The ancient _sortes_ or _lots_, were instituted by God himself; and in the Old Testament we meet with many standing and perpetual laws, and a number of particular commands, prescribing and regulating the use of them. Thus Scripture informs us that the lot fell on St. Matthias, when a successor to Judas in the apostolate was to be chosen. Our Saviour’s garment itself was cast lots for. _Sortiti sunt Christo vestem._ The SORTES _Prænestinæ_ were famous among the Greeks. The method of these was to put a great number of letters, or even whole words, into an urn; to shake them together, and throw them out; and whatever should chance to be made out in the arrangement of the letters, &c. composed the answer of this oracle. In what repute soever this mode of divination formerly might have been, M. Dacier observes, that, in Cicero’s time, its credit was but low; so much so, that none but the most credulous part of the populace had recourse to it. Instead of this another kind of _sortes_ was introduced into Greece and Italy; which was, to take some celebrated poet, as for instance Homer, Euripides, Virgil, &c., to open the book, and whatever first presented itself to the eye on opening, it thus was taken for the ordinance of heaven. This made what was called the _Sortes Homericæ_ and _Sortes Virgilianæ_, which succeeded the use of the _Sortes Prænestinæ_. This superstition passed hence into Christianity; and the Christians took their sortes out of the Old and New Testament. The first passage that presented itself on opening a book of Scripture, was esteemed the answer of God himself. If the first passage that was opened did not happen to be any thing to the purpose for which the _sortes_ were consulted, another book was opened, and so on until something was met with that might, one way or the other, be taken for an answer. This was called _Sortes Sanctorum_. St. Augustine does not disapprove of this method of learning futurity, provided it be not used for worldly purposes; and, in fact, he owns having practised it himself. Gregory of Tours adds, that the custom was to lay the Bible on the altar, and to pray the Lord that he would discover by it what was to come to pass. Indeed, instances of the use of the _Sanctum Sanctorum_ are very frequent in history. Mr. Fleury tells us that Heraclius, in his war against Cossoes, to learn where he should take up his winter quarters, purified his army for three days, and then opened the Gospels, and discovered thereby that the place appointed for them was in Albania.