Lots[Heb gôrāl;
LXX klḗros (Lev. 16:8–10 Nu. 26:55;
etc.)]; [Heb. qesem] (Ezk. 21:22 [MT
27]); NEB AUGUR’S ARROW; AV DIVINATION; [Gk. klḗros] (Mt. 27:35; Mk. 15:24; Lk. 23:34; Jn. 19:24; Acts 1:26).
Both Heb. gôrāl and Gk. klḗros have two primary meanings: (1) a
device used to determine the will of god or of the gods, i.e., a form of Divination;
(2) by extension, “share,” “portion,” “inheritance,” i.e., that which is
received by the drawing or casting of lots. For the latter meaning see Allotment; Portion.
I. Terminology
The Heb. gôrāl is derived
from the Semitic root grl, which in
Arabic is the basis for words meaning “stony,” “stony ground” (KoB, p. 195) and
probably referred originally to small stones or markers used for divination.
Eventually a variety of small objects of stone, wood, clay, or other material
were also used. Several verbs are used with gôrāl,
all of which can mean “throw” or “cast” lots (yārâ, e.g., Josh. 18:6; hiphil of šālaḵ, e.g., Josh. 18:8; hiphil of nāp̱al, e.g., Prov. 1:14; Isa. 34:17; yāḏaḏ, Joel 3:3 [MT 4:3]; Ob. 11; Nah. 3:10). The lots appear to
have been kept in a container in which they were shaken until one was thrown or
sprang out (three different verbs are used for this: yāṣāʾ, e.g., Nu. 33:54; Josh. 15:1; ʿālâ, e.g., Lev. 16:9f.; nāp̱al,
e.g., Jonah 1:7). The Heb. qesem is
the only reference in the OT to a specific type of lot, namely, arrow
divination. The terms pûr and pûrîm are Hebrew transliterations or
adaptations of the Akk. pūrū, which
is used for the casting of lots for the purpose of divination (see Hallo; see also Purim). The term occurs in the
singular in Est. 3:7 and 9:24, 26, and in the plural in Est. 9:26, 28f, 31.
II. In the OT
Although the casting or taking of lots is but one of many forms of
divination, there is a wide variation in the use of lots throughout the ancient
world. The central presupposition behind the use of lots in the OT and NT is
clearly expressed in Prov. 16:33, “The lot is cast into the lap, but the
decision is wholly from the Lord.” The use of lots in making decisions,
therefore, was regarded as a means of allowing God to make the choice (cf.
Josh. 18:6, 8, 10).
Lots, though a form of divination, were never a forbidden practice in
ancient Israel as were the other major forms of divination (cf. Dt. 18:9–14).
One form of sacral lot was the Urim and Thummim, which were kept in a pocket in
the Ephod worn by the high priest (Ex. 28:30). The Urim and Thummim were
probably two small objects (stones, dice, small pieces of wood) that were used
to secure either a yes or no answer, and were used for such sacral functions as
the annual selection of goats to represent Yahweh and Azazel on the Day of
Atonement (Lev. 16:7–10).
Similar to the positive or negative response expected of the Urim and
Thummim, other forms of the lot were primarily used to secure a yes or no
answer to a particular proposal. In the OT the lot is most frequently mentioned
in connection with the apportionment of land (Nu. 26:55; 33:54; 34:13; 36:2f.;
Josh. 14:2; 15:1; 17:14, 17; 18:6, 8, 10f.; 19:1, 10, 17, 24, 32, 40, 51;
21:4–6, 8, 10; 1 Ch. 6:54, 61, 65), with the result that the land so allotted
expressed the divine will and thereafter became a portion or inheritance that
could not be alienated.
Lots were frequently used to narrow gradually the field of choice
before the final lot was cast. Thus 1 S. 10:20f narrates how through lot the
tribe of Benjamin was selected, then the family of Matrites was selected, and
finally Saul was selected as God’s choice of king of Israel. Similarly, the lot
was probably used to determine who had caused Israel’s defeat at Ai (Josh.
7:16–18); the guilty party was discovered by first narrowing the choice to the
tribe of Judah, then the family of the Zerahites, then the household of Zabdi,
and finally Achan was revealed as the culprit. Similarly Haman in Est. 3:7 had
lots cast for each of the months of the year, and when Adar received a positive
response, he determined that the Jews would be destroyed on that month.
Lots were employed in other ways as well. During the second temple
period, lots were cast for the priests, Levites, and people to determine a
rotation for those who would supply wood for the altar of the Lord (Neh. 10:34
[MT 35]). Lots were also cast at that time to determine who would live in
Jerusalem; one man in ten was so selected (Neh. 11:1). The Chronicler also
reports how the workers in the service of the first temple were organized by
the casting of lots (1 Ch. 24:5, 7, 9; 26:13f.).
In three passages the rare expression yāḏaḏ gôrāl occurs (Joel 3:3; Ob. 11; Nah. 3:10), apparently
belonging to a tradition of the oracles against the nations. In Joel 3:3 and
Nah. 3:10 the lot is cast for people, apparently referring to the distribution
of the prisoners of war, a fact which emphasizes their negligible value (H. W.
Wolff, Joel and Amos [Eng. tr. Hermeneia, 1977], p. 77).
III. In the NT
The Gospels have four references to the casting of lots (Mt. 27:35;
Mk. 15:24; Lk. 23:34; Jn. 19:24), all of which reflect the tradition that the
soldiers cast lots for the garments of Jesus at the foot of the cross in
fulfillment of Ps. 22:18 (MT 19). As in the OT references to the casting of
lots for orphans (Job 6:27) or prisoners of war (Joel 3:3; Nah. 3:10), the
utter degradation of Jesus is emphasized in this way. Acts 1:26 refers to the
casting of lots to select one of two candidates, Joseph Barsabbas or Matthias,
as a successor to the apostle Judas. Here, unlike the OT, there is no narrowing
down of a larger field of candidates, but in conformity to Roman practice the
community chooses the two candidates, though the choice between those two is
made by casting lots that are an expression of the will of God. (D.
E. Aune, “Lots,” in The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, ed.
Geoffrey W. Bromiley, 4 vols. [rev ed.; Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans,
1979-1988], 3:172-73)
