (Psalm 1:2).
Practical ways to live in the true light include:
Spending time in Scripture daily.
Praying for wisdom in decision-making.
Seeking counsel from mature believers.
Trusting God’s providence even when the future is unclear.
When we anchor our lives in God’s truth, the appeal of counterfeit guidance fades.
Conclusion: God’s Guidance Is Enough
The Bible’s teaching on tarot cards is clear—they are not compatible with following Christ. More than a harmless hobby, they represent a rival source of guidance that Scripture warns against in the strongest terms.
For the follower of Jesus, rejecting tarot cards is not a loss but a liberation. It is the freedom to walk in the light, guided by the Shepherd who knows His sheep by name and leads them to life everlasting.
Bible Verses About Tarot Cards and Divination
Deuteronomy 18:10–12 – “Anyone who practices divination or sorcery… is detestable to the LORD.”
Leviticus 19:31 – “Do not turn to mediums or seek out spiritists, for you will be defiled by them.”
Isaiah 8:19–20 – “Should not a people inquire of their God?”
Jeremiah 10:2–3 – “Do not learn the ways of the nations or be terrified by signs in the heavens.”
Galatians 5:19–21 – “Those who practice witchcraft will not inherit the kingdom of God.”
Acts 16:16–18 – Paul rebukes a spirit of divination in a slave girl.
Revelation 21:8 – “The sorcerers… will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur.”
2 Corinthians 11:14 – “Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.”
Psalm 119:105 – “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”
John 8:12 – “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness.”