I. Name
The term ʾôb is attested 17 times in the OT (one reference, Job 32.19, is dubious), for the most part followed by the term yiddĕʿōnî, (11 times). Though all scholars agree that the term relates to necromancy and to the conjuration and consultation of the spirits of the dead, its precise meaning and its etymology are still disputed.
II. Identity
The term ʾôb is interpreted in various ways. Consistent with the translations of the LXX (engastrimythos, ‘one who speaks from the belly’), Vg. (magus, ‘mag…