Chapter 28

1 Achish putteth confidence in David. 3 Saul, having destroyed the witches, 4and now in his fear forsaken of God, 7 seeketh to a witch. 9 The witch, encouraged by Saul, raiseth up Samuel. 15 Saul, hearing his ruin, fainteth. 21 The woman with his servants refresh him with meat.

1. Thou shalt go out. This was not an invitation but an order. David, as a vassal of Achish, was under the heathen king’s command. The Philistine ruler had checked David’s movements during the past months, and what he had heard had satisfied him that David had become so closely knit to the Philistines that the Israelite troops would be a valuable addition to the expeditionary force moving north in a few days.

Saul’s Last Battle Against the Philistines 1 Samuel 28–31

2. Thou shalt know. David himself was not certain about how to avoid fighting, once he actually came to the battle. In his heart he had no thought of lifting his sword against his own nation, yet because of past associations with Achish he felt that he could not refuse to accompany him to the battle. Again, he seemed forced to resort to double dealings. His ambiguous reply was much like the oracles of the gods. Whichever way the events turned out, the oracle would be correct. Yet his answer was understood by Achish as a pledge of assistance, and in return he pledged David great and attractive reward (see PP 674).

3. Samuel. Samuel had evidently been dead for some time (ch. 25:1). This verse seems to have been thrown in parenthetically to introduce the main theme of the chapter, Saul’s visit to the woman of En-dor.

Had put away. The narrative gives no hint as to what period in his reign Saul abolished necromancy in the land. Some think it was probably early, but others suggest that the action was taken when Saul found himself possessed of an evil spirit, and that he hoped thereby to rid himself of the cause of all his trouble. Spiritism was a common practice among the nations round about, but Israel had been forbidden to have anything to do with it (Deut. 18:9–14). See PP 676.

4. Shunem. Now SoЖlem, about 3 mi. northeast of Jezreel, at the southern base of the Hill of Moreh across the valley from Mt. Gilboa. This valley, called Jezreel or Esdraelon, was a fertile, well-watered plain easily accessible from the coastal plains through the pass at Megiddo. The valley extended southeastward, cutting the central mountains and descending eastward to the Jordan valley at Beth-shan. The Hill of Moreh and Mt. Gilboa stand at the eastern end of the broad plain of Esdraelon proper, and form a watershed for that part of Palestine. All the water east of this drains into the Jordan; all west flows into the Kishon River, and thence to the Mediterranean Sea. The large valley lying between these two mountains, and forming a somewhat lower extension of Esdraelon, is the Valley of Jezreel, drained by the river Jalud, which flows past Beth-shan on its way to the Jordan.

Although there is no definite statement to that effect, the fact that the Philistines could pass clear through the valley to Shunem indicates that while Saul had been so intent on finding David, he had been most remiss in protecting his frontiers, and the Philistines had taken advantage of this laxity. Saul’s mad passion to rid the land of David, had involuntarily opened the whole country to the invasions of the Philistines. The invaders had probably overrun much of the territory belonging to Issachar, Zebulun, and Asher. From the top of Mt. Gilboa, Saul could get a commanding view of the Valley of Jezreel and the opposing army nestled at the base of Moreh some 4 or 5 mi. distant. Perhaps Israelite scouts had intensified Saul’s desperation by warning him concerning David’s presence with the Philistine host, and he feared lest David now seek revenge (see PP 675).

6. Enquired of the Lord. There is no discrepancy between this statement and that in 1 Chron. 10:14 which states that Saul did not inquire of the Lord. Hebrew words are frequently more inclusive in their meaning than our English words. The word “enquire” may, as in 1 Chron. 10:14, include the whole process of (1) asking for the information, (2) receiving an answer, (3) acting favorably upon the answer. In the verse now under consideration Saul did not make this kind of inquiry. The word “enquired” is used in its more restrictive sense. Saul did make approaches to God for information, but the Lord made no reply.

Answered him not. The Lord never turns away any soul who comes to Him in humility and sincerity. The answer may not come in the manner expected or at the time expected, but God takes note of the petition and works what is best under the circumstances. The frantic appeals of Saul reached the divine ear, but in view of the situation, God chose not to impart the information the king was seeking. Saul had deliberately refused to wait for God’s counsel at Gilgal (ch. 13:8–14), or to accept any messages contrary to his kingly ideas. He had had access to the tabernacle at Nob, but had murdered the priests. Inasmuch as Saul had voluntarily chosen to follow his own counsel, God permitted him to reap the fruit of such sowing. Had he been repentant and submissive, God could have turned his mistakes into steppingstones to success. Saul’s experience illustrates the truth, “Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap” (Gal. 6:7; cf. 5T 119).

The text seems to indicate that in his desperation, Saul tried hurriedly to inquire by means of dreams, Urim, and prophets, but all three were silent. Since Abiathar had the ephod in his possession, some think that Saul ordered another made.

7. Seek me a woman. In his mad haste Saul turned to the source of information he himself had condemned (v. 3). The man who was once filled with spiritual zeal now gave way to the heathen superstition of calling on the supposed spirits of departed souls for help.

That hath a familiar spirit. Heb. baФalathРХob. BaФalath means “mistress.” ХOb should be rendered “necromancer,” or, in modern language, “a medium” (see RSV; see also on Lev. 19:31). The word is also used of necromancy, as in v. 8, where Saul literally says, “Inquire, I pray, for me by necromancy.” Our English word necromancy comes from two Greek words, nekros, dead, and manteia, divination, and describes the art of ascertaining the future by alleged communications with the spirits of the dead.

En-dor. A town on the north side of the Hill of Moreh, on the opposite side from the Philistine camp, about 7 mi. (11.2 km.) from where Saul was staying with his forces on Mt. Gilboa. It still bears the same name, EndoЖr.

9. Wizards. Literally, “knowing ones.” Wizards were supposed to possess special knowledge concerning the unseen world. They are classed with the necromancers and held, by God, in equal abhorrence (see Lev. 19:31; 20:6, 27; Deut. 18:11; 2 Kings 21:6; 23:24; 2 Chron. 33:6; Isa. 8:19; 19:3).

Cause me to die. Saul’s national edict did not achieve the complete cooperation of all subjects. Imperial decrees frequently fail of securing universal conformity. The Roman persecutions of the Christians did not prevent Christianity from surviving and in many instances flourishing.

The woman, apparently informed by the spirits of Saul’s identity (see on v. 12), now feared for her own life (see on v. 25). In the full realization that her occult art was under the royal ban, she had nevertheless been practicing it in secret. Little did she realize that Saul himself had long been troubled by evil spirits (ch. 16:14–16), and was now completely at their mercy.

10. No punishment. Being the king, Saul felt he could claim for himself immunity from any law, and could also promise immunity to anyone who would help him out of his difficulty.

11. Bring me up Samuel. Why should Saul ask for Samuel above all others? The prophet had been the guide and mentor of the king, and had given several predictions at the time of Saul’s anointing that brought joy and peace when Saul saw them fulfilled. But as quickly as his despotic temperament began to show itself, his respect for divine counsel lessened. This attitude, in turn, developed into an indifference and even hatred, until the king neglected every administrative responsibility in his attempt to exterminate his rival. With the memory of David’s kindness on two different occasions still rankling in his diseased mind, Saul began to realize that he had failed in the eyes of many of his subjects whom he saw deserting him and fleeing to David. Greatly irritated because of Heaven’s silence, he sought some method of forcing a reply.

12. Thou art Saul. The information was supernaturally imparted—however, not by God. God had shown His abhorrence of the practice of necromancy by ordering the death of all who engaged in it (Lev. 20:27). Even those who consulted spiritualistic mediums were to be cut off (Lev. 20:6). Hence the communication must have come from some other source. There are those who hold that the spirits of the dead return to commune with the living. These would maintain that the spirit of Samuel responded to the summons of the medium. But a communication from Samuel, speaking as a prophet, would indirectly be a communication from God, and it is expressly stated that the Lord refused to communicate with Saul (1 Sam. 28:6). Saul was slain, “for asking counsel of one that had a familiar spirit, to enquire of it; and enquired not of the Lord” (1 Chron. 10:13, 14).

The teaching that the spirits of the dead return to communicate with the living is based on the belief that the spirit of man exists in a conscious state after death, that indeed this spirit is the real man. The Bible does not teach that the spirit, at death, returns unto God, who gave it (Eccl. 12:7), but the OT emphatically denies that this spirit is a conscious entity (Job 14:21; Ps. 146:4; Eccl. 9:5, 6). The NT teaches the same doctrine. Jesus pointed forward to His second coming and not to death as the time when the believer will be reunited with his Lord (John 14:1–3). Otherwise, Jesus might have comforted His sorrowing disciples with the thought that death would soon overtake them and that thus they would immediately go to the heavenly realms to be with Him. In speaking solace to those who had laid their loved ones to rest, Paul significantly declared that there was to be no precedence on the part of the living over the dead, but all would be reunited with their Lord at the same moment (1 Thess. 4:16, 17).

It is evident, then, that the spirit of Samuel did not here communicate with Saul. There remains one other source for the intelligence. The Scriptures reveal that Satan and his angels have the ability to impart information and also to change their form (see Matt. 4:1–11; 2 Cor. 11:13, 14). The apparition that appeared to the woman of En-dor was a satanic impersonation of Samuel, and the message imparted had its origin in the prince of darkness.

Although much of the phenomena of spiritistic sйances involves trickery and sleight of hand, not all phenomena can be explained on this basis. Many who have investigated sйances admit the presence of a power that cannot be accounted for on the basis of trickery or of known scientific laws.

The Scriptures predict an increase in supernatural manifestations in the last days (Matt. 7:22, 23; 2 Thess. 2:9; Rev. 13:13, 14; 16:14). The only safeguard against these delusive devices is to have the mind so well fortified with the truths of the Bible that the tempter will be recognized in his guise. A firm faith in the truth of the unconscious state of the dead will make powerless any attempt of the enemy to infiltrate his propaganda through spiritualistic mediums and supposed communications from the departed (see GC ch. 34).

It appears that the woman’s spirit informer took delight in divulging the information that uncovered Saul’s disguise, and mocked the king’s strange course in finally coming for help to the very power he had thought formerly to silence. In the presence of the satanic supernatural power the king’s bravado, self-justification, and alibis of every description fled as chaff before the wind.

13. Gods. Heb. Хelohim, a title used more than 2,500 times of the true God (see Vol. I, pp. 170, 171), and frequently of false gods (Gen. 35:2; Ex. 12:12; 20:3; etc.). The KJV three times translates the word as “judges” (Ex. 21:6; 22:8, 9). It is possible that the word should be so translated here, thus making the woman say, “I see judges ascending from the earth.” This would be in harmony with the identification of Samuel as a judge. Though the woman used the plural form, Saul seems to have understood the singular, for he questioned, “What form is he of?” On the other hand, she may have used the word Хelohim in its more common sense, “gods.”

14. What form? Saul’s questions, together with the woman’s replies, are in themselves evidence that he did not see the apparition himself. Perhaps he was separated from the medium by a curtain, or perhaps he was standing directly before her in the midnight darkness of the cave. When she described the apparition, Saul “perceived that it was Samuel.”

It would be contrary to every principle of righteousness to imagine divine authority being given to a necromancer to summon Samuel from his place of rest. To think that God, who had placed His ban on necromancy (Deut. 18:10–12), would yield to the request of a medium, and disturb His sleeping saint, Samuel, would be wholly inconceivable. But as Satan had the power to appear before Jesus in the wilderness as an angel of light, so he or his agents could, if permitted, also impersonate Samuel, both in form and voice. The devil took this opportunity to taunt Saul with the irony of his fate. The very man who had once persecuted the exponents of this black art was now on his knees before that power, pleading for help.

15. Samuel said. This clause must not be interpreted as meaning that it was actually Samuel who spoke. The writer simply describes events as they appeared, which is the normal way in a narrative. The Bible also speaks of the sun as rising and setting, and so do we. Nor is anyone deceived or confused by the fact that we are thus speaking simply of appearances. Actually, the sun does not rise and set, rather the earth revolves. In the verse before us the context and a comparison with other scriptures make clear that an impersonation of Samuel was uttering the sayings here attributed to the deceased prophet (see on v. 12).

Bring me up. See v. 11, where the expression “bring up” twice occurs. Evidently the ancients, in general, envisioned a subterranean region as the dwelling place of the dead. If the doctrine held by most Christians, that a righteous man ascends to heaven at death, had been held in this ancient period, the summons would have been to bring Samuel down, and the spirit-impersonator of Samuel would have said, “Why have you brought me down?” This one point in the record is sufficient in itself to rule out this narrative as proof in behalf of the doctrine of the conscious state of the righteous dead.

16. Thine enemy. These words identify their author. The statement made here and in the following verses illustrates a characteristic device of the devil. Ever since his fall, Satan has endeavored to paint the character of God in false colors. He represents God as a revengeful tyrant, plunging into hell all those who do not fear Him (see GC 534). He lures men into sin and then presents their case as utterly hopeless. He represents God as unwilling to forgive the sinner as long as there is the least excuse for not receiving him. Thus he depicts God to men as their enemy. This concept lies at the basis of the heathen religions that teach the necessity of sacrifices to appease an angry God. How utterly contrary is such a doctrine to the teachings of the Scriptures, which represent God as exercising love to all, and willing to make a supreme sacrifice to save the guilty (John 3:16; 2 Peter 3:9).

17. Rent the kingdom. The spirit, posing as a voice from heaven, taunted Saul by telling him that his crown would go to his rival. Satan inspired Saul’s associates to stir up the king’s animosity against David, and then turned his gall to wormwood by announcing, as accomplished, the very thing Saul had fought so long to prevent. He had heard of David’s being with the Philistines (PP 675), and now probably envisioned the enemies of the Lord as conquering him and giving the kingdom to David.

18. Hath the Lord. Though Satan inspired the thoughts that prompted Saul’s disobedience in his dealings with Amalek, he now hurled condemnation at the king in the name of the Lord. Thus God was represented as employing the same tactics as Satan. God had not actually become Saul’s enemy. He was merely permitting the harvest to be of the same quality as the sowing. Saul’s present plight was the result of his own choice. God had endeavored to save him from disaster by sending repeated warnings and counsels, but Saul persisted in placing his finite judgment in opposition to divine instruction.

19. Of the Philistines. Because Saul voluntarily debased himself by playing into the hands of the adversary, Satan used this opportunity to taunt and discourage him. With the battle impending, Satan made Saul feel that he had lost. Actually the Lord might as readily have saved Israel now as He had at Mizpah (ch. 7:10). But at that time Israel confessed their sin and “cried unto the Lord.” Had Saul confessed his sin, gathered all Israel together, told them of his weakness, and led the host in a renewed dedication to the Lord, the outcome of the battle might have been vastly different. By holding before the king the apparent hopelessness of any pardon, and the vastness of his rebellion against God, Satan succeeded in completely discouraging Saul and leading him on to his ruin.

20. Straightway. Literally, “hastened.” Since the action was involuntary, the meaning would be that within a brief period of hearing the dread message he collapsed.

All along. Literally, “the fullness of his stature.” The physical strain and mental worry, and finally the terrible news of his impending defeat and death, so unnerved him that his body failed him.

25. They rose up. Like Judas, Saul went forth into the night. Left to herself, the medium was doubtless as distraught as was the king. Saul had been guilty of duplicity and treachery in his dealings with David. How did she know but that her life would be the price for the happenings of that night? Saul had been too sick to speak any word of appreciation for her services. She did not have the consolation of prayer and faith. She was the slave of a power that would be as free to taunt her as to taunt the king.

Ellen G. White comments

1–25PP 674–681

6–20PP 683–689

1, 2 PP 674

4, 5 PP 675

6     PP 683

6, 7 PP 676

7     AA 290; Ev 608

7, 8 PP 683

9     GC 556

8–11PP 679

12   PP 680

13, 14  PP 679

15–19PP 680

20–25PP 681