What does the Bible say about prediction markets, like Polymarket and Kalshi, and how should Christians approach them?
An advertisement by the American company Polymarket show Zohran Mamdani and Andrew Cuomo ahead of the New York City mayoral election on Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Olga Fedorova) Casting lots over a dying man’s garments was considered a scandal in my biblical upbringing. Today, we call it a prediction market—and Wall Street calls it innovation. The rapid growth and expansion of prediction markets have flooded the public marketplace, making it feel as if all of this is supposed to be business as usual, another opportunity to grow your financial portfolio like day trading or other, edgier ways to expand investment opportunities. We’re not yet two months into the new year, and major prediction market companies like Polymarket and Kalshi have dominated the headlines. Polymarket opened up a pop-up “ free grocery store ” in New York’s Greenwich Village this past week, following a similar publicity stunt from fellow prediction market rival, Kalshi, which offered patrons $50 groceries in early February. Providing free/discounted food appears, on its face, to benefit a community, but there is a dark reality behind these goodwill efforts.