New Revised Standard Version has the following: “casts spells … consults ghosts or spirits … seeks oracles from the dead.” Good News Translation uses two different terms to cover the four Hebrew words. New Revised Standard Version is a good model to follow.

A charmer: this activity means to cast a spell on a person, to “bewitch” that person. An alternative model is “one who sings his magic.” Many languages will have similar expressions for this type of person.

A medium: a person who is able to communicate with the spirit world, in particular, with the spirits of the dead.

Wizard: someone who practices magic. “Magic,” whether harmful or beneficial, occurs in most cultures, and there will be terms for it and the people who perform it. “Magic” may also be expressed as “secret [or, supernatural] powers,” so a wizard can be translated “one who has secret [or, supernatural] powers.”

Necromancer: someone who consults the dead. In many languages medium and necromancer will be combined; for example, “those who talk with spirits of the dead” (Contemporary English Version).

In a number of cultures there will be different terms for all eight types of people in verses 10 and 11. However, in those languages that do not have equivalents for all the types of forbidden practices, the model below, from Contemporary English Version, will be helpful. The underlying assumption is that all of them require magic or witchcraft, and they can be grouped into three basic types:

• … And don’t try to use any kind of magic or witchcraft to tell fortunes, or to cast spells, or to talk with spirits of the dead.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .