8<\/strong>. they came to the woman by night<\/em> ] It was an adventurous journey. They had to pass over the shoulder of the hill on which the Philistines were encamped, and traverse a distance of not less than ten or twelve miles. The darkness around was a fit emblem of the darkness in Saul’s soul. Cp. Joh 13:30<\/span>, and Augustine’s comment “Nox erat, et ipse qui exivit erat nox,” (It was night, and he who went forth was night).<\/p>\n bring me him up<\/em>, &c.] A more precise definition of the method of divination “by Ob<\/em>.” Cp. Deu 18:10-11<\/span>. Probably Saul expected to hear a voice, but not to see a form. Necromancy was practised among the Greeks and other heathen nations. There was a famous oracle of this kind on the River Acheron in Epirus ( ).<\/p>\n Divine – <\/B>Compare to 1Sa 6:2<\/span>, note; Num 23:23<\/span>, note.<\/P> Bring me him up – <\/B>The art of the ventriloquist seems to have been always connected with necromancy. The Greeks had necromancers who called up departed spirits to give answers to those who consulted them.<\/P><\/p>\n Verse 8<\/span>. Saul disguised himself<\/B><\/I>] That he might not be known by the woman, lest she, being terrified, should refuse to use her art.<\/P><\/p>\n Saul disguised himself; <\/B>both because he was ashamed to be known, or thought guilty of this practice; and because he suspected that the woman, had she known him, would not practise her art before him. <\/P><\/p>\n 8-14. bring me him up, whom I shallname unto thee<\/B>This pythoness united to the arts of divinationa claim to be a necromancer (De18:11<\/span>); and it was her supposed power in calling back the dead ofwhich Saul was desirous to avail himself. Though she at first refusedto listen to his request, she accepted his pledge that no risk wouldbe incurred by her compliance. It is probable that his extraordinarystature, the deference paid him by his attendants, the easy distanceof his camp from En-dor, and the proposal to call up the greatprophet and first magistrate in Israel (a proposal which no privateindividual would venture to make), had awakened her suspicions as tothe true character and rank of her visitor. The story has led to muchdiscussion whether there was a real appearance of Samuel or not. Onthe one hand, the woman’s profession, which was forbidden by thedivine law, the refusal of God to answer Saul by any divinelyconstituted means, the well-known age, figure, and dress of Samuel,which she could easily represent herself, or by an accomplicehisapparition being evidently at some distance, being muffled, and notactually seen by Saul, whose attitude of prostrate homage, moreover,must have prevented him distinguishing the person though he had beennear, and the voice seemingly issuing out of the ground, and comingalong to Sauland the vagueness of the information, imparted muchwhich might have been reached by natural conjecture as to theprobable result of the approaching conflictthe woman’srepresentationall of this has led many to think that this was amere deception. On the other hand, many eminent writers (consideringthat the apparition came before her arts were put in practice; thatshe herself was surprised and alarmed; that the prediction of Saul’sown death and the defeat of his forces was confidently made), are ofopinion that Samuel really appeared.<\/P><\/p>\n And Saul disguised himself, and put on other raiment<\/strong>,…. Stripped himself of his royal robes, or military apparel, as supreme commander, and clothed himself in the habit of a peasant or a common soldier; and this not only that he might not be known by the woman, but that he might pass from his army incognito, and it might not be known that he was gone, and especially whither he was gone:<\/p>\n and he went, and two men with him<\/strong>: these, according to the tradition of the Jews e, were Abner and Amasa; but it is not probable that Saul should leave his army destitute of their general at such a time as this:<\/p>\n and they came to the woman by night<\/strong>; not only that they might not be seen, but because it was a work of darkness they were going about, and it was only in the night season that such persons exercised their black art; though the Jews f say it was day, only because of their distress it was like tonight with them; but the literal sense is best:<\/p>\n and he said, I pray thee divine unto me by the familiar spirit<\/strong>; exercise her art of divination, by the assistance of the familiar spirit she conversed with:<\/p>\n and bring me up whom I shall name unto thee<\/strong>: that is, from the dead; for necromancy was the kind of divination she professed; and such persons pretended to have a power to bring up a deceased person, and consult with him about secret and future things.<\/p>\n e Vajikra Rabba, sect. 26. fol. 167. 1. Shalshalet ib. f Tanchuma apud Jarchiura in loc.<\/p>\n (8) And Saul disguised himself.<\/strong>The disguise and the time chosen for the expedition served a double purpose. The king would, he thought, be unknown in the darkness and disguise when he came to the witchs dwelling, and there was, too, a far greater probability of his escaping his Philistine foes, whose army lay between him and the village of En-dor.<\/p>\n Divine unto me by the familiar spirit.<\/strong>Literally, divine unto me by the b. <\/em>Keils remark is interesting: Prophesying by the b <\/em>was probably performed by calling up a departed spirit from Sheol, and obtaining propheciesi.e., disclosuresconcerning ones own fate through the medium of such a spirit. No other commentator touches on the b <\/em>here, and Keil leaves it in doubt as to whether he considered the b <\/em>was some special spirit devoted to the service of the mistress of the b, <\/em>or the spirit or soul of one already dead, who, through some occult power, was to be brought back again for a season to this earth. As far as we can judge of these old mysteries, the sorcerer or sorceress possessed, or was supposed to possess, a familiar. Through the aid of this familiar, the departed spirit was compelled or induced to re-visit this world, and to submit to certain questioning. The Hebrew rendered divine unto me is of Syriac origin, like most of those words describing illicit vaticinations.Speakers Commentary. <\/em>This miserable power, if it did exist, was one of the things the Israelites learned from the original inhabitants of Canaan. These black arts, as they have been called, have, in all ages, in every degree of civilisation, always had an extraordinary fascination for men. It is well known that even in our own cultured age similar pretensions are put forth, and the dead are still invoked, summoned, and questioned, as they were in the half-barbarous age when Saul and his companions, in their desperate strait, sought the witch of En-dor.<\/p>\n And bring me him up.<\/strong>The popular idea has always been that Sheol, the place of departed spirits, is somewhere beneath <\/em>the ground or earth on which we live, just as heaven, the abode of God and His holy angels, is in a region above <\/em>the earth. St. Paul speaks in this popular language (Eph. 4:9<\/span>), where he refers to the lower parts of the earth as the abode of departed spirits. Hence we have here, bring me him up. The Christian Church, Bishop Wordsworth reminds us, has adopted this language into her creeds, where she says that Christ in His human soul descended <\/em>into hell (Hades). Keil well remarks on this human idea of what is above and below: With our modes of thought, which are so bound up with time and space, it is impossible to represent to ourselves in any other way the difference and contrast between blessedness with God and shade-life in death.<\/p>\n 8<\/strong>. <\/strong> Disguised himself <\/strong> So as not to be recognised by the woman. <\/p>\n By night <\/strong> The only time when it would be at all safe for him to venture so far in the rear of his enemy, and perhaps the only time when he could go at all, for the morrow might require his presence with his army, and the battle might drive him far from Endor. <\/p>\n Divine unto me <\/strong> Saul made known his errand in language such as any one who inquired of a necromancer would naturally use.<\/p>\n (8) And Saul disguised himself, and put on other raiment, and he went, and two men with him, and they came to the woman by night: and he said, I pray thee, divine unto me by the familiar spirit, and bring me him up, whom I shall name unto thee. (9) And the woman said unto him, Behold, thou knowest what Saul hath done, how he hath cut off those that have familiar spirits, and the wizards, out of the land: wherefore then layest thou a snare for my life, to cause me to die? (10) And Saul sware to her by the LORD, saying, As the LORD liveth, there shall no punishment happen to thee for this thing. (11) Then said the woman, Whom shall I bring up unto thee? And he said, Bring me up Samuel. (12) And when the woman saw Samuel, she cried with a loud voice: and the woman spake to Saul, saying, Why hast thou deceived me? for thou art Saul. (13) And the king said unto her, Be not afraid: for what sawest thou? And the woman said unto Saul, I saw gods ascending out of the earth. (14) And he said unto her, What form is he of? And she said, An old man cometh up; and he is covered with a mantle. And Saul perceived that it was Samuel, and he stooped with his face to the ground, and bowed himself. (15) And Samuel said to Saul, Why hast thou disquieted me, to bring me up? And Saul answered, I am sore distressed; for the Philistines make war against me, and God is departed from me, and answereth me no more, neither by prophets, nor by dreams: therefore I have called thee, that thou mayest make known unto me what I shall do. (16) Then said Samuel, Wherefore then dost thou ask of me, seeing the LORD is departed from thee, and is become thine enemy? (17) And the LORD hath done to him, as he spake by me: for the LORD hath rent the kingdom out of thine hand, and given it to thy neighbour, even to David: (18) Because thou obeyedst not the voice of the LORD, nor executedst his fierce wrath upon Amalek, therefore hath the LORD done this thing unto thee this day. (19) Moreover the LORD will also deliver Israel with thee into the hand of the Philistines: and tomorrow shalt thou and thy sons be with me: the LORD also shall deliver the host of Israel into the hand of the Philistines. (20) Then Saul fell straightway all along on the earth, and was sore afraid, because of the words of Samuel: and there was no strength in him; for he had eaten no bread all the day, nor all the night.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n In order to have a right apprehension of this part of Saul’s history, it will be needful to take into the account the several circumstances connected with it. Let it be then first observed by the Reader, that what is here called having a familiar spirit, refers to those who, imposing upon the credulity and ignorance of mankind, pretended to divine, and foretell events. Thus Balaam was a noted impostor of this kind, whom Balak called out of the East, to use his enchantments against Israel. And God was pleased to overrule this man’s devices, so as absolutely to make him the instrument of blessing the very people he hired himself out to curse. See Num 22:23-24<\/span> ; and the Commentary upon those Chapters. Hence we read also in Isaiah, that there were wizards who did peep, and mutter, and spake as whispering out of the dust. See Isa 8:19<\/span> ; and Isa 29:4<\/span> . There have been such characters in all ages. And men forsaken of God, in desperate circumstances like Saul, have had recourse to them. Let us next consider how far the Lord is said to have permitted such things. Paul tells us, that it is no marvel that there should be false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. 2Co 11:13-14<\/span> . And in another part of his writings he seems to admit the possibility that one putting on the appearance of an angel from heaven might be suffered, by way of exercise to the faith of God’s children, to preach another gospel from the true one. Gal 1:8<\/span> . From these views of the subject, we cannot be at a loss to have a proper conception of this supposed apparition of Samuel to Saul, by the witch at Endor. The great enemy of souls might be permitted to personate the departed Prophet. As such he appears to Saul’s view like Samuel. He is permitted to speak of the events shortly to happen; the rout of Israel, and the death of Saul and of his sons. And thus, through this means, Saul is awfully apprised of what is about to follow. That it could not be Samuel himself is, I think, evident from other considerations. Neither Satan nor his instruments, can have power over the souls of glorified saints. Neither was it probable that Saul, at his death, should in his spirit associate with Samuel. Neither could the soul of Samuel be said to come up out of the earth, when we know that the spirits of just men made perfect are with the Lord. Neither, had it been really Samuel, would he have told him of the awful events about to take place, without following it up with advice to repent, instead of driving him to despair, and thereby forming a temptation to self-murder. From all these considerations, it seems to me very evident that there was a permission for the appearance of Samuel’s form by the Prince of the power of the air, the spirit that both then and now still worketh in the children of disobedience; the Lord overruling in this instance, as in that of Balaam, and in the case of another spirit, permitted to foretell the fall of Ahab at Ramoth Gilead. See 1Ki 22:20-22<\/span> .<\/p>\n<\/p>\n But, while I have said so much, by way of helping the ordinary Reader to what appears to me to be the safest plan of forming a right conception of this part of Saul’s history, I beg that he will allow me to suggest to him one thought upon it which is more important; and which may not only serve to guide his mind, under grace, to a becoming humbleness on this, but other parts of scripture which are not so interesting for us to be over anxious about the clear apprehension of. Depend upon it, my Brother, had it been an object of moment to the peace or comfort of the church, the Holy Ghost would have been more explicit. But wherever we meet with anything of obscurity, the reason is obvious: Secret things belong to the Lord our God. Enough is revealed for us and our children to know. And here let our chief enquiry be directed. One passage in the supposed conference between Saul and Samuel, opens to our minds a subject of infinite improvement; and to this I would desire to direct the Reader’s principal attention: I mean where Saul saith, I am sore distressed; for the Philistines make war against me, and God is departed from me. Oh! Reader! what state out of hell can exceed this in misery? When a child of God is in trouble the Lord is with him. If sorrow, sickness, nay even sin oppress him, Jesus is the support and burden-bearer of all: and he both bears his people, and all their burdens with him. But to be at once forsaken both of heaven, and earth, where shall the wretched run for deliverance then? What a dolorous case like that of Saul’s, doth the prophet de scribe, when he saith; Woe is me for my hurt; my wound is grievous: truly this is a grief, and I must bear it. Jer 10:19<\/span> .<\/p>\n 1Sa 28:8 And Saul disguised himself, and put on other raiment, and he went, and two men with him, and they came to the woman by night: and he said, I pray thee, divine unto me by the familiar spirit, and bring me [him] up, whom I shall name unto thee.<\/p>\n Ver. 8. And Saul disguised himself.<\/strong> ] As well he might with shame enough, thus to return to his vomit, and make use of those whom he had formerly suppressed. A hypocrite will at length be detected, that he may be detested.<\/p>\n by the familiar spirit. Hence called necromancy. <\/p>\n disguised: 1Ki 14:2, 1Ki 14:3, 1Ki 22:30, 1Ki 22:34, Job 24:13-15, Jer 23:24, Joh 3:19 <\/p>\n I pray thee: Deu 18:11, 1Ch 10:13, Isa 8:19 <\/p>\n bring me: 1Sa 28:15 <\/p>\n Reciprocal: 2Ch 18:29 – I will disguise Eze 12:6 – cover<\/p>\n 1Sa 28:8. Saul disguised himself Both because he was ashamed to be known, or thought guilty of this practice, and because he suspected the woman, if she knew him, would not practise her art before him. And he went In all haste that very night, stripped of his regal apparel, and attended only by two companions. How nearly allied are infidelity and impiety to superstition; and what will not they do who will not confide in and obey God! But a few hours before he was too haughty to profess himself the servant of the living God, and to observe his laws, and now he is the slave of his fears and follies! The most infidel man, says Delaney, that I ever conversed with, was, by the accounts of those who best knew him, the most superstitious.<\/p>\n 28:8 And Saul {d} disguised himself, and put on other raiment, and he went, and two men with him, and they came to the woman by night: and he said, I pray thee, divine unto me by the familiar spirit, and bring me [him] up, whom I shall name unto thee.<\/p>\n (d) He does not seek God in his misery, but is led by Satan to unlawful means, which in his conscience he condemns.<\/p>\n Saul’s conversation with the medium 28:8-14<\/span><\/p>\n Evidently Saul knew the woman would not cooperate with him if she knew who he was, so he disguised himself (1Sa 28:8). He further hid his hypocrisy by visiting her under cover of darkness. Saul sank so low as to swear to the woman in the Lord’s name that he would not punish her for breaking the Lord’s Law (1Sa 28:10). This too was hypocrisy. He wanted to give a public impression of upholding the Mosaic Law, but really he broke it by seeking her out. Saul asked her to bring Samuel up from Sheol, the place of departed spirits.<\/p>\n I think it is most likely that God allowed Samuel, or perhaps a vision or apparition of Samuel, to appear, as the text states (1Sa 28:12; 1Sa 28:15-16), with still another prophecy (post-mortem!) from the Lord (1Sa 28:16-19). The woman also saw who Saul really was, and this surprise terrified her because she discovered that her life was in danger. Some interpreters have concluded that a demon who impersonated Samuel came up. However, what this being proceeded to say in 1Sa 28:16-19 argues against this view. It was a message from God. Others have suggested that the woman tricked Saul into thinking that the person he saw was Samuel, but he was not. However, her own surprise argues against this view (1Sa 28:12). [Note: See ibid., pp. 194-95; and Archer, Encyclopedia of . . ., pp. 180-81.] <\/span> Evidently she expected contact with a demon posing as Samuel, but, to her amazement, God really permitted Samuel, or a vision of him, to appear. This seems to have been a divine revelation to Saul, the last one God gave him. [Note: See Keil and Delitzsch, pp. 265-69.] <\/span><\/p>\n "The incident does not tell us anything about the veracity of claims to consult the dead on the part of mediums, because the indications are that this was an extraordinary event for her, and a frightening one because she was not in control." [Note: Baldwin, p. 159.] <\/span><\/p>\n Mediums and spiritists do not have access to the dead but communicate with evil spirits posing as people who have died. That is why these spirits are called "lying spirits" (1Ki 22:22). This passage does not say that the witch brought up Samuel from the dead. God revealed Samuel to Saul.<\/p>\n Saul assured the medium that she did not need to fear him. Any supernatural guidance he could obtain with her help was worth her life to him. She described Samuel as a divine being (Heb. elohim<\/span>, lit. strong one). This is, of course, a common name of God in the Old Testament. However it also describes the judges in Israel who were divine beings in the sense that they served as judges under the Great Judge (Psa 82:6; cf. Joh 10:35). Perhaps the woman meant that the man she saw looked like a judge or like a divine being because he was imposing. Samuel was one of the judges in Israel. She saw Samuel, or his apparition, coming up out of the earth (i.e., the netherworld). The ancients connected the area under the surface of the earth with the place of departed spirits because they buried people under the surface of the earth.<\/p>\n The writer identified Samuel as old and wrapped in a robe (1Sa 28:14). This is an interesting detail since Saul had previously torn Samuel’s robe when Samuel announced that God had rejected Saul from being king (1Sa 15:27). Samuel had told Saul, "The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today" (1Sa 15:28; cf. 1Sa 24:4). Saul recognized Samuel and bowed before him out of respect. This too was hypocritical since he had not previously obeyed Samuel nor was he about to act on the warning that Samuel would soon give him.<\/p>\n And Saul disguised himself, and put on other raiment, and he went, and two men with him, and they came to the woman by night: and he said, I pray thee, divine unto me by the familiar spirit, and bring me [him] up, whom I shall name unto thee. 8. they came to the woman … Continue reading “Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of 1 Samuel 28:8”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7962","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-commentary"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7962","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7962"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7962\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7962"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7962"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7962"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible <\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"