God’s will or not in modern times? Casting lots for big decision

Some decisions are too big to be left to chance — like who to marry, where to live, or what you’re going to do with your life.

We would never flip a coin on such important things. And yet, in the Bible, people did just that. You actually see them engaging in a practice called casting lots to make major decisions. Decisions like whether to go into battle, how to distribute permanent land ownership to various families, and even determining who was guilty of a crime.

The weird thing is not just that ancient people came up with such questionable tactics to make weighty decisions, but ancient history is full of such superstitious behavior. The weird thing is that it worked.

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Casting lots worked in the Bible

Throughout the Scriptures, we see example after example of God revealing His will and direction to people through the practice of casting lots.

• Achan’s guilt in stealing forbidden items from Jericho was exposed through the practice of casting lots (Joshua 7:14-18).
• Jonah was revealed amongst the sailors as the reason for God’s anger and a tempestuous storm (Jonah 1:7-10).
• Land allotments in the newly conquered Promised Land were distributed to families through casting lots (Joshua 18:6).
• Priestly orders of service were decided based on this practice (I Chronicles 24-26).

And there are numerous other examples as well. Casting lots was used so often and so reliably, it caused Solomon to write in Proverbs 16:33, “The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord.”

What is casting lots?

We aren’t exactly sure what casting lots looked like, but we do know it was something similar to a game of chance. It was similar to drawing straws, rolling dice, or gambling. For example, the Roman soldiers cast lots over Jesus’ garments while He hung on the cross (John 19:23).

Here is how GotQuestions.org describes casting lots:

“The practice of casting lots is mentioned seventy times in the Old Testament and seven times in the New Testament. In spite of the many references to casting lots in the Old Testament, nothing is known about the actual lots themselves. They could have been sticks of various lengths, flat stones like coins, or some kind of dice; but their exact nature is unknown. The closest modern practice to casting lots is likely flipping a coin.”

It doesn’t sound like the most spiritual way to make your decisions or ascertain God’s intentions. And yet, throughout the Bible, God approved of and used it to reveal His divine will.

Was it just an Old Testament practice?

Perhaps you’re thinking, Maybe God communicated in this way in Old Testament times, but surely God didn’t do that anymore in the New Testament.

And that would be incorrect.

In fact, it comes up again when — just after the resurrection and ascension of Jesus — the 11 disciples (now called apostles) are trying to find a twelfth member to replace Judas. The candidates are narrowed down to two guys: Justus and Matthias. And here’s what Scripture says in Acts 1:26: “And they cast lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthias, and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.”

This was a pretty significant moment. It’s not under the Old Covenant — this takes place after the cross. These 12 men are about to carry out the Great Commission. They are to take the Gospel to the ends of the earth. This is initiating the process of building the church. Revelation says the names of the 12 apostles are written on the foundations of Heaven. And they pick the twelfth guy by playing eeny-meeny-miney-Matthias.

This is probably not how we’d advise any church to pick its next pastor. Was it right for the apostles to pick the 12th member this way? In their defense, they had a lot of biblical precedent for it.

And it might cause us to ask: Can I cast lots for big decisions in my life as well?

Should we cast lots today?

While the Bible does not specifically say that we can’t, I believe there is great significance to what happens immediately after this event in the book of Acts.

The verse we read above, Acts 1:26, is the last verse of the first chapter. The very next verses after this describe what happened when the Holy Spirit came down.

Acts 2:1-4 says, “When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.”

At the Day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit fell upon the newly founded church and took up residence inside believers. After this, for the rest of the Bible, making decisions by casting lots is never mentioned again.

Daniel Kidner’s commentary on Proverbs, speaking on Proverbs 16:33, says this about the practice of casting lots today: “God’s last use of this method was, significantly, the last event before Pentecost” (Proverbs, Kidner Classic Commentaries, Tyndale, emphasis mine).

Everything changed when the Holy Spirit fell. Now, He is supposed to be our guide (John 16:13-15, Romans 8:14).

The Spirit’s guidance in Acts

And throughout the rest of the book of Acts, after the Day of Pentecost, you no longer see any lots being cast to make decisions. However, you will see this:

Acts 8:29: “The Spirit said to Philip, ‘Go over and join this chariot.’” 

Acts 16:6-7: “And they went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia. And when they had come up to Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them.”

Acts 13:2: “The Holy Spirit said, ‘set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.’”

Acts 15:28: “It has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us…”

Acts 20:22-23: “And now, behold, I am going to Jerusalem, constrained by the Spirit, not knowing what will happen to me there, except that the Holy Spirit testifies to me in every city that imprisonment and afflictions await me.”

The Spirit speaks. The Spirit forbids. The Spirit constrains. The Spirit testifies.

Don’t decide your next family vacation or where to buy your next car by casting lots. God does not intend to guide our lives by random chance, but by His Spirit within you.

Listen for His voice.